Meals today

[Ccash]

Hi,

I am trying to lower my carbs as my Hba1c was 52 in November. As I am not symptomatic my GP wants to test again in March. If in range then I will be diagnosed. Just wondered if those more experienced at the diet could cast an eye over what I have eaten today. Just wanting to know if I am on right tracks:

Breakfast: noatmeal (recipe from livewell site and now my new favourite thing, I was struggling giving up on porridge) made with ground seeds, dessicated coconut, ground almonds and milk with berries cream, ground almonds and cocoa nibs to garnish.

Snack: three squares dark chocolate

Lunch: chease, apple and coleslaw with a fibre one bar for pud

Snack: nuts

Dinner: heck high meat content sausages, two fried eggs, small portion of beans, pear and one malted milk for pud.

I drink coffee, tea and water.

I am aiming for the higher end of low carb if that makes sense

 

[Leadinglights]

Hi,

I am trying to lower my carbs as my Hba1c was 52 in November. As I am not symptomatic my GP wants to test again in March. If in range then I will be diagnosed. Just wondered if those more experienced at the diet could cast an eye over what I have eaten today. Just wanting to know if I am on right tracks:

Breakfast: noatmeal (recipe from livewell site and now my new favourite thing, I was struggling giving up on porridge) made with ground seeds, dessicated coconut, ground almonds and milk with berries cream, ground almonds and cocoa nibs to garnish.

Snack: three squares dark chocolate

Lunch: chease, apple and coleslaw with a fibre one bar for pud

Snack: nuts

Dinner: heck high meat content sausages, two fried eggs, small portion of beans, pear and one malted milk for pud.

I drink coffee, tea and water.

I am aiming for the higher end of low carb if that makes sense

The suggested amount of carbs per day is no more than 130g total carbs so you could work out from the carb value of the portion size of the foods you have eaten today how close you are to that.
The most noticeable thing is there is no mention of any vegetables or salad except for the coleslaw.
There are some menu ideas in this link you may find useful. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/

 

[Eponine]

I have only just started on this venture but someone recommended Cals and carbs app, I have been amazed at the carbs in certain things, pears for one really higher than I thought. Good luck

 

[Ccash]

The suggested amount of carbs per day is no more than 130g total carbs so you could work out from the carb value of the portion size of the foods you have eaten today how close you are to that.
The most noticeable thing is there is no mention of any vegetables or salad except for the coleslaw.
There are some menu ideas in this link you may find useful. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/

You say there is no mention of fruit and veg: There was raspberries in my noatmeal, I had an apple with the coleslaw, beans with my tea and a pear for my pudding.

 

[Leadinglights]

You say there is no mention of fruit and veg: There was raspberries in my noatmeal, I had an apple with the coleslaw, beans with my tea and a pear for my pudding.

Fruit can be quite high carb though the berries are the lowest, It depends what sort of beans, baked? green? broad?.
Of those the green beans would be the lowest carb.
For example a medium apple would be 16g carb and a medium pear 20g carb.

 

[Felinia]

Hi
I found your post intriguing, as you are clearly keen to help yourself. I ran your food through my NutraCheck app, making some assumptions obviously. Overall your daily cals came to around 2200, and the carbs to around 100gm. As others have pointed out, apples and pears are surprisingly high in carbs, and I found they caused my blood sugar to spike quite dramatically. My diabetic nurse advised me to restrict my fruit intake to no more than 2 x 80gm portions a day (after you have cored the fruit). She did place a strong emphasis on eating plenty of vegetables, particularly those grown above ground. These do not seem to figure in your diet at present, unless the beans were runner, string or green.
So I respectfully suggest you might wish to increase your veggie intake, to fill you up and lessen the need for sweet snacks (chocolate, chocolate bar, biscuits). To give you some idea, I had a salad with my cheese omelette at lunchtime; cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, runner beans with my dinner; 80 gm frozen berries during the evening. Other days I might have home made vegetable soup for lunch, or a poached egg with grilled mushrooms and tomatoes for breakfast or lunch.
I recall experiences I had on a holiday to the USA. When I asked what the vegetables of the day were, I was told: fries, baked beans, mac 'n cheese. The day I found a diner that actually served real vegetables, I went back 3 days running!!!
Hope you find an eating pattern that suits you and reduces your HbA1c.

