Recipes/meals for lower carbs/sugar?

[sproctopus]

Mar 9, 2020 20:00:31 GMT -5 winecat said:

Mar 9, 2020 19:57:25 GMT -5 sproctopus said:

I had a lot of the same thoughts-- but trust, a salad IS filling. The fiber and bulk from the veggies (and additional protein) definitely fills you up. I eat a salad and a Greek yogurt every single day for lunch. I get a lot of salad ideas from undercoverweightwatcher on Instagram and cook a ton from Skinnytaste.

Some fat in a salad (avocado, cheese, etc.) along with the protein is key for me.  

Yes-- good point. I always choose full fat dressings or cheeses (instead of the "skinny" versions)-- a smaller amount of the real is better to me than more of the reduced fat.

[shopgirl07]

Mar 9, 2020 19:52:28 GMT -5 RoxMonster said:

I do like salad; I worry that it isn’t enough to fill me up for lunch. I think the bigger issue is that at work (I teach), I don’t really have any time to eat during the day except to scarf something down at lunch, which isn’t healthy and I’m always starving by the time I sit down to eat. Maybe I can try to eat something quick during a passing period as a snack so I’m not quite so hungry at lunch? I have to eat breakfast around 6 AM and don’t eat again until lunch at noon. Tomorrow I am going to try it though. I have a salad with chicken, veggies, nuts and eggs so hopefully that’ll be a bit more substantial.

Seriously, thanks so much for all the ideas, thoughts, and advice!

When you add protein to salads, they are very filling. You can also add nuts, fruit and cheese. I promise, you’ll be full.

[dutchgirl678]

One thing I have learned with Keto is that fat is good. It keeps you full. Make sure you add enough protein as well. So adding avocado or nuts and full-fat yogurt is actually a good thing. Do you have access to a microwave to heat up lunch?

[hocus2]

I love sweets and carbs too. I think you might find working with a nutritionist helpful but in the short terms so reasonable options are:

1. Something like a taco salad -- meat (chicken is fine), beans, standard taco toppings and then maybe a bit of dressing.
2. If you like sandwiches just switch to eating them open so you only use 1 piece of bread.
3. Try squash noodles. I like the butternut ones which I eat with meat sauce.
4. Having fruit or veggie as a light snack before dinner will help you eat less and slow down. This is particularly helpful if you're eating out and have more limited options.
5. Swapping rice and pasta with other options like quinoa or rice cauliflower.
6. I found keeping single serve options of things I liked but could not over eat as a treat was helpful. You know yourself best but I could do just fine with say one dove chocolate but eat 10 oreos so we have no cookies in the house but I do have a treat maybe 3 times a week.

[kadams767]

Mar 9, 2020 18:07:30 GMT -5 RoxMonster said:

I hate cooking and do not cook, but my DH loves to cook and he does cook for both of us. He is on board with eating the same way I am going to as he wants to lose a bit of weight as well. Honestly, I like the carbs - potatoes, rice, noodles. We always have a starch with our meal. Tonight we're doing salmon, asparagus, and a rice pilaf with a salad. I am going to try to eat less of the rice, but I just don't feel like it's a complete meal without it, you know? And that is probably a mental thing for me.

Like the thought of doing our chicken and veggie stir fry not over rice like my doc suggested doesn't even seem like a meal to me! I know this is a "me" issue lol. I also worry about it not filling me up enough without it. But I am willing to try. I saw a recipe just now for like taco zucchini boats that looked good, for instance.

Have you tried cauliflower rice?  On it's own (ie. as a standalone side dish), I don't love it, but I find its an easy substitute for dishes that go over rice (chili, stir fry, beans and rice, etc.) or casserole type dishes.  

I really love this dish, and make it with 2 bags of frozen cauliflower rice instead of dealing with the cauliflower florets.  I also need to cut the cheese back about 50% and still find it very delicious and satisfying.


www.ibreatheimhungry.com/green-chicken-enchilada-cauliflower-casserole-low-carb/

[icedcoffee]

Mar 9, 2020 19:00:40 GMT -5 dexteroni said:

The easiest way to do get into it IMO is to just leave the starchy item out of a meal. Just make and eat more of the protein and vegetable portions. If that doesn't seem like a full meal, try making two different vegetables. It might just be that you want two sides.

Yes, this.  Most sustainable and easiest is to just cut the starchy item out.  My H cooks dinner and he'll still make starch, but I just don't eat it anymore.  Sometimes I'll pull an extra veggie out so I still have 2 sides.  You'll get used to eating mostly protein with veggies.  I don't even really miss it.  We keep lots of frozen and canned veggies on hand so if dinner has too many carbs I'll grab a can of green beans or whatever and eat that instead.

