Transitioning from Lean Cuisine to fresh foods? -need advice

I often cook for me and my boyfriend so I don't make large portions... Check out my blog - lots of great easy ideas.
marysforkandspoon.blogspot.com

SW 303.4 (1/1/2011)
CW 205.2 (down 98.2lbs)
GW 160-170lbs (haven't fully decided!)

Make it large and freeze it. There are a lot of recipes if you check that section of the forums. Make sure you mark it with calories / serving size if you don't freeze it in individual servings. If you plan you can win.

Just wanted to applaud you for transitioning to fresh "real" food! My advice to you is to keep it simple. Grill chicken or fish or beef (unprocessed and hopefully without hormones and other bad stuff) with seasonings of your choice, cook some brown rice with maybe garlic and chicken broth, with some simple vegetables -- either raw salad or steamed or roasted in a tiny coating of olive oil. It doesn't always have to be a "RECIPE" per se. That will help you to not make big portions and have them hanging around or get bored with them.

The BBC good food website has a healthy recipe section on it.... there are some really great recipes on there!

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/wellbeing/

Good luck on your journey! Cooking fresh food from scratch for the most part is easy & fun, I hope you enjoy it!

I cook bigger batches and use them in several meals. I buy split chicken breast when its .99/lb at my store and cook it in the crockpot. Then I shred it. Last week I put it in a stir fry with loads of fresh veggies and put it over rice. Lasted me 4 meals. This week I just did it plain so tomorrow i will have it in a salad one meal and over rice the next.

I started my journey eating a lot of 100 calorie packs and Lean Cuisines too. Here are some of my suggestions:

2 ounces smoked turkey on light rye bread with 1 wedge of garlic and herb Laughing Cow Light spread on it, topped with cucumber and red onion (about 200 calories)

1 corn tortilla (small) topped with 1/4 cup refried beans, chopped sweet onion, diced red pepper, and diced jalepeno; cook for about 15 minutes at 325; remove and top with 1 ounce light Mexican shredded cheese; melt cheese; remove and top with 1 or 2 tb of fat free sour cream. This can run you about 250 - 300 calories. I make this for me and my hubby and we both LOVE it.

2 ounces peppered ham on light rye bread with mustard, 1 ounce of 75% reduced fat Cabot sharp cheddar cheese, onions, red peppers, hot peppers. This is also very low calorie, probably about 260 calories.

Those are just a few things off the top of my head. Good luck to you!

Just out of curiosity, are your calories set to below 1000 per day? It looked that way to me based on your diary. Just be careful not to loose the weight TOO fast, hon.

See that a lot when we are incorrectly focused on controlling weight by controlling calories instead of controlling hunger and insulin.

Controlling calories leaves you hungry, slows your metabolism, and if done to extremes is dangerous.

Controlling hunger and insulin is as easy as eating real, whole food including meat, fish, foul, eggs, and their fats, combined with low starch vegetables.

I highly recommend the OP adjust her approach to one based on eating real, whole food (non-starch based) instead of this dangerous combo of low calorie, low fat. Since the OP is switching to whole food it seems like an ideal time.

This is all such great advice!!! I to will make just simple meals from grilled chicken, veggies, eggs/egg whites. I'll make enough for at least two meals or I'll put left over grilled chicken in the freezer. Then if I'm ever short on time I've got some lean protein that i add a fresh veggie and whole grain carb to and I have a meal. Body for Life is how I originally learned how to "clean eat". It teaches sensible eating and portion control with real food. No processed.
Keep up the good work and continue to learn about eating clean. It's the best thing for you!!!

Skinnytaste.com Definitely my favorite recipe site, lots of easy meals.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, this site!!! All my favorite recipes and more, AND my kids love them too!!!!

Net 850 is not enough food. You will stall out for sure. Usual guideline is net 1200 no matter what. As for food, I agree with the other posters about making plenty and portioning it out for future use. Often you can even freeze it so you don't have to eat it all this week. So for example you can make a nice big batch of chili when ground beef is on sale. The other day pork loin was on sale at $1.99/lb by me so I bought a massive piece and cut it up in 3 parts and slammed it in the freezer. I took out one part, rubbed some spices all over it (whatever spices you like) and roasted it at 375 for about 15 or 20 minutes. Chicken breasts or legs are great roasted at 375, sprinkled with a bit of salt and pepper. You can prep lots of delicious veggies this way too, such as sweet potatoes, beets, turnips, parsnips, peppers, mushrooms, red onions or brussels sprouts: toss with some olive oil, salt and pepper and roast at 400 for 15 minutes or until tender. Or you can bake whole sweet potatoes and save them in the fridge; they are amazing warmed up in the microwave for any meal of the day. You can bake up some butternut, acorn or kabocha squash and have a nice big piece anytime. Squash runs anywhere from 40-115 cals a cup and it's full of good stuff. Or steam up a big head of broccoli. Or make mashed cauliflower - super-delicious.

You should aim to make enough food that ANYTIME you go in your kitchen, you have something delicious and tempting all ready-made in your fridge for you. I like the recipes at nomnompaleo.com. There are also a lot of great recipes and also great links at marksdailyapple.com.

Skinnytaste has LOTS of great soups - I love the pasta e fagioli. I make a big pot and then take a portion to work with me, etc.

Also, I do eat some frozen food, just because it's hard for me to get myself and my kids ready and out the door on some days. So while I try to eat as naturally as possible, life gets in the way sometimes, and you have to be prepared - better to eat a frozen meal than to go to the nearest McD's and eat a ton of fat/calories! So what I sometimes do is supplement the meals with a nice big green salad with some oil/vinegar or low-fat dressing. It's very filling, I get a nice big bowl of veggies, and I stay on plan!

If you're comfy with Lean Cuisines at the moment - try adding a bag of steam fresh veggies to each meal - they're low in calories and will definitely keep you fuller for longer... Until you learn to cook that is, nothing is better than a home-cooked meal! I'm by myself too and will cook 4-5 portions of something and box the spare servings up for lunches and dinners - if I cook a few nights in a row i have about two week's worth of stuff in the freezer and get a couple of weeks off!

Get yourself some good containers if you don't have any yet.

What I do is when I have a day off I chop up veggies and fruit and put them in containers. I make enough for a few days. I also always make extra of whatever I make for dinner... portion it out in the containers, pop one in the fridge for lunch the next day and freeze the rest. I always have a stash in the freezer for lunches I didn't plan ahead for or when I just don't feel like cooking or am in a rush for time. Same convienance as frozen meals like lean cuiseine but so much healthier! With a bit of prep time spent it helps in the future. Even if you're just cooking for one it works.

You can also do the same type thing but make things that you can make into different meals. For example, you make chicken for dinner, cook two extra pieces. Make extras of everything else and pop in the freezer. Cut one piece up for topping a salad or making faijtas.

A bit of prep and imagination help a lot!

Good for you!!!Your on your way!!!