Today's visual food diary

BREAKFAST: Herbalife shake made with 3 scoops of vanilla nutritional mix, 1 scoop of personalized protein powder, 1 cup if almond milk, 1 banana, 7 strawberries, cinnamon and sweetner

MORNING TEA: 1 sachet of berry oats, 1diced apple and 150ml of almond milk, 1scoop of protein powder and cinnamon

LUNCH: Pasta salad (80g of pasta shells, 5 slices of diced ham, 1 boiled egg, capsicum, 2 tbs of  fat free mayo) served on a bed of baby spinach with a cup of hot peach herbalife tea

AFTERNOON TEA: 1 banana and 1 large protein bar





TEA: Vegetable Lasagna with lightly salted vegetables (carrot, broccoli, peas and sweet potato)

DESSERT: 1 red berry layered Danone Greek Ultimate Yoghurt with a large pear

Eating intuitively to gain weight

Today I got asked aboout whether I followed a meal plan whilst I was eating proper recovery amounts and gaining weight or if I just ate intuitively. I thought that this was a great question so I thought I would write a post on the topic :)

While eating intuitively is something I am now working toward, I honestly dont know if it eating intuitively whilst you are trying to gain weight is a good idea or not. Perosonally, I know that I woud not have eaten enough in recovery to gain weight if I had not folowed a meal plan. I guess this is becausse when you are gaining weight, you actually need to eat an excess amount of food than what your body is necessarily telling you that you need at the time.

Perhaps the only time that eating intuitively would work in order for you to gain weight is if you were experiencing extreme hunger and were strong enough to give into your hunger cures 100%, but I honestly dont think that many anorexics would be strong enough to ddo that early on in their recoveries anyway. I honestly think that following a mel plan is the best way to recover and gain weight, but of course that is just my opinion. I would be realle interested to hear whether other people have been able to make full recoveries without meal plans or counting calories. :)

As far as counting calories goes, I would avoid it if you could as it really is an awful and destructive anorexic behaviour. Counting calories seriously nearly drove me crazy and I am so happy that calorie counting is no longer such a big part of my life. While I still do keep track of the approximate amount of calories I eat, eventually my goal is to not worry about calories at all and to just eat completely intuitively.

While it is better not to count calories in recovery if you can avoid it, to a certain thing it may be necessary. For example when I put my meal plan together, I designed it so that it contained a certain amount of calories, so that I knew I was reaching an acceptable intake each day. I think that the best thing to do if it was possible would be to get a dietician or a similar specialist to design a meal plan for you. This would mean that they can do the calories counting for you to ensure that your meal plan is suitable without you having to worry about numbers of calories yourself.

So while eating intuitively may be a fantastic goal for you to have one day, it may not be suitable for you to try and do that whilst you are gaining weight. Just as following a meal plan is not a healthy thing for you to do for the rest of your life. I guess you just have to do what is best for you in your particular stage of recovery and do what allows you to reach your goals and be healthy and strong!

Recovery Warriors article: Why the meal plan matters

When beginning treatment most clients are very out of touch with their hunger cues. Their version of “what’s normal” for their eating is distorted by eating disorder thoughts. Many are resistant or hesitant to follow a meal plan because that means giving up control and their eating disorder behaviors, which can be a very frightening thought. So besides the discomfort and stress… what does the meal plan REALLY even do? The meal plan is a critical part of eating disorder recovery and here is why:

• Introduces Normalized Eating: Eating disorders distort reality. Many clients become out of touch with what nutrients are needed to fuel their bodies properly because their eating disorder voice has told them otherwise. The meal plan helps to normalize your eating patterns and heal the body after being deprived of adequate nutrients. Getting the body balanced, nutritionally, requires the structure that a meal plan provides.
• Increases Introspection: Now that the meal plan is helping to provide structure and taking care of proper nourishment, some of the ability to utilize behaviors has been taken away. The meal plan allows you to look at where the urges to control your food intake or engage in destructive behaviors come from. The focus is removed from the food and allows you to better understand how you are utilizing food or controlling weight to cope with emotions.
• Separates food from Feelings: If there is strong frustration with the meal plan, it’s important to look at where the feelings are  really coming from and recognize it is not about the food. The ultimate nutrition goal is to get to a place where food is separated from feelings and you are able to eat mindfully and trust your own hunger/fullness cues.

