How much do you eat?

[mcfeez]

My routine is pretty similar most days. I WFH all the time now since Covid so its to be able to cook at lunch time if I fancy it.

I usually have a coffee first thing and then breakfast around 10 after morning meetings - usually porridge or a bagel. The very odd day I wont have breakfast, like if I ate a really big dinner the night before.
Lunch is a mixture - veggie curry, salad, sandwiches.
Dinner can be lots of different things - love stir fries, fish and new potatoes, bolognese.
We also have takeaway once a week.

My snacking varies a lot. If I'm super busy and occupied with work I wont really snack at all.
I'm not sure if I eat a lot or not relative to other people. My mum for example says I eat a lot as I always have my three meals and she usually only has 2 max but she snacks a lot, like big snacks. When I eat out I usually never finish my meal which people always comment on.

 

[Clairer86]

This thread just keeps on getting deeper and deeper, thought we'd be talking about beans on toast.

My mum has BPD and is hypercritical of her appearance. She is beautiful and has always been slim and petite but I wouldn't be surprised if she has body dysmorphia. I think because she doesn't have a firm sense of self, how she physically appears to the world is of extreme importance to her.

So glad to hear that you're on Mirtazapine and are getting help; I can only imagine what it must feel like and how lost you must feel sometimes.

Your mum sounds like i am. BPD is such a horrible disorder to have, it literally impacts on every aspect of your life. I hope your mum is getting the right treatment. It took years for me to get the doctors to take me seriously- my doctor just used to give me anti-depressants and make me get on with it. It took until i ended up in hospital with a suicide attempt for them to finally see what i had known for years. But now im on escitalpram and mirtazipine, and apart from the weight gain (which to a normal and logical person would be the last of my worries) they seem to be helping.
As for beans on toast, as long as they have grated cheese on then thats ok for me! xx

 

[Silly Sausage]

Breakfast: BUTTER <3, pan fried eggs & prosciutto, avocado

Mid morning snack: usually an orange or coconut water

Lunch: saucisson and roquefort with black olives
or salami and brie with black olives
or apple with almond butter

Dinner: Salad or veg usually with fish or meat. Sometimes bone broth if I'm not super hungry.

Dessert: Dates and dark chocolate
or yogurt & berries with raw honey

I've been grainfree for a couple years after doing SCD for health reasons. This is working well for me.

 

[2xblended]

Thank you for the replies you are both right there is a lot (an awful lot) of trauma I'm hiding. Alot is historical and it is also something I have been to councilling about in the past. Unfortunately the councillor was unable to help me because she said the problems where so deep rooted that my brain wouldn't let me discuss them fully. She is right. I have always just gotten on with life. Although my life in general is a lot happier now and on the outside I seem to be someone completely different I am a very damaged and broken person inside. It's something I am going to make a conscious effort to change though. Thanks again for the kind words they really do mean alot.

You'll find that the majority of people have experienced horrific traumas. I assure you.
But we're not broken people. Once again, I assure you.
We are survivors, and our battle scars run deep, but we are whole and do not need "fixing".
I say this because I have been on the receiving end of "You're broken, I can fix you / I can't fix you" bullshit for years and it tore me down. When others tell us- or we tell ourselves- we are broken, it really erodes our sense of self-worth.
You are a whole, wonderful human being. You are not a vase that can be shattered. Your battle scars are part of your journey and what makes you unique. These experiences make us empathetic to others, they prove to us how resilient we can be, and the hurt/fear/anxiety can be healed with time, counselling and patience.
Good luck to you on your journey to healing. Be kind to yourself. You deserve nothing but kindness and respect in every area of your life. You really, really do.
Once again, hoping you don't mind me commenting. I do not mean to cross a line, but to show you're not alone.

Edit: Also you may want to try a different therapist. It takes a while to find a good fit. A good therapist (meaning, the right therapist for you) will be able to make you feel safe enough to explore things you were unable to speak about in the past.

 

[Justreading]

Not alot and then the whole world in the evenings!

This was me! But even with my WFH routine and eating 3 square meals I dont seem to be better for it

My appetite comes and goes relating to how stressed how I am. I have a fairly good appetite normally but I have barely eaten these past 3 weeks due to anxiety/work deadline/not sleeping well.

Usually I have cereal with 2-3 cups of coffee before 10am, I skip dinner because I'm never usually hungry around dinner time, afternoon snacks is usually some rice cakes/crisps/protein bar, tea is usually pasta/meat with vegetables/takeaway once a week (usually Chinese). Then it gets to late evening and I enjoy some chocolate/sweets. I go through a lot of caffeine free Diet Coke too.

I really enjoy working-out and I think I would see more benefit from this if I sorted my nutrition out.

Me too, I exercise a lot. 3 high intensity classes a week, plus lots of walks and running. But I just dont eat well enough to compliment it!

