Lack Of Creativity ... Eat the same almost daily.

EpitomeOfSxy

Does anyone else eat almost the same thing for each meal? I lack creativity in the kitchen but my significant other makes up for it. Unfortunately he doesn't cook healthy and I have stressed I *need* to stay focused this time around so I am in charge of cooking. However, I am not a stellar cook. I can follow recipes but I don't have a sensitive palate so I really could careless but I know he is getting very bored. Does anyone have any recipe suggestions that are quick and easy and healthy? AND if anyone else is eating the same thing almost all the time - have you hit a plateau? IDK what is causing mine so I am grasping at straws I guess but does anyone think that a boring meal plan every day of the same items is a cause for this?

Jacwhite22

I would eat tacos every night if I could..

FitBeto

I find I have a healthy medium in eating. I eat whatever I want but 90% of the day I eat the same thing every day.

Eating the same thing everyday is a great way to train yourself to remember that you don't live to eat, you eat to live, in which the only reason you have to eat is to give your body energy to break down to function properly and effectively.

The other 10% I eat whatever I want (usually dinner and munchies in the pm). It doesn't bother me eating the same thing for breakfast, snack, and lunch every day. It helps me stay up with my goals and still lets me live life.

petersonabt

Yes I have the SAME issue. SO isn't home right now which makes it even worse lol. I eat pretty much the same thing everyday, with little variation. I try to step outside the box and find new recipes but its so hard lol. I really hate cooking.

melsinct

skinnytaste.com has lots of different recipes, all with calories listed, and nothing on the website is difficult. It is tailored towards the beginner/average home cook.

Eatingwell.com also has lots of options:
http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes_menus

You might like their 500 calorie dinner ideas:
http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/eatingwell_s_500_calorie_dinners

egapylime

I eat the same thing every single day almost. Rarely do I deviate. I am following a low carb diet (minus vegetables.) For lunch I have chicken breast smothered in mushrooms and garlic and green beans. For dinner I almost always have a 4 ounce piece of lean steak and steamed broccoli or cauliflower. This week I did deviate and have some grilled pot roast but that is about as far as I go LOL! My husband has no desire to lose any weight (even though he needs to lose about 30 lbs) and is eating donuts, cookies and the like in front of me. Jerk! LOL! Just yesterday I started googling recipes on another fitness website and will be trying those. I do make a high protein chili on occasion but my schedule barely allows me to be creative. Yesterday was the first time I've cheated since I started dieting and I managed to stop at just one cookie! That is HUGE for me. So maybe I am starting to change my habits finally. Before I would just shove as many cookies as I could in my mouth. I have noticed that when I up my calories by a couple hundred one day then go back to normal it does seem to break my plateau. Try that.

cmacphee3

I'm really creative with supper most times, but I like eating almost the same thing for breakfast/lunch each day, helps to keep me on track and make sure I'm not too hungry.

BlackCat1383

I have a recipe for a fantastic soup that a friend of mine found in a clean eating magazine. It's delicious, healthy, and filling!

- 1 boneless skinless chicken breast
- 1 cup spinach
- 1 can diced or crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup grape tomatoes, quartered
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 cup pasta (I use Smart Rotini)

Start off by cooking your chicken breast. I give mine a quick fry in a no-stick pan without oil. Use the oil if you like, or try a bit of water as an alternative if you find it sticks. Once cooked, set is aside. In a pot, combine canned tomatoes, grape tomatoes and one can of water. Boil. Add pasta, and cook until tender. In frying pan, wilt spinach (I use frozen spinach, and just toss it into the pot). Add chicken. Simmer and serve! It's great with a little sprinkle of parmesan cheese, and some garlic toast. It's also about 130 cals per serving.