The meal plan can be considered as map that will guide you to the final destination of recovery. Eventually, you will get to a point where you know the route so well that you won’t need the map anymore.

Source: https://www.recoverywarriors.com/healthy-lifeplan/

Food diary (in pictures)

Crunchy almond butter on toast, 1 small sliced banana on honey oats  

Jam filled lamington, Up and Go, Kiwi fruit

vgemite and cheese sandwhich, large apple, raspberry and white chocolate yoghurt

waferr biscuits, strawberries, tub of peaches, milkyway chocolate bar

Beef ad black bean rice on a bed of steamed vegetables (broccoli, caulilower and carrots)

Bowl of vanilla icecream topped with a bar of crushed cadbury flake chocolate

So as you can see I am still eating heaps, at this stage I have just cut out my hot chocolate and my afternoon tea also has fewer calories too. Everything else is peactically the same :)

What I ate yesterday

2 slices of toast with crunchy almond spread, vanilla flaoured oats prepared with 3/4 cup of milk and topped with half a sliced banana (I had the other half on my oats yesterday)

1 kiwi fruit, 1 Caramel up and Go and 3 lamington fingers

2 slices of grilled ham and cheese on toast with BBQ sauce, 1 bowl of applee and raspberry puree with raspberry flavoured yoghurt

1 large apple, 1 small banana, 1 mandarin and 1 picnic chocolate bar

1 chicken breast schnitzel and mashed potato with gravy annd vegetables (carrot, brussel sprouts, peas, cauliflower, broccolli)

1 bowl of vanilla icecream with chocolate topping

1 white hot chocolate

Remembering to eat when life gets busy

In my own recovery, I do not think there are ever any excuses for not eating my recovery intake every single day. Perhaps it may be hard to properly follow a meal plan if you travel overseas or get gastro or something like that but simply being busy is not a legitimate excuse not to eat enough in my opinion.

I believe that if you truly want to follow your meal plan, you will always be able to find time to eat, no matter how busy you may be. Yesterday I knew that it was going to be difficult for me to fit all of my meals in as Yoga started at 6:00pm, which is the time I usually have tea. I did not see this as a reason not to eat as much however and I still managed to eat my full recovery intake of calories.

I did this by planning ahead and carefully thinking about my meal times. I had my breakfast at 5:30 which is my usual breakfast time and I had my morning tea at 8:15 as I had to be at tthe supermarket to work by 8:30. My lunch break was at 12:00 so I ate lunch then and also prepared my snacks for the afternoon. I ate a packet of potato chips and a large portion of grapes at 3:00 which is my usual afternoon tea time and then had a cup of tea with my work colleagues at 4:00.

I knew that I would not be able to fit in my hot chocolate that I usually have after my dessert each night so instead I ate a large apple at 5:30, before I fished work at 5:45. I also thought that having this snack then would stop me from getting so hungry at yoga. After work I went straaight to the gym where the yoga was being held and didn't get home until almost 8:00. I ate soup and fresh bread (something quick and easy but still substantial) for my tea, 2 hours later then usual and then had chocolate pudding and icecream half an hour later.

Ever since developing anorexia I have had very strict meal times that I felt as though I needed to follow. I would get extremely anxious and grumpy if for some reason I was not able to eat at my normal meal time. I no longer feel anxious or upset when I can not eat at my usual meal times (5:30, 9:00, 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, 7:30) I only see these meal times as a guide. I believe that being more flexible with meal times is essential in order to recover as you can not have a 'normal' relationship with food otherwise.

