Controlling my food addiction with 'Eating Less' & GL

Megumi

Full Member
Looking for a place to chart my food diaries online.

Previous SW member (mostly successful) but after another pregnancy and various life events struggling to keep my addiction under control. SW can become very repetitive and still very much a 'diet' which implies a temporary state to me.

Reading 'Eating Less' and applying the principles so no weighing and not focusing on weight loss just healthy choices and control.

Successfully implemented last year for a few weeks till my emotions got the better of me but a sound idea so trying again. The journey will be long and treacherous.
 
Wednesday 4th March 2015

Breakfast: Porridge - 70g oats with 200ml semi skim milk and 200ml water (only measured as this was my SW breakfast)

Snack: Banana - the smell of the soup cooking was getting to me.

Lunch: Split Pea Soup - big bowl (700ml?), homemade from Moosewood cookbook, free on SW Green, low GL as far as I can tell so far, replaced the potato with sweet potato, left overs in the fridge.

Tea: Quorn & veg stir fry with egg noodles - unmeasured, family tea. Noodles are medium GL. Quorn and veg was all low but I suspect the shop bought sauce was high & sugary although we don't use a lot.

Supper: Apricot Wheats & milk - large bowl, not brilliant but better than a packet of biscuits, would like to eliminate supper eventually.

Drinks: White coffee with sweeteners & diet orangeade

Overall a brilliant day. First day without toast or chocolate for a long while.

Struggling with the measuring side of GL choices at the moment but by focusing on the type of food initially (very similar to Green SW) and basically cooking everything from scratch I will be in a better place to limit the carbs in the future.

Ordered a couple of second hand GL books from amazon for recipe's although I mostly use my moosewood books at home which are pretty healthy anyway.

Re-reading the book and just finished chapter one. Things that are apparent - I'm scared of being hungry, of not being able to eat, this is ridiculous.

I am fast approaching 40 and need to collate a list of existing and potential health related issues. On the whole I'm pretty lucky and healthy in my body (not my mind...) but I can feel time taking it's toll on my joints and ligaments more and more.
 
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Thursday 5th March 2015

Breakfast: Porridge - 70g oats with 200ml semi skim milk and 200ml water

Lunch: 500ml Split Pea Soup (left overs) - this is the nicest soup in the world, I think because it reminds me of chips and mushy peas with loads of vinegar.

First issue came that because I didn't overeat yesterday I was actually hungry for breakfast at 8am which meant I was hungry for lunch by 11am. Then at 2pm when my 2yo wanted a cheese quesadilla for lunch I was annoyed and hungry. Decided to start chopping veg for tea and boiling some white beans for tomorrow's lunch instead of eating. Read chapter 2 whilst feeding little one.

Snack: Celery, carrots, 1 oz cheese, HL salad cream (2 tbsp.?) - shared with 2yo...

Tea: Pasta with sundried tomatoes, family meal. I didn't eat more than a couple of mouthfuls. We used to eat a lot of pasta and I've cut down to once or twice a week.

Snack: Celery, carrots, 1 oz cheese & HL salad cream again, small bowl of white beans & red onions

Drinks: White coffee with sweeteners mango zero & diet orangeade

Another good day. Was concerned about tea as I always want garlic bread (I cook it for the family) but hey, I practically burnt it today so it was easy to ignore!
 
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Friday 6th March 2015

Breakfast: Porridge - 70g oats with 200ml semi skim milk and 200ml water

Snack: Banana & diet redbull - went shopping for red wine vinegar and tahini (how pretentious!) and managed not to buy any nonsense even though I saw multi coloured baklava...

Lunch: 500ml Split Pea Soup (left overs)

Tea: Scheherazade Casserole (bulgar, soy bean & feta) with broccoli, family meal. Everyone loves this, I didn't have seconds as usual.

Supper: This was so nice, we usually get chocolate, biscuits & crisps from the local shop in the evenings, especially on the weekend, so instead I put out all my stuff I'd been making and everyone came and sat down and shared :) I had: Carrots, celery, white beans & red onions, humus (which I made for the first time ever), mushrooms, beetroot, olives. It was actually really lovely. I also ignored the requests for wine, but will probably indulge tomorrow.

Drinks: White coffee with sweeteners & mango zero

Another great day. Day 3 is often the hardest but I'm not restricting quantities, just choosing healthy foods and trying to keep it low GL and trying not to eat unless I'm hungry.

On chapter 3 of the book, going slow now as it's all about the dreaded self esteem....
 
Saturday 7th March 2015

Breakfast: Porridge - 70g oats with 200ml semi skim milk and 200ml water

Snack: 2 breadsticks (made by oh - wish he wouldn't as it smells too nice :( ) and humus

Lunch: scheherazade casserole (left overs) with beetroot

Snack: small slice of bread & humus (home made)

Tea: Bowl of salad and raw veg with humus and some oil & vinegar dressing

Supper: Vodka.....too much & diet mixers. small slice of bread and marg - not bad considering!
 
