Don't know what to do

[medanii59]

12 years T2 and still struggling. I know what I have to do but I can't be bothered with it all. Cooking for one difficult.

 

[Leadinglights]

12 years T2 and still struggling. I know what I have to do but I can't be bothered with it all. Cooking for one difficult.

Welcome to the forum
Are you taking any medication or managing by a dietary regime. Making some simple meals which you can bulk up and freeze for home made ready meals would be one option. Having a selection of cooked meats, eggs, cheese, salads which are easy to prepare, yoghurt and frozen berries for breakfast.
Many do find a low carb approach if they are dietary and or oral meds manages works for them.
Have a look at this link as it may give you some ideas, https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
Ideas about how powerful diet can be have changed since you were diagnosed and the standard NHS EatWell Plate is too carb heavy for many people.

 

[Inka]

12 years T2 and still struggling. I know what I have to do but I can't be bothered with it all. Cooking for one difficult.

Yes, cooking for one can be difficult but it can also be a relief as you only have to please yourself 🙂 You don’t have to make complicated meals. Keep it simple and just make sure you’re having enough green veg, etc.

Remember too that it’s ok to eat the same thing two days in a row, so that will save you time and effort if you make a meal for two and then have it two evenings in a row.

What kind of things do you like to eat? Are you on any medication?

 

[Docb]

I'm with Inca, batch cooking works well for me.

For example.... this morning cooked beef stew in the pressure cooker. Quite a lot of different things went in but it gave four portions - one portion for tonight, one for tomorrow and two portions in the freezer.

Whilst that was doing I chopped up a load of veg - carrots, onions, cauli , celery. These went into the pressure cooker pot with the dregs of the stew after the stew came out. Cook for 10 mins and blend it all together with a stick blender to make 6 portions of veg stock which means soup for lunches next week as well as providing a base for curries or whatever.

Quite a few meals sorted in the time I could have spent making one.

Getting the right kit is also very helpful. My pressure cooker (Tefal cook4me with extra crisp top - others are available) has proved invaluable. Cook just about everything in it from roasts to stews to cakes. It's quick, efficient and the right size for one person cooking. My conventional oven is redundant. The stick blender with its whisk and chopping attachments is a great time and effort saver and is not designed to be at its best only when cooking for a family.

 

[Leadinglights]

I bought a £30 air fryer which so far has been really useful and saved putting the oven on for a couple of chicken pieces, pork or lamb chops and salmon or tuna. Cooks in 15mins, I just need to get the timing of putting the veg on right.

 

[harbottle]

12 years T2 and still struggling. I know what I have to do but I can't be bothered with it all. Cooking for one difficult.

What sort of food do you like?
Chicken and salad with some sort of dressing?
Baked fish marinaded in something olive oil based? Or make a batch of Romesco sauce and have fish with grilled vegetables.

A lot of this can be done very quickly and is also... delicious.

 

[indio02]

Just wanted to say that making extra and freezing in meal sized portions is a fantastic idea.

 

[Deb_l]

12 years T2 and still struggling. I know what I have to do but I can't be bothered with it all. Cooking for one difficult.

I’m on my own and at the moment because it’s supposed to be summer (hmmmm OK then), I’m having plenty of salads. Mainly chicken but sometimes pork fillets or smoked salmon if I’m feeling flush.

In the winter, I do the same (chicken or pork) but with vegetables. I have an air fryer for the meat and boil the veg.

Breakfast is usually eggs, sometimes with bacon, often omelettes. Lots of strawberries and yoghurt - love that!!

My fryer is also a slow cooker and I will do batch cooked casseroles/stews that last a few days or freeze. I’m certainly not an imaginative cook by any stretch of the imagination but there are loads of options cooking for one to try.

Keep going, it is worth persevering.

 

[medanii59]

Thank you everyone for all your suggestions. They are extremely helpful. They certainly give me food for thought

 

[medanii59]

I tend to live on sandwiches and crisps. I'm on empagaflozine Metformin and weekly injection of trulicity. Plus numerous other medications for several other Illnesses.

