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Planning a couple of days worth of good meals is seeming like an impossible task, let alone a plan that's healthy (for whatever definition of healthy) and manages to consistently use what's stocked in the fridge/pantry.
So HN: Have you hacked your meal planning/cooking? What procedures have you developed?
This is what worked for me. I lost 70 pounds into a healthy weight range eating salad and vegetables, since working remote during the pandemic.
For lunch every workday I make a big salad: one head of romaine lettuce, bagged spinach, carrots, cucumber, bell pepper, tomato. No meat or cheese. Small amounts of dressing and croutons. Comes to 600-700 calories total depending on the dressing, and keeps me full for hours. There's great motivation to use what I buy since the greens will go bad if I don't.
Dinner is usually a bag of microwave steam-in-bag vegetables, plus something else veg-based, baked potatoes or canned black beans or chickpeas or something similar. I put seasonings on these, Dash brand or similar, lemon pepper or "everything" seasoning or other blends. No butter or any other garbage with dense calories. Again it's 600ish calories, with lots of bulk and fiber which is how you stay feeling full.
I describe it like this: this is what the human body evolved to eat in the hundred thousand years before we invented Mcdonald's.
I'm not super strict about following that all the time; maybe 75% of my meals do, with the rest being typical takeout or whatever if I'm out somewhere, usually on weekends. But there's enough slack in that plan that I can lose any stray pounds I pick up in a week or two.
I don't log food, just roughly estimate calories in my head over each day and week. I don't do anything about tracking fasting hours or anything like that. The description of this that works for me: "Eat all you want. Train yourself to only want healthy food."
There’s also no “best” way to eat without identifying what the metrics you’re optimizing for.
For me, I’ll oscillate between really motivated to be lower body fat vs not and that’s basically a function of roughly hitting macros (40% protein, 40% carbs, 20% fats) while staying below calorie counts (2500 on non lifting days, 3000 on lifting days).
It’s not exactly “right” but I can generally manage to hit it with 3 meals a day plus some snacks. If I can manage this without going out to eat during the week then I generally lose body fat over time because restaurant meals have a lot more calories and sodium than home prepped food.
The meal prep is more complicated on “high motivation weeks” but I work to maintain this as a baseline. Trader Joes is my grocery store btw.
Breakfast every day (pre lifting meal) 5 minutes of prep - Egg whites from a box with some shredded cheese + granola bar or handful of granola
Lunch every day: 5 minute prep - bread + Turkey slices + pepper Jack cheese + mustard and 3-4 rice cakes + seltzer water.
Snacks: Turkey Jerky or Yogurt
Dinner: 5 minute prep (I cheat slightly here) - Trader Joe’s prepared meals like a burrito or a Tzatziki wrap or a Caesar salad or a half a box of their chicken nuggets. I sometimes cook my own food but this is a good compromise between a fairly spartan homemade meal but not 1000 calorie restaurant meal.
Portions tend to matter more than you expect.
When in doubt, have a fixed rule like no carbs after 1pm and give yourself a free meal or day once a week for your sanity. It matters more for your life that you just start trying to eat better than to actually nail it off the bat.
Best of luck and feel free to reach out to me if you want to chat further! You’ll figure it out.
1. Make your grocery list. 2. Eat a snack. 3. Go to the store and shop. 4. Profit.
You will buy food that will take you further away from your goals if you hungry shop.
Given:
https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-eating-...
I buy a week worth of salad components and make 10 salads for my partner and myself. No meat on these. Crumble of feta. Homemade oil/vinegar based dressing
Then I buy salmon or cod for a few meals, chicken for a few meals, then an optional "wildcard" that might require planning.
The rest is easy. Lots of fruits and veggies.
Don't be afraid to just do it. I learned mostly by trial and error and have ADHD as well.
Do you do any mise en place?
I like greens that come from those robot farms. There have been a few different brands over the years. I have 10 square pyrex containers with lids that clip on all 4 sides. They've lasted about 5+ years so far. I put a small piece of paper towel in each to absorb extra moisture. Add cheese in the morning. Haven't had any spoil really but they sometimes taste less fresh and I eat them anyway.
I do my dressing in an oxo shaker but it can just be whisked in a bowl. Divvie it into Sistema dressing containers for the week. They're cheap and they've lasted years as well.
