That darn sodium! Help! (And hello!)

You're right! Sodium is the devil!! I also had a real struggle with it when I first started here last November and didn't think it was possible to eat the calories I needed without all that sodium. I stalked my friends diaries and got some great eating ideas. My diary is public, so feel free to take a look if you think that might help . Best of luck to you!!

Cant be much of help here but just wanted to say i know how you feel. Here in my country in Africa, we dont eat meals that dont have high sodium and high maggi. So each plate of food i eat contains about half teaspoon of salt. I dont know how to eat foods that have no sodium. SO we are in the same boat. High Sodiumers

Sodium can be hard to lower at times especially if you go out for dinner.
I found at first I had to just read the labels and go from there. I eliminated frozen dinners, some cereals (kellogg's rice crispies), I try to buy fresh produce whenever possible and now I rarely add salt.

I do have to say I am amazed at how much sodium some products contain I think some customers heard me say Holy S a few times. lol.

The best thing to do is cut out as many processed foods as possible. I don't eat lunch meat anymore instead once a week or so I cook a bunch of chicken breasts and cut some of it into thin slices and use that for sandwiches. I rarely eat frozen meals, instead I try to cook enough to be able to take homemade food to work or bring salad with some chopped chicken or hard boiled egg to put on top of it (with little or no dressing). I only drink diet soda once every week or two and before I do I make sure I haven't had much sodium that day. I stay under 2,000 about 90% of the time the only times I really go over is if I eat out. And I drink tons of water usually 12-16 cups a day to help flush the sodium out of my system.

I've been on here for almost a year. Sodium has been my one main issue to the point i had to plan my meals around it. So i have learned some things.
you learn diet, low in calories, blah blah does not mean healthy for you.

White bread Italian in particular is high in sodium.
I know eat wonder soft wheat bread lower in sodium vs the one slice of italian bread is.

I love american cheese. However the sodium is ridculous and if you have processed meat on a sanwich with it may as well throw that day out the door.
I prefer sargento low sodium colby jack cheese. Though I believe the swiss cheese is low sodium as well naturally.

With that comes lunch meat. Sarah lee and farmland both have lower sodium lunch meats, but that doesn't mean low sodium...just compared to other meats it is. So you gotta go with portion control.

Cereal. I usually go with fiber one frosted squares they have no sodium...or i make oat meal which the sodium is optional and marginal. But i don't usually put the salt in my oat meal.

peanut butter. I like Jiff natural. Low in sodium and good in protien.

canned veggies...unless other wise specified...just walk by them. I do steamed veggies... they are cheap good tasting and you can get great value kind and not break the bank.

Turkey burgers. Jenni O original turkey burgers...not the seasoned kinds...are low in sodium. Along with this Heinz now has salt free ketchup...add the sargento cheese and maybe some mr. dee's sweet potatoe fries and you are good.

Progresso has lower sodium soups, but again you need to do the portion size cause a whole can is still insane on sodium.

Frozen meals. Now...I find if i have planned my day right I can have one some times. I suggest lean cuisine or smart ones...as they are low in cals and not horrible in sodium, but you take a 700mg sodium max on most of them. Some are lower and most don't taste to bad. If you are in a hurry it's better then fast food...but not as good as home cooked food you control...

Watch your milk intake. one cup of 2% is 120 cals for 120mg of sodium...fairly equal, but if you are drinking it every meal or in your coffee can add up fairly quickly. Half and half is better on the sodium for coffee. I even use it for making mashed potatoes.

other wise i say fresh veggies...fresh fruit when you can get it. (Dole has natural fruit cups with no additives and what not I eat them all the time)

Going out to eat. throw your hopes for being low on sodium right out the door. Even apple bee's under 550 cal meals are 1200+ mg in sodium
Best you can do is get a salad with no croutons...dressing on the side and maybe grilled shrimp or chicken, but that will still have sodium cause all fast food places have frozen meat.

that being said if you eat half your meal which is usually the right portion size...the sodium won't be as bad and you can take home some food for the next day which is what I do when I do go out to eat.

If you do go over on sodium...drink some water with lemon...not my fav taste, but it is a natural diuretic and will flush things out better then just downing a ton of water straight up.

Best you can do is read labels be aware of your meals and how you plan them.
Going over one day or 2 isn't terrible, doing it all the time...you'll see a hault in your weight loss purely from water weight...it was what was happening to me till I figured it out.

The best thing you can do: Eat more whole foods, less processed food.

If you like 'processed' foods (for the convenience) try to find ways to make it yourself so you can control the amount of sodium. Granola bars can be made fairly easily at home. Pasta sauce, salsa, bread (eh..this one is harder but I think you get the point). There are several websites you can go to for recipes for your favorite products. You know, even frozen foods, can be made at home and then frozen for the convenience factor.

I completely agree! The only way to meet sodium goals is to avoid boxed and frozen foods as much as possible. I eat something boxed or frozen only once in a great while and always come in under on my sodium. I will be honest, it takes time, planning, and effort to make almost everything myself. The post I quoted above has some great ideas. Also, I have more time to cook on weekends so I will make a huge meal (say a big casserole, lots of extra grilled chicken, a huge vat of soup). There are only two of us, so this provides me with lots of homemade leftovers for quick lunches and dinners during the week when I am more pressed for time. If I make it, I control the sodium!

The best thing you can do is eat whole foods in their natural state as much as possible. Make things from scratch anytime you can. If convenience is important, make large batches and freeze. Buy your fruit & veg either fresh or frozen (mot seasoned if you go for frozen). Buy dried beans and cook them yourself with no salt. I cook the whole pound of dried beans at once, freeze them on a cookie sheet, then transfer to a container; that way they aren't frozen in one big clump.

Avoid frozen chicken breasts, as they are frozen in a salt water solution with a ridiculously high amount of sodium. Buy fresh. Limiting meats in general will help keep your sodium intake lower. Eliminate as many processed, packaged foods as possible, especially processed meats. If lunchmeats are important to you, invest in a rotisserie oven. Then buy whole turkey breasts, beef roasts, or whole chickens, roast in the rotisserie and slice as you would lunchmeat. You have far more control over the sodium that way.

There are increasingly many products available with low or no salt, read labels carefully and you might be surprised what you can find.