 

[Leadinglights]

I tend to live on sandwiches and crisps. I'm on empagaflozine Metformin and weekly injection of trulicity. Plus numerous other medications for several other Illnesses.

Those foods really are not good for managing your blood glucose level, you may need some help from medication but diet has to play a part. I hope you can find some meals you like from the suggestions people have made.
Keep having to have more medications to reduce blood glucose when you are having the very foods which will convert to glucose is not the wisest thing.

 

[RichardsUsername]

12 years T2 and still struggling. I know what I have to do but I can't be bothered with it all. Cooking for one difficult.

No-one is perfect. All you can do is your best. Try not to be hard on yourself. This life ain't easy.

 

[Dragonheart]

We all think the grass is greener. I’d love to only have to cook for me, instead of catering to everyone else’s wants needs likes and dislikes. Mine get swamped in that. Keep it simple with the suggestions above, omelettes, eggs any other way, salads and cooked meats. It’s a rare treat when it’s just me.

I do a mean veg throw together of sliced cabbage lightly sautéed in butter or ghee, adding in whatever veg is in the bottom of the fridge like mushrooms, pepper, broccoli (chop it really small and it cooks fast). Sometimes adding pepper, or garlic or herbs. It replaces whatever carbs most people have like rice or pasta and fills a good veg portion. It even reheats ok if I make too much.

In a similar vein i heat butter in a pan, break eggs into it and smash them up. Easy scrambled eggs like that but I add grated cheese and whatever finely chopped veg I have, any cold meats that need eating and add just a 1/4 teaspoon of mild mustard, salt and pepper. Meal made in literally 5 minutes and only one pan to wash.

 

[indigostar]

Get yourself a slow cooker if you don't have one already. It's the easiest way to get out of that "can't be bothered cooking" funk. You can make lots of tasty casseroles and soups by literally just chucking stuff in and forgetting about it.

Batch cooking is always your friend. Eggs are my saviour too.

You will feel much better replacing your sandwiches and crisps with soup and an omellette or a chicken salad wrap, for example.

Just take it one day at a time... maybe even one meal at a time, you can do it 🙂

 

[Leadinglights]

Just came across this recipe. Creamed red cabbage. 50g Smoked bacon lardons, 30g carrot, 30g celeriac, half a red cabbage, thinly sliced, salt and pepper, 250 ml double cream. Sounds ace.

 

[indigostar]

250 ml double cream

That's a lot of cream... swap that out with low fat cream cheese and you'll make it even healthier

 

[Leadinglights]

That's a lot of cream... swap that out with low fat cream cheese and you'll make it even healthier

It does say it serves 4-6 people, but it would probably work with cream cheese, though I often find low fat can curdle.

 

[Dragonheart]

That's a lot of cream... swap that out with low fat cream cheese and you'll make it even healthier

Only if you subscribe to dairy/fat being bad.

A lot of low carb followers believe that’s based on false or absent evidence and have a good amount of science and medical opinion to support us.

For now it remains a “I say tomato you say tomato” situation even amongst the experts let alone us plebs. Time will hopefully resolve this before poor nutritional guidelines make us as a planet any sicker.

 

[indigostar]

Only if you subscribe to dairy/fat being bad.

A lot of low carb followers believe that’s based on false or absent evidence and have a good amount of science and medical opinion to support us.

For now it remains a “I say tomato you say tomato” situation even amongst the experts let alone us plebs. Time will hopefully resolve this before poor nutritional guidelines make us as a planet any sicker.

I’m aware, have looked into the keto/atkins method before. For the nutrition plan that I follow, full fat cream is too high fat/calories for me. But I definitely agree that folk should do what is right for them. It was just a wee suggestion

 

[Dragonheart]

I’m aware, have looked into the keto/atkins method before. For the nutrition plan that I follow, full fat cream is too high fat/calories for me. But I definitely agree that folk should do what is right for them. It was just a wee suggestion

It’s good you’ve made an informed choice for yourself.

My comment was more aimed at what appeared on the face of it to be a 100% factual statement that actually isn’t. Most likely only relevant to those that aren’t even aware there is controversy about fat and that low carb is an option. Probably only those new to the forums as it’s hard to not know if you’ve been here a while I realise.