Is your diet boring?
abetterluke
Posts: 625 Member
This is a real question -- for those of you who are actively losing weight and have stuck with it for a long time....is your diet boring? Are you eating the same things over and over? I feel like I get stuck because I can healthy for a little while and then I get super bored of the same foods all the time. I try to find new healthy recipes and try new foods but I always end up getting bored and then giving up for a giant bowl of spaghetti.
I have a couple of different friends who are both in amazing shape and spend a lot of time on their overall health but I see them eating the same things all the time.
Is this the habit of a healthy person? Do I need to just get on board with the boredom?
I have a couple of different friends who are both in amazing shape and spend a lot of time on their overall health but I see them eating the same things all the time.
Is this the habit of a healthy person? Do I need to just get on board with the boredom?
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Replies
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I eat everything as long as it fits my calories and macros. This ranges from apples to ice cream. Really don't eat too much pasta any more, but have found substitutions that make up for it (zucchini noodles, spaghetti squash). Its not about what you can't have, but how you make what you want fit.5
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Boring food is bad, why would anyone do that...by all means change it up, and there are always ways to tweak your favorite foods to fit them in...my food tends to go in phases depending on what I'm craving at any given point in time...like lately it's been eggs and guacamole...before that it was toast smothered in butter or peanut butter...and before that it was any and every sauce on top of zucchini noodles...food should always be yummy, otherwise, why eat???2
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I am currently maintaining, but counting calories still.
I eat different things all the time because I love to try new things and I can be easily bored by repeating meals over long periods of time. I just make sure to log the calories. I know there are some studies that show that thinner people do tend to repeat meals, but I think you can lose/maintain weight while eating different things as long as you continue to monitor your calorie intake.
Are you limiting your idea of "healthy foods" too much and trying to cut too much from your diet. Sometimes I want some pasta (or whatever) and I just plan for it and log the calories. Any way of eating that you can only sustain for a little while is probably too limited for your tastes and your life.2 -
abetterluke wrote: »This is a real question -- for those of you who are actively losing weight and have stuck with it for a long time....is your diet boring? Are you eating the same things over and over? I feel like I get stuck because I can healthy for a little while and then I get super bored of the same foods all the time. I try to find new healthy recipes and try new foods but I always end up getting bored and then giving up for a giant bowl of spaghetti.
I have a couple of different friends who are both in amazing shape and spend a lot of time on their overall health but I see them eating the same things all the time.
Is this the habit of a healthy person? Do I need to just get on board with the boredom?
Not at all...variety is the spice of life...and I love to cook.
And there's nothing inherently unhealthy about a bowl of spaghetti either...had some the other night.
I also have a couple of friends who spend a lot of time on their health and their fitness...they do pretty much eat the same things routinely...largely due to their inability to cook and/or lack of interest in cooking and preparing meals.0 -
I used to have issues like this. I had to expand my palate and constantly rotate. Instead of eating hardboiled eggs every morning forever and ever and ever..., I mix it up now with overnight oats, or a homemade mcmuffin. I then accommodate the extra breakfast calories by switching up dinner for a salad instead of something calorie heavy.
I don't substitute spaghetti with zucchini noodles or anything like that. If anything, I now enjoy going to the store and picking out new fancy cheeses or looking for new ways to dress up vegetables either by seasoning or dressing. If you stick with the same food every day, you'll get bored, and you'll want to quit. I'm a former quitter (lol) and it took looking at food a lot differently to finally "get it".1 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »abetterluke wrote: »This is a real question -- for those of you who are actively losing weight and have stuck with it for a long time....is your diet boring? Are you eating the same things over and over? I feel like I get stuck because I can healthy for a little while and then I get super bored of the same foods all the time. I try to find new healthy recipes and try new foods but I always end up getting bored and then giving up for a giant bowl of spaghetti.
I have a couple of different friends who are both in amazing shape and spend a lot of time on their overall health but I see them eating the same things all the time.
Is this the habit of a healthy person? Do I need to just get on board with the boredom?
Not at all...variety is the spice of life...
And there's nothing inherently unhealthy about a bowl of spaghetti either...had some the other night.
I also have a couple of friends who spend a lot of time on their health and their fitness...they do pretty much eat the same things routinely...largely due to their inability to cook and/or lack of interest in cooking and preparing meals.
In all fairness a "bowl of spaghetti" for me is generally about 3x the size it should be, drenched in butter (like enough to leave a serious puddle at the bottom) and then covered in half a block of cheese.
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the problem is not the spaghetti - the problem is '3x the size it should be'
toppings sound yummy, but maybe control portion size?
