Lost my appetite for healthy foods
ashleymcn01
Posts: 108 Member
So here is my dilemma, I love to exercise, but here recently I have completely lost my appetite for healthy foods. For example, I made chicken & broccoli last night and had to give it to my husband to finish, just wasn't good to me as it has been in the past. This has happened so many times over the past couple of months, and now I'm seeing the weight creep back up because I seem to only be craving carbs.
When this journey first started back in 2014 I was devouring vegetables and all kinds of good for you foods, but other than my oatmeal in the mornings, all of it has just gone out the window. I have this binder with tons of great recipes, but don't want to make any of it!!! How do I get this motivation back to eat healthy again? Anyone else experienced this?
When this journey first started back in 2014 I was devouring vegetables and all kinds of good for you foods, but other than my oatmeal in the mornings, all of it has just gone out the window. I have this binder with tons of great recipes, but don't want to make any of it!!! How do I get this motivation back to eat healthy again? Anyone else experienced this?
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There are no bad foods, no one is bad for eating or not eating any specific thing.
If you're not feeling chicken and broccoli, don't eat it. There's an abundance of other food that exists. You can eat anything you want and lose weight, as long as you eat fewer calories than your body burns in the course of a day. If you're craving spaghetti, make some and serve yourself an amount that will fit in your calorie budget. Carbs, in all their delightful forms, will still be there when you reach GW - figure out how to live with them now, or you'll find yourself back where you started again.3 -
Last night I was absolutely not feeling the healthy dinner that sounded appealing earlier in the day. I ate two candy bars and went to bed.
Healthy? No.
But better than forcing down healthy food and then still cracking and eating the candy. Because eating food I DO NOT WANT (or want to finish) is pretty much how I ended up obese to start with. Not doing that again.
Same calories as dinner would have been (though no not the same nutrition), too so no derailing of my weight loss. Fine by me.
Portion/calorie control is my bar. Otherwise if I get bored with something or don't want it, I'm *not eating it*. If I don't *like it*, I'm not eating it. I rarely choose to sub out dinner for absolute candy, but if I wanna eat 1700 calories of mashed potatoes every day for a week (one or two days of subbing out a balanced diet for stuff is usually all it takes) until my desire to eat broccoli returns, that's what I'm doing.2 -
ashleymcn01 wrote: »So here is my dilemma, I love to exercise, but here recently I have completely lost my appetite for healthy foods. For example, I made chicken & broccoli last night and had to give it to my husband to finish, just wasn't good to me as it has been in the past. This has happened so many times over the past couple of months, and now I'm seeing the weight creep back up because I seem to only be craving carbs.
When this journey first started back in 2014 I was devouring vegetables and all kinds of good for you foods, but other than my oatmeal in the mornings, all of it has just gone out the window. I have this binder with tons of great recipes, but don't want to make any of it!!! How do I get this motivation back to eat healthy again? Anyone else experienced this?
the good thing is, you don't need to eat 'healthy' to lose weight, you just need to eat in a calorie deficit. Short term, start with that? Also, have you cut carbs significantly? you don't need to cut carbs to lose weight.
Then maybe look at some new recipes that are a bit more exciting than chicken and broccoli to get more fruit and veg in your diet?1 -
"the good thing is, you don't need to eat 'healthy' to lose weight, you just need to eat in a calorie deficit. Short term, start with that? Also, have you cut carbs significantly? you don't need to cut carbs to lose weight."
I wish I had cut carbs, but that is my sweet spot at the moment. I could eat oatmeal for breakfast and dinner and be content. Snack on crust-less blueberry pie and sea salt lays and I'm a happy camper. I know I'm not getting near the protein I should be.
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Maybe you just need to shake up your food selections. Maybe it's time to get a new cookbook and try some of the things in there.
Chicken and broccoli are fine, but it can get boring. I burnt out on sandwiches long ago...too many during high school and college. But an interesting sandwich? I'm there.
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Herbs & Spices are your friends. They are great low calorie ways to add zing to otherwise "boring" steamed, broiled or baked healthy foods. Since you like fruit, add some to other meals1
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Not sure...I mean for me, health is also delicious, not boring...lots of herbs and spices and different cooking methods. As an observation, people seem to think if it tastes good it must not be "healthy"...which couldn't be further from the truth.
Also, there are numerous sources of very healthy carbohydrates. My guess is that you are just craving junk food...which aren't "carbs"...most junk foods as as much if not more fat than carbohydrates...all those treat foods like chips, baked goods, etc aren't "carbs"...they're namely fat and sugar...I actually find it interesting that people refer to these things as carbs...people say "craving carbs"...you never hear "craving fat"...even though most of those things have at least, if not more calories coming from fat than they do carbohydrates.2 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »Not sure...I mean for me, health is also delicious, not boring...lots of herbs and spices and different cooking methods. As an observation, people seem to think if it tastes good it must not be "healthy"...which couldn't be further from the truth.