I've tweaked this a lot over the years but I've basically eaten a salad 5 days a week for 5+ years at this point. Be prepared to be the butt of jokes at work for sticking to it.
1. Calculate calories: https://tdeecalculator.net/
2. Generate meal plan from calories: https://www.eatthismuch.com/
3. Grocery shop from checklist
3. Make meals.
Credits to op of this Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/WeightLossAdvice/comments/j9i8ag/th...
Now I'm on a 3.1k calories diet and some days I run out of ideas and I just don't know what to eat. I won't follow the full meal plan but there are some good recipes there that I'll definitely use.
What has been working for me lately is:
1. Eating one big meal and perhaps a small snack later all within a 4-6 hour window; also do a 24 hour fast about once a week. This has eliminated my acid reflux, helped me gain more energy and focus, and have never slept better.
2. Cut out 95% of my sugar and carb intake, also cut out dairy as I seem to have a mild intolerance/allergy to milk which I indentified from performing an elimination diet experiment. This has helped me eliminate various forms of skin inflammation which I had been suffering from for years. Also cutting out sugar has helped me tremendously with emotional balance and equanimity.
3. Eat primarily whole unprocessed foods
I stick to a few simple meals such as:
-Scrambled eggs with onion, garlic, peppers, salt, cumin
-Steak cooked in ghee and oven roasted veggies (brussel sprouts, green beans, carrots)
-Oven baked fish and veggies
-Occasional small amounts of low sugar fruit after rigorous exercise
My typical snacks are:
-Hemp and chia seeds mixed into almond butter and pinch of salt
-Bell pepper and hummus
-A handful of mixed nuts
I also supplement with wild alaskan salmon fish oil, for the omega 3 fatty acid
Just made them a subconcious habbit since then:
1. Near Zero junk food (besically everything in celluloid packages making loud noise and any mcdonalds type of restaurant)
2. As little processed food as possible, especially meat. Cook as much as I can from raw materials.
(meaning i buy a raw piece of meat and cook it if i want meat, not preprocessed, prepackaged, precooked, prefrozen something)
3. No sugar or sugar based food (coke, cakes etc)
4. Nothing deep fried on the pan or in the oil. This alone helped me get rid of acne in few weeks back then.
5. As little quick carbohydrates as possible
6. No pork meat (this one I caught up living in Israel)
7. Not too much meat (few times a week is enough for me), and no meat before sleep.
Of course its impossible to always follow these in the modern world. I just try to follow them when I have a choice.
Regarding the planning, i find it impossible, being a bit adhd myself.
I just cook and buy whatever and whenever i feel like in the moment (or find in my freezer :)
1. Set up a target (lose/gain/keep weight, etc)
2. Learned basics about macros, calories and my daily caloric intake
3. Picked up a diet or macro distribution. For example 45% carbs, 35% protein, 20% fat.
4. Used an app (tried many, ended up using Eat This Much) to figure out a meal plan. Basically created 3 meals and used the app to tune the macros to fit #3
5. Make it as simple as possible to do. Easy to prepare meals (salads, veggie medleys, chicken, etc). Buy things for a fee days and pre cut everything so it’s easy to put together
It took me a while to read a bit about it but now it’s really easy to do and adjust as I go.
When the easiest meal available is a salad because it takes two minutes to put all the precut ingredients (lettuce, cucumber, bell pepper, tomatoes, onions, olives, feta cheese) in a large bowl, toss it with lemon juice, olive oil, and put a bit of salt and pepper on top, then it's pretty easy to eat more of it.
For example, in my fridge right now, I have containers with cut bell peppers, tomatoes, onions, feta cheese, mushrooms, cucumbers, carrots, and a tub of spring mix. With that already prepped, a lot of weekday meals are easy to make. Toss some onion, mushrooms, bell peppers and some tomato sauce into a pan for a delicious pasta sauce. Or some onions, mushrooms, bell peppers, and some eggs to make an omelette. Or cucumbers, tomatoes, feta, olives, and red onions for a Greek salad.