You could have that meal for dinner, breakfast, and lunch if you only ate 1/3 each time - love cold spaghetti for breakfast, yum4 -
abetterluke wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »abetterluke wrote: »This is a real question -- for those of you who are actively losing weight and have stuck with it for a long time....is your diet boring? Are you eating the same things over and over? I feel like I get stuck because I can healthy for a little while and then I get super bored of the same foods all the time. I try to find new healthy recipes and try new foods but I always end up getting bored and then giving up for a giant bowl of spaghetti.
I have a couple of different friends who are both in amazing shape and spend a lot of time on their overall health but I see them eating the same things all the time.
Is this the habit of a healthy person? Do I need to just get on board with the boredom?
Not at all...variety is the spice of life...
And there's nothing inherently unhealthy about a bowl of spaghetti either...had some the other night.
I also have a couple of friends who spend a lot of time on their health and their fitness...they do pretty much eat the same things routinely...largely due to their inability to cook and/or lack of interest in cooking and preparing meals.
In all fairness a "bowl of spaghetti" for me is generally about 3x the size it should be, drenched in butter (like enough to leave a serious puddle at the bottom) and then covered in half a block of cheese.
Yeah, that's not good...but that also doesn't mean that eating healthfully has to be boring and bland. Likely your friends are the same as mine...they have little ability nor do they have the interest in cooking. My friends in particular look at food as fuel, plain and simple...it's boring as hell...but I'm pretty healthy and fit and cook all kinds of awesomeness...and eat it in appropriate portions.0 -
tcunbeliever wrote: »the problem is not the spaghetti - the problem is '3x the size it should be'
Point taken0 -
Not boring for me. I eat all foods in moderation in the proper serving sizes. While I would love 3x servings of spaghetti, I know I cannot afford it calorie wise so I eat 1x serving of spaghetti with marinara and some vegetables topped with a serving of shredded cheese. Making it filling and delicious is the secret for me.2
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I eat pretty much everything I enjoy, I just don't eat too much of it. And I exercise a lot more than I used to. It's all about calories in vs calories out. No magic shopping lists.0
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I basically eat the same things all the time and frankly, I don't find it boring. I like what I eat. Chicken and fish, occasionally pork, and a variety of veggies. Rice or beans for the carbs. It's easy, easy to pre-make and I don't spend an hour cooking every night. But then I'm disabled, so the easier to prep the better for me, and I'm single.2
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I do eat a variety of food and so I don't find it boring.I find eating to be more of a chore all the time. I feel it has become work with weighing, measuring, and logging everything all the time. This is what is usually my ruin I admit. I try to minimize this if I can. For example when I make something and I know I will be having it again the next day I will measure out two portions and put one aside that way I only have to grab it and eat instead of going to extra trouble. However even though I state that I put something aside and not to touch it my husband pretty much always eats my measured portion instead of getting his own. Also I try to log as many items for the day at one time if I know in the morning what I will be having that day.0
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I eat healthily and don't get bored. I eat a lot of the same things and try new foods too. I think if you eat foods you enjoy you won't get bored.1
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I hate cooking, so I tend to eat the same easy meals a lot. Personal preference, I don't see it as boring.
Edit to add: I also have a few medical things that certain foods help or hinder, so that can be incentive for me to keep things "boring".1 -
It's not for me....I do eat a lot of the same thing for simplicity's sake...but I have a fairly high tolerance for that. I do get bored occasionally, so when I do, I just do some research and introduce new things! A lot of it for me is that I'm super busy, so I need to be able to smoothly incorporate a healthy diet into my life, without a lot of extra consideration and time, which leads to me grabbing the same things over and over again.1
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My woe is far from boring. Eggs, meat, fish, veg, stuffed peppers. Bolognese. Chilli. Salads with dressing. Taco. Burritos. Omelettes. Smoked salmon and scrambled eggs. Burgers. Meatballs. The list goes on.0
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Most people have their favorites and tend to stick to those. What you perceive as boring, may not be boring to the person who is eating it.
I know I can't stay on a diet that I find boring. I can eat like that for a while and lose weight, as long as it isn't tasting like *kitten*, but the lack of taste and freedom of choice, and very very possibly lots of nutrition, made me "fail" time and time again, even though I followed a diet that purportedly was just "healthy, normal, everyday food" (no healthy, normal people eat like that
).
This time around, with MFP, I have aimed for pleasure and health. Those are not opposites. I have found that real, normal, tradtional food and ordinary recipes is not just good enough, but much better than any "diet" food or "skinny" recipe. It's just about portion control. As I have lost weight and got used to smaller portions, normal portions are, well, normal. I neither can nor want to eat all the time anymore, or eat past "stop!". I also enjoy getting really hungry before meals, eating only at meals, and looking forward to meals. That would be absurd if my meals weren't something to look forward to.1 -
I think some could look at what I eat and think it is boring, but I typically only eat food that I like.
