Everyday Systems

I was just curious what people choose to eat for the most part at every meal.

I don't know about you, but I tend to find the handful of things that I really like and usually eat them every day just to make it easier as opposed to always looking for something new to eat or searching for recipes to keep it interesting.

As you get into the the noS diet you will begin to see your meals in a different way. Since you will not be snacking between meals, the importance of your breakfast, lunch and dinner is amplified. I have found that it is well worth the time to prepare something a little special. Since the meal times are so important I have found that I would rather take my time getting ready for them. I realize that this is hard to do when you are rushed, but it is important to slow down. Eat slowly, enjoy the taste of the food and make the time special. Just as weight comes off slowly on the no S diet, change in habits are made slowly as well. For myself, that is the beauty of the no S program. Notice I called it a program not a diet. That is an important distinction for me. Diets have a beginning and an end, but the no S program is a change of life style, and that takes time and patience.

I'm still pretty new to No S, so I'm still trying to figure out what I want to eat, but here's a sample for you:

Breakfast: 1 C cereal, 1/2 C rice milk, 1/2 C applesauce, 1 piece of toast with butter and a tiny bit of preserves or some peanut butter.
Alternative breakfast (I'll admit this is a big gray area, but it's good): whole grain mini pancakes with butter, a little syrup, about 1/2 C of blueberries, and whipped cream, sausage patty or the Morning Star Sausage patties.
Lunch: Sandwich on whole wheat bread (turkey, tuna, chicken salad, etc) with Smart Balance Omega Plus Spread, the meat or tuna, lettuce, tomato, and pickles. Fat free yogurt. Veggies with full fat salad dressing for dip. A piece of fresh fruit.
Dinner: Varies quite a bit, but I've gotten really good about keeping it to one plate.

Breakfast: toast with butter, fruit -- sometimes a smoothie with juice, yogurt and berries. Occasionally 1-2 eggs. If I eat breakfast -- I'm not much of a breakfast eater.

Lunch: Nearly always soup, bread and a small salad or other raw vegetables; fruit.

Dinner. Salad, Main dish (Usually chicken or fish, sometimes pork or beef, sometimes a one-dish meal of some sort); one or two vegetables on the side. Maybe fruit.

I don't pay attention to the one plate rule; I have one serving of whatever is being served.

Breakfast: on weekdays, it's usually Optimized Oatmeal (old-fashioned oats, walnuts, raisins, soymilk) and a glass of juice. On week-ends, it's probably an omelet.

Lunch: on weekdays, it's most often leftovers from dinner the night before. On weekends, we eat lunch out, so that varies. I try to eyeball a normal plate and bring the leftovers home.

Dinner: sometimes beans, grains, veggies. Sometimes meat, potato, veggie.

My biggest challenge is to put enough on my plate so it will last me until the next meal without wanting a snack. Still working on that!

Breakfast: About a cup of cereal and half cup skim milk
Lunch: Salad with lite dressing or steamed veggies, always with a small amount of chicken and a slice of 100% whole grain bread
Dinner: One plate/bowl of whatever I make for dinner.


I also have two "mini meals" - between breakfast and lunch, a cheese stick and between lunch and dinner, yogurt with granola. I've lost 17 lbs. this way.

For breakfast a moderate-sized bowl of cereal with about 1 c. of whole milk. A small glass of orange juice with sparkling water.

Lunch: a sandwich and an apple.

Supper: varies. Some meat, a starch, a veggie. Dessert is always fresh fruit. Nothing very fancy. I like to keep things really simple.

Kathy

Varies, with some constants. Breakfast is usually oatmeal or bagels, lunch is usually leftovers.

My daily check-in usually lists what I ate that day (a lot of people do that, if you're interested), and the "intelligent dietary defaults" sticky thread above has "what I have if there's nothing more amusing to be had."

You might find these threads of interest:

http://everydaysystems.com/bb/viewtopic ... =eat+today

http://everydaysystems.com/bb/viewtopic ... =eat+today

Nichole wrote:Breakfast: About a cup of cereal and half cup skim milk
Lunch: Salad with lite dressing or steamed veggies, always with a small amount of chicken and a slice of 100% whole grain bread
Dinner: One plate/bowl of whatever I make for dinner.