For reference i was always underweight, and medication i was taking was suppressing my appetite. I switched medications and ate WAY more. Was getting to a healthy weight, and i got COVID and that kinda ruined my appetite. Since then it’s almost been a chore to eat. Even when I’m hungry i struggle with what to eat, then i just don’t eat enough of it. My body will physically say “no more”
I think if i start eating a couple smaller meals throughout the day and then a bigger meal at night i can get back into the habit of eating regularly. It really is a struggle trying to think of what to eat though, and i usually go fasting all day until i NEED to eat.
God I've been here for years, and haven't figured it out let. I don't like big meals, and I don't like standard schedule. I'd prefer just to snack throughout the day, but that's somewhat difficult to do in a way that's both healthy and appealing. My hunger occurs at random often extremely inconvenient times. I also just don't have the motivation, especially reading these other comments. Life if already boring enough without eating the same thing day after day.
I’ve been trying to train my body to get hungry at “normal” times. I kinda hate breakfast, always have, but now I’ll eat a piece of fruit i enjoy in the morning. Later on in the day I’ll try and eat something else that’s small and i enjoy. My thought process is that if i continue to do this my body will start to crave food at that time and my appetite may come back.
I’ve had varying degrees of success so far, i don’t have the habit of the small healthy snacks yet so i keep having to remember. I think i may set up a bot to text me to eat at X time.
The depression definitely doesn’t help, hard to motivate to eat when you’re low. Dealing with that in parallel should help. When i can exercise again I’ll probably start doing that too for 30 minutes a day to build up an appetite.
First get in the habit of cooking.
Then work on making it healthy.
There isn't a hack.
It is a lifetime process.
You start by using a frying pan, not sprouting jars.
Good luck.
When grocery shopping, I get those "oooh, I NEED that" urges when looking at certain veggies, fruit, meats, dairy products, breads/rice/groats and even spices. It's all changing over time but mostly with seasons.
In addition, I eat fermented stuff daily and supplement different probiotics: Saccharomyces boulardii in the morning, Lactobacillus helveticus, Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Bifidobacterium longum in the evening. Fermented stuff is a craving but supplements are researched. I also have ADHD.
I'm on 17:7 intermittent fasting with addition of ~41h fast every couple of weeks.
In terms of meals, I add seeds to everything (chia, flax, linseed, pumpkin seeds) etc I also add salad mix to everything, so a burger for me is quite leafy, and has plenty of onions. I vary my diet as much as possible, yet lately I have tried every dish imaginable and it's hard to seek out new food, but that's an enjoyable problem I like to solve. 'What new thing can I eat today?' is a common question for me.
Breakfast: None (don't crave it anyway)
Lunch: Something predictable and the same every day. Either sandwich or salad
Dinner: Meal plan M-Th, Fri-Sunday eat whatever I want
Mostly I don't mind the cooking part, but I hate spending time deciding what to and the logistics of making sure I have all the right ingredients on hand. The meal plans solve all of that.
- Oatmeal, banana, and/or scrambled eggs for breakfast
- PB&J or ham&cheese sandwich for lunch
- Nuts, protein bar, peanut butter etc for snack
- Chicken and Rice for dinner
- Eating out once a week
So to recap:
1. Identify your flaws and workarounds to get to a default state
2. Commit to easy recipes to fall back on
3. Expand and track your waste
4. Fine tune and feel great!
There are plenty of keto treats and zero calorie but tasty drinks (some based on just native plants) to scratch the sweet tooth itch.
It has been working well to quench a lot of CFS and also I am losing weight through better hunger regulation although that isn’t a primary goal (but I am overweight so it is not a problem).
Two burgers, sans bun, an egg and salad is super filling and like 500 calories or so.
So you can start with that and then find out which foods make you feel more stable/present.
Some foods that help my physiology are eggs, butter, fish, nuts, yogurt, avocados, turmeric, onions and other veggies. Also chicken and occasionally red meat.
Then I try to cook something that includes those foods and it can snowball into a healthier lifestyle because you actually feel better along the way.
Signed up for a meal prep company that delivers weekly meals based on my daily caloric needs. the rest is if I am getting dinner or lunch with people.
Figure out what you want / like to eat, and perhaps why (more on this below).
Learn how to prepare that.
Use that to guide your shopping.
If you're not buying what you plan to / want to eat, you're going to have difficulty in preparing meals based on that.
