Too much sodium!

AJL_Daddy
AJL_Daddy Posts: 525 Member
in Food and Nutrition
My usual lunch consists of a turkey sandwich (among a few other things). Well the turkey checks in at about 900 on the sodium scale. This isn't acceptable! Any alternatives? How about deli fresh instead of cold cuts? What is a fella to do? thanks!

Replies

  • _noob_
    _noob_ Posts: 3,306 Member
    My usual lunch consists of a turkey sandwich (among a few other things). Well the turkey checks in at about 900 on the sodium scale. This isn't acceptable! Any alternatives? How about deli fresh instead of cold cuts? What is a fella to do? thanks!

    what sodium level you trying to hit per day? you got 1600 mg's left to not eat the rest of the day by daily recommendations...
  • AJL_Daddy
    AJL_Daddy Posts: 525 Member
    Johnny Manziel:

    Call me crazy, but I like to eat other meals, and snacks.
  • 120weeks
    120weeks Posts: 242 Member
    The deli meats are comparable. I'd suggest roasting a turkey breast yourself and slicing it for sandwiches. You won't be injecting it with sodium solution or trying to preserve it, so your sodium should be much less. I really prefer prepping my own proteins for lunches....meats and fish.
  • TylerJ76
    TylerJ76 Posts: 4,375 Member
    Call me crazy, but I like to eat other meals, and snacks.

    Oooooooo
  • AJL_Daddy
    AJL_Daddy Posts: 525 Member
    120 weeks:

    Thanks for the recommendation.
  • _noob_
    _noob_ Posts: 3,306 Member
    Call me crazy, but I like to eat other meals, and snacks.

    Oooooooo

    yeah, that revelation threw me for a loop too.
  • MED2012COLORADO
    MED2012COLORADO Posts: 238
    I dont know if you have a Giant Eagle store where you live but i get 'plainville no salt added turkey breast" in the deli there it is $12.00 a lb but "its my health" so ill spend my money on what i want :) Love the idea of doing a fresh turkey up and slicing yourself. You can freeze it to.
  • TylerJ76
    TylerJ76 Posts: 4,375 Member
    Call me crazy, but I like to eat other meals, and snacks.

    Oooooooo

    yeah, that revelation threw me for a loop too.

    I still don't understand the problem.
    *shrugs*
  • _noob_
    _noob_ Posts: 3,306 Member
    Johnny Manziel:

    Call me crazy, but I like to eat other meals, and snacks.

    I know it's not what you were asking, but 900 doesn't seem TOO bad for a meal, especially a convenient one. You may get better mileage out of cutting sodium sometime else in your day.

    That's all I was hinting at.
  • AJL_Daddy
    AJL_Daddy Posts: 525 Member
    I dont know if you have a Giant Eagle store where you live but i get 'plainville no salt added turkey breast" in the deli there it is $12.00 a lb but "its my health" so ill spend my money on what i want :) Love the idea of doing a fresh turkey up and slicing yourself. You can freeze it to.

    yeah, no Giant Eagle, but I am going to look hard at alternatives. Thanks!
  • AJL_Daddy
    AJL_Daddy Posts: 525 Member
    Johnny Manziel:

    Call me crazy, but I like to eat other meals, and snacks.

    I know it's not what you were asking, but 900 doesn't seem TOO bad for a meal, especially a convenient one. You may get better mileage out of cutting sodium sometime else in your day.

    That's all I was hinting at.

    I assumed there was some logic to your thinking. Thanks for the suggestion!
  • FitBeto
    FitBeto Posts: 2,121 Member
    I dont know if you have a Giant Eagle store where you live but i get 'plainville no salt added turkey breast" in the deli there it is $12.00 a lb but "its my health" so ill spend my money on what i want :) Love the idea of doing a fresh turkey up and slicing yourself. You can freeze it to.

    dang man 12 a lb? I think a stripper is cheaper per LB
  • jcoco
    jcoco Posts: 138 Member
    If you have a Target superstore in your area, they carry Healthy Ones in turkey, chicken, & roast beef and they slice it for you at their deli. Salt content for 3 oz is 500 vs the 900.
  • KyleB65
    KyleB65 Posts: 1,196 Member
    The deli meats are comparable. I'd suggest roasting a turkey breast yourself and slicing it for sandwiches. You won't be injecting it with sodium solution or trying to preserve it, so your sodium should be much less. I really prefer prepping my own proteins for lunches....meats and fish.

    Ditto!

    I started on MFP because of a high blood pressure diagnosis. So in addition to calories. I was watching closely my sodium consumption per day. For me the sodium was a harder number to hit than the calories!

    It seems that any prepared food contains way to much sodium. These days I eat tons of veggies, beans and fruit. But very little meat. I still eat cheese, yogurt and eggs so I am getting some animal based proteins.

    All the best on sorting out what works best for you.
  • orangesmartie
    orangesmartie Posts: 1,870 Member
    If you have a crock pot, get a whole chicken, bung it in the crock pot for 6-8 hours. the meat will just fall off the bone and is great for sandwiches. Don't need to add any stock to the crock while cooking.

    can do the same with thighs/breasts etc for chicken or turkey
  • bsix3
    bsix3 Posts: 291
    Yes, try the deli. They should have plenty of low sodium cuts. Ask them to let you see the label so that you can make sure the sodium content satisfies your needs.
  • now_or_never13
    now_or_never13 Posts: 1,575 Member
    Even freshly sliced at the deli you would get quite a bit of sodium. There are lower sodium options out there for sliced meats.

