Unsuccessfully low carbing

[big_daddy]

I've decided to go on a low carb diet this month, but I've been unable to start it properly as I have been continuously snacking on all the wrong foods when I've been out working. My weekly intake of food from Monday to Friday is:

Breakfast: 1 or 2 bowls of Crunchy Nut with semi-skimmed milk

Lunch: a small tub of pasta salad or pasta and slices of meat with BBQ sauce

Dinner: Pork Chops, chips, croquettes, onion rings and breaded mushrooms on Monday, 2 pork sausages on finger rolls on Tuesday, Oceans Pie ready meal on Wednesday, Scrambled egg and bacon on Thursday, Breaded chicken from Iceland store with croquettes on Friday.

Snacks: basically whatever that I could find cheapest first as I am on a money limit.

Also I have been referred to go to this DESMOND course in my area and I don't know I will fit it in with my job as I work 7 hours a day, 6 days per week

 

[Patch13]

I would definitely go on the DESMOND course if its being offered to you as I'm sure you'll get some useful info and you might make some friends too. I went on a DAFNE course and even after having diabetes for over 10yrs I found it useful. It was also nice to get to know some of the nurses that care for me a bit better and to be able to ask any questions I had. It's a pain taking time off work, but worth it.

You need to consider how low carb you want to be - some people are low carb and some very low carb (less than 30-50g a day).

It might be worth trying to swap what you're eating for healthier alternatives (where possible) too. Eg instead of cornflakes eat porridge or muesli. Instead of chips have sweet potato or sweet potato homemade chips. Try eating more salad and veg instead of filing up on too many carb (I use frozen veg some of the time as it lasts longer and is a bit cheaper).

You may want to research on here about low carb diets and decide how low it is you want to go and then start from there.

I tend to snack on small amounts of meat and cheese. But I don't often snack between meals.

Any questions just ask and I will try to help ! Good luck.

 

[))Denise((]

I was never offered a DESMOND course, so can't comment on it. Have a look at http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf for ideas on low carbing. I would say those two bowls of cereal are your downfall. If I have cereal, then I have 15 - 20g of it (this is plenty in the right sized bowl).

BTW - Crunchy Nut cornflakes are very sweet, before I was diagnosed I used to mix them with regular cornflakes.

I would also swap a pasta salad for a proper salad to cut the carbs.

 

[Sketcher]

I've decided to go on a low carb diet this month, but I've been unable to start it properly as I have been continuously snacking on all the wrong foods when I've been out working. My weekly intake of food from Monday to Friday is:

Breakfast: 1 or 2 bowls of Crunchy Nut with semi-skimmed milk

Lunch: a small tub of pasta salad or pasta and slices of meat with BBQ sauce

Dinner: Pork Chops, chips, croquettes, onion rings and breaded mushrooms on Monday, 2 pork sausages on finger rolls on Tuesday, Oceans Pie ready meal on Wednesday, Scrambled egg and bacon on Thursday, Breaded chicken from Iceland store with croquettes on Friday.

Snacks: basically whatever that I could find cheapest first as I am on a money limit.

Also I have been referred to go to this DESMOND course in my area and I don't know I will fit it in with my job as I work 7 hours a day, 6 days per week

Hello big daddy. If you want to low carb, you'll need to think about gradually reducing to zero the following items from your menu: cereal, pasta, chips, croquettes, breadcrumbs, finger rolls, the potato in Ocean Pie and BBQ sauce (probably loaded with sugar). Have a look in the low carb forum for ideas, but you can snack on meats, cheese, nuts, eggs, salad veg (easy on the tomatoes). Working lunches can be a problem because they usually involve sandwiches - I have been known to eat the fillings of sarnies and give the bread to the birds). The budget might be a problem, as carbs are cheap, but your health is the most important thing.


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[equipoise]

Take snacks with you -- carrots, celery sticks - sounds dull, but once you get into the habit you'll find they curb cravings. If you're struggling to remove most carbs, try doing it by degrees (eg have sandwiches but not with white or wholemeal bread, then try them as an open sandwich so that you throw away the top bit of bread, etc). But as the others say, Crunchy Nut has to be the first thing to go! Try your meat and sausages as breakfast replacements, if you can't face yoghurt. And if you feel hungry in the evening, pile on the veg in your main meal, and drink lots of water before the meal. And get hold of a meter and test strips so that you can monitor how you are doing -- pure smugness when you are doing well can be an enormous help! Good luck!

 

[hanadr]

Big Dady
As a long time low carber, I'd suggest you start by making substtutions. Eg Eggs and bacon, rather than toast and cereal for breakfast.
Then if you snack, either go for homemade or maybe something like Atkins bars or some of the low carb stuff Boots sells.
For main meals try sweet potatoes or celeriac for potatoes. It's worth trying Dream fields pasta instead of ordinary. It doesn't work for me, but it might for you. Then you can reduce your carb portions. Don't expect to drop to 50g carb per day in one step.
Hana
Ps there are some pretty good recipes around.