Learn basics of nutrition. There are numerous guides, I've found fitness / bodybuilding books useful as they're strongly focused on macronutrients (carbs, fats, proteins), as well as micros (vitamins & minerals). They also tend to emphasize short meal prep and economy of ingredients. Tip: books oriented at women tend to focus far more on food and recipes. I've found the New Rules of Lifting series to be quite good in this regard, and whilst both the "For Men" and "For Women" titles emphasize nutrition, the women's book covers this in much more detail. These are vastly more useful than the "food pyramid", which is mostly a marketing tool for different sectors of the US ag & food industry.
Another element of fitness books is that they incorporate goals into meal planning. You can leverate this beyond simple fitness, keeping in mind that what you eat should serve some purpose. That purpose could be fitness, weight loss, muscle gain, or considerations such as ease of preparation, entertainment, variety, health concerns, limited storage / refrigerator / freezer space, etc.
Learn some basic recipies and foods. They're the foundation of a diet and menu, you can use or add to these to create a vast variety of dishes. Or you may decide you've got your go-to meals and go with those. If you don't have a cookbook or set of cookbooks, invest in some (perhaps checking them out at the library first).
If you plan on preparing your own meals, learn to cook. There are classes and courses (a great way to meet people as well), books, videos (a lot of cruft along with the good), and more. Keep in mind that there's a wide range of goals and intents behind these, from basics to social signalling (see the recent jarred garlic thread for all the social context mixed up in food: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31943770).
Build up a basic kitchen and set of tools. That's your basic pots and pans, bowls, cutting board, a good knife or three (Chef's, paring, bread, for starters), spoons and spatulas, and a few basic tools (graters, presses, and the like), and some food-storage containers (for batched-preparation and leftovers). It really doesn't take much, and you can build with time. Low-tech is often best, and my most treasured utensiles are a 60-year-old cast-iron skillet, a Dutch Oven, and a chef's knife. Mechanised tools can be useful but you can go a long way without them: mixers, blenders, food processors, etc. Get a whetstone for your knives and learn how to use it (not necessarily in that order).
On tools: I've long longed for a KitchenAid stand mixer, and thought that this was essential for tasks such as bread baking. When I got into sourdough baking at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, I found that an old ceramic bowl I'd received years ago from a friend was far more useful. What I did end up buying were a digital scale (about US$20), a dial thermometer (yeast is highly tempeature-sensitive), a bench knife (this resembles a spackling spatula, and in fact I bought and used one of those until I found a good bench knife), proofing containers, and a set of glass jars for my starter. The lessons being that 1) expensive mechanised equipment isn't necessary, 2) task-specific tools are, 3) measurement is often critical, and 4) you'll discover these over the course of your cooking/baking career. I still don't have that stand-mixer, though I'd kind of like to have one.
And if you don't like cooking for yourself, or want to minimise time spent doing so, find out what foods maximise both pleasure and nutrition whilst minimising time. The frozen foods section has vegetables which both won't rot and are often pre-sliced, which can be easily added to recipies, along with various meals and other options (check ingredents especially for trans fats, sugar, or other ingredients of concern). There's no shame in this.
Large-batch preparation (e.g., a stew for a few days), one-pot meals, stir-fry, learning how to make your own (sour)dough, and some basic frying, blanching, stewing, and baking skills will get you a long way. Combining fresh and prepared (frozen, shelf-stable, dried, ...) ingredients can give you a lot of flexibility.
Plan your weekly shopping around basic staples. If you can swing by a store for fresh produce and vegetables, that's a big bonus --- you can buy small quantities as you need them for immediate use.
And for the foods you want to eat less of: don't buy them. It's very hard to eat what's not available.
________________________________
Notes:
1. Michael Pollan, from In Defense of Food, which is a good book to add to your list, though perhaps not the best starting point.
I have no willpower. Any semblance of self control is due to not buying junk in the first place.
+1 for Pollan
I utilize this method personally with great success. The cookies, snack cakes, chips and crackers aisle has nothing which belongs in my weekly diet, so I skip that aisle and don't even look to see what's in it. I probably haven't gone down that aisle in a decade and by not navigating down the aisle I prevent myself from being tempted to buy junk. Likewise I only have to practice willpower in the grocery store once or twice a week, instead of every day.
