I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.

?
"Cheryl" > wrote in message
...
> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
> you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.


There are many healthy foods that I don't like. Some though, I've found in
a different form or use can be quite good. Just as I'd never have a pizza
with anchovies, they can add a nice flavor to a sauce.

Pick a food or two of interest. Then look for some recipes that use that
food as an ingredient and see if they appeal to you. Try a different
method of preparation. Some dislikes my go back to your childhood where mom
just made some good foods taste horrible from improper cooking.

If they are still not to your liking, just move on and try another. If it
shows promise, try yet another method.

Cheryl > wrote:

>I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.

By training yourself to eat healthy foods and feeling good about
the results. Eventually, a feedback loop is created and you
start liking healthy foods, and disliking unhealthy ones.

For example, I no longer like many forms of animal fats. This
is not universal -- are some animal-fat-contining foods I still really
like because the total culinary result still appeals to me. Examples
that I like are ice cream, cheeses, salumi. But I've learned to
appeciate smaller amounts, and in many other cases animal fat no longer
appeals at all. This includes butter on vegetables, butter and cream in
sauces, or butter in baked goods -- I see these as pretty much unnecessary.
When I'm cooking meat I trim and skim and discard as much fat as possible,
and I'm happier with the lower-fat result.

Another thing to keep in mind is total nutrition is important --
one certainly needs a variety of protein sources, and I also think
a variety of carb and fat sources; and one needs all of the
micronutrients. I think if you are missing something important
from your diet you're more likely to get urges that translate
into eating less healthily.

That's my subjective experience. YMMV.


Steve

On 1/11/2011 11:50 PM, Cheryl wrote:
> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
> you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.
Eat a few really hot peppers. It won't matter what you eat afterward
taste like.

"Cheryl" > wrote in message
...
>I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.

I don't. I can't.

"Cheryl" > wrote in message
...
>I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.

Start small, don't go gung ho, even if it's just one meal a week you try to
make healthier. One meal becomes two. One bite of vegetable is better than
no bites of vegetables. Start by incorporating healthy foods that you know
you already like. Make a list if you have to -- out of sight, out of mind.
If it's the same vegetable for every meal, so be it. Fresh fruits and
veggies taste the best and look the best (I find I have more food
"reverence" for them), but I don't shun canned. Learn to love your spice
and herb cupboard -- they make all the difference in the world! Experiment
to your heart's content. Think about putting lots of color in your meals,
generally through the addition of vegetables (use colored peppers instead of
just green, etc). Visually appealing foods tend to taste better. Don't be
afraid to add fruit into cooked dishes, either. Try the old fashioned sneak
approach: think about vegetables you can sneak into a dish or casserole to
healthify it up a little. I focus more on portion control than content, and
I don't use food substitutes (fake butter, fake sugars) or "low fat/low cal"
products. I've lost 100 pounds and kept it off for several years now.
Eventually, you'll find that the healthier you get, the more your body will
crave these healthy foods over less healthy ones. And now that you've quit
smoking, you'll be amazed at how much better healthy foods taste as well (or
so I've been told).

Jinx

"Cheryl" > wrote in message
...
> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
> you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.


Define "healthy".

Jill

>
> "Cheryl" > wrote in message
> ...
>> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How
>> do you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question

Find the ones that DO appeal and eat those. Those that don't appeal,
try cooking/eating in a different way. Say you hate steamed brocolli,
try it raw..



--
Currently Reading: Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold

"Hunger makes the best sauce." _Spanish proverb

I had the same dilemma. I weighed 235 after summer vacation (about 40 lbs. above my BMI). I wondered what changes I might make to get down to my BMI level. Instead of thinking diet and reducing quantity, I had to think of what I did too much of and replace it with something better; but not necessarily give it up.