[calmcosmo]

I decided last fall that I was ready to lose some weight and have been working with a dietician named Amanda Nighbert. I have lost about 25 pounds since late October and the process has been really easy following her structured program. 

She recommends carb cycling - basically eating low carb 2-3 days per week, and regular carb 3-4 days per week. This is done both for metabolic health (less plateaus) but also because it is a sustainable way to live. It is rare that people can be "keto" forever. My dietician stressed to me that if I was going to do something to lose weight I needed to be willing to continue to do it forever to keep the weight off. So her approach has been more "slow and steady" than "drop 20 pounds in one month". 

Amanda's program is called LEAN. I'll link the FAQ here. amandanighbert.com/faq/
This program has changed my life. I finally feel like I am doing something that both works and is sustainable. It is not MLM or anything like that - no shakes or anything to buy. She provides the structure, support and meal plans (all foods can be purchased at the grocery store). It's extremely informational. I have done Whole30, WW, and tried losing on my own a dozen times. Even with all of the books I've read I learned an incredible amount by doing her program. 

Feel free to message me if you have questions. If you decide to work with her I have a referral code I can give you for $10 off (JQ159F). 

[keegmiles]

Last year I was finally ready to make a dietary change. I was the heaviest I’ve ever been. Previous doctors just told me to lose weight, but didn’t give me tools. My current PCP set me up with his care coordinator and when she told me to eat less than 1500 calories/day and shoot for 150 carbs, I blew it off at first. Then I started doing it and I have seen results. The first couple of weeks I was starving all the time, but I hadn’t figured out my protein/carb/fat/fiber ratios. Snacks are also so very important so you don’t overeat at a meal. This is a sample day for me and it’s sustainable. I don’t feel deprived or like I’m missing out on anything. I also track everything in MyFitnessPal now.

I usually eat the fruit/cottage cheese single serve containers for breakfast. I like the Kroger Carbmaster version because it’s less carbs but a lot of protein. For two, it’s 16g of carbs/30g of protein. I usually snack on a 100 calorie pack of almonds, prosciutto paninos, or some Greek yogurt. For lunch, my favorite is a taco salad with black beans. For dinner I do a meat (and I weigh it out, you’d be surprised at how much you’re getting) Brussel sprouts or broccoli, and then a roll. I eat a ton of brussel sprouts. Honestly, try to implement a couple of things at once instead of overhauling it all. I occasionally have days where I eat too much (I’m looking at you, Monday), but overall it’s sustainable and I’m happy.

That’s all I got, and it may not work for you. It’s worked for me and I’d be happy to support you. My user name on myfitnesspal is LLcoolRaye if you want to add me. I’d be happy to be your cheerleader!

[cuadrado]

Mar 9, 2020 17:26:49 GMT -5 RoxMonster said:

Thank you for all the recs so far!

A couple responses to folks - I do love eggs! I have them every morning for breakfast.

And as far as my doc goes, she is my gyn and I have always really liked her, and she didn't really say anything to me that was rude or judging but yeah. I wish she would have just given me some tips for substitutions or meals or what not without giving me a timeline with how much weight I need to lose by that time. She also recommended I read a book called The Sugar Crush. I noticed it was free with Kindle Unlimited, so I DLed it and skimmed it (it's not very long). Obviously cutting back on sugar is a good thing - I am not arguing that at all - but the guy who wrote it sounded kind of like a dick who recommended having butter almost every day but said you should only eat pizza if you are on a desert island and have no other option. He also pushed the Keto Diet. And I am not trying to ignore true health issues or anything like that, but it came across as a lot of "You need to stop eating sugar now or you will die and I will be cutting your feet off," and....it's just not really what I needed to hear right now! So blah. I wish I wouldn't have looked at that book.

I think you can like your doctor and feel that she treats you with respect and also recognize that advice she gave you isn't helpful (and could possibly be harmful). 

If you want a different book recommendation,. Angela Grassi with the PCOS nutrition center has a PCOS workbook that is really wonderful. I would also highly recommend episode 74 of the "Don't Salt My Game" podcast which is a discussion with registered dietitians about how to manage PCOS.

