What do ya do when you don't like fruits and veggies?

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I'm 61 yrs old. Never in my life have I enjoyed fruits or vegetables. I was always the last one at the table because I was told to stay there until I finished my peas, green beans, cauliflower etc.
Don't get me wrong, I have tried and actually eaten veggies at parties but I don't enjoy them. I've tried telling myself to eat it anyway cuz it's good for me or stop being such a whiner and just eat 'em. I've tried recipes that I "hide" veggies in but end up picking at the food and then eat junk later.
Fruits are ok, but not satisfying for me. Some I can't eat because of GERD, some are disgusting and most of 'em are just blah.
I can't be the only one who doesn't like tomatoes or mushrooms.
Of course there are some I'll eat but how long can you eat corn, potatoes and watermelon and still lose weight. :smile:
I know some of you will come back and say just keep trying and eventually you find something, but after 60 years what are the chances?
So what do I eat? Breads, meats, fat-free/low-fat dairy and JUNK. I've been on diets, food plans, exercise programs - you name it. I've read the books, been to the meetings, tried online programs, tried the call in coach thing - and I'm no closer to keeping weight off than I ever was.
I'm tired of trying but know I have to keep on.
I need some encouragement please.
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Replies

  • mazdauk
    mazdauk Posts: 1,380 Member
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    I was never a big veg eater and when I was growing up tehre was only limted fruit varieties. (Limited veg too - I never saw a pepper until the 1980s!)

    Do you like frozen peas/broad beans? How about tinned fruit/berries? As long as you drain them and don't buy varieties in syrup they are not too calorific. I don't like big lumps of veg on my plate, but chopped up in a shepherds pie or a pasta sauce is fine, or make a soup and blitz it so there's no "lumps". Or how about in a fajita? (just keep the cheese/sour cream low!)
  • goofy31
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    Peas are the WORST! Canned fruits are sooooooo mushy I don't buy them. I've tried smoothies but that is only so-so and so time consuming. Soups are ok, never been a big fan of those either but have been trying to make them at home so the sodium content is lower and I know what's going into them.
    Thanks for commenting tho. I will continue to try and add veggies in foods.
  • letbc
    letbc Posts: 27 Member
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    I'm not a big veggie eater either. I know it takes a few minutes (6-7) but I have a strawberry, banana & OJ smoothie every morning for breakfast with a scoop each of Green Super Foods, Flax seed & Hemp Protein. That way I know I'm getting some healthy protein, fiber & veggies every day.
  • Food4Fuel
    Food4Fuel Posts: 37 Member
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    I'm 23 and in the same boat, will be watching this thread closely. I don't even eat salad, which blows my friends minds. I can do minimal veggies, like green beans tomatoes and squash but fruit I really only like the "sugary" options such as bananas, grapes, and watermelon. My weight has ballooned after college but I don't know what to do other than limiting my palate to the relatively few options I listed above to reach my properly proportioned plate.
  • Firefox7275
    Firefox7275 Posts: 2,040 Member
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    We were made to eat a wide variety of healthy foods as children also and sometimes sat there hours, much of the food was fresh from our garden or allotment and home cooked. As an adult I was extremely picky until I got sick, partly through my poor lifestyle choices. I retrained myself, first time I opened a can of salmon I was literally gagging now I eat it in certain dishes and I really do enjoy fresh trout. I don't love all healthy food but I have learned to enjoy some and tolerate others. I am never going to want to bite into an apple nor eat a side of veggies and I really struggle with the texture of squashes and root vegetables cooked, but a fruit salad and canned evaporated milk or savoury meal with a tasty sauce I can deal with.

    For you I don't know whether you are trying them often enough, research suggests you need to keep at it don't expect to enjoy them the first time or after eating them once every five years. Or if you have negative associations with the GERD and healthy foods. Or if you are not really trying, if the veg is hidden really it is your choice to pick at the food or make an concerted effort. You don't retrain your palate by continuing to eat sugary and salty junk, why is that still in the house when you are trying to eat better? A smoker or junkie or alcoholic rarely does well knowing their drug of choice is in the next room.