My name is (Gre)Gorio, and I'm a bread addict. I thought quitting bread was absolutely out of the question. Still is. I'm sorry, I love pasta, bread (in all its forms) and other flour derivatives. I can't eat fake pasta or low carb bread. I can, however, eat only fruit for breakfast, a meat/vegetable combo (pot roast, chicken soup) for lunch, and whatever I want for supper (something with bread, I'll guarantee you that.) I've just cracked 200 ( I started doing this when I started back to school: Sept. 3, 2010). I'm losing the weight and eat as much/well as any other human should have a right to. I don't lay off at supper time. I eat great. My lunches are the envy of the teacher's lounge. Lean Cuisine that, mofo!! While others are eating nucrowave garbage in a box, I'm enjoying the real deal and (easily) double the portion they eat in the box. I'm feeling good and looking like a 41 yoa, slowly balding, scars all over, former wrestler, good hubby/dad, Greek demigod.

Three to four fruit choices at breakfast, a great portion of pot roastm chili or other meat/veggie combo for lunch and a deliciously prepared supper. The lunch selelction means I have to cook two extra measl on Sunday. Oh, shucks, I hate cooking. NOT!!!!

I can't say it will work for you, but I bet you can find something that will. It's not a diet, it's saving your dessert for dessert is all.

On Wed, 12 Jan 2011 06:39:50 -0500, "jmcquown" >
wrote:

>
>"Cheryl" > wrote in message
...
>> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>> you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.
>
>
>Define "healthy".
>
>Jill

There is no such thing as "healthy food", try *healthful*.

On Jan 11, 8:50*pm, Cheryl > wrote:
> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. *How do
> you change what tastes good? *How do you adjust? *Serious question.

Two things were mentioned here that are pretty important.

First, what is it that you don't like about those foods? Where
does the dislike come from? Is it because as a child you were forced
to eat something that you didn't want? If so, try a version of that
food in a different food preparation.

Was it a taste that you remember you didn't like....probably as a
younger person....? Our tastes change as we get older, you might
just like something if you tried it again with an open mind.

Second, if you are trying to eat healthier, you can do so by tweaking
the way you prepare the foods you do like....for instance, a lower fat
version of a recipe or substituting ingredients for high fat or high
carb ingredients in a dish.

If you will post specific foods that you want to eat but just don't
like maybe we can find recipes that will appeal to you.

On Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:50:43 -0500, Cheryl >
wrote:

>I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.

I do no know of any food that is "unhealthy" when prepared in a
healthy way and eaten in reasonable quantities. Some foods are touted
as being more healthy because they have a particular attribute, more
of a particular vitamin or mineral. I have a book, "12 Best Foods
Cookbook." The 12 are blueberries, black beans, sweet potatoes,
oatmeal, salmon, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, chocolate, walnuts, soy
and onions. I don't see anything there that I personally don't like.
And I don't think you are supposed to limit yourself to just those
foods.

What you need to concentrate on is a healthy diet with the proper
amounts of the elements we need to be healthy with the right number of
calories to maintain your proper weight. I also have a couple of
books by Martin Katahn, Ph.D. They are "T-Factor Diet" and "One Meal
at a Time." The information in the 2 are pretty much the same,
low-fat diets. He gives menus for a couple of weeks of "quick melt"
and then others for maintenance. The menus contain a large variety of
foods and no food group is omitted.



--
Susan N.

"Moral indignation is in most cases two percent moral,
48 percent indignation, and 50 percent envy."
Vittorio De Sica, Italian movie director (1901-1974)

Steve Pope wrote:
> Cheryl > wrote:
>
>>I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>>you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.
>
> By training yourself to eat healthy foods and feeling good about
> the results. Eventually, a feedback loop is created and you
> start liking healthy foods, and disliking unhealthy ones.

A lot of it is mental, attitude. Humans have been eating veggies ever
since our remote ancestors came down out of the trees so humans do like
veggies in general. Realizing you like most types then becomes a matter
of teaching your thought habits that you do like them. Start with the
mild ones and use affirmations or whatever to steer the direction your
thoughts take. Thought to decision. Decision to repeating thought.
Repeated thought to habit. Habit to tastes. Consider starting at the
salad bar.