I also have two "mini meals" - between breakfast and lunch, a cheese stick and between lunch and dinner, yogurt with granola. I've lost 17 lbs. this way.

Are you having the mini meals, because you find it hard to make it to each meal without feeling that you are starving? Are mini meals allowed if you really feel like you need them?

Here's a question for anyone who reads this: when I ate my breakfast of cereal, applesauce, yogurt, and toast with peanut butter, I felt full, but I barely felt full. I probably could have eaten a small portion of something else to help me feel more satisfied, but I'm not sure what. Any suggestions? Should I maybe just switch to 2% Lactaid Milk instead of rice milk (I'm lactose intolerant)?
Thanks!

clarinetgal wrote:Here's a question for anyone who reads this: when I ate my breakfast of cereal, applesauce, yogurt, and toast with peanut butter, I felt full, but I barely felt full. I probably could have eaten a small portion of something else to help me feel more satisfied, but I'm not sure what. Any suggestions? Should I maybe just switch to 2% Lactaid Milk instead of rice milk (I'm lactose intolerant)?
Thanks!

How about adding a banana or perhaps some cottage cheese? (I love to mix cottage cheese and applesauce. Yum!)

frugaltexan, I'll try that! Cottage cheese is iffy for me because of my issues with dairy, but I can certainly add a banana or something. Thanks!

No problem.

clarinetgal wrote:Here's a question for anyone who reads this: when I ate my breakfast of cereal, applesauce, yogurt, and toast with peanut butter, I felt full, but I barely felt full. I probably could have eaten a small portion of something else to help me feel more satisfied, but I'm not sure what. Any suggestions? Should I maybe just switch to 2% Lactaid Milk instead of rice milk (I'm lactose intolerant)?
Thanks!

Did it last you until lunch time? I'd probably omit the cereal and add an egg or two.

Wosnes, Just barely. I may have to add a couple of eggs.

Hey Man wrote:

Nichole wrote:Breakfast: About a cup of cereal and half cup skim milk
Lunch: Salad with lite dressing or steamed veggies, always with a small amount of chicken and a slice of 100% whole grain bread
Dinner: One plate/bowl of whatever I make for dinner.


I also have two "mini meals" - between breakfast and lunch, a cheese stick and between lunch and dinner, yogurt with granola. I've lost 17 lbs. this way.

Are you having the mini meals, because you find it hard to make it to each meal without feeling that you are starving? Are mini meals allowed if you really feel like you need them?

Hmmm, I don't really care about "what's allowed." I do what works for me. Yeah, I feel like I'm starving if I don't have something in between. I lost 17 lbs this way, so it's all good. For me.

clarinetgal wrote:Wosnes, Just barely. I may have to add a couple of eggs.

There's nothing wrong with being hungry. I was just thinking about this...I think the problem may be that we've been taught that there is something wrong with being hungry.

I'll have to keep experimenting with that. It seems like I'm eating a pretty big amount of food right now (I fill all 3 plates), but I've oddly still felt hungry, although not to the point where I'm starving. I may just ride it out and see if my appetite gets back to normal again.

Clarinetgirl, keep in mind that being pretty hungry 20 minutes before a meal has historically been the NORMAL way to feel.

One of the reasons I like No-S that has little to do with diet and weight loss is the fact that I really ENJOY every single meal I eat because I AM hungry.

Really, it's great for the hedonist and the epicure, and I think one of the reasons I like it so. Instead of restriction and deprivation, I get these lovely periods of pleasure three times a day that are really nice. Even the simplest meal is just WONDERFUL when you're truly hungry.

Noel, Yes, I agree that it's good to feel hungry. It just seems like I've been that much hungrier lately, and I'm not sure why.
I also get much more pleasure out of my food now. I enjoy making it, looking at it on the plate, and eating it.

Noel, I agree with you! I'm enjoying my meals much more, because I'm really hungry for them.

On the other side of the coin, after I eat a one-plate meal, I am quite comfortably full and don't have to think about food for 6 hours or so.

A year ago, I started doing the "Eat-when-you're-hungry,-stop-when-you're full" thing and I did lose some weight. But I was perpetually half-hungry. I got tired of feeling that way.

Kathy