Also, there are numerous sources of very healthy carbohydrates. My guess is that you are just craving junk food...which aren't "carbs"...most junk foods as as much if not more fat than carbohydrates...all those treat foods like chips, baked goods, etc aren't "carbs"...they're namely fat and sugar...I actually find it interesting that people refer to these things as carbs...people say "craving carbs"...you never hear "craving fat"...even though most of those things have at least, if not more calories coming from fat than they do carbohydrates.
You are 100% correct, nothing but fat and sugar that I'm craving. That's a dangerous road to be headed down!0 -
It might be helpful if you tell us exactly what you are craving and eating. There might be other ways to cook what you like and cut the calorie content. I've seen many clever recipes on here. Someone might have other foods for you to try. Cravings are not bad per se--it's too much that gets you in trouble. I started here in 2013 and now eat totally differently. I want other things. I now want salads with half an orange cut up in it and just a little EVOO. I crave that. Shrug.0
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snowflake954 wrote: »It might be helpful if you tell us exactly what you are craving and eating. There might be other ways to cook what you like and cut the calorie content. I've seen many clever recipes on here. Someone might have other foods for you to try. Cravings are not bad per se--it's too much that gets you in trouble. I started here in 2013 and now eat totally differently. I want other things. I now want salads with half an orange cut up in it and just a little EVOO. I crave that. Shrug.
also this.
When I want chocolate (but am not having a "I want nothing but day), I throw a 40 calorie pack of reduced calorie swiss miss into my oatmeal. Savory/salty/chips? Ranch seasoning (5-10 calories, almost nothing) on my 100 calorie microwave popcorn.
Those two products get most of my sweet/salty cravings out of the way.
If I'm actually craving fat, though I'm probably just going with it. And I mean fat instead of 'highly palatable junk'. Which I clearly sometimes still go with.0 -
wunderkindking wrote: »snowflake954 wrote: »It might be helpful if you tell us exactly what you are craving and eating. There might be other ways to cook what you like and cut the calorie content. I've seen many clever recipes on here. Someone might have other foods for you to try. Cravings are not bad per se--it's too much that gets you in trouble. I started here in 2013 and now eat totally differently. I want other things. I now want salads with half an orange cut up in it and just a little EVOO. I crave that. Shrug.
also this.
When I want chocolate (but am not having a "I want nothing but day), I throw a 40 calorie pack of reduced calorie swiss miss into my oatmeal. Savory/salty/chips? Ranch seasoning (5-10 calories, almost nothing) on my 100 calorie microwave popcorn.
Those two products get most of my sweet/salty cravings out of the way.
If I'm actually craving fat, though I'm probably just going with it. And I mean fat instead of 'highly palatable junk'. Which I clearly sometimes still go with.
So the things I'm craving are definitely dessert type foods (cake, pies, cookies, brownies, etc.). I'm reaching my hand in the bag of lay's almost daily or grabbing a fun size Hershey bar. For my main meals I would prefer a homemade hamburger with potato wedges over a piece of chicken (but who wouldn't!). For dinners, I would make recipes like Latin chicken, meatloaf, lasagna, pork chops, salads, tuna, fajitas, enchiladas, chili, pastas, different types of vegetables for side dishes(broccoli, lima beans, green beans, green peas, etc.), you know, just normal foods but made lighter. And none of it sounds good any more. I am in a serious rut!
I might just have to embrace the change in food temporarily, with the mindset that this to shall pass.
I think not only the change in appetite but my hormonal imbalances are to blame for the minor weight gain. Just need to get my head wrapped around it mentally.
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Shot in the dark: Are you sleeping okay? My appetite for sugar goes through the roof when I'm not getting enough sleep or poor quality sleep. All I want is candy and pastries.
Please ignore if not relevant.
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janejellyroll wrote: »Shot in the dark: Are you sleeping okay? My appetite for sugar goes through the roof when I'm not getting enough sleep or poor quality sleep. All I want is candy and pastries.
Please ignore if not relevant.
Interesting question. I do take a quarter of a Trazadone along with Melatonin, but have been having hot flashes at night that wake me up. I feel like I'm baking at 500 degrees! So even though I sleep hard, I have been waking up numerous times to kick my leg from underneath the covers until I cool back down.2 -
How are you preparing the healthy foods? We had chicken and broccoli last night too and it was amazing!
I rubbed the chicken earlier in the day with a mixture of spices (cumin, garlic, cayenne, salt, pepper olive oil) and left it to sit in the fridge then grilled it. The broccoli I broke into small florets, tossed in a little olive oil and salt and pepper and baked on a cookie sheet until getting crisp.