Some of it may be generalization. People do have specific veggies they
totally dispise. I totally dispise bell peppers. It would be very easy
for my to conclude I don't like any peppers at all. After trying a lot
of types it turns out my dislike of bell peppers is specific to them. I
totally dispise parsnips. It would be very easy for me to conclude I
don't like any root veggies at all. After trying a lot of types it
turns out there are some I like cooked but am blah about and vice versa
but I generally like all of the other types.

Some of it is confusing being unused to a food with disliking it.
Different does not equal bad. Disliking a food just because it's
different isn't a mature approach. Think of it as yet another front of
moving farther and more broadly into a type of adulthood known by your
great grand parents that somehow was not passed down to you across the
generations.

In recent decades it it also about marketing junk foods that are
unhealthy but that tap into human instincts to go for foods that are
high carb, high fat and high salt. I'm not going to say that junk food
tastes bad or should taste bad. I am going to say that the type of
flavor in non-junk food is more subtle. Think of junk food like those
old "The Who" records that had "Play Loud" on them. Then think of
natural food like a classical or jazz album that an elderly relative
played quiet. It takes education and exposure to like Beethoven or
Spyrogriro compared to The Who or Nirvana, but it's worth it to learn
about the music that classical music lovers like. Food works the same
way. Subtle and complex is very different from obvious and loud, but
subtle and complex can be extremely good once you learn how to notice it.

On 1/11/2011 10:50 PM, Cheryl wrote:
> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How
> do you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.

Every morning I cook a hot breakfast, which usually includes eggs of
some kind. I need the protein, but it is easy to get tired of eggs.
So, I try to change it. I will have boiled eggs, fried eggs with salsa
verde, I will make burritos, pizzas, egg on a roll. I will use ham,
bacon or sausage, a few times pepperoni.

Whatever you are wanting to eat, add something you like, to make it
please you. If it is spinach, then eat the spinach raw in salads, add
spinach to a sandwich, make a spinach dip. If you like it cooked, then
add a little vinegar, butter, hot sauce or bacon fat.

Tell us what foods you have in mind.

Becca

On Jan 11, 11:50*pm, Cheryl > wrote:
> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. *How do
> of spinach wa you change what tastes good? *How do you adjust? *Serious question.

Find diff ways to cook things. My childhood memory of spinach was
that awful frozen stuff, which was lightyears away from fresh in a
salad or cooked in a recipe.

Or doctor up things you hate - grate a bit of cheese on it, add flavor
by mixing with something else.

On Jan 12, 3:27*am, "Jinx Minx" > wrote:
*I focus more on portion control than content, and
> I don't use food substitutes (fake butter, fake sugars) or "low fat/low cal"
> products.

What she said!!

On Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:50:43 -0500, Cheryl wrote:

> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
> you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.

add lotsa fat and salt.

your pal,
blake

On Jan 11, 11:50*pm, Cheryl > wrote:
> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. *How do
> you change what tastes good? *How do you adjust? *Serious question.

Can you give some specific examples of foods that you like,
and foods that you think you should eat? For the latter,
what about them doesn't appeal to you?

It'd be easier to advise you if I had some concrete examples.
(IIRC, your issues are about heart health.)

Cindy Hamilton

On Wed, 12 Jan 2011 16:27:35 +0000 (UTC), Doug Freyburger
> wrote:

>Steve Pope wrote:
>> Cheryl > wrote:
>>
>>>I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>>>you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.
>>
>> By training yourself to eat healthy foods and feeling good about
>> the results. Eventually, a feedback loop is created and you
>> start liking healthy foods, and disliking unhealthy ones.
>
>A lot of it is mental, attitude.

Yeah, they prefer their veggies out of a bottle in liquid form
containing alchohol.

On Wed, 12 Jan 2011 11:06:40 -0600, Ema Nymton >
wrote:

>On 1/11/2011 10:50 PM, Cheryl wrote:
>> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How
>> do you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.
>
>Every morning I cook a hot breakfast, which usually includes eggs of
>some kind. I need the protein, but it is easy to get tired of eggs.
>So, I try to change it. I will have boiled eggs, fried eggs with salsa
>verde, I will make burritos, pizzas, egg on a roll. I will use ham,
>bacon or sausage, a few times pepperoni.