Strongly recommend you try this method as its worked for me and many I know
It's a scientific exploration of food and cooking.
https://www.worldcat.org/title/how-to-read-a-french-fry-and-...
Menus for Healthy Living
Want to know exactly what to eat? The following menus each contain between 1,500 and 1,800 calories and are designed around food-group servings from USDA's Food Pyramid. Use these menus as a guide to developing your own menus, substituting equivalent amounts of your favorite foods from within the same food group whenever you like. Vegetarians can easily substitute such meat and dairy alternatives as tofu and beans for protein, and calcium-fortified soy milk and soy milk products for the dairy category.
MENU 1
Breakfast
1/2 cup orange juice (1 Fruit)
1 cup cooked oatmeal (2 Grain)
1 cup low-fat milk (1 Milk)
Lunch
3 slices (3 ounces) turkey breast (1 Meat)
2 slices whole-grain bread (2 Grain)
Fresh spinach leaves and tomato slices (1 Vegetable)
1 tablespoon reduced-fat mayonnaise (1 Fat)
1 apple (1 Fruit)
Afternoon Snack
1/2 cup tomato juice (1 Vegetable)
2 large rice cakes (1 Grain)
Dinner
1 cup black bean soup(1 Meat Alternative)
1 corn tortilla, toasted (1 Grain) and topped with1 cup chopped cooked vegetables (2 Vegetable)
1/2 cup shredded reduced-fat Jack cheese (1 Dairy)
3 fresh pineapple rings (1 Fruit)
Snack
1 cup sugar-free, fat-free lemon yogurt (1 Dairy)
MENU 2
Breakfast
1 cup cantaloupe or Persian melon cubes (1 Fruit)
1/2 cup bran flakes cereal (1 Grain)
1 cup low-fat milk (1 Milk)
Lunch
1 cup lentil soup (1 Meat alternative)
1 cup raw spinach ( Vegetable)
1 cup sliced mushrooms (Vegetable)
1 tablespoon reduced-fat salad dressing (1 Fat)
2 large or 4 small bread sticks (2 Grains)
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (1 Fruit)
Snack
1 cup grapes (1 Fruit)
1 slice (3/4 ounce) reduced-fat cheese (1/2 Milk product)
Dinner
1 large flounder fillet (1 Meat) broiled with 1 teaspoon olive oil (1 Fat)
1 cup steamed broccoli spears (1 Vegetable)
1/2 small baked potato (2 Vegetable) topped with 1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt (1/2 Milk product)
1/2 cup fruit salad (1 Fruit)
Snack
3 graham cracker rectangles or 6 squares (1 Grain)
1 cup low-fat milk (1 Milk)
MENU 3
Breakfast
1/2 grapefruit (1 Fruit)
1 slice whole-grain toast (1 Grain)
1 tablespoon reduced-calorie margarine or butter (1 Fat)
2 eggs, scrambled in nonstick skillet without fat (1 Meat)
1 cup low-fat milk (1 Milk)
Lunch
Pasta Salad: 1 cup cooked pasta (2 Grain) with 1 ounce reduced-fat cheese cubes (1 Milk)
1/2 cup chopped cooked vegetables (1 Vegetable)
2 tablespoons low-fat salad dressing (2 Fat)
1 cup melon chunks (1 Fruit)
Snack
4 pretzel rods (1 Bread)
1/2 cup vegetable or tomato juice (1 Vegetable)
Dinner
3 ounces lean steak (1 Meat), sliced and wrapped in 2 fat-free flour tortillas (2 Grain) with 1/2 cup diced tomato (1 Vegetable)
1 cup raw spinach leaves (1 Vegetable)
1/2 cup red or sweet white onion slices (1 Vegetable)
1 kiwi, peeled and sliced (1 Fruit)
Snack
2 cups air-popped popcorn (1 Grain)
MENU 4
Breakfast
3 small pancakes (3 Grain) with 2 tablespoons reduced-calorie syrup (Free) and1 cup blueberries (1 Fruit)
1 cup low-fat milk (1 Milk)
Lunch
Tuna Salad Sandwich: 2 slices whole-grain bread (2 Grain) 3 ounces water-packed tuna (1 Meat)
1 tablespoon reduced-fat mayonnaise (1 Fat)
Chopped, celery, lettuce leaves (Free)
1 pear (1 Fruit)
Snack
2 large cinnamon rice cakes (1 Grain) with 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (1 Fruit)
Dinner
1/2 chicken breast ( 1 Meat), baked or broiled, skin removed
1/2 cup cooked brown rice (1 Grain)
1 cup steamed zucchini and carrots (2 Vegetables)
1 small roll (1 Grain)
1 tablespoon reduced calorie margarine or butter (1 Fat)