EpitomeOfSxy

Thanks for the advice from everyone, it is much appreciated. I did increase my calories by 370 per day under the advice of a friend who is a personal trainer. I haven't been losing much at all but I am not gaining either and I feel better doing 1570 than the 1200 MFP suggested. I do however still eat low some days (around 1200) My diary is open to the public but usually I have egg whites, eggs, with onions, sometimes bell peppers with hot sauce and a tea for breakfast, lunch is usually a salad or a turkey sandwich, around 3pm I have a handful of almonds and then dinner is always some protein with sweet potato or veggies. I am really boring, I feel terrible for my SO who SHOULD be trying to lose weight but doesn't feel motivated and completely shuts down to anything that resembles "nagging" so I just don't say anything. Thankfully he goes to bed later than I do so he waits until I am asleep now to eat junk food. However, that can't be good for him! Waiting until after 10pm to eat terrible foods LOL. I just feel bad because he is a "foodie" and an amazing cook and baker/desserts but I can't let him cook. Partial reason for my 50lbs weight gain since we got together 6 or so years ago IS his cooking. Full fat, full cream, full badness. He hates anything that is healthy or resembles "diet" food. I just hope this plateau goes away soon, I can't believe I plateau'd only 3 weeks in. It's rather discouraging *sigh*.

Btw, thank you for the links, I intend to check them out

Firefox7275

What healthy foods are you not eating enough of - oily fish, reduced fat dairy, dark green or blue/ purple fruits and vegetables, mineral rich foods (nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, wholegrains)? Looking at your diary the issue seems to be you only use a handful of ingredients, and you are not choosing the most nutritious options in the small amount of produce you do eat. Maybe deliberately DON'T purchase eggs, chicken or white onions when you are next in the grocery store, buy some fish, seeds and brightly coloured veggies then Google for recipes that sounds good? Or make healthier versions of your partners favourite meals to cook?

Soups, stir fries and curries are great for getting more vegetables in - with stir fries I like to have one red, one yellow and one green because it looks pretty and is likely to be full of antioxidants. Spices, herbs, garlic, dry wine (boil off the alcohol) or stock add flavour without a ton of calories. Many people here have smoothies for breakfast, you can get two servings of fruit and two of vegetables without any difficulty, dairy or whey powder for protein.

Fill your partner up with nine servings of non starchy vegetables plus low glycaemic index carbs (beans, lentils, barley) so he doesn't have the room to eat junk food and his blood sugar remains stable so he doesn't get so many cravings. Low fat soft cheese or canned evaporated milk (no added sugar) are good substitutes for cream, there are plenty of delicious baked goods you can make with natural sweetener, block creamed coconut, whole oats, cocoa powder, dried fruits, nuts and so on.

EpitomeOfSxy

Thanks Firefox for taking a look at my diary to be able to give out suggestions. I just don't know how to cook a lot of things so I just cook what I know, which is limited. I guess I should learn to be more creative. I have a tendency of just buying what is cheap because all food taste the same to me. This might change in a bit, I quit smoking a little while ago so perhaps my tastes will change again. My issues with stir-fries are SO always wants rice with them. He can't just eat a veggie/meat stir fry and he always wants rice and thick-calorie-full sauces. I cook what I know and what calories I can track accurately. I have a food scale and a bunch of measuring cups and such. I guess I will need to spend this weekend researching foods that are beneficial and recipes.

SO hates soups, broccoli, wants me to stop buying poultry because he is sick of it or suggests I make fried chicken and buy thighs with skin instead of breasts, it is so difficult to eat healthy and cook for two who want completely different things out of it. He wants full flavour and could careless how it impacts his waist while I have a wedding dress to fit into (and shop for shortly)... I wish he would get on board, we tend to alternate. When he wants to diet I don't care to and vice versa.

lore11a

How many servings does this recipe make?

Koldnomore

I would eat tacos every night if I could..

Nothing wrong with tacos.. I eat them all the time. You can have 3 for under 600 calories if you don't drown them in sour cream and cheese use 1 tsp of sour cream and 10g of cheese in each one, make them with lean ground beef (or chicken)..have about 25g of meat and the rest lettuce, tomato, a big spoon of salsa.. very yummy.