I bet you'd not tire of having your eggs in a custard filled cannolli.


>Whatever you are wanting to eat, add something you like, to make it
>please you. If it is spinach, then eat the spinach raw in salads, add
>spinach to a sandwich, make a spinach dip. If you like it cooked, then
>add a little vinegar, butter, hot sauce or bacon fat.
>
>Becca

Well, every veggie tastes better with butter... with enough butter
even Barb would eat beets. lol

On Wed, 12 Jan 2011 09:40:33 -0800 (PST), Kalmia
> wrote:

>On Jan 11, 11:50*pm, Cheryl > wrote:
>> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. *How do
>> of spinach wa you change what tastes good? *How do you adjust? *Serious question.
>
>Find diff ways to cook things. My childhood memory of spinach was
>that awful frozen stuff, which was lightyears away from fresh in a
>salad or cooked in a recipe.

Obviously Cheryl's mom was a lazy cook... just followed the heating
directions on a package of frozen spinach, never thought to exert any
effort into using the defrosted spinach to prepare something
appetizing, probably more likely thought not to (lazyness won out each
time);
spinach quiche
spinach omelet
spanakopita
spinach calzone
spinach potato k'nish
spinach blintz
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/spinac...ns/Detail.aspx
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/e...ipe/index.html
There are hundreds and hundreds of ways to prepare spinach, all better
than just lazy leaves in a salad. Better than 99% of all spinach is
eaten cooked and preferred cooked. The primary reason folks develop
food aversions is solely because their mommy was a lousy/lazy cook.
The main reason folks like spinach salad is because spinach very
readily absorbs fats, for those TIADers spinach is just an excuse to
scoff up salad dressing... save for the spinach the TIADers would
chugalug dressing straight from the bottle.

On Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:50:43 -0500, Cheryl >
wrote:

> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
> you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.

Can you name a couple of the foods you're trying to eat only because
they're good for you?

--

Carrot cake counts as a serving of vegetables.

On Wed, 12 Jan 2011 05:16:55 +0000 (UTC),
(Steve Pope) wrote:

> But I've learned to
> appeciate smaller amounts, and in many other cases animal fat no longer
> appeals at all. This includes butter on vegetables, butter and cream in
> sauces, or butter in baked goods -- I see these as pretty much unnecessary.
> When I'm cooking meat I trim and skim and discard as much fat as possible,
> and I'm happier with the lower-fat result.

That's exactly what hubby has done. I'm not as "good" as he is, but
I'm eating a lot less saturated fat simply because he's so diligent
about reducing his own intake.

--

Carrot cake counts as a serving of vegetables.

"Kalmia" > wrote in message
...
> On Jan 11, 11:50 pm, Cheryl > wrote:
>> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>> of spinach wa you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious
>> question.
>
> Find diff ways to cook things. My childhood memory of spinach was
> that awful frozen stuff, which was lightyears away from fresh in a
> salad or cooked in a recipe.
>
> Or doctor up things you hate - grate a bit of cheese on it, add flavor
> by mixing with something else.
>

I hated spinach because my mother bought into the whole canned spinach
Popeye cartoon thing. Once I tasted fresh spinach (and now frozen) there
was no going back. Same thing with canned peas. Canned mushy peas...
gross! Fresh peas are an entirely different thing.

Jill

Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> ?
> "Cheryl" > wrote in message
> ...
>> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How
>> do you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.
>

>
> Pick a food or two of interest. Then look for some recipes that use
> that food as an ingredient and see if they appeal to you. Try a
> different method of preparation. Some dislikes my go back to your
> childhood where mom just made some good foods taste horrible from
> improper cooking.
>
> If they are still not to your liking, just move on and try another. If
> it shows promise, try yet another method.
>
>
>

I agree with Ed. For example, I don't much like whole wheat ANYTHING.
It tastes like cardboard to me. I have eaten fresh, rustic, honey whole
wheat bread and it was delicious