    Otherwise, what about roasting a turkey breast or chicken breast to make your own sandwich meat? I used to do that for my husband and I. I would roast a whole turkey breast than let it cool and slice thinly. That was great for sandwiches, wraps, salads, etc. I also did the same with chicken and ham for my husband. You could do it with almost any meat you like.
  • kacysuzanne
    kacysuzanne Posts: 27 Member
    This is great advice. I started buying a bone in turkey breast ($11-15 at my Wal-Mart) each week. We have it for dinner one night, then my husband & I use it for sandwiches for lunches. Yesterday, I found turkeys marked down to .50/lb. I bought three at $5-7 each. That is a lot of meat for a little $!
  • VSeed2008
    VSeed2008 Posts: 22
    I cook my own chicken, roast beef and turkey and then just slice it up! Tastes way better and way better for you :)
  • Brie4me
    Brie4me Posts: 238
    Do any of your local grocery stores sell Boar's Head brand deli meats? They have a no-salt added turkey breast.
  • mjkpe
    mjkpe Posts: 98 Member
    You could try Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, or similar entrees. Also try low sodium tuna in the pouch over salad with a balsalmic vinegrette dressing. I love soups but unless they taste like bathwater they are killers in the sodium department, (even the "lower" sodium ones). I also have found a low sodium peanut butter, (65 mg/2 tbsp), that I make into a snack consisting of 1 tbsp of peanut butter, 2 tbsp of apple butter and a slice of Nature's Own Double Fiber whole wheat bread. All of this for 175 calories and 158 mg of sodium.

    This is a program of choices. I have found over my short time here that I was addicted to the sodium and not the turkey, soup or whatever.
  • Ryanmariem
    Ryanmariem Posts: 46 Member
    I agree the healthyiest option is to cook ahead and slice the meat yourself. Remember you can always freeze any extra, it may be time consuming at the time but in the long run it will be healthier and save you $$. For freezing those vacume packs are the best but you can use heavy foil along w/a good freezer bag, just don't forget to label.

    For your sodium complaint.... anything proccessed and packaged is going to be high in sodium so go as fresh as possible. Here is a good book which despite the title also talks about sodium too.... "The Calcium Lie" By Dr. Robert Thompson.

    We do need sodium but it is better to have a natural salt, like Sea Salt as it has not been processed and has other vital minerals (80+) we need. I no longer use reg. table salt that has been processed stripped then have iodine re-added... does not make sense! They call this unrefined salt. I only use Sea Salt now. There have been many studies done that support the use of sea salt and advice throwing out the table salt.

    I try to avoid the packaged meat overall, but if I really need to due to time, I look for the ones that have been less processed & have less perservatives, like hormel has it's 100% natural choice. It's just a matter of reading labels.

    Good Luck!
  • Vain_Witch
    Vain_Witch Posts: 476 Member
    I dont know if you have a Giant Eagle store where you live but i get 'plainville no salt added turkey breast" in the deli there it is $12.00 a lb but "its my health" so ill spend my money on what i want :) Love the idea of doing a fresh turkey up and slicing yourself. You can freeze it to.

    dang man 12 a lb? I think a stripper is cheaper per LB

    Literally LOLed! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
  • titi4j
    titi4j Posts: 97 Member
    I don't know if you have a Costco in your area, they have Kirkland Signature brand turkey breast lunch meat that is low in sodium and has no nitrates/nitrites (cancer causing chemicals). Only the Kirkland Signature brand, not the others they carry.
  • 1yoyoKAT
    1yoyoKAT Posts: 206 Member
    I agree with the cook your own suggestion. I cook chicken breast on the outdoor grill or indoors on the George Foreman grill. You can season them how you like for a lot less sodium impact. Also, you can buy turkey cutlets that you can grill as well, both options are not only less expensive than buying processed lunch meat, but also healthier.
  • krickeyuu
    krickeyuu Posts: 344 Member
    It definately pays to read labels. I wanted sliced deli ham for achange of pace for lunch and we try to keep very low sodium. Oscar Meyer has a "low-sodium" deli ham for 500mg per serving. The Albertson's "Essential Everyday" sliced deli ham has 360mg per serving.
  • dsendre
    dsendre Posts: 173 Member
    I find it very tough to eat any kind of sandwiches if I'm trying to keep my sodium low due to the high amount of sodium in pretty much all bread. For example, it's basically impossible to get a 6" sandwich from Subway that comes with less than 1000mg of sodium regardless of what bread and meat you choose. Subway salads even have a lot of sodium due to the meat added.

    So, I've started going with other options (which was tough because I LOVE sandwiches). It is tough though because it seems as though every food option besides bringing your own homemade lunch to work contains a lot of sodium. Lately I've been going to Whole Foods Market and getting their freshly prepared hot meals (which you can scan into MFP using the iPhone app) and getting a fresh salad and/or freshly prepared yogurt as a side.

    One thing's for sure, finding low sodium lunch options while at work is HARD. You'll probably have to search around you to find something available and low sodium...but it's not easy. Like others have said, the other option is to bring your lunch from home.
  • ladyrider55
    ladyrider55 Posts: 316 Member
    A Crockpot is Awesome to have in your kitchen. I bought a whole Turkey Breast and did it in the Crockpot, then put each serving in plastic containers and then in the freezer. So nice when you've had a tough day at work to come home and pop it in the microwave for a darn good homemade meal......YUM!!

    I don't use regular salt when cooking / baking anything. I'm totally into Mrs. Dash - so many flavors to choose from. The only time I have sodium is when I eat pre-made food, such as meatless burgers and such.

    Good luck and happy shopping for low sodium foods! :smile:
  • laurynwithawhy
    laurynwithawhy Posts: 385 Member
    As other users have stated, check the labels. I think just about every major brand, and some store ones, have low sodium options. There is even low sodium cheese too.

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