Everyday Systems

Hi everyone,

With regards to fruit, I don't eat enough, period. On No S, at mealtimes, if it were a choice between another cheese sandwich and a banana I will be honest, the cheese sandwich wins every time. Well, two weeks ago I went down with tonsillitis even though I had my tonsils out as a child. I feel I need to up the fruit and veg to help support my immune system with vital nutrients they contain. However, one thing I thought might work is one piece of fruit with every meal. I don't fancy putting an apple on my plate with say curry and rice, so to end each meal with a piece of fruit is that ok, even if I don't physically put it on the plate? I also think it could be a good psychological signal to my brain that the meal is over until the next time. Any thoughts? All input greatly appreciated. Thanks guys.

Technically if you virtual plate and there's room on the plate for the apple, that's fine as long as you eat it at mealtime. I think it's fine even in addition to a full plate.

I add fruit to green salads. A current favorite is spinach or romaine with strawberries and avocado. Later in the summer I'll make one with greens and stone fruits. Another idea is fruit salsa. They're great with chicken, fish and pork. When I was trying to add more fruits to my diet I made smoothies for breakfast.

Or put the apple in a little bowl on the plate, whole or cut up. (Actually, I don't mind things touching, so I do put the fruit right on the plate, but there is a way to separate things.) Sometimes, I even have two little bowls on one plate, depending on the items I'm eating and how liquid they are.

MustLoseWeight wrote:Hi everyone,

However, one thing I thought might work is one piece of fruit with every meal. I don't fancy putting an apple on my plate with say curry and rice, so to end each meal with a piece of fruit is that ok, even if I don't physically put it on the plate? I also think it could be a good psychological signal to my brain that the meal is over until the next time. Any thoughts? All input greatly appreciated. Thanks guys.

I think it is MORE than ok, because this is exactly what I do: use fruit as a finisher to my meal without putting it on my plate.

And like you, I started doing it because that seemed the best way to get to eat more fruit. Now, as the years have gone by, I've discovered that two fruits a day is enough (no longer at all three meals), AND I've come to love fruit dessert much more than baked goods or other special treats most of the time. At the beginning of my NoS journey, I had dessert on Sdays at both lunch and dinner--cake, cookies, cheesecake, chocolate. Now, I have a dessert once on one S-day--not by rules or mods, but just because I like that best.

I still love and bake fresh bread, but cakes and the like have fallen by the wayside. When I make a dessert, I much prefer a fruit crumble, cobbler, or tart. Or fresh fruits poached in wine. Mmmmm. Or even a fruit tray made up of fresh fruits, dried fruits, and a scattering of nuts.

So, I say, go for it. The French do!

There was a widely reported study recently that found that vegetables seemed to be better for health than fruit. They are also often lower in calories, so I've got into the habit of sometimes eating vegetables in place of fruit (tomatoes and bell peppers). Actually, I think tomatoes ARE a fruit, technically. It might actually be easier to eat vegetables if you're not keen on fruit.

It's all good. As far as your tonsilitis is conerned, melon works quite well on soothing.

MOST (not all) of my lunch and dinner plates are about half freggies, with 1/3 the volume as fruit.

I find a piece of fruit after meals fills in any 'gaps' that the meal - however large! - might have left. I always feel physically full after my plateful but psychologically need the piece of fruit too (which would fit on my plate but I don't put it on there - I try to follow the spirit not the letter of the law on this!).

A piece of fruit after meals is a great habit and I'm finding it very useful and satisfying. Go for it!

I don't think of it as after the meal, but an end to the meal. Fruit often caps it off. I find it helpful to have some kind of signal that the meal is over beyond just eating the last bite.

Hi Oolala,

You write that you 'find it helpful to have some kind of signal that the meal is over beyond just eating the last bite.'

What is the signal for you? The fruit? I used to have a stick of gum (sugar free) after my piece of fruit which marked the end of the meal but now it's the piece of fruit. I always follows with a cup of tea too.

Oh dear, I tried swapping my muesli breakfast for a fruit smoothie, had two red days in succession. Think the muesli sets me up for the day. I probably have too much muesli but when I do, I stick to my three meals no problem. Need to seriously re evaluate as I feel I have lost the plot.

How can you have too much muesli? Especially if you keep to your three meals. (So far, I have never found much satisfaction in smoothies as a meal. I like to chew my food. I have on occasion put the smoothie in a bowl and eaten it like a cold soup, but it's still not as much fun as chewing. It seems too much like dessert, and I can go through a LOT of smoothie, using way more fruit than I would eat at one time. Just my perspective.)

Yes, I was saying the fruit is often the signal, which makes it slightly problematic when I eat out because it's hard to find fruit and to me it's way overpriced in restaurants. But I don't actually eat out that much.

I will also sometimes have coffee. SOMEtimes tea. I wish I liked tea more.

I've come to that conclusion with smoothies, too. They just aren't satisfying as a meal, unless you pair it with something like a piece of toast with peanut butter on it.

I eat a portion of fruit after my dinner most days and it probably wouldn't fit on my plate. I'm still losing weight and am in the healthy BMI category. Will I get to my skinniest this way? Probably not but it works for me.