Never eat my 5 a day...

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Replies

  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
    I really wouldn't worry about the exact portions they say constitute a serving.

    I'd just try and eat a wide variety of fruits, veggies, grains, fish/seafood that you like. As long as you do this then I'd say all the micronutrients would be covered. You could get a blood check if you were worried.

    Also, I eat 250g of spinach in my omelette's all the time :happy:
  • aniahill
    aniahill Posts: 11 Member
    I know you said you don't like fruit and veg but (I'm making the assumption that you live in the UK) it's worth trying to get your hands on a Carol Vorderman detox book which are all over the charity shops - everything in there is vegan (I think) and though not everything will appeal to you there are some nice interesting things in there. For example, a mixed bean salad (tin of mixed beans in water), and chop up some salad veg you like - beetroot, cucumber etc. Make a dressing from cider vinegar, wholegrain mustard and oil. If you take that to work with you, you can get away with having a lot of it in one sitting.

    If you can't stand most things try and sneak them in - if you make a Quorn cottage pie, chop up carrots small and a portion of peas. I'm not great at eating veg as in broccoli and peas but I have a salad based lunch and try to get everything in in one meal. In the winter I will make a load of veg soup in a pressure cooker and freeze portions and generally I can get all of the portions in just one meal!

    Good luck
  • Sweet_Potato
    Sweet_Potato Posts: 1,119 Member
    My girlfriend's a pescetarian who doesn't like a lot of vegetables (like eggplant and mushrooms and peppers). It drives me crazy. I think it is absolutely possible to train yourself to like certain foods. When I was younger I couldn't stand mushrooms, or fish, but after forcing myself to eat them a few times they've become some of my favorite foods.
  • kcoftx
    kcoftx Posts: 765 Member
    You can hide your veggies too. (I'm a mom so I have to be crafty sometimes). For example, spaghetti already contains tomato sauce and diced tomatoes but it also hides the rest of the veggies pretty well too. I dice up zucchini, eggplant, carrots, onions, squash, olives, etc. My boys never knew the difference until one day they saw me doing it. It might not equal a serving of ONE thing but it's got multiple things in it and it adds up!

    Oh and I love love love Quinoa Tabboleh. Try to experiment with veggies mixed in stuff. Stuff that would ordinarily take on a stronger flavor of something else. I'm not sure this one would qualify but you get the hint. That's why you put spinach in the omelet. You know it masks it fairly well compared to regular cooked spinach.

    The other day I made a chicken and rice soup. I know you don't eat chicken but the point is I put spinach in it. It sounds like it wouldn't go but because it is masked very well by the broth, it actually does very well. I put some cabbage, zucchini, etc. in it too in smaller amounts. (The recipe actually came from food network).

    I have tried all kinds of new foods since I started this journey. Some I liked, some I didn't. Be adventuresome. Try to experiment with veggies in different ways. I realized one day that I grew up on canned veggies and have a hard time converting to anything else. I still have canned veggies but I realize that I just don't know how to make it any other way. I've learned to experiment using different recipes, different methods and different stages (fresh, frozen, canned). I'm still not great at it and I don't necessarily torture myself with it but a few times a week I try something new. (That includes fixing fish for the first time, quinoa was new, adding black beans to stuff, finally finding a Greek yogurt I like, never had chick peas until recently, learning to roast and steam veggies, etc.) You don't have to force yourself daily to eat stuff you don't like but you can find some solutions to work around and you can experiment occasionally. It's an adventure!!

    Oh and nobody says you have to make absolutely everything fit in your diary every single day. I do, however, like that you are trying to get a variety in your diet and willing to look for solutions. That's awesome!
  • cristaine
    cristaine Posts: 87
    There are days that I simply can't stomach the thought of sitting down and eating a huge serving of vegetables...those are the days that I add 3 cups of dark leafy greens to a protein smoothie. Easy way to have it almost (taste-wise) undetectable. It really makes the colour look gross, but you honestly can't taste it with young baby spinach or most dark leafy greens (along with a good protein powder)
  • Lisamar74
    Lisamar74 Posts: 114
    This is fantastic!!! You've all given some wonderful easy suggestions and really made me think! Often, I forget about some of the simplest foods that I actually do like - like corn on the cob and banana smoothie. Thanks so much to all of you! I'm going to make a concious effort now. Off to the shops I pop! x
  • zoeluiisa
    zoeluiisa Posts: 392
    The biggest change I've made recently is eating more veg. I always thought I was a healthy eater, but when I actually looked at it I realised that some days I didn't have any vegetables at all! I was quite shocked with myself.

