Awkward eater

amyjaneedavies

So I'm just starting my fitness journey. I'm very motivated and enjoy going to the gym however I'm a very very fussy eater. I've never eaten a vegetable in my life and only like apples and bananas but no other fruit so the diet side is very hard for me. Any advice? (Apart from eat veg!)

kommodevaran

What do you need advice for? To not eat vegetables? Don't eat vegetables then.

R_is_for_Rachel

i would suggest that if you've never eaten a vegetable the you need to give it a go-you'll never know if you like them unless you try. Best advice is to start with sweeter veggies uncooked as they have a better texture.

Have you ever eaten a tomato? (i know officially it's a fruit but try some cherry ones anyway!). Also raw carrot-buy just one-a smallish one will be sweeter aswell. I think you'll be suprised!

I was horribly fussy when i was a kid-i would only eat peas and that's because i could swallow them whole! at 39 though I love pretty much all veggies bar green peppers which quite frankly are the spawn of the devil-lol!

neldabg

I'd Google "how to make vegetables taste good."
Check and see if you're lacking any vitamin and minerals from not eating any veggies. You can then supplement your diet with the appropiate vitamin.

zyxst

Eat what you like.

TavistockToad

amyjaneedavies wrote: »

So I'm just starting my fitness journey. I'm very motivated and enjoy going to the gym however I'm a very very fussy eater. I've never eaten a vegetable in my life and only like apples and bananas but no other fruit so the diet side is very hard for me. Any advice? (Apart from eat veg!)

Eat less of what you normally eat

Take a multi vitamin

unsuspectingfish

Drink something like V8 if you really can't stand eating them, but I'd suggest trying out a few different veggies every week to maybe see what you do like. I mean, sure, like other people here have said, you could just not eat them, but then you're missing out on a LOT of vitamins and minerals that, in my opinion, are just going to make you feel better.

I'm told that the key to making most veggies taste good is to roast them with some spices and a bit of olive oil. I'm also very picky and like them all a certain way. I hate cooked carrots but love raw ones, and I hate raw broccoli but hate it cooked. I'm also usually too tired or lazy to bother cooking them, so I like to buy those steam-in-bag frozen veggies. You just throw them in the microwave for 6-8 minutes and you're done (and then you can season them as you like). I don't know about selection where you're at, but here they also have a lot that are pre-seasoned, which are pretty good.

As for fruit, those are pretty much the only two that I eat, as well. You could do worse, honestly. Bananas are a pretty great fruit (lots of potassium).

amyjaneedavies

Thanks for the useful responses!

sarahliftsUP

Luckily you like bananas and bananas are great at disguising the flavours of other foods. I like this smoothie that has spinach in it because of the banana you don't taste it - it's just bright green. Use a scoop of your favourite vanilla protein powder, 2 cup of baby spinach, 1 banana, almond milk/milk, water and ice and then blend.

And then what everyone else has said - try different vegetables you haven't tried yet before. Experiment a little! I've heard all of the health benefits of kale; however, no matter what I do with it, I find it disgusting! haha so don't beat yourself up about it - eat foods that you enjoy so you aren't torturing yourself.

Lounmoun

amyjaneedavies wrote: »

So I'm just starting my fitness journey. I'm very motivated and enjoy going to the gym however I'm a very very fussy eater. I've never eaten a vegetable in my life and only like apples and bananas but no other fruit so the diet side is very hard for me. Any advice? (Apart from eat veg!)

If your goal is weight loss you just have to eat at a calorie deficit. Calories not type of food are what you should be looking at for weight loss. Eat what you like.
If you want to change your diet to get more nutrients that is a different goal. Why did you decide you would not eat vegetables in any form if you have never eaten them? That is a huge group of food you have never tried. Are you willing to try new things at all? Is your issue taste or texture?

My dd dislikes vegetables unless they are in something like soup, pasta sauce, stir fry, lasagna. How things are prepared and combined makes a difference to her.

jemhh

The idea of reaching adulthood never having ingested a vegetable is fascinating to me.

I definitely would make an effort to try one or two each week. I like most of mine raw so I'd say try them raw before attempting to roast them. But trying a couple of different prep methods before writing any off is a good idea.

I'd also suggest trying a new fruit once in awhile. If your grocery gets in any exotic or unusual fruit, try one of those. There are many fruits that span a range of flavors and textures. It may be that you just haven't met the one that clicks with you.

lisakarenza

I've never been able to stand vegetables. I'll eat peas and carrots with a Sunday roast but that's it. I do make my own sauces and soups with tomatoes & onions etc . I have tried eating them but can't even swallow them without gagging - I know I sound like a child!
I have however been losing weight since September and am down 60lb so it doesn't affect weight loss. Not the healthiest diet maybe but it works for me .

lilac_bunny

I used to date someone who couldn't stand veg but it worked when I blended them into sauces so I would smoothie cauliflower into a curry sauce or carrots into a tomato sauce. Broccoli is terrible for blending.
Like a few other people have said, theoretically it doesn't matter what you eat, just what the calories add up to. The health benefits of a balanced diet are separate although overlapping of calorie control for weightloss.

rikkitomikodavis

My parents never made me eat veggies growing up and the few times I did as a kid, I hated them....but a few years ago I was determined to find a way to like them so I drenched carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower in ranch dressing. Then I added 3-4 leaves of spinach to my scrambled eggs and forced myself to eat those pieces first. After a while I started adding bell peppers and zucchini and to be honest, I love vegetables!! I eat spinach everyday now and I try to find fun ways of cooking veggies(I sautéed some sugar snap peas in worcheshire sauce the other day). Fresh is always best (I still HATE canned veggies with a fiery passion), and raw is the best way to start if you don't like them. You never have to eat a vegetable ever if you don't want to, but in terms of being healthy, they are the best (not just for calorie range but all the nutrients you get from them).

