I usually avoid writing ‘diet’ posts because it seems to make people think that I have an eating disorder. FYI, I’m drinking red wine as I write this and I had a very sensible four squares of chocolate for dessert. I’m fine. I promise. I’ve also got enough junk in my trunk to last through months of unhealthy dieting before my stomach eats itself, so if we could all take chill pills before we proceed, I’d really appreciate it.
I’m actually writing this post after a few days of pretty hideous gastro in which I could stomach nothing but crackers, rice and dry toast. After three days of eating only refined, white carbs I feel like a slug. A bloaty, pasty slug. Normally I’m all over the good carbs – oats, grains, brown rice – and I’m bloody good at avoiding the nastier ones. If you’re keen on ditching the white stuff, here are a few tips to keep you in control without turning you into the person that asks for quinoa at a Chinese food court.
Take Away Asian Foods
Instead of heaping your beef stirfry on a pile of white rice, why not shred some carrot and lettuce and have a Thai Beef Salad instead?
Breakfast
Ditch your thin, tasteless toast for a slice of thick grainy bread or better yet have some porridge. Fruit and yogurt? A smoothie? There’s no excuse for eating toasted cardboard for breakfast.
Eating Out
If you’re eating communal Asian food, skip the rice. If you’re eating Italian, go for some chicken breast with a side of vegies. Order a main meal, with a side of salad. There are always options available, you may just have to ask for them or pay a little extra.
Lunch
If you need something more substantial for lunch than a tuna salad, add half a cup of brown rice, some lentils or chickpeas. Starchy white crackers or potato chips are unnecessary.
Dinner
Have what everyone else is having, but substitute. Spaghetti bolognaise? Grate some zucchini and have your mince sauce on that instead. Home made pizza? Make it on whole grain mountain bread instead of doughy pizza base. Stir fry? Replace the mountain of white rice with half a cup of brown. Easy peasy.
Snacks
Fruit, a boiled egg, carrot sticks, celery sticks or a skim flat white.
It’s really not that scary, you just have to be wary of empty calorie foods. You are far better off eating 100 calories worth of cheese or nuts, which will provide essential fats and protein, rather than 100 calories worth of salty, white crackers which offer no nutritional value.
Admittedly, I’m not perfect. I’ll grab a tea biscuit with my coffee at a cafe or have a bowl of pasta for dinner if I’m too knackered to cook anything else, but most of the time, I simply respect my body too much. As the devoted girlfriend of a coeliac, I can also say that in general, wheat is not your friend. I’m not suggesting that you start buying gluten-free bread and baking with rice flour but honestly? Wheat was never really intended to be digested. It’s thought that the making of bread began in Egypt around 10,000 BC and was made in times of famine, as wheat crops were plentiful. They refined the wheat to make flour and invented ‘bread’ to stave off starvation. Since then bread has been the main staple in most countries during times of famine and war. It’s also food that can be stored for long periods of time and can be kept in reserves for when times get tough. I like to think of wheat or any refined white carbohydrate as ’emergency’ food and should be consumed occasionally. This information is entirely unsubstantiated BUT, it comes straight from the mouth of a trained dietician. Plus it just makes sense.
I don’t want to spoil your fun though, so please, have a delicious slice of cake with a friend on the weekend or plow your way through a bag of crisps at the movies but just remember. Famine food = emergencies only. So if your stomach has eaten your arse and has started chowing down on its own lining, get yourself a baguette. Pronto.
Happy munching!