please critique my food diary :)

RllyGudTweetr

Pretty decent overall, regardless of concerns about "too much animal protein" or [this/that/other thing] is "crap" for you. I might suggest swapping a couple of those slices of bread for a vegetable smoothie, for more nutritional value to your calories.

BlackEyedPanda

Just relaised you are from the UK. The Morrisons own brand frozen vegetarian mince is really, really nice and fairly cheap. As I can see you already shop at Morrisons, why not give that a try? Have it as if you were having real mince but just use the veggie substitute instead. It's a lot leaner and basically fat free.

yamsteroo

Can I come to your house for breakfast? lol

Probably what has been said already about the amount of bacon and maybe try and add more veg. I don't particularly like green veg but I've made an effort to include it by having it with other things that hide the taste and texture a bit (spinach as a side to cajun spiced grilled chicken etc).

Cadbury's Highlights is something I drink myself on cold days (snowing here today - hello, it's April?!) but perhaps leave out the sugar if you can. To jazz it up a little I have an Aerocino milk frother so instead of all water, I put 100ml of skimmed milk into the frother and it gives a lovely rich frothy top to the chocolate. Makes it seem more of a treat and I get a bit of calcium to boot.

holothuroidea

Pretty decent overall, regardless of concerns about "too much animal protein" or [this/that/other thing] is "crap" for you. I might suggest swapping a couple of those slices of bread for a vegetable smoothie, for more nutritional value to your calories.

Seeings how I am the only other person in this thread who used the word "animal" I guess the first sentence in your post is referring to my post. Please re-read it because you've misunderstood what I was saying.

I never mentioned animal protein. I gave her plant sources for protein and fat because those are the major macros you get from animal foods. I said that 52% of her calories came from animal products and that is unbalanced, which is true. Animal foods do give you a lot of excellent nutrients, but when so many of your calories come from them you miss out on a lot of things that are essential for a well-rounded diet. Like fiber, phytonutrients, vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, monounsaturated fats and essential fatty acids (not to mention being high in saturated fat and cholesterol, which you should watch if you are at risk for cardiovascular problems). In general, food guides only advises 25% of your diet come from animal sources. Even the strictest paleo dieters eat mostly vegetables!

I also never said anything was "crap." I was being objective about nutritional balance and pointing out where she might be missing out on some nutrition.

RllyGudTweetr

Pretty decent overall, regardless of concerns about "too much animal protein" or [this/that/other thing] is "crap" for you. I might suggest swapping a couple of those slices of bread for a vegetable smoothie, for more nutritional value to your calories.

Seeings how I am the only other person in this thread who used the word "animal" I guess the first sentence in your post is referring to my post. Please re-read it because you've misunderstood what I was saying.

I never mentioned animal protein. I gave her plant sources for protein and fat because those are the major macros you get from animal foods. I said that 52% of her calories came from animal products and that is unbalanced, which is true. Animal foods do give you a lot of excellent nutrients, but when so many of your calories come from them you miss out on a lot of things that are essential for a well-rounded diet. Like fiber, phytonutrients, vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, monounsaturated fats and essential fatty acids (not to mention being high in saturated fat and cholesterol, which you should watch if you are at risk for cardiovascular problems). In general, food guides only advises 25% of your diet come from animal sources. Even the strictest paleo dieters eat mostly vegetables!

I also never said anything was "crap." I was being objective about nutritional balance and pointing out where she might be missing out on some nutrition.

Hi, Holothuroidea. Yours wasn't the only point I was replying to. I *was* disagreeing with this particular part of your post: "52% of your calories come from animal foods. Speaking purely from a standpoint of nutritional balance, I think that's too much." If you don't think that "animal foods" and "animal protein" are near synonyms, that's fine. I'll disagree with the specific linguistics.

Others in the thread did, in fact" say certain other parts of the OP's diet were "crap;" I'm sure you're able to scroll through and see the post(s). That's the other part I was disagreeing with.

Given that all the points - including the OP's - to which I was responding were on the first page, I did not see a particular benefit to quoting something specifically, when scrolling through the page sufficed, and felt it would seem I was choosing to argue directly with certain posters, rather than help the OP. I am sorry if this decision ironically made you feel I was somehow singling you out.

drchimpanzee

Highly derivative of other food diaries but all in all a good read. 3/5 stars.

