A Note About “A Day in My Diet”
In the future I’ll provide a thorough list of sugar-free, low-carb items. Today, we’re starting by sharing my own diet. This isn’t the best diet plan possible or even a guideline, it’s just an example of how living low-carb realistically works. This list is heavily influenced by my preferences, cooking limitations, impatience, and availability of food items in my area and on my budget.
As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not on this diet to lose weight or put on muscle, so my efforts are mainly focused on breaking away from sugar as a dietary crutch. This may, or may not be, the right strategy for you.
Please keep “My Premises” in mind while reading.
How I Sort My Food, Mentally
- Staples- the foods I do not regulate. If I want to eat plate-fulls of any of these items, I allow it. Some are fatty, but the fat regulates itself when sugar is so restricted.
- Indulgences - the foods that I eat only a few of each day– if I indulge at breakfast, I don’t indulge at lunch. They are heavier in carbohydrates and I find that, even though I don’t feel the effects immediately, it slows me down the rest of the day.
- Acceptable Cheats - the foods I eat sparsely. Either they contain minimal natural sugars, which will give me a headache if I overindulge– or they contain artificial sweeteners. I don’t have a problem with artificial sweeteners, but if I’d rather avoid filling up on them.
Did you miss breakfast? You can check it out here.
Good afternoon!
I’m a lucky girl! At my office, we have a microwave, a fridge, and even a George Foreman grill. Still, I haven’t always been so lucky and many of my lunchtime habits were developed with my last job in mind– where I only had what I brought with me.
Like my breakfasts, I don’t like to make a fuss over lunch. I just want to eat, maybe chat with friends, and then continue with my day. In fact, I prefer my lunches to be as close to “raw” as possible– meaning uncooked ingredients– like cubed cheese and cut veggies. I also like my meals to be made of small-bite food that aren’t really picture worthy– like hardboiled eggs and pepperoni crisps.
Also, you’ll see that I took garlic and onions off my list because I do eat in an office, and even though I can brush my teeth and chew gum afterwards, I don’t want to smell up the area where I work.
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So what does that look like?
Nori wraps are genius. I can put whatever I want in them and they look fabulous. If I’m busy, I just take dried nori and snack on it like crackers. The recipe at this link calls for tahini, which I don’t like.. but otherwise, it’s basically my favorite variation. http://eyeofrawfoods.com/2012/02/20/nori-rolls/
Quinoa! It’s an acquired taste, so give yourself enough time the first time to play with ingredients. Minus the tomatoes, this is my favorite variation: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2013/04/mediterranean-quinoa-salad.html
There are some phenomenal lettuce wrap recipes out there for low-carbers, but they require dips and extra bowls and stuff. I just make taco mix, and put it in the fridge. I heat it up when I want it again, and plop it into a lettuce wrap. Here’s something similar to what I do: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/04/turkey-taco-lettuce-wraps-3-pts.html
Our amazing roommates recently whipped up a batch of these, and I think they’re amazing. They also didn’t appear to be that hard to make! http://www.closetcooking.com/2012/03/bacon-wrapped-buffalo-chicken-jalapeno.html
I don’t make these with the snazzy side designs because I’m lazy, but I homemake my hummus in advance and it really does make these a delicious snap. Plus, they look great! http://changeforbetterme.wordpress.com/2012/12/23/healthy-holiday-snacks/
These are wondrously easy to make and delicious alternatives to crackers or chips. With a cream cheese dip, or hummus dip, they become more than a snack, but I munch on plain ones all day. Oh by the way, mine never come out looking this good. http://saveyourlifelowcarbrecipes.blogspot.com/2012/02/cheese-chips.html
It’s hard for me to drink a lot of water at lunch, though I couldn’t tell you why. Instead, I drink what I can, and flavor the rest with Crystal Light type powders, or toss a lemon or cucumber in the water to make the taste a little better. Cold, unsweetened tea or diet coke also always does the trick.
I’ll also go for more sizable-looking meals, though I prefer small things like this that pack a caloric punch without much effort. Some full-plate lunch meals include:
- Roasted veggies
- Lettuce wrapped burgers
- Flatbread sandwiches
- Flatbread pizza
- Salads (I like cobb salads best!)
- Tortilla wraps, filled with anything I want
- Crepes, filled with anything I want
Dave does more during the day, whereas I just sit around at a desk, so his lunches tend to be hardier– usually just half portions of our dinner type meals. You’ll see those when we cover dinner!
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How does your lunchtime work? Do you eat at the office, school, at home, or out? Do you eat a hardy lunch, or a light one?