Written by tigs01 on 17/02/2011 09:32
"I have 42 PPs a day, I am stuffed long before I get there - I can't possibly eat all of my dailies and the weekly 49 points, too!"
Oh yes, you can.
When starting out, particularly if you have a long journey ahead of you, you will be blessed with lots of daily points to consume. Believe me, you are blessed. The lighter you become, the lower those daily points fall, and man, do you miss them when they're gone!
So, how do you get through 42, 50, more, daily points? Here is my useful pocket guide to eating well, healthily and sensibly and using them all up.
1: Dairy Products
Whole or semi-skimmed milk is fine at this stage of the game. Full-fat cheese and yoghurt is also fine. You need enough dairy in your daily diet to make sure you get your full quota of calcium. Two servings a day is good. On the plus side, people who get their daily dairy actually lose weight slightly faster. Or so studies have shown. Whatever, it's good for you.
2: Fat is Not the Enemy!
Fat. Soluble. Vitamins. Three little words to hold on to. Vitamins A, B, D, E and others further down the alphabet are all fat-soluble. This means you need fat in your diet in order for your body to be able to absorb and use those particular vitamins. Eating all the carrots in the world will do you no good if you can't absorb all that lovely Vitamin A! So stick some butter on your carrots, or have them in a wholemeal wrap or pita, grated, with some hummus. It's gorgeous! Slice an avocado into your sandwich or salad. Dollop some proper mayonnaise in your coleslaw. Use olive oil in salad dressing or on pasta or bread. Use oil in your stirfry, not some fat-free cooking spray.
3: Go Nuts!
Nuts are little powerhouses of energy. Fibre, fat, good protein source - what's not to love about the humble nut? (Or, in the case of peanuts, legume.)
Nut butters are great. Almond butter, peanut butter, hazelnut butter. Nutella, even - hazelnuts AND chocolate! Heaven! A nice slice of bread, toasted, with peanut butter or Nutella, is an excellent snack or addition to your breakfast. 3PPs for a tablespoon of peanut butter, 2PPs for a slice of proper bread.
4: Protein is Good
We're all about building lean muscle mass and ditching the fat. If you introduce exercise into your life, you need protein to build muscle and maintain lean tissue.
It also keeps you feeling fuller for longer. Isn't that great?
Eggs. I love eggs. And bacon. My usual breakfast (which I am going to eat very soon, although really it will be brunch by then) is two or three rashers of bacon, an egg (or, I confess, Egg Beaters which are fat-and-cholesterol-free egg) in a wholemeal tortilla with tomatoes and baby spinach. Oh, and cheese slices. 8PPs, keeps me going for hours, tastes fantastic and sets me up for exercise later in the day.
I love a good steak. Even though I was a vegetarian for four years, I love steak. Chicken is good. Roast lamb - I could eat my body weight in roast lamb with loads of gravy and mint sauce. Pork. Sausages - a really good quality banger, at least 85% meat, is a blooming good meal. Sliced ham, excellent in sandwiches. Not plastic ham slices, good, thick, off the bone ham.
5: Don't Fill Up on Free Fruit and Veg
Sure, if you're out of points and hungry, free fruit and veg is brilliant. But I am talking here to those of you who are full well before you've used all your points. Fruit and veg should not form the main bulk of your food intake - unless you're vegetarian or vegan.
You need a wide range of foods for a healthy diet. Fa t, protein, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals. All the food groups, every day. Fill up on protein and add in some carbohydrate and a little fat, and you won't go far wrong.
6: Treats Good - Deprivation Bad
If you want chocolate, eat it. Ditto crisps. Chips. Pizza. Chinese food. As occasional treats, within points, everything is on the menu. Don't be afraid of food. It's lovely, yummy stuff. Stay within points, but eat what you enjoy! This should be fun!
Oh yes, you can.
When starting out, particularly if you have a long journey ahead of you, you will be blessed with lots of daily points to consume. Believe me, you are blessed. The lighter you become, the lower those daily points fall, and man, do you miss them when they're gone!
So, how do you get through 42, 50, more, daily points? Here is my useful pocket guide to eating well, healthily and sensibly and using them all up.
1: Dairy Products
Whole or semi-skimmed milk is fine at this stage of the game. Full-fat cheese and yoghurt is also fine. You need enough dairy in your daily diet to make sure you get your full quota of calcium. Two servings a day is good. On the plus side, people who get their daily dairy actually lose weight slightly faster. Or so studies have shown. Whatever, it's good for you.
2: Fat is Not the Enemy!
Fat. Soluble. Vitamins. Three little words to hold on to. Vitamins A, B, D, E and others further down the alphabet are all fat-soluble. This means you need fat in your diet in order for your body to be able to absorb and use those particular vitamins. Eating all the carrots in the world will do you no good if you can't absorb all that lovely Vitamin A! So stick some butter on your carrots, or have them in a wholemeal wrap or pita, grated, with some hummus. It's gorgeous! Slice an avocado into your sandwich or salad. Dollop some proper mayonnaise in your coleslaw. Use olive oil in salad dressing or on pasta or bread. Use oil in your stirfry, not some fat-free cooking spray.
3: Go Nuts!
Nuts are little powerhouses of energy. Fibre, fat, good protein source - what's not to love about the humble nut? (Or, in the case of peanuts, legume.)
Nut butters are great. Almond butter, peanut butter, hazelnut butter. Nutella, even - hazelnuts AND chocolate! Heaven! A nice slice of bread, toasted, with peanut butter or Nutella, is an excellent snack or addition to your breakfast. 3PPs for a tablespoon of peanut butter, 2PPs for a slice of proper bread.
4: Protein is Good
We're all about building lean muscle mass and ditching the fat. If you introduce exercise into your life, you need protein to build muscle and maintain lean tissue.
It also keeps you feeling fuller for longer. Isn't that great?
Eggs. I love eggs. And bacon. My usual breakfast (which I am going to eat very soon, although really it will be brunch by then) is two or three rashers of bacon, an egg (or, I confess, Egg Beaters which are fat-and-cholesterol-free egg) in a wholemeal tortilla with tomatoes and baby spinach. Oh, and cheese slices. 8PPs, keeps me going for hours, tastes fantastic and sets me up for exercise later in the day.
I love a good steak. Even though I was a vegetarian for four years, I love steak. Chicken is good. Roast lamb - I could eat my body weight in roast lamb with loads of gravy and mint sauce. Pork. Sausages - a really good quality banger, at least 85% meat, is a blooming good meal. Sliced ham, excellent in sandwiches. Not plastic ham slices, good, thick, off the bone ham.
5: Don't Fill Up on Free Fruit and Veg
Sure, if you're out of points and hungry, free fruit and veg is brilliant. But I am talking here to those of you who are full well before you've used all your points. Fruit and veg should not form the main bulk of your food intake - unless you're vegetarian or vegan.
You need a wide range of foods for a healthy diet. Fa t, protein, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals. All the food groups, every day. Fill up on protein and add in some carbohydrate and a little fat, and you won't go far wrong.
6: Treats Good - Deprivation Bad
If you want chocolate, eat it. Ditto crisps. Chips. Pizza. Chinese food. As occasional treats, within points, everything is on the menu. Don't be afraid of food. It's lovely, yummy stuff. Stay within points, but eat what you enjoy! This should be fun!
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