My boyfriend is also a twig so we do not have anything 'diet' in our house. I still cook all the same things with very few variations, we still have pasta, potatoes, rice..full fat butter, sour cream, PB..You can still eat all the good stuff, just have to eat a little less of it that's all or make some teeny changes for your plate..

From your diary:

When you have fajitas why not try yours on romaine lettuce leaves instead of tortillas? Saves a ton of calories and your boyfriend can still have all the tortillas he wants. Will also let you eat more of the good stuff, don't be scared to add onions and peppers to the chicken to fill it out a little bit either.

When you consider Pizza think about making it at home and use tortillas for the crust. I stick 2 together with mozzarella cheese for my boyfriend and just use one for me. I lead them up with sauce, meat, veggies..all the pizza stuff. Use only a little cheese on mine and cover his. He loves them and I can eat a whole 'pizza' for the same calories as a large slice from the restaurants. If you order in get half veggie and half whatever he wants

Make fried chicken for him in the oven using bread crumbs, you can easily skin your piece and use less crumbs if you're worried. Make mashed potatoes with Greek yogurt instead of sour cream or butter or just have less.

Also you can still make stir fry, just because you make rice does not mean you have to eat it..just take less for yourself, you can also make brown rice instead. Try to avoid the jar sauces, instead make the sauce - you will need to get more familiar with spices (Chinese 5 spice, fresh garlic, soya sauce, little bit of orange juice and some sesame seeds is nice for stir fry)

Why not try to make some Greek style pork? with some nice roasted potatoes and Tzaziki dip (made with Greek yogurt and cucumber)Just get some "Greek seasoning" (club house has a good one) dip your pork in lemon juice sprinkle on the seasoning, toss in the oven. Potatoes can be done the same way. Make some Tzatiki sauce like this one with just yogurt and cucumber (keep it simple) http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2007/07/worlds-best-tzatziki-sauce-recipe-greek.html you can pretty well slather this sauce on your pork and potatoes for hardly any calories at all! Make a salad on the side for you if you want or just eat less potatoes

Also, invest in cooking spray and parchment paper instead of using oil to fry stuff. You should have no problem eating 'real' food on 1570. I noticed that you often don't eat all your calories either and you can eat something other than nuts to save a few more (nuts are great for people with a lot of calories to kill but not really for those of us who stay under 2k)

EpitomeOfSxy

Thanks for the suggestions, I will try to be more creative. I am still early on and will power has never really been my thing. I have to remove myself for the situation I still can't see someone eating something bad and there is enough to share and just idly stand by. This is something I need to overcome. The issue is if he wants fried chicken, he wants fried chicken, not a healthier version of it. I refuse to make two separate meals. IDK it's only been a month so we are still trying to sort out the "Balance"... I just feel bad that his only freedom is at lunch at work, other than that he is subject to my "diet" aside from the junk food in the cupboards. Thankfully I can manage to avoid that! I wish I liked to cook.

jstout365

Lack of creativity isn't usually why I eat the same every day....it is that I make too much and get stuck with it for the whole week. Breakfast is easy to get into a routine and I don't mind my egg and ham samich every morning. Lunch is killing me this week as tomorrow I will finish off the 6th serving of a concoction I named "Turkey Bake." I like variety, but cooking for one can make it difficult because most things will give you multiple servings. I try to look for things that I can freeze for later so I don't get burnt out each week.

EpitomeOfSxy

I am thinking about finding recipes I can freeze as well. When I was cooking for one years ago before we moved in together when I was losing weight (prior to falling off again) it was easy. I could eat the same thing all the time so I would just season and cook the same chicken breasts, freeze em, cut up all fruit and veggies and put them in containers and baggies and it was a quick in out at the fridge. Everything was a fast grab and go. I think that's why I was so successful I would just cook everything on sunday's and it lasted until friday evening usually, saturdays were my cheat. Now that I have to be concerned with losing weight and cooking for myself AND for someone else that doesn't want to eat healthy... It just sucks. If I give him a "healthier" version of a bad food it is just as bad as giving him a "diet" food because it is still not what he wants. But IDK I am hoping he will come around and join again then life is much simpler

He doesn't verbally complain but I can see it all over his face when he eats it LOL Or I will ask what he is craving and then I will find a healthy version and then his face sinks because he thought when I asked it meant we were going to get that "bad" thing not modify it. He is very supportive but I just feel terrible making him "suffer" LOL

ShaniWulffe

I am totally the same way XD I don't do it on purpose, but I eat the same thing over and over

firefoxxie

My breakfast is almost always the same, except for the weekends. For lunch and dinner, it's whatever my mom makes or whatever we have in the house.