I tend to make food in batches and then eat them for the whole week (unless I opt to freeze some portions for later). For example, had a hankering for chili, so made some, but it makes enough for 6 servings. So, I can either eat it every day for a meal all week or I can freeze some of it. Usually by the end of the week I am sometimes bored with eating it, so I don't make more until I get another hankering for it in a few weeks/months. Spaghetti sauce is something else I make in large batches, but I typically freeze some portions.
I also think that sometimes you hit on formulas of eating that seem to work well, so you just eat those things over and over as needed since it's just easier. For me, it just depends on my schedule and if I have time to be more creative. I do have a couple of 'go to' meals that I will use if I'm short on time, or don't feel like being creative - steamed garlic and lemon mahi mahi with steamed corn on the cob is one of my favorite meals. Super simple and easy.
I try to keep granny smith apples and berries around to snack on, and you'll see me eating them a lot. I also love sticks of cheese for snacking. Since I eat these things over and over, some might find it boring, but I love them, so they are treat for me every time. I do keep carrot sticks/chips around too for snacking, but I'm more of a fruit lover than a veggie lover. But I also sometimes work in normal potato chips into my intake for the day if that is what I really want. I also have beef jerky on hand if I want a mini-protein fix. It's not about limiting the types of food as much as it is about determining how much of it you can fit into your goals for the day.
You can eat boring, but it gets...well, boring...and isn't going to be sustainable over the long term. Or you can figure out how to make delicious meals/snacks that fit into your calorie limitations and macros. Will you have to make substitutions for some of your favorites? Maybe, depends on what your goals are.1 -
There are very few things i don't eat. It never needs to be boring. I don't do 'diet' or 'light', and nothing is off limits. I eat what I like, and fit it (roughly) within my calorie goals. If it was boring or gross or super repetitive i couldn't stick with it.0
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I have go-to meals, but I always have had those. My diet isn't boring at all. I've lost 91lbs and while I do pay close attention to my nutritional needs, I basically eat whatever I want. I cannot tell you how much ice cream, pizza, hot wings, steak, wine have been in my life. Great meals out, great meals in.1
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Boring is in the eye of the beholder. What it may be boring for some people it may be delicious for somebody else. It is all according to our taste buds and preferences.
Some people choose to eat the same food all the time as a way to control calories, cravings and/or binges; others with more controlled eating habits, prefer to have a variety of foods on hand and try different things. Some people like to cook a lot and have a preference for recipes with more or fancy ingredients and with more preparation time. I prefer simple recipes with few ingredients that can be prepared in less time.
I can eat homemade soups and salads for lunch all the time (different recipes, of course) and some people may consider that "boring," but for me is convenient and delicious. We are all different.3 -
Nope not boring while losing, not boring in maintenance. Also not repetitive. Almost always healthy.
Some recent dinners we've had (in no particular order):
Lightened up lasagna (high fiber pasta, lean meat, reduced fat cheese)
Shrimp and broccoli stir fry
Grilled salmon with roasted broccoli, garlic and carrots
Spaghetti tossed with grilled chicken and fresh garden vegetables in a light cream sauce
Chicken marsala - over a mix of whole grains and chia seeds
Nachos - seasoned ground venison, black beans, onions, hot peppers, guacamole
Chicken grilled outside, beans in a spicy bbq sauce and fresh collard greens cooked with garlic and olive oil
Blackened catfish, fresh collard greens cooked with garlic and olive oil and pickled beets
Kabobs - venison tenderloin chunks, red potatoes, assorted hot peppers from the garden and onion
Chicken wings and raw veggies
Tonight we are doing turkey breasts and brussel sprounts on the grill.0 -
abetterluke wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »abetterluke wrote: »This is a real question -- for those of you who are actively losing weight and have stuck with it for a long time....is your diet boring? Are you eating the same things over and over? I feel like I get stuck because I can healthy for a little while and then I get super bored of the same foods all the time. I try to find new healthy recipes and try new foods but I always end up getting bored and then giving up for a giant bowl of spaghetti.
I have a couple of different friends who are both in amazing shape and spend a lot of time on their overall health but I see them eating the same things all the time.
Is this the habit of a healthy person? Do I need to just get on board with the boredom?
Not at all...variety is the spice of life...
And there's nothing inherently unhealthy about a bowl of spaghetti either...had some the other night.
I also have a couple of friends who spend a lot of time on their health and their fitness...they do pretty much eat the same things routinely...largely due to their inability to cook and/or lack of interest in cooking and preparing meals.