The root of managing PCOS is decreasing inflammation and improving insulin sensitivity. You can add in lots of things that will decrease your androgens, improve inflammation and help insulin resistance without the focus solely being on cutting back sugar. Usually when you spend more energy on adding things that you like that fit into a health meal pattern and discovering things that make you feel good, you naturally decrease things that don't. Your sole focus doesn't have to be on sugar. Here are a few things you can think about instead:

- make sure you're getting enough good quality sleep
- if you're stressed, either decrease stress or find coping mechanisms
- include fat and protein at most meals and snacks
- increase your omega 3's
- try to always have a fat or protein when consuming a carb
- make sure you're getting a little bit of fiber with meals and snacks (whole grains, fruits, vegetables)
- gentle body movement - yoga and strength training are more beneficial than high intensity exercises (which can be pro-inflammatory)

Getting good sleep and managing stress is so important for hormonal health.

As a side note: Not sure if you've ever considered this but I think it would be okay if you told your doctor at your next visit, "You know - I found our discussion about eliminating sugar to be a bit triggering for me, and I didn't really think the Sugar Crush book was very helpful in helping me learn how to manage my PCOS. Do you have any other resources?" It sounds silly, but sometimes doctors don't really hear any follow-up from the nutrition recommendations they give to patients. Many women with PCOS have really poor body image,  a poor relationship with food (60% binge eat in some capacity) and suffer from anxiety or depression, so giving you doctor some feedback may help her provide different/better resources to you and future clients. 

[Roc A Bee]

I will say that staying low carb for me is 100% mental. It’s the choosing of the food that is the hardest part because my body will be fine on what I give it (given that you are eating enough calories). I had to remind myself daily that not every meal is my last meal because I want to reward myself with sweets daily. I’ve lost over 100lbs being low carb and exercising, and I’ve recently added back about 30 of those. So I’m starting again.

[RoxMonster]

Thank you all! I can't check in during the day at work, so I'm just catching up. A few comments:
-I do have access to a microwave at work. Taco salads sound really good. Today I had a salad with chicken, nuts, cranberries, tomatoes, and feta and felt pretty full after. I'm sure the dressing had sugar (it was from a restaurant so no nutrition info), but I didn't put a ton on the salad and can look into making my own dressing in the future.

-I didn't even think about HIIT exercise being inflammatory. When I workout, I typically do YouTube videos and honestly had been focusing on HIIT. So that is a change I could make. I do love hiking and biking on weekends when I can get outside. I am like the least flexible person ever, so yoga is tough but I'd be open to working up to it.

-Thanks for the podcast/book recs. I will check those out. I agree with giving my doctor feedback when I go see her in July.

Yeah, I really think the biggest thing for me is I have to find something I can do for the rest of my life. When I was successful at weight loss before, I would full out cry at restaurants and spend half of my Saturday killing myself at the gym and it was not healthy, it was not something I could ever maintain, and I gained all the weight back and then some. I enjoy eating out on the weekends. I want to be able to still go do things socially and being able to eat at a restaurant or whatever. It's just about finding good substitutes and options and things I can live with. I did find some recipes that use cauliflower rice mixed in and I would be willing to try those. I have tried subbing spaghetti squash for real pasta in the past and....was not impressed lol. But I am open to trying other substitutes.

[idahome]

I’ll second (or third) a registered dietitian. I meet with one who is doctor-recommended and free.

I’m a type 2 diabetic and we focused a lot on learning how to count carbs and stay in a recommended range. Once I got the hang of 15 grams = 1 carb for my purposes and I needed to keep it at 10 carbs per day it was manageable and I saw results.

The great thing about my dietitian is that she didn’t just focus on food: we also talked about increasing activity and even my emotional relationship with food.

Good luck as you figure out how to make this change. In the end it will be worth it.

[statgirl]

I eat a lot of eggs. I scramble them and cook them in the microwave with frozen veggies (I pull them out in the morning to thaw) and a meat (usually bacon or lunch meat) at work. I have one of those microwave omelet things, but if it is dirty, I just use a bowl. Most of the time, it is 1.5 minutes on regular power. If I didn’t prethaw the veggies, I defrost first.

[hocus2]

Mar 10, 2020 18:41:29 GMT -5 RoxMonster said:

Yeah, I really think the biggest thing for me is I have to find something I can do for the rest of my life. When I was successful at weight loss before, I would full out cry at restaurants and spend half of my Saturday killing myself at the gym and it was not healthy, it was not something I could ever maintain, and I gained all the weight back and then some. I enjoy eating out on the weekends. I want to be able to still go do things socially and being able to eat at a restaurant or whatever. It's just about finding good substitutes and options and things I can live with. I did find some recipes that use cauliflower rice mixed in and I would be willing to try those. I have tried subbing spaghetti squash for real pasta in the past and....was not impressed lol. But I am open to trying other substitutes.