 

[IAmNeverSatisfied]

Ah no, that sucks

To be fair, I think my diet coke habit runs into addiction territory at this point haha. When I tried to cut down, I got headaches! I quit smoking this year which I would consider to be easier than quitting the diet coke it's that bad!

That sounds like me and coffee. I was drinking five cups a day in lockdown with two spoons in each cup last year when I went on holiday with my friend and her family none of them are coffee drinkers and so I didn’t have any coffee for almost a week and my god I was so lethargic and got headaches too! It’s so strange that our bodies do this to us.

 

[IAmNeverSatisfied]

Notes:
1. I'm working from home now, not moving around much so I don't usually feel very hungry.
2. Currently I'm intermittent fasting. I follow the 8/16 rule, so no eating before midday or after 7pm. This doesn't always go to plan lol, but I do my best!
3. I'm a vegetarian, hence the lack of meat haha

Breakfast: A cup of black tea.
Lunch (my big meal): Avocado toast with poached eggs, pasta with pesto, some hack-job bowl of ramen etc. If I'm slammed with work, I'll order some sushi or poké bowl on deliveroo.
Dinner: Sometimes lol. If I feel hungry, I'll have something like tea and toast or a bowl of rice krispies.

I have a terrible sweet tooth, so I do catch myself eating chocolate more than I probably should be! I'm also a diet coke fiend, I have 4 - 5 cans a day.

On the weekends I live on take-out food.. usually pizza or sushi lol. All the carbs. I was drinking 2 - 3 pink gin/fanta lemon concoctions on Saturday nights, but that's only because there was a cannabis shortage. My guy is back selling weed, so no more alcohol (which means no more hungover Sundays!)

My stomach would be in agony if I had 4 or more cans of fizzy drinks! You’re so lucky, I can’t even drink two without deeply regretting it (my vice is Vanilla Coke Zero or Cherry Pepsi Max I must admit)

 

[Chipstiz]

I never used to be able to stand eating breakfast, ide feel sooooo sick if I did. Now I can't function if I go an hour after waking up without eating it. So weird how diets adapt.

 

[Crb250]

I either have fruit and greek yoghurt for breakfast, or blueberry wheats/Weetabix minis with semi skimmed milk and a banana. Breakfast is around 8am when I get to work, followed by a cup of green tea.

I have a snack mid morning which is usually an apple or some melon.

Lunch I either have ham pasta salad with light mayo, a sandwich in wholemeal bread or homemade soup. Followed by fruit and sometimes crisps.

Dinner I usually cook for me and my 2 year old (my fiancé works away during the week) so I tend to cook family friendly meals from scratch most nights. Things like curries, pasta dishes, risottos, casseroles, roast dinners etc. Always served with veg or salad. I use my slow cooker a lot.

I don't drink regular tea, coffee or alcohol. So I tend to just drink water or sugar free squash, or the odd green tea with lemon. I'm currently trying to lose weight for my wedding in just less than 2 years time, I've lost 20lb in the last few months. Want to lose about another stone until I'm back to my pre-pregnancy weight.

 

[Clairer86]

I have lost alot of weight because of not eating.

As a former drug addict, we often replace our addictions. You often see former alcoholics and drug addicts turning to food usually, but for me it has specifically been Monster energy drinks. I prioritise these over food and can go through 3-4 a day. I'm rarely hungry until the evening when I switch over to drinking cordial. Recently I did research to discover this is a common problem as Monsters contain Carbs, etc and I'm solely running off them. On the days where I drink 3+ Monsters I sometimes will not eat at all despite cooking meals for partner and children. I am trying to cut down but find it harder giving up Monsters than Drugs as they are legal and sold in shops.

Breakfast - nothing. I have to start my day with opening a monster, I feel physically sick until I feel the first guzzle of fizz (I hear this alot from alcoholics too)
Lunch - nothing.
May start "picking" around late afternoon, crisps, slices of cheese...
Dinner - around 6pm. Depending on Monster consumption I may not eat it, just pick at it.
Then I have a bunch of snacks at night.

I'm so aware this is unhealthy. As Monster consumption has gotten worse, I've probably lost 2 and a half stone. I wanted to lose weight just not like this. Has anyone else been or are going through anything else similar?

