I'm a very picky eater.. help!

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sjlafleur
sjlafleur Posts: 2 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I've had a poor diet for a very long time and it finally caught up with me when I was pregnant with my first child. I gained 50lbs with my first and 30 with my second and even though I've slimmed down since I started actually trying to, I keep going back up over 190. I'm a very picky eater and I can't seem to figure out what to eat or how to eat it, not sure if that makes sense.. I've basically been eating chicken and broccoli for supper almost every night (I don't even like broccoli that much) and I never know what to eat for lunch. I do know how to cook, I just don't know what to cook. If anyone can help me or knows of a book or anything that could help me. I just want to lose this belly fat and get back in shape. :)

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  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    www.skinnytaste.com

    make yourself widen your diet - try new things - try them more than once in many varied ways

    - just because you may not like boiled carrots you may like them roast or raw with hummus or in soup or mashed with turnip or added to shepherd's pie etc

    you are a grown up - you can do this, you just need to experiment
  • kelsnewlife
    kelsnewlife Posts: 18 Member
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    I don't have any advice for you. I'll just be very interested in the replies you receive. I am also kind of picky and I also get very sick to my stomach with spicy foods or anything with a heavy tomato base...yeah I know, doesn't leave much, lol.
    So I hope you get some great answers!! Good luck-kel
  • atypicalsmith
    atypicalsmith Posts: 2,742 Member
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    You said you've had a poor diet. What does it consist of? You said you don't like broccoli, but you're eating it. What foods do you love? What foods do you hate? There are some foods that people murder while cooking it, such as yellow squash and brussel sprouts, that are actually delicious when cooked right. What foods do you like for breakfast? There's no reason to not enjoy all your food while limiting your calories if you just let us help you with ideas.
  • snowflakesav
    snowflakesav Posts: 647 Member
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    Determine what you like. Work from there. I like the skinny taste cook book if you want to get creative. Try grilled shrimp and peaches instead of chicken and Brocolli.
  • CoachJen71
    CoachJen71 Posts: 1,200 Member
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    I eat a ton of grilled, lemon rosemary, and Tandoori chicken for the same reason. I do enjoy beef, pork, and Turkey, but fish not so much. I roast my broccoli because I like it better that way. It's been a fight, but I've been expanding my menu a little at a time. Hated oatmeal. Now I can tolerate it with fruit and nuts in it. Don't like eggs, but got myself to eat one on a healthier version of a breakfast sandwich. Not a pear person, but darned if it isn't yummy with field greens and honey mustard dressing. Hated bananas, until I smeared natural peanut butter on them. Recently started making peanut butter Greek yogurt and chunking them up in that. Wasn't a fan of sweet potatoes, now I eat them 2-4 nights a week.

    I am starting to pick my foods out for their nutritional value more, whereas before it was never a factor. Just keep trying new things, and revisiting old disliked ones. I found it got easier to do as my waistline and calorie budget got smaller. I am always on the lookout for healthy low-cal, high volume foods. Good luck!
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,136 Member
    edited June 2015
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    Eat what you like, just less of it. Weigh and measure your foods. Don't eat what you don't like. Try not to be pressured into eating foods because "they're good for you". You can check my diary if you want. I'm not that much of a picky eater anymore since I eat my meals either alone or with my husband (who doesn't care). Not having to deal with food police at every meal helps me. Yes, I branched out and tried new foods, albeit not in the ways most people would. Those Beanitos chips are beans and rice, just in a different form.

    I'm not telling OP to eat all donuts or Twinkies or cake or whatever. Losing weight is easier when you don't have the prospect of forcing oneself to eat foods you hate/don't like/find disgusting.

    Edit for homonym
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,996 Member
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    Are you on the MFP email list? That sends recipes every few days and you can Click to Log.

    You can also subscribe to allrecipes.com's email list (or probably any food site.) At allrecipes, you can plug in chicken and broccoli into the Ingredient search and see what variations come up. I often do that if I have a few ingredients but no inspiration.

    (Note: I had formerly subscribed to allrecipes but can't find the option now. I do see a section called Healthy. Check it out: http://allrecipes.com/recipes/healthy-recipes/ )

    I'm also on the America's Test Kitchen email list and like their recipes the best of the ones I receive by email, plus there are often videos from the TV show, but they don't provide any nutritional info and MFP was not able to import their recipes last time I checked. Recipes from the newsletter are "unlocked" for a month but after that you need a paid subscription.

    My favoritest all time cookbook is The Joy of Cooking. It's like an encyclopedia of how to cook. Nutritional info is not included.
  • JediMasterNaw
    JediMasterNaw Posts: 124 Member
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    Being a picky eater myself, I understand how you may be feeling. It can get to the point where you think there isn't anything healthy you will eat. My suggestion is to stop focusing on what you don't eat and instead, make yourself a list of what you DO eat. Put it into categories: meats, vegetables, fruits, dairy, spices, condiments, etc. and the list might surprise you.

    Once you've got your list, you can start making/finding recipes that include those ingredients. You said you can cook, so experiment a little with different combinations from your list. Or, do as kshama2001 said and plug the ingredients into allrecipes.com

    It might take a little work, but even us picky people can eat healthy if we put our minds to the task!
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,208 Member
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    Also in case the other thread gets deleted ... :)
    Machka9 wrote: »
    Talking to a dietician is a great idea, and I would encourage you to do that too, but also ...

    You might also try spending some time walking through your local grocery store, fresh fruit and veg markets, Asian markets, etc. Look at the food. If it is packaged, red the labels ... check out the calorie content and maybe things like sodium if that's a concern for you or how much sugar it has in it.

    I've used Nutrition Data as a reference tool to see how many calories there are in various things. If you're not used to reading labels, it might help you out with that too.
    http://nutritiondata.self.com/

    And try various veggies. Pick one that looks interesting, then see if you can find some recipes giving you what to do with it. If you like it, great! If you don't ... you haven't committed yourself to a whole fridge full of the things. Next week, try another one. Fresh is great ... but frozen is all right too.

    For lunches, I use a package of Steam Fresh veggies and often an Uncle Ben's single serve brown rice. Heat in the microwave according to the instructions, mix together ... and there's lunch! :) I eat other things as well ... but that might get you started.

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