In all fairness a "bowl of spaghetti" for me is generally about 3x the size it should be, drenched in butter (like enough to leave a serious puddle at the bottom) and then covered in half a block of cheese.
See, that to me actually sounds boring, kind of bland.
How I like pasta (and am happy with a serving size or less) is with a meat sauce made with tomatoes, lots of vegetables (onions, peppers, and garlic, of course, but also whatever else I have on hand -- often zucchini or cauliflower or broccoli or simply some greens), and of course lean ground beef. A little olive oil to start it off. Or even more often, since faster, I use whatever vegetables I have on hand, plus mushrooms, and sautee them in olive oil. Then I toss in the lean meat or other protein I want to use (smoked salmon is good and something I always have on hand, but shrimp, other fish, chicken, beef, whatever, sometimes even tempeh or seitan or beans (although I'd prepare that differently). Depending on the mix of ingredients used, I may add some pinenuts or a sprinkle of strong-tasting cheese or olives.
I find this really delicious and endlessly variable.
There are other meals I love and repeat a lot (basic salmon plus veg (usually 2-3) plus starch or roasted chicken in place of the salmon), but I find them not boring at all, and as you can see there are moving parts (I try to eat seasonally, so that keeps it interesting). If I do pork chops I often include sauerkraut and apples and onions. I play around with different Asian salad mixes (I like lean beef as part of this, as it goes well with a spicy dressing), tons of different things. When I get boring -- and I sometimes do -- it's more because I make something and am using it up or have limited time to cook so just whip up whatever is on hand in my refrigerator. (Worst case, an omelet for dinner can be nice.)0 -
honestly yeah sometimes, but that might have something to do with my Chef brain. I get bored of food REALLY easily and often get stuck in a culinary rut if you will.
I also find myself having mental tantrums over not being able to eat what I want sometimes. I eat a low carb diet, although I'm not opposed to "cheating", I am very sensitive to gluten. I miss a nice crusty piece of bread, but I know that eating said bread is going to cause me severe stomach cramps so I probably shouldn't partake in that bread.
I would say that is why my diet is boring at times. I also don't eat packaged foods so it limits on the go options. Top that off with I tend to buy whats cheap/in season it can get dull sometimes, but again that is probably more due to the fact I live more north.
I'm sure that was of NO help but there you go LOL0 -
My diet is not boring at all. I eat plenty of variety and can fit in pretty much anything I want in moderation.0
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Definitely not boring. I do eat repetitively throughout the week, but that's because I live alone and most recipes I make aren't easy to make for less than four. So dinner one night will be lunch for the next couple of days, etc.
If you're bored, try exploring other cultures' food.0 -
FaylinaMeir wrote: »honestly yeah sometimes, but that might have something to do with my Chef brain. I get bored of food REALLY easily and often get stuck in a culinary rut if you will.
I also find myself having mental tantrums over not being able to eat what I want sometimes. I eat a low carb diet, although I'm not opposed to "cheating", I am very sensitive to gluten. I miss a nice crusty piece of bread, but I know that eating said bread is going to cause me severe stomach cramps so I probably shouldn't partake in that bread.
I would say that is why my diet is boring at times. I also don't eat packaged foods so it limits on the go options. Top that off with I tend to buy whats cheap/in season it can get dull sometimes, but again that is probably more due to the fact I live more north.
I'm sure that was of NO help but there you go LOL
Interesting to see someone describe their own diet as boring!
But it has to have a lot to do with attitude. I cook most of my meals form scratch, and I love the variety and versatility I get from that. I also buy cheap ingredients and what's in season, but foods in season are at its peak of ripeness an deliciousness and varies with, well, season.
(I have to take into consideration when I get excited about the food I eat, that I've lived for 25 years alternating between diet foods and junk foods. Real, normal food and not worrying feels like I've died and gone to heaven
)
I also live in Norway. You can get further north, but not much
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I eat very healthy and clean for the most part, but I don't think what I eat is boring. I love to cook and use a lot of infused olive oils, different vinegars, herbs, spices and seasonings. Or I just look at menus and pick out something that sounds really good and make my own version - looking at where I can swap healthier options. Fat free greek yogurt for sour cream, no added sugar marinara sauce, baked potato fries, cauliflower mashed potatos, ezekiel bread french toast, protein pancakes. I don't have a grill, but use my George Foreman grill all the time. I'm always on the lookout for different sauces or marinades. My portion sizes are huge, I get pretty creative in my meals, and I don't get bored with what I eat. What works for me is knowing my portion sizes of my go-to proteins, carbs, and fats, and the combining them creatively to make all kinds of meals.1
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