I posted a couple of comments about my experiences. I have BPD, Body Dysmorphia, and im also a recovering drug user. I understand what you are saying about addictions and i think we do just replace our addictions. x

 

[Scorpihoe]

Breakfast - scrambled egg with toast or some tea cakes and a cup of tea

Lunch - a sandwich or wrap, maybe something small. I eat lunch late and don’t eat much

Dinner - usually pasta or rice with lentils. Sometimes I get pizza or a KFC

I snack late at night, usually on crisps. Trying to stop this though

 

[IAmNeverSatisfied]

I usually skip breakfast (it’s bad I know, just have no time most days and I feel like I get hungrier if I eat it?)
Then a coffee at 11am, sometimes a little pastry too.
1:30 pm I’ll either have some pasta or a wrap for lunch, sometimes something a bit less conventional like ice cream lol.
6pm I usually have dinner
7 or 8 I usually have a snack but not every night.
And at 8 or 9 I have a cup of tea (with three Sugars so I try to have less sugar in the day, and have no sugar in my coffees)

 

[Readread]

Breakfast - coffee with lactose free milk
Lunch - chicken & ratatouille style veg or tuna burgers or soup or a salad
Snack - rice cakes, chicken, protein shakes
Dinner - turkey chilli filled with veg, chicken & prawn curry, spaghetti bolognese, fish, always some form of protein with a complex carb or vegetables.

I drink around 2L of water a day and will have one sugar free fizzy drink, like diet fanta or diet coke.

 

[Isa Drennan]

I don't have a big appetite or eat a lot (most is usually 1900 calories) yet my metabolism is shit

 

[JOHN1967]

Because I calorie count nearly everything, I can be the most boring person to shop with when visiting a supermarket.

I am forever looking at the nutrition details on the sides of canned and packaged food, and working out in my head if that will fit in with today's calorie intake. And if I'm not counting the calories on tins, I'm weighing everything prior to cooking.

No wonder I can never hold down a relationship for very long

My father is like you, always calculating calories, measuring food etc.

My uncles his two brothers eat what they like, when they like and lead more sedentary lives than my father.

My poor dad, he has had prostate cancer, had stents fitted, and suffers from cholesterol and BP. His brothers are perfectly healthy. Chances are I am going to suffer.

 

[Pixipoppy]

I feel like I eat a lot more than other people, sometimes I wonder why I’m not the size of a house. I’m naturally quite slim though I do gain weight slowly over time. I can have a few bad weeks here and there with little effect, for comparison I have friends who will gain 3-5lbs after one bad weekend for example. I think what it is, is although I’m always eating/snacking my portions are actually quite small and I never finish what is on my plate, I’m not a massive fan of junk food (but I do have a sweet tooth!). I get hungry often but it doesn’t take much to fill me up, Id struggle to eat a full 3 course meal but then within 2 hours I’ll be hungry again. I think maybe it’s a fast metabolism perhaps? I do recognise how lucky I am, and know as I get older it won’t be so easy.

 

[Happy35]

I don’t have a big appetite but eat reasonably healthily.
Breakfast around 5am high fibre cereal bar and a coffee
Snack around 10.30 berries and high protein yoghurt
Lunch around 1.30 a salad with tuna, salmon or cottage cheese etc
Tea around 7pm pasta with tomato sauce, potatoes with fish and veg etc. Indian takeaway about once a month.

At the weekend I eat a lot less, usually cereal bar, homemade soup and some fruit at night.

I am fairly slim naturally and if I want crisps I would have them as would probably just eat a bit less of something else

 

[Frensham90]

Only coffees till around 1ish, snacky bits (fruit, veg crudités with hummus, crisps, nuts or crackers) in the afternoon, a proper meal for tea then more sweetish snacks in the evening. Tried doing 3 meals a day/ 6 small meals and it just doesn’t work for me. I physically can’t stomach food in the morning.

 

[cosmo girl]

I eat the 5/2 plan. I fast on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Then eat what I like at the weekend. This would not suit everyone but for me I live for the weekend. I want to eat and drink more then. The fast days I eat soups and fresh vegetables/salads and drink lots of water. I do love salads and veg My fast days are very healthy. Fridays I will have Pizza or chinese or a curry takeaway, chocolate. A few glasses of wine or gin.
If I am sad or stressed I make sure that I don't reach for a glass or bottle of wine or grab a chocolate bar. I would love to eat like I do at the weekend everyday but If i did I would be the size of a house. So for me this 5/2 plan works.

 

[ClockworkDolly]

I always have breakfast, unless I have a migraine. Breakfast is either porridge, shreddies, or Greek yoghurt, muesli and some peaches from a can, juice added too.

Lunch can be anything from an omelette to bread and cheese.

Dinner - risotto, cottage pie, spaghetti bolognese, macaroni cheese, casserole, fish, homemade soup, paella, homemade steak & kidney pie, homemade chips (with the skins left on) - any of these combinations, or none. It really depends on what I feel like eating.

But, I do graze in between meals, a habit I find hard to break.

I bought a Nutri Bullet which arrived yesterday, so I have only tried it the once. But, I am hoping it will wean me off sweet snacks, of which I eat far too many. Bought a smoothie recipe book to go with it. Looking forward to trying out some smoothies.