Snack
1 cup fat-free, sugar-free hot cocoa, made with low-fat milk (1 Milk)
3 fat-free cookies (1 Grain)
MENU 5
Breakfast
1 large bagel (2 Grain), toasted with 1 ounce reduced-fat soft cheese (1 Milk)
1 cup strawberries (1 Fruit)
Lunch
1 cup split pea soup (1 Meat Alternative)
1 whole wheat pita pocket (2 Grain) filled with Shredded lettuce (Free)
1 ounce reduced-fat feta cheese (1 Milk)
1/2 cup chopped tomato (1 Vegetable)1 tablespoon reduced-fat vinaigrette dressing (1 Fat)
Snack
1 peach or 1/2 cup canned peaches packed in unsweetened juice (1 Fruit)
2 gingersnaps (1 Grain)
Dinner
3 ounces lean pork (1 Meat), stir-fried with 1/2 cup sweet red pepper, 1/2 cup onion and 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms (2 Vegetables) in 2 teaspoons vegetable oil (2 Fat)
1/2 cup cooked brown rice (1 Grain)
1 cup fresh pineapple cubes or 1/2 cup canned pineapple packed in unsweetened juice (1 Fruit)
Snack
1/2 cup low-fat frozen yogurt (1 Milk)
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I have ADHD and I eat healthy and track macros semi-successfully. Here’s my advice:
Ignore 99% of advice out there.
Personally, I try to cook as little as possible. Some people enjoy cooking, that’s great! Even I do sometimes. But for most meals, the slog of buying groceries, preparing, cooking, then cleaning is no fun and I end up throwing away food and eating out.
Things like meal prep can be extremely taxing for a neurodiverse person — I’m sure you can do it but it’s probably harder than it is for most people and you can put all of that incredible creative energy into something more productive.
Find a few healthy snacks that you like and buy those. Healthy = not junk, don’t overthink this part. These are just to curb cravings. Baby carrots, lettuce + deli meats, chickpea popcorn, watermelon, whatever. Set up a recurring order from an online grocery delivery or Amazon and call it a day. Eating these when you’re hungry will make all of your other food decisions more deliberate.
Get all of your groceries delivered. Safeway has it, FreshDirect, Instacart, many other options. It makes it quick to reorder the same things, you avoid indecision in the grocery store, and you save lots of time.
Buy healthy microwaveable food. I use The Chicken Pound [1] or you might like Freshly [2]. Trader Joe’s and other grocers have pre made stuff that’s pretty good too. Don’t cook rice the 45 minute way on the stove, buy microwaveable rice.
All of these could be healthier: watermelon has sugar, pre made has extra sodium, etc. If you get to the point you have extra time and space to optimize for these things then go for it, but to start out, the only thing that matters is calories + not eating junk.
Probably just not eating junk will make a world of difference, but if you want to dive deeper, track calories. Figure out what your baseline is using TDEE Calculator [3] and choose the slow loss. I use Keto app [4] for tracking (I don’t do keto) because I like searching by barcode and voice.
There are lots of rabbit holes to dive down and I anticipate if you get the basics on “easy mode” then you might view some of these smaller optimizations as actually fun!
But ya, as someone with ADHD the biggest thing for me was just letting go of the shame of not being able to meal prep like a normal person. Instead, I spend some extra money on premade and grocery delivery, set myself up to be 80% healthy on autopilot, and then spend my energy on much more engaging and productive (and high leverage / high return financially) activities.
[1] https://thechickenpound.com/ [2] https://www.freshly.com/ [3] https://tdeecalculator.net/ [4] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/keto-diet-app-macro-tracker/id...