 

[Ccash]

Hi
I found your post intriguing, as you are clearly keen to help yourself. I ran your food through my NutraCheck app, making some assumptions obviously. Overall your daily cals came to around 2200, and the carbs to around 100gm. As others have pointed out, apples and pears are surprisingly high in carbs, and I found they caused my blood sugar to spike quite dramatically. My diabetic nurse advised me to restrict my fruit intake to no more than 2 x 80gm portions a day (after you have cored the fruit). She did place a strong emphasis on eating plenty of vegetables, particularly those grown above ground. These do not seem to figure in your diet at present, unless the beans were runner, string or green.
So I respectfully suggest you might wish to increase your veggie intake, to fill you up and lessen the need for sweet snacks (chocolate, chocolate bar, biscuits). To give you some idea, I had a salad with my cheese omelette at lunchtime; cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, runner beans with my dinner; 80 gm frozen berries during the evening. Other days I might have home made vegetable soup for lunch, or a poached egg with grilled mushrooms and tomatoes for breakfast or lunch.
I recall experiences I had on a holiday to the USA. When I asked what the vegetables of the day were, I was told: fries, baked beans, mac 'n cheese. The day I found a diner that actually served real vegetables, I went back 3 days running!!!
Hope you find an eating pattern that suits you and reduces your HbA1c.

I do love my veg. I try to adjust the meals I'm giving my children to be less carbs. For example they had hotdogs last night I had sausage egg and they were baked beans (but the reduced sugar and salt Heinz ones)

I think I need to plan meals that better accommodate veg. On the days I'm at work dinner is always a bit rushed. Just out of interest what do you have in your salad?

 

[Felinia]

I do love my veg. I try to adjust the meals I'm giving my children to be less carbs. For example they had hotdogs last night I had sausage egg and they were baked beans (but the reduced sugar and salt Heinz ones)

I think I need to plan meals that better accommodate veg. On the days I'm at work dinner is always a bit rushed. Just out of interest what do you have in your salad?

Hi Because I live alone, I tend to buy the ready made salads. As you have a family you might be able to buy individual items. If I were to do that, they would go off before I could use them up! I look for lettuce varieties, tomatoes, cucumber, celery, sliced onion, shredded carrots, shredded beetroot, sliced peppers, sweetcorn, in some combination or other. I don't have potato salad, and where I have coleslaw I look for the variety made up with yogurt. I also look for fat free dressings. I've posted pictures of my meals in the past and attach a couple of my offerings for you. They were served on a 10 inch dessert plate. When I was working I used to pack up a salad in an old ice cream box, to take to work.



For preference I get the Sainsburys reduced salt and sugar baked beans (cheaper than Heinz), and have 100gm as a serving. Can I suggest you invest in an app like NutraCheck or MyFitnessPal to help you plan better. I do my planning first thing, but you might like to consider in the evening after the kids have gone to bed. I do also weigh my portions, by keeping digital scales and a clear bowl on the worktop, rather than guesstimate high carb and cal portions. I also avoid highly processed foods (unfortunately like hot dogs) because of all the hidden salt, sugar and saturated fats. It's not easy with kids in the house though. I invested in a slow cooker - it's so easy to throw in veggies, a tin of tomatoes, and some chicken or cubed beef first thing, and come home to a hot nutritious meal in the evening. Left over stock makes a good soup for lunch. I also keep packs of frozen stir fry veggies in the freezer, which I can throw in the wok with soy sauce, 5 spice powder and left over meat or prawns, for something different in a few minutes.
Hopefully a few ideas for you.

 

[Drummer]

I do love my veg. I try to adjust the meals I'm giving my children to be less carbs. For example they had hotdogs last night I had sausage egg and they were baked beans (but the reduced sugar and salt Heinz ones)

I think I need to plan meals that better accommodate veg. On the days I'm at work dinner is always a bit rushed. Just out of interest what do you have in your salad?

I have always used pressure cookers to reduce the time between arriving home and eating.
They really do shorten the time required - and I use perforated baskets to keep the various components separate, I can make potatoes for my husband and swede for myself in 5 minutes cooking time. Meat takes half the time it would take in an ordinary oven - I cook it and then put it into the halogen oven to keep warm and brown off whilst I do the veges.

 

[Docb]

Hi @Ccash. I'll second @Drummer when it comes to a pressure cooker. I have one and it is now making some soup! Had some carrots and an onion in the cupboard so I picked up a bag of chopped mixed veg this morning and it all went in with a couple of chicken stock cubes, a small chopped chilli and as an experiment a couple of teaspoons of Ras el Hanout spice mix. The result will get portioned up when it is done (10 mins) and provide veg soup for my next four or five days lunches.

I also like your idea of taking what you eat now and looking to reduce the carb content by changing ingredients - sometimes using the same ingredients but changing proportions. The cereal sounds good - I make my own granola as an alternative to commercial muesli. Again, I like the idea of heading for the reduced carb option rather than the low carb approach. If it works for you then it much easier to get into and sustain especially if you cook for yourself from basics and are happy to work with food ideas rather than recipes from glossy cookbooks.

EDIT.. Update, soup done and portioned. Lumpy veg just right - a bit of crunch and you can taste each veg - right amount of chilli - background heat only. And the Ras el Hanout? Adds an interesting tang but will reserve judgement on level of success until I've eaten a bowl full. Might need some salt and perhaps try some Worcestershire Sauce in one portion and sour cream in another to ring the changes. Who needs a cookbook!