Melissa22G

I think it's fine, then again I'm of the camp that food is energy to be burned and it doesn't matter what energy as long as you meet your needs.

People can tell you to eat more greens, etc. but if you don't like them- it's likely you won't follow. Some folks are just pickier eaters than others. As long as you meet your daily caloric intake, exercise, and feel satiated- it shouldn't matter what foods you put in as long as you like and enjoy them. But again, that is my most humble opinion and the great thing about these forums is you will get a wide range of great information and thoughts.

ChunkieNuts

Sugaaaaaaarrrrrrr!!!!!!
Muffin, hot chocolate, white bread, so much sugar!
Also too much processed food so probably too much salt,
Try and make some swaps for fruits veggies and nuts (ie salad on your sandwich, some veggies in your omlette, some fuit and nuts instead of a muffin, fruit smoothie instead of a hot chocolate, all easy to do and very yummy! )

^^ i totally agree...

skinnydreams19

Are you satisfied on it? If not, try swapping the white bread for whole wheat and subbing nuts and fruits for some of your processed snacks!

barbaratrollman

I would just echo what most everybody else is saying here.
Try to get away from processed foods. Try to eat a more varied, more fruits and veggies and vegetable based proteins, to your intake. More colors!
Experiment with replacing some of these packaged items, white bread, and bacon, with some different alternatives, until you hit upon things you really like and can incorporate into your menu.

Also, I get bothered when folks suggest going with egg whites only. Egg yolks are the most nutritious part of an egg!
http://voices.yahoo.com/diet-nutrition-myths-eggs-egg-whites-high-cholesterol-398873.html

Actually, a good Google will lead you to all kinds of articles about how much more nutritious the egg yolk is than the egg white. Not to mention, that egg whites have hardly any flavor and egg yolks are the wonderful golden treasure in the middle.
In my opinion, the more natural vibrant color in the foods, the more beneficial they will be in your diet.

melaniecheeks

Why are you asking? Is it working for you, or do you feel that something could be changed?

If it was me, I'd track sugar. And I know my digestive system would complain bitterly at the amount of sugar and carbs there, but you're sticking to your calorie goal which is great, and everyone's tolerance to sugar/ carbs is different.

Do be more discerning when selecting foods from the database. Your muffin is recording at 300 cals, but no other nutritional information (hint: there will be even more carbs and sugar there), and I'd query the protein value for the chicken breast. If you're going to be eating the same things a lot of time, make the effort to ensure that the data is as accuarate as possible.

magerum

Are you meeting your goals and feeling good? If so you're fine. Weight control and health are mutually exclusive issues.

rainbowbow

What country are you from? I don't recognize almost anything in your diary. >_<

holothuroidea

Hi, Holothuroidea. Yours wasn't the only point I was replying to. I *was* disagreeing with this particular part of your post: "52% of your calories come from animal foods. Speaking purely from a standpoint of nutritional balance, I think that's too much." If you don't think that "animal foods" and "animal protein" are near synonyms, that's fine. I'll disagree with the specific linguistics.

Others in the thread did, in fact" say certain other parts of the OP's diet were "crap;" I'm sure you're able to scroll through and see the post(s). That's the other part I was disagreeing with.

Given that all the points - including the OP's - to which I was responding were on the first page, I did not see a particular benefit to quoting something specifically, when scrolling through the page sufficed, and felt it would seem I was choosing to argue directly with certain posters, rather than help the OP. I am sorry if this decision ironically made you feel I was somehow singling you out.

No worries. I didn't feel singled out! I just wanted to make sure I wasn't misunderstood.

It's not just a matter of linguistics. There are people who talk about the supposed dangers of too much animal protein. I didn't want people to think that I supported that argument because I don't.

sweetpea03b

I think I pretty much agree with the consensus here - more fruits/veggies, more "whole" foods - less processed/pre-packaged, alot of carbs with the muffin & bread. Maybe when you want a sandwich just use 1 slice of bread and add some veggies.