    Now I'm bringing a salad to work for lunch everyday, and I'm eating mainly veg at my evening meal.

    Some of my favourites are:

    - Roasted squash - peel, chop, spread on a baking tray with olive oil and spices, roast till caramelized
    - Grilled Portobello mushrooms - place upside down on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil, add lots of black pepper, cook under the grill. Add a poached egg and it's a whole meal.
    - Avocado - recently I've started having avocado with anything and everything! Just chopped on the side of my plate.
    - Sugarsnap peas and cherry tomatoes - buy a bag and just snack on them raw (better for you than popcorn!)
    - Soup. You can make soup out of any veg you like - at this time of year I like thick spicy ones like parsnip or pumpkin.
    - Cheesy mashed potato - make mash, melt grated cheese in, eat with big serving of peas. Best comfort food ever.
    - Black bean salad - tin of black beans, chopped red bell pepper, chopped red onion, some frozen sweetcorn, lots of fresh coriander and lime juice to dress. Stir, let sit for a bit, ENJOY!

    :smile:

    The black bean salad also has chopped avocado in. How could I forget the BEST BIT? :bigsmile:
  • zoeluiisa
    zoeluiisa Posts: 392
    Oh also - I saw a documentary about the Five A Day thing a while back, and it had a couple of interesting points.

    First was that (apparently) when the Govt originally did the research they found that for real benefit you needed to eat more like ten portions, but they thought that would seem so unattainable it would put people off so they chose five as a better-than-nothing option.

    The other thing was about potatoes. We're often told they don't count because they're a starch, but they ARE a vegetable, and they're full of vitamin C amongst other things.
  • RawrWolfie
    RawrWolfie Posts: 64 Member
    with pasta and rice it should be easy to steam them and toss them with it thats what i do.
  • chooriyah
    chooriyah Posts: 469 Member

    First was that (apparently) when the Govt originally did the research they found that for real benefit you needed to eat more like ten portions, but they thought that would seem so unattainable it would put people off so they chose five as a better-than-nothing option.


    I heard the same thing. Apparently in Finland the saying is '11 a day'...
  • inkandsheep
    inkandsheep Posts: 101 Member
    I used to be an unhealthy vegetarian at some point and didn't get my 5 a day. Now I eat mostly plant based (vegan) and always get my 5 a day, and I just know I'm making much healthier food choices in general and avoiding processed foods.

    The sugar in fruit is very different from refined sugars because you're getting the fibre too. There is a lot of research that shows eating a lot of fruit is very healthy (look up the 80/10/10 diet). Some fruit is also lower in sugar than others, have a look at a chart with the GI values.

    Some ways I eat my fruit and veg...

    * a handful of blueberries or a chopped apple or pear with my morning oatmeal
    * smoothies packed with fruit and veg like 1/2 banana, a cup or so of blueberries, a cup or so of kale or baby spinach
    * fresh veg with lunch e.g. some baby tomatoes, carrot batons, 1/2 red pepper cut into sticks, cucumber slices, a handful of baby spinach
    * steamed veg with dinner, often instead of a grain, e.g. veggie burgers with steamed carrots, kale, broccoli, brussels sprouts, green beans
    * veggie stews with quinoa or rice - like a chilli or curry packed with corn, red or green pepper, red onion, courgette, carrots, beans
    * stirfries based on veg rather than noodles or rice - a favourite of mine is pak choi, mushrooms, red pepper, red onion, cashew nuts with chilli and soy sauce
    * snacking on fruit (a peach, two kiwis, some fresh berries)
    * salads, of course, ideally made out of kale or spinach to get some dark leafy greens but other lettuce is fine too
    * and I love discovering different varieties at farmers markets! Fun little tomatoes in all sorts of colours, baby aubergines, rainbow carrots, different greens etc.
  • leeann0517
    leeann0517 Posts: 74 Member
    A vegetable portion is 1/2 to 1 cup depending on whether they're cooked or raw. I don't understand what is so hard about that many a day. Yesterday just with my lunch I had 1.5 cups of broiled red/yellow/orange peppers.

    I think you need to incorporated vegetables at every meal and snack. that should get you to where you want to me.

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