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Sunday 8th March 2015 (hungover .....)

Breakfast: 6 Rough oatcakes & 1oz cheese

Lunch: split pea soup (left overs) all gone - make more

Snack: celery & humus

Tea: Butternut Squash Rissotto (jar) with broccoli and sweetcorn. Not a great choice but too tired to cook and better than pizza

Supper: carrot and humus

Finished chapter 3. Got some homework to do before I go any further and not yet had a spare minute, making a costume for 10yo...
 
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Monday 9th March 2015 (day 6)

Breakfast: Porridge

Lunch: Bowl of salad and raw veg with humus and some oil & vinegar dressing
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Snack: Oatcakes, cheese & gherkins (shared with 2yo who ate most of the gherkins....)

Tea: Tabouli & quorn sausages
2015-03-09 17.30.30.jpg

Eating this sort of food makes me happy in many ways including how pretty it looks so I will attempt to add some pictures if I particularly impressed with myself! I also figure if I can see the effort I made it will spur me on in times of weakness. Although my phone takes rubbish pictures.

So....had a fall in the evening. Had a row with OH which immediately led to me going to the shop. Proceeded to eat 2 baby tiramisu, 100g dark chocolate, a cheese & pesto quesadilla, a single tortilla with marg & half a bottle of red wine.

On the one hand, I'm disappointed and annoyed that I reacted so predictably. On the other hand, since this is no longer about weight loss but about eating better I am less worried than I would have been in the past. I haven't 'blown' the whole week as I'm not weighing myself so there's nothing to stop me getting straight back on the horse on Tuesday. This feels revolutionary. I even ate the tiramisu in front of him instead of hiding upstairs and I did enjoy those, although the rest was after he'd fallen asleep and I didn't enjoy them, just ate them for the sake of it, out of spite.
 
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Tuesday 10th March 2015 (day 7)

Breakfast: Porridge

Lunch: Bowl of salad and raw veg with humus and some oil & vinegar dressing

Snack: Oatcakes & cheese

Tea: Tabouli & quorn sausages

Supper: Red wine

Finished chapter 4 (motivation) and started 5. The GL Bible book arrived which is far more restrictive than I intend to be in terms of measuring but I'm hoping to get some additional info from it.

The whole point is to get away from a weight loss diet and just learn to love eating well and less for my health and wellbeing.
 
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Wednesday 11th March 2015 - day 8

Breakfast: Porridge

Snack: Banana - apparently not low GL but medium which isn't a surprise!

Lunch: Tabouli & quorn sausages

Tea: Quorn & veg stir fry with egg noodles

Supper: Humus & Celery

Drinks: White coffee with sweeteners & diet orangeade

Other 2 books arrived, recipe's and list's. This is the info I was looking for but sometimes it's so confusing! Pasta is listed as high in one place but low here. I know it depends on the volume of carbohydrate eaten as well as the GI but still.

I find it easier to completely avoid junk food, i.e crisps, biscuits, cakes etc as I know I am unable to just have one. I will eat it all till I feel sick. Chapter 5 of the eating less book is talking about choices & freedom in order to avoid rebelling. In principal yes, this makes perfect sense and I guess there will be times when I give myself permission to eat biscuits, but that seems a long way off at the moment.
 
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Thursday 12th March 2015

Breakfast: Porridge

Snack: Oatcakes, cheese & pickles

Lunch: Split Pea Soup

Tea: Small Jacket potato with raw veg and salad, humus & some dressing

Supper: Carrots, celery & humus

Drinks: White coffee with sweeteners & mango zero

Finished chapter 5.
 
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Friday 13th March 2015 - day 10

Breakfast: Porridge

Snack: 3 x rough oatcakes, 30g cheese, pickle

Lunch: Salad & Veg & Humus & Dressing

Tea: Split pea soup with kids - they had crusty white bread and butter which I found hard as it looked and smelt so good but I was waiting for....

Supper: Cake! 16yo becoming a vegan so made her first cake and had to try a piece.


Chapter 6 is now talking about facing the additive behaviour instead of avoiding it. I haven't weighed myself for so long, even before this so no idea of my weight which helps really as If I knew I'd be desperate to see if it was working but it's all irreverent now. Do I feel better? I always feel better eating more veg and salad and no bread so yes, obviously. Felt grotty yesterday afternoon but that maybe PMT kicking in.

Drinks: White coffee with sweeteners & mango zero
 
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Hi Megumi, I hope you don't mind if I subscribe to your diary.

You seem to be doing wonderfully so far and I am glad you are starting to feel better off for eating more fruit and veggies. I am just starting today and taking baby steps as I have overate and been eating the wrong things for so long. For example, I am just focusing on having 3 meals a day and fruits for snacks whereas later on in the journey I will have a closer look at what those meals make up and try to introduce more veggies.

Im not too sure either what my start weight is and am going to focus on how my clothes fit and how I feel than what the number is on the scale :) This is a lifestyle change not a faddy diet.

Anyway, wishing you continued success and looking forward to your next update.

x
 
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