 

[Leadinglights]

I do grow quite a lot of veg and salads but in the winter buy a bag of mixed rocket, watercress, or similar and then bulk out with lettuce, spinach, shreaded red cabbage, pakchoi as well as the other usual salad ingredients, sometimes add nuts or seeds, olives, feta cheese.
There is a section on the food forum (drop down menu on the left top) with salad ideas.
If you are looking to reduce carbs for the whole family then this link has meals based on real food which may be suitable.

Freshwell Low Carb Project - Home

lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk

 

[Ccash]

I have always used pressure cookers to reduce the time between arriving home and eating.
They really do shorten the time required - and I use perforated baskets to keep the various components separate, I can make potatoes for my husband and swede for myself in 5 minutes cooking time. Meat takes half the time it would take in an ordinary oven - I cook it and then put it into the halogen oven to keep warm and brown off whilst I do the veges.

I have been umming and arring about getting a pressure cooker and you are selling it dinner was from the chippy van tonight so not low carb at all but can have the odd treat, I'm guessing.

 

[Ccash]

Hi Because I live alone, I tend to buy the ready made salads. As you have a family you might be able to buy individual items. If I were to do that, they would go off before I could use them up! I look for lettuce varieties, tomatoes, cucumber, celery, sliced onion, shredded carrots, shredded beetroot, sliced peppers, sweetcorn, in some combination or other. I don't have potato salad, and where I have coleslaw I look for the variety made up with yogurt. I also look for fat free dressings. I've posted pictures of my meals in the past and attach a couple of my offerings for you. They were served on a 10 inch dessert plate. When I was working I used to pack up a salad in an old ice cream box, to take to work.

View attachment 24039View attachment 24040View attachment 24044

For preference I get the Sainsburys reduced salt and sugar baked beans (cheaper than Heinz), and have 100gm as a serving. Can I suggest you invest in an app like NutraCheck or MyFitnessPal to help you plan better. I do my planning first thing, but you might like to consider in the evening after the kids have gone to bed. I do also weigh my portions, by keeping digital scales and a clear bowl on the worktop, rather than guesstimate high carb and cal portions. I also avoid highly processed foods (unfortunately like hot dogs) because of all the hidden salt, sugar and saturated fats. It's not easy with kids in the house though. I invested in a slow cooker - it's so easy to throw in veggies, a tin of tomatoes, and some chicken or cubed beef first thing, and come home to a hot nutritious meal in the evening. Left over stock makes a good soup for lunch. I also keep packs of frozen stir fry veggies in the freezer, which I can throw in the wok with soy sauce, 5 spice powder and left over meat or prawns, for something different in a few minutes.
Hopefully a few ideas for you.

I love the idea of frozen stir-fry. I have put some on my supermarket delivery.

 

[Drummer]

I have been umming and arring about getting a pressure cooker and you are selling it dinner was from the chippy van tonight so not low carb at all but can have the odd treat, I'm guessing.

I used to find it great for family meals as I had the perforated baskets so I could cook the meat in the bottom and have the other things ready, cook the meat until almost done, then let the cooker cool, open it up and add the veges and then cook for another 5 minutes, and that's dinner done apart from getting it onto the plates and doing the gravy.
If you do a curry it is advisable to add the curry powder late in the cooking as the temperature in the pressure cooker affects the taste. I do the meat part in a basin, take it out to do the veges - I use cauliflower instead of rice. It only needs a minute or so to cook.

 

[Leadinglights]

I have been umming and arring about getting a pressure cooker and you are selling it dinner was from the chippy van tonight so not low carb at all but can have the odd treat, I'm guessing.

The main problem with F & C is the portion of chips you get given, we made the mistake of ordering 2 small portions of chips between 3 and we only had about three quarters of one of the portions.
Mushy peas not too good carb wise.
We has some lightly battered cod portions from Iceland (the shop not the country) which were pretty good on carbs.
You can easily make stir fry from anything you have in the fridge to use up veg, a dash of soy sauce, some sliced ginger, a bit of chilli powder and a spoon of peanut butter and you have some satay and can add some meat if you want.

 

[Ccash]

The main problem with F & C is the portion of chips you get given, we made the mistake of ordering 2 small portions of chips between 3 and we only had about three quarters of one of the portions.
Mushy peas not too good carb wise.
We has some lightly battered cod portions from Iceland (the shop not the country) which were pretty good on carbs.
You can easily make stir fry from anything you have in the fridge to use up veg, a dash of soy sauce, some sliced ginger, a bit of chilli powder and a spoon of peanut butter and you have some satay and can add some meat if you want.

We had one large portion of chips between four of us. I had battered fish. I know it was terrible for carbs. No mushy peas . I have been more sensible today.