Firefox7275

Thanks Firefox for taking a look at my diary to be able to give out suggestions. I just don't know how to cook a lot of things so I just cook what I know, which is limited. I guess I should learn to be more creative. I have a tendency of just buying what is cheap because all food taste the same to me. This might change in a bit, I quit smoking a little while ago so perhaps my tastes will change again. My issues with stir-fries are SO always wants rice with them. He can't just eat a veggie/meat stir fry and he always wants rice and thick-calorie-full sauces. I cook what I know and what calories I can track accurately. I have a food scale and a bunch of measuring cups and such. I guess I will need to spend this weekend researching foods that are beneficial and recipes.

SO hates soups, broccoli, wants me to stop buying poultry because he is sick of it or suggests I make fried chicken and buy thighs with skin instead of breasts, it is so difficult to eat healthy and cook for two who want completely different things out of it. He wants full flavour and could careless how it impacts his waist while I have a wedding dress to fit into (and shop for shortly)... I wish he would get on board, we tend to alternate. When he wants to diet I don't care to and vice versa.

So your other half has rice, doesn't mean you have to - make enough of the meat/ fish/ vegetable mix for three people and you eat two thirds. Steamed rice refrigerates or freezes and microwaves to reheat beautifully so you don't have to make fresh each time. You can also buy rice cookers, I even have a fancy slow cooker/ crock pot that also does rice which is lovely for when you can't be bothered watching a pan. You chuck in a cup or two of rice, fill with water to the line and switch on - it turns itself onto 'keep warm' when ready. However I would say you should not be avoiding carbs and avoiding fat, that won't leave you eating a balanced nutritious diet.

Diet friendly foods can be full of flavour - use marinades of spices, herbs, stock, wine (boil the alcohol off), block creamed coconut, garlic or chilli. With a stir fry you can also have much the same meal with two different sauces, put one portion onto a plate, add one lot of sauce to a pan, a different sauce to the plate. Or find a chicken sauce recipe that includes coconut or cheese or soured cream and stir extra into his portion than your portion.

I'm far from the world's best cook so I don't make too many dishes that require careful timing or many pans, I do a lot of meals that require long slow cooking, that you cannot overcook. And things you can change from one thing to another - rich mince (ground) meat with a ton of veggies, can be served with spaghetti, add red chilli, beans and sweetcorn for chilli con carne, be layered with aubergines for moussaka for example. I eat chicken thighs but I always take the skin off before cooking, can't you do that for yours and not his?

TBH I don't think your partner is a foodie at all, he sounds like he simply likes fatty textures. Never met a foodie who doesn't like soups or green vegetables, there are so many different flavours and textures and so many different ways to present them.

magerum

My diary is open. I eat the same food almost daily. I do have some variation, but even they are the same (cereal instead of toast etc..) If your diet is balanced enough there's no reason not to if you like it. I personally like what I eat, a lot, so I keep eating it. It's balanced and I'm not deficient in anything.

Plus it makes shopping easier and cheaper as I can buy in bulk. Also, I am able to prep a lot of my food (like my entire week worth of lunches) during the weekend. This saves a lot of time too.

EpitomeOfSxy

He is a foodie but at home he likes his comfort foods and full flavour, full fat, full carb loaded badness. I could separate the things I guess, I found a bunch of website today after class I am still currently browsing for simple ideas but using spices and things. I don't even know what spices pair with other spices let alone meats. I guess I have a lot of learning to do. Thanks everyone for the support or ideas