Eating out is still really challenging for me but I do eat out, attend parties and generally eat socially (e.g. will have a cookie if someone offers and I am not full). If you eat out often then finding the every day options at local places is doing to be key (for me that might be roast chicken, veggies, salad with a clear dressing like vinaigrette on the side). There are going to be 4 to 5 special nights when you go all out and enjoy the rich food a special place has to offer with no reservation -- that just can't be every weekend. 

Some folks just eat what they like in much small portions. I know someone who basically just eat half meals and take the other half home. I think you'll find your path and I encourage you to find a community that is support of your specific approach.

FWIW I found butternut spirals far more noodle like than spaghetti squash. 

[suzubell]

Intermittent fasting has been a game changer for me and really helped with my insulin resistance. I first read "Delay, Don't Deny" by Gin Stephens, but quickly followed it up with "The Obesity Code" by Dr. Jason Fung. It isn't hyperbole to say that The Obesity Code changed my life and everything I believe about eating and dieting. I am down 10 pounds in 3 months with little effort. Tonight I had margaritas and a full dinner out with my brother. I will still be the same weight or down a bit in the morning. Timing my meals has made all of the difference.

[laurack]

I hardly ever cook dinner with starch anymore as my H tries to do the keto diet. We eat a lot of just meat and veggie dinners.

I roast bone in skin on chicken thighs in the oven with green beans and olive oil and seasoning

Tacos (H just has a taco salad but nothing else changes)

Spaghetti with meat sauce or meatballs, Zucchini noodles instead of wheat. You could also try the chickpea pasta which has carbs but less than usual and is high in protein and fiber!

Kabobs on the grill (meat with veggies marinaded). Sometimes I make swordfish kabobs with bacon and cherry tomatoes.

Salad for an extra side instead of starch

I make meatloaf sometimes with almond flour in it

Cauliflower fried rice

Sauté ground beef, add cut up peppers and onion and season. Then cover with cheese and broil.

Chicken Lettuce wraps, mmm.

I make pot roast as normal and just don’t serve potato with it. Same with beef stew, I add carrots, onion, maybe mushrooms, turnip etc. and leave the potato out. I thicken with corn starch and don’t worry about the few grams of carbs in that.

Good luck !

[hamster]

I will add that for me, substitutes dont work. There is no shortage of fake noodle variations, but honestly it just makes me want real noodles even more. I find I do better if I eat the real stuff say, once a week, and just avoid the other stuff.

As far as meals here are some we have done lately:

Kabobs
Taco salad
Buffalo chicken salad
Burger salad
Milk braised pork
Chilaquiles
Oven baked chicken thighs

Pizza loaf (meatloaf, but with pizza ingredients)

H is on some sort of no carb diet and has been eating a lot of avocado and olives as a side dish.

[jr009j]

I’ll recommend “Always Hungry?” If you’re looking to lower carbs. It’s a lower carb meal plan that makes a majority of carbs from “slow carbs”-essentially ones that take a while for your system to process like beans, nuts, and fruit. It’s not keto. It works really well for me and basically eliminates all sugar cravings. Unfortunately my cravings are more texture related and I haven’t found replacements for some of the more crunchy things.

[dexteroni]

Mar 10, 2020 21:37:54 GMT -5 laurack said:

Chicken Lettuce wraps, mmm.

Oh God I could eat lettuce wraps every day.

[dexteroni]

Mar 10, 2020 18:41:29 GMT -5 RoxMonster said:

I have tried subbing spaghetti squash for real pasta in the past and....was not impressed lol. 

I love spaghetti squash, but I don't like it with marinara on it. Like, at all. But if you top it with black pepper and parm, a la cacio e pepe, it's a great sub for a starchy side.

[RoxMonster]

So as a bit of an update. We had Olive Garden and I had the chicken Margherita which was grilled chicken with tomatoes, basil, etc with a side of spiralized zucchini. The zucchini had some cheese and seasonings on it and was pretty good! I think I’d be ok with it as a pasta substitute for a pasta dish. Also had a salad and I think for eating out, esp at a pasta place, I did pretty well with the no/low carbs.

[dutchgirl678]

Great choices! How wonderful that Olive Garden offers zoodles (spiralized zucchini) now. That is one of my favorite ways to still eat pasta. At home I will sometimes make it too (you can buy a spiralizer on Amazon for $15) and toss in a bunch of pesto and grilled shrimp. Super easy!