changing my plate.jpg

Changing my plate – to lose weight

changing my plate.jpgThis post is part of a regular series focusing on making small changes to improve our health. I shared my journey with changing my diet and moving to a clean eating approach which you can read here. I also had the lovely Katie Rainbird from Katie 180 undertake an analysis of my food intake for one day in that post, which was another step in the right direction.

Together we also offered the same opportunity to readers of Planning With Kids. We were blown away with the response and while I can’t guarantee will get to all of them this year, Katie has been busy working on many of the submissions already and we will publish as many as we can.

It is not possible for Katie to cover off everything in these posts. The aim is for her to find some small things you can change to what you are putting on your plate to help you achieve your current goal for your eating habits. You can read previous Changing my plate posts by clicking here.

Changing my plate – Anne’s day

image_katieKatie Rainbird (AKA Katie180) is a Sydney-based Nutritionist who is just as likely to be found jogging as she is baking. She is a mother to two, a keen home cook, prefers to get around in her workout gear and has a major passion for the written word. You can learn more at www.katie180.com.au.

Katie reviewed what a reader Anne (not real name as reader wished to stay anonymous) submitted that she ate in a 24 hour period. This is what Katie had to say about her day:

What is your current goal with your eating habits?
Lose weight!

Ok Anne, as I don’t know how much weight you are aiming to lose I’m going to make suggestions based on getting your weight loss kick started (higher protein, lower carb) but this is short term application only. For example if I was consulting with you I’d have you back to see me in a week / fortnight and so on and we’d adjust your diet accordingly.

Breakfast
Ate home, 7.30am, porridge with bran , sultanas & low fat milk. Cup of tea.

Try: 1/4 cup oats with 1/4 cup mixed seeds (linseeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, chia seeds) and 1/4 – 1/2 cup full fat plain yoghurt, sweetened with honey or maple syrup OR vanilla flavoured if you prefer. I *know* it’s hard to change to full fat dairy when you’re trying to lose weight but you need to trust me (and what we now know about good fats in our diet) on this one. OR try poached or boiled eggs with one slice of sourdough or wholemeal toast, serve over a handful of baby spinach leaves or rocket. Tea can stay.

Lunch
At home – wholemeal sandwiches with low fat cheese, ham and capsicum. Skinny cappuccino.
Rather cook some wholemeal pasta and serve a moderate portion with cubed feta and a mixture of semi dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, capsicum strips, red onion, toasted pine nuts and a handful of baby spinach leaves or rocket. You can cook pasta in a large qty and freeze portions then simply refresh them in boiling water for a minute or two. You can also poach some chicken breast to shred through across a few days if you keep it well covered in the back of the fridge where it’s coldest.

If you like to have sandwiches then choose good bread, use real butter, avoid light cheese and processed meats like ham: rather choose full cream organic dairy cheese and use meat that you have prepared yourself: leftover roast, fresh grilled minute steak. Always add leafy greens! There’s always room for leafy greens! Rather than make a skinny cappuccino have another cup of tea: less milk.

Dinner
Ate fresh prepared about 6pm. Salmon grilled with mashed sweet potato, broccoli and corn

Fine.

Snack 1
Mid morning. About 8 dry roasted almonds and 2 Brazil nuts. Skinny cappuccinos

You can eat more nuts than this! And I assume you’re making your own coffee? Try switching from a cappuccino to a piccolo latte (little latte) and use full cream milk instead.

Snack 2
Banana mid afternoon.

Fine.

Snack 3
N/A

Dessert
Fruit and low fat yoghurt vanilla.

Rather than low fat yoghurt, do much the same as I’ve suggested for breakfast, measure out your portions if it helps (1/4 – 1/2 cup) and add seeds atop too if you didn’t eat them for breakfast. Often late at night I feel hungry and if I eat a handful of nuts and seeds and make a cup of dandelion tea I’m quite satiated.

Nutritional supplements
Fish oil 1000mg, vitamin d 3000 iu, magnesium. Elevit

Increase fish oil so that you are taking 1000mg of the EPA/DHA per day, take a look at the breakdown on the label: it most likely reads 300mg EPA/DHA and 700mg fish oil or something along those lines. What this means is that inside that 1000mg of fish oil there’s only 1/3 which provides the EPA/DHA (long chain fatty acids we need to eat as we don’t make them) which are the beneficial fatty acids in fish oil. SO: if I’m suggesting you take 1000mg per day then you need to triple your current dosage.

Daily fluid intake
2 cappuccinos. 5 glasses water. Jaharrah hot chocolate. 2 cups of tea. Camomile tea

Reduce to one coffee, axe all Jarrah hot chocolate and rather make your own with cocoa, raw sugar and use almond milk. Increase water to 8 glasses to begin with then 10 once you get used to drinking more water.

 

Further reading

Disclaimer

Katie is a qualified nutritionist (Adv. Dip. Nutr. Med.).

Any diet or lifestyle changes that you implement as a result of reading this blog are your own responsibility.

This blog does not provide medical advice, any particular health conditions must be managed by your own health professional.

The content of this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this blog.