Some people may argue that they do not want to put their lives on hold while they are in recovery but I honestly dont think you have to put your life on hold in order to eat recovery amounts. With a bit of careful planning and orgaisation, you can still eat your recovery intake of food, no mattter how busy you get. In recovery you need to see eating as a priority but you also should not let it stop you from having a life. You just need to find a good balance so that you can stay happy and healthy while in recovery.

What I ate yesterday

I felt like something a bit different so had Berry light and tasty cereal instead of oats which I really enjoyed with my maple nut spread on toast.

For morning tea I had 3 lamington finggers witha mandarin and an Up and Go. For those who dont now lamingtons are a traditional Australian food that consists of sponge cake rolled in chocolate icing and then in dessicated coconut. 

For lunch I had a small tin of cheese and tomato spaghetti on two slices of buttered toast along with a small pot of peach flavoured creamed rice and an apple.

Ihad a bowl f vanilla yoghurt with grapes and I also tried a new marvelous creations cocolate bar. It was raspberry lemonade flavour and I loved it. I also tried the new jammy donut flavour recently but didn't reallly like that one as it had cinnamon in it and I dont really like cinnamon and chocolate together.

I had a delicious but HUGE tea of corned silverside witth lots of spicy tomato relish (which is a sauce similar to chutney) and vegetables, I din't think I was going to get all of the vegetables on the plate but somehow I managed too. I had mashed pumpkin and potato, carrots, peas, caulliflower and broccoli.  

I made chocolate self saucing puddings so had one of those with icecream for my dessert. An hour or so after I had dessert I also had a milky hot chocolate but I forgot to take a photo of it.

Photo Food Diary

Apricot, almond and vanilla oats prepared with 3/4 cup of milk and topped with 1 small sliced banana and 2 slices of wholemeal toast with Maple nut spread

1 small serve of grapes, 1 caramel Up and Go and 3 macadamia and white chocolate chip cookies

1 cheese an delish sandwich, 1 large apple and 1 vanilla snak Pack custard tub 

1 tub of apple puree with creamy vanilla yoghurt and 1 violet crumble chocolate bar 

Chicken flavoured rice with extra boccoli, carrot and peas

1 large bowl of vanilla icecream topped with 1 crushed flake chocolate bar

1 frothy hot chocolate made with cold milk and boiling water

Everything I ate yesterday

Peanut butter on toast with creamy vanilla oats (prepared with milk) and topped with 1 sliced banana

1 banana Up and Go, 1 mandarin and 1 thick slice of jam sponge roll

2 crumpets with butter and vegemite, 1 banana and 1 chocolate snak Pack

1 bowl of grapes with vanilla yoghurt and 1 cookies and cream Kit Kat

Roasted duck breast and mashed potato and pumpkin with gravy and vegetables (carrot, peas and broccolli)

Hot Butterscotch Pudding with vanilla icecream

1 milky 'frothy classic' hot chocolate

My recovery intake (3000 calories)

Breakfast: 1 sachet of creamy honey oats prepared with 3/4 cup of milk and topped with 1 small sliced banana + 2 slices of wholemeal toast with Sweet honey nut spread

Morning Tea: 1 mandarin + 1 caramel Up and Go + 1 jam filled lamington

Lunch: 1 sandwhich made with two slices of wholemeal bread, butter, Belgium and tomato relish + 1 large apple + 1 full fat raspberry and white chocolate greek yoghurt

Afternoon Tea: fruit salad made with diced pineapple, cantelope and watermelon + 1 packet of rice crackers + 1 mint Aero chocolate bar

Tea: Chicken carbonara pasta + vegetables (corn on the cob, broccoli, brussel sprouts and baby peas

Dessert: 1 Nannas hot mini apple pie with a large scoop of vanilla icecream

Supper: 1 Hot chocolate made with 1 sachet of Jarrah frothy hot chocolate, boiling water and cold milk