    Other than that I don't know what to say, if you read your own post you have cleverly dismissed all logical arguments - you know full well you won't change without putting those foods in your mouth, over and over again. Some people change in many ways in middle age, they go back to university, they get divorced and run off with a younger model, they have gender reassignment, they sell everything and travel the world, they quit drugs/ alcohol/ smoking. Others get busy dying. Either you are ready to make a change for life or you are going to carry on seeking short term solutions, a diet just until you have lost the weight. IMO consider counselling or hypnosis to change your attitude to food.

    We can eat potatoes, bread, corn, watermelon and dairy when we are getting healthy or managing our weight. The body needs a wide range of different foods and nutrients to feel satisfied and for health. It's about how you cook and serve them, about portion control because all those foods except natural dairy turn to sugar in the body very quickly. If you see food as filling an emotional need, solely about pleasure and don't see it at all as fuel or accept that your body is not a trash can you won't change. Is this more about the healthy foods not triggering the reward centres in the brain, not releasing the 'happy' chemicals, maybe even about food addiction? Are you self medicating with sugars and other high glycaemic index carbs? Why do you expect every meal to be enjoyable and totally satisfying?
  • stfuriada
    stfuriada Posts: 445 Member
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    Same.

    Eating broccoli might as well be pushing a steam roller up hill for me. I do replacements like diet V8 fusion , 1 serving of 50 cals is equal to like 2 servings of fruits and veggies or something like that.

    There are also vegetable/fruit replacement powders that I'm thinking of getting.
  • caitlyn30
    caitlyn30 Posts: 207 Member
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    I just don't eat them, bananas are okay in a shake, I will do green beans(after 40 years of not) - i do corn. apples are okay, but boring. carrots only if they are glazed. yep, thats about it!:drinker:
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    Eat them anyway. You are a grown up, do what you know you should.

    I don't like going to work everyday, but I do because I should.

    That said, try all dif types, and ways of preparing them, you should be able to tolerate at least some prepared certain ways.
  • aj_31
    aj_31 Posts: 999 Member
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    I'm 32. I was never a fan of veggies. My mom never forced us to eat them growing up because she didn't like them so they weren't made in our house. My husband on the other hand loves and eats everything.

    It took me up until last year before I learned to like almost all veggies. The only way to like them is to eat them. Make them different ways and try and find what works. The only veggie I still have issues with is tomatoes. Otherwise I eat whatever. My mom looks at me like I have 2 heads when I tell her I made a dinner that was filled with veggies. I only wish I had started sooner so that my kid would have grown up eating more veggies. She's now learning to eat them along with me.

    As far as fruit I stick to apples, bananas, grapes, oranges, clementines, and pineapple. Anything else I throw in a smoothie and then I don't have any issues with eating it.
  • Car0lynnM
    Car0lynnM Posts: 332 Member
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    I don't like to eat fruits, so I make smoothies with them. Add protein powder, flax seed, almond milk. They're delicious. Find a smoothie recipe book that has smoothies with fruits and veggies and you're set.
  • amanda52488
    amanda52488 Posts: 260 Member
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    Not sure if this was already suggested but, make a monster smoothie aka green smoothie.

    You add in fruits and some spinach and you can not even taste the spinach. I have been having one every morning!
  • Kimberly120977
    Kimberly120977 Posts: 1 Member
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    Try V8 Fusion that's your fruits and vegetables. I love it!
  • Meganalva
    Meganalva Posts: 282 Member
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    We were made to eat a wide variety of healthy foods as children also and sometimes sat there hours, much of the food was fresh from our garden or allotment and home cooked. As an adult I was extremely picky until I got sick, partly through my poor lifestyle choices. I retrained myself, first time I opened a can of salmon I was literally gagging now I eat it in certain dishes and I really do enjoy fresh trout. I don't love all healthy food but I have learned to enjoy some and tolerate others. I am never going to want to bite into an apple nor eat a side of veggies and I really struggle with the texture of squashes and root vegetables cooked, but a fruit salad and canned evaporated milk or savoury meal with a tasty sauce I can deal with.