There are so many ways to make healthy food tasty and amazing. Check Pinterest for recipe ideas.1 -
ashleymcn01 wrote: »wunderkindking wrote: »snowflake954 wrote: »It might be helpful if you tell us exactly what you are craving and eating. There might be other ways to cook what you like and cut the calorie content. I've seen many clever recipes on here. Someone might have other foods for you to try. Cravings are not bad per se--it's too much that gets you in trouble. I started here in 2013 and now eat totally differently. I want other things. I now want salads with half an orange cut up in it and just a little EVOO. I crave that. Shrug.
also this.
When I want chocolate (but am not having a "I want nothing but day), I throw a 40 calorie pack of reduced calorie swiss miss into my oatmeal. Savory/salty/chips? Ranch seasoning (5-10 calories, almost nothing) on my 100 calorie microwave popcorn.
Those two products get most of my sweet/salty cravings out of the way.
If I'm actually craving fat, though I'm probably just going with it. And I mean fat instead of 'highly palatable junk'. Which I clearly sometimes still go with.
So the things I'm craving are definitely dessert type foods (cake, pies, cookies, brownies, etc.). I'm reaching my hand in the bag of lay's almost daily or grabbing a fun size Hershey bar. For my main meals I would prefer a homemade hamburger with potato wedges over a piece of chicken (but who wouldn't!). For dinners, I would make recipes like Latin chicken, meatloaf, lasagna, pork chops, salads, tuna, fajitas, enchiladas, chili, pastas, different types of vegetables for side dishes(broccoli, lima beans, green beans, green peas, etc.), you know, just normal foods but made lighter. And none of it sounds good any more. I am in a serious rut!
I might just have to embrace the change in food temporarily, with the mindset that this to shall pass. I think not only the change in appetite but my hormonal imbalances are to blame for the minor weight gain. Just need to get my head wrapped around it mentally.
...a homemade hamburger with potato wedges is a healthy choice...why wouldn't it be? Everything doesn't have to be chicken and broccoli...I actually don't remember the last time I had chicken and broccoli. I grill burgers at least once per week...there isn't anything inherently unhealthy about it at all.
Also, when it comes to deserts and other snacky "junk" food, I've found it very helpful to portion out what I'm going to have and eat it rather than milling through the pantry. If I have to get out a little bowl for my chips or my dark chocolate morsels, etc I find I'm simply more mindful of what I'm doing vs mindlessly grabbing handfuls of stuff from the pantry...I just don't let myself do that.
I have desert every night and I usually have a bowl of popcorn as a snack when I get home from work most days...I portion it out. During the week my desert is usually Geradelli dark chocolate morsels in these little ramakins we have for such things...on the weekends I let myself have something more special like ice cream, or a slice of cake or cookies if my wife has baked, etc. I just treat "treats" as "treats"...and not all the time food...and I enjoy them more than just mindlessly eating them because they are in fact what they're supposed to be...."treats"4 -
I love burger patties! I usually top salad with it(hamburger salad!) But you can do potato or any other veg with it...2 -
A change in appetite like that can mean lots of other things too. Hormone shifts, signs of depression, illness, fatigue. It can also be a body response to change in weather. It might be helpful to talk to your Dr about the change in appetite.
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I agree--make a homemade lean burger, with oven baked potato wedges. Menopause can give you cravings, so change up what you ate in the past to lose. It's hard enough without eating things you don't want. Might be time to branch out, your tastes have changed. As for sweets, portion them out. I found myself eating too much dark chocolate, so I mix up 10g of protein powder with a fourth of a glass of water, a little cinnamon, 5g of chia seeds, a few dried cranberries, and 20g of oatmeal. I put this in the frig in the morning and eat it for dessert after lunch and then make another for dinner. It satisfies a sweet craving and gives me some protein. I still eat chocolate, but have cut down.1
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snowflake954 wrote: »I agree--make a homemade lean burger, with oven baked potato wedges. Menopause can give you cravings, so change up what you ate in the past to lose. It's hard enough without eating things you don't want. Might be time to branch out, your tastes have changed. As for sweets, portion them out. I found myself eating too much dark chocolate, so I mix up 10g of protein powder with a fourth of a glass of water, a little cinnamon, 5g of chia seeds, a few dried cranberries, and 20g of oatmeal. I put this in the frig in the morning and eat it for dessert after lunch and then make another for dinner. It satisfies a sweet craving and gives me some protein. I still eat chocolate, but have cut down.
As we have all exchanged thoughts this morning, I do believe this is related to menopause. I just started my hormone therapy this week, so fingers crossed the lack of wanting to fix my normal recipes will diminish over time. Boy do I hope so! It's not that I just want sugary foods only, I just don't want to cook my normal stuff. My brain is full of menopause fogginess right now.4
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