Good luck on your journey!

amyjaneedavies

Thank you all! I'm going to give multivitamins a try and also try a new fruit or veg at least once a week. I think it's mainly the texture rather than the taste but mixing them into meals and covering them in a sauce or seasoning is making them sound a lot more appealing. A lot of people find it crazy how I'm 21 and 9 stone when I have never eaten a veg or salad of some sort! I think my body has just adjusted to the amount of sugar I've had since a child and now the days where I'm having hardly any sugary treats or none at all I feel awful! Very sick and headache and no energy. But I'm going to push through it and just find substitutes. Thank you all for your support and kind messages!

StacywithaY

I am similar - just not big on fruits & veggies. I buy v8 Splash and that helps get something healthy in me. Also, soups with the veggies cooked (basically) to mush are yummy to me. Blueberries are super yummy in lots of things, smoothies, yogurt, etc. Those are worth trying if you haven't yet.

MamaRiss

My husband is anti veggie as well, but I have found a few with different cooking methods that he seems to like. Butternut squash, cubed and roasted with a tiny bit of brown sugar, cinnamon and a sprinkle of cayenne. Broccoli roasted with olive oil garlic, salt and pepper, then sprinkled with fresh parmesan when it comes out of the oven. Green beans sautéed with a bit of butter, also with garlic, salt, and pepper. Carrots steamed and then lightly coated with a glaze of brown sugar, butter, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. If texture is an issue. Do you like them softer? Cook them longer. Crunchier? Less cook time, or even raw.

MrsSuperDW

I've never liked a lot of veg even as a baby, I live fruit, but veg wise I have found a homemade veg soup that I love, it has lots of veg in and you can add lots to it too.
1 onion
1 leek
2 shallots
2 carrots
2 celery stalks
2 potatoes ( can use sweet potato )
As many peas as you want
2 chicken stock cubes (usually about a pint of water in, can use more if you think it's needed, and I use knorr chicken stock)

I usually add spinach, butternut squash and have added sweet peppers before now, and if you want to give it a bit of a kick in winter, add some chilli's.

From the basic recipe though I can tell if I'm missing any of the ingredients as it doesn't taste as good. The only veg I like out of all of them is peas, carrots and potatoes.

MrsSuperDW

Oh I throw all the veggies in a pan, boil them in the chicken stock until potatoes and carrots are soft and blend the *kitten* out of it so it's really smooth, give it a try, the worst that can happen is that you don't like it, but, if you do like it you can keep it in the fridge for a couple of days and have some before each meal xx

snickerscharlie

Your tastes change as you get more mature, so something you hated as a baby or a child may end up being delicious to you now if you give them another shot.

canadianlbs

amyjaneedavies wrote: »

But I'm going to push through it and just find substitutes. Thank you all for your support and kind messages!

i try to live by 'eat something that grew on a plant' after workouts. because otherwise i wouldn't bother much with vegetable matter either; not that i dislike them, just laziness.

carrots are great. as far as the sugar thing goes, fine-grated carrots with or without a can of pineapple or a little orange juice have seen me through a few of those must-have-something-sweet fits.

rosnz

I read that you have to try a new food TEN times before your tastebuds can decide whether they really like the food or not. That means ten different times – not ten bites at the same meal. As others have said it doesn't matter if you don't expand to other foods but if you want to it may be that you find you start to like more than you think if you try this.

RodaRose

Eat less than what you are eating now.
You can lose weight eating apples and bananas and the other things that you usually eat as long as you are reducing your calories.

unsuspectingfish

MrsSuperDW wrote: »

I've never liked a lot of veg even as a baby, I live fruit, but veg wise I have found a homemade veg soup that I love, it has lots of veg in and you can add lots to it too.
1 onion
1 leek
2 shallots
2 carrots
2 celery stalks
2 potatoes ( can use sweet potato )
As many peas as you want
2 chicken stock cubes (usually about a pint of water in, can use more if you think it's needed, and I use knorr chicken stock)

I usually add spinach, butternut squash and have added sweet peppers before now, and if you want to give it a bit of a kick in winter, add some chilli's.

From the basic recipe though I can tell if I'm missing any of the ingredients as it doesn't taste as good. The only veg I like out of all of them is peas, carrots and potatoes.

Is this from an actual recipe or is this just something you made up? I've been on a soup making kick and would love to have the full recipe, if there is one.

MrsSuperDW

It's from an Annabel Karmel recipies book,M but I've added shallots to it for a vit c boost, as I said I usually stick extras in.
I have loads of soup recipies as I used to work in a cafe and made all their homemade soups. Carrot and coriander, mushroom, tomato and basil, butternut squash and red pepper, and have a slimming world book with some in too.
I personally love the veg soup one, have tried the others and like the butternut squash n red pepper one too but in smaller quantities.
Just play about with ingredients and always put chicken or veg stock, onion and a potato in and you'll be fine. I find veg stock really bland so I add chicken stock to add flavour.
Hope this helps x

unsuspectingfish

Yeah, I was vegetarian for awhile, and the soups I made then were never quite as satisfying as pretty much anything I make with chicken broth or stock.