    For you I don't know whether you are trying them often enough, research suggests you need to keep at it don't expect to enjoy them the first time or after eating them once every five years. Or if you have negative associations with the GERD and healthy foods. Or if you are not really trying, if the veg is hidden really it is your choice to pick at the food or make an concerted effort. You don't retrain your palate by continuing to eat sugary and salty junk, why is that still in the house when you are trying to eat better? A smoker or junkie or alcoholic rarely does well knowing their drug of choice is in the next room.

    Other than that I don't know what to say, if you read your own post you have cleverly dismissed all logical arguments - you know full well you won't change without putting those foods in your mouth, over and over again. Some people change in many ways in middle age, they go back to university, they get divorced and run off with a younger model, they have gender reassignment, they sell everything and travel the world, they quit drugs/ alcohol/ smoking. Others get busy dying. Either you are ready to make a change for life or you are going to carry on seeking short term solutions, a diet just until you have lost the weight. IMO consider counselling or hypnosis to change your attitude to food.

    We can eat potatoes, bread, corn, watermelon and dairy when we are getting healthy or managing our weight. The body needs a wide range of different foods and nutrients to feel satisfied and for health. It's about how you cook and serve them, about portion control because all those foods except natural dairy turn to sugar in the body very quickly. If you see food as filling an emotional need, solely about pleasure and don't see it at all as fuel or accept that your body is not a trash can you won't change. Is this more about the healthy foods not triggering the reward centres in the brain, not releasing the 'happy' chemicals, maybe even about food addiction? Are you self medicating with sugars and other high glycaemic index carbs? Why do you expect every meal to be enjoyable and totally satisfying?

    Couldn't have said it better!
  • cls_333
    cls_333 Posts: 206 Member
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    ummmm, your profile says you're 35, so which is it?

    Do you wanna be healthy, that's the question? You have to want to be healthy & eat them, no one can help you but you.
  • ajlon
    ajlon Posts: 16 Member
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    I bought a good HAND BLENDER, mine is the TEFAL - TURBOMIX PLUS - 350W (there are others on the market)....
    I make veggie soups and fruit smothies....Very simple and healthy!!
    I generally make my soup from boiling frozen carrots and cauiliflour and add some chicken stock cubes (melt cubes in some hot water first)
    I blend the veg in the pot and water they were boiled in.... makes a custard/ soup texture by adding chicken stock cubes in hot water. They last a few days in the fridge or you could even place some in freezer bags and do a good batch of your favorite.
    have a go!! :D
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
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    I cram down veggies as fast as I can and then eat the better stuff afterwards. I don't like the taste of a single one and never will. But a lot of the time I can eat them in casseroles with a cream base.
  • naner61
    naner61 Posts: 85
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    Juice them!
  • FITnFIRM4LIFE
    FITnFIRM4LIFE Posts: 818 Member
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    Juicer-Drink them-they taste different blended. Puree and add to soups. Dry or roast them with seasonings you like. Try new ways till one clicks for you..Good Luck!

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/553273-how-to-start-to-like-vegetables-if-i-hate-them/

    http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/eat-your-vegetables-15-tips-for-veggie-haters
  • cboutin89
    cboutin89 Posts: 79 Member
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    Either take an multivitamin and or/ mix fruit with veggies in a milkshake. There are also juices like V8 that have the source.
  • leon1982
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    Eat them anyway. You are a grown up, do what you know you should.

    I don't like going to work everyday, but I do because I should.

    That said, try all dif types, and ways of preparing them, you should be able to tolerate at least some prepared certain ways.

    My thoughts exactly. There are reasons that as kids we are all made to eat these things. Becasue they are good for you and you need them. If they are bland then that should not bother you, as long as they are not bad tasting. You do not get much blander than water...

    There are 1000s of different fruits/veggies and ways to prepare them. There is no way you cannot find one that you like.

    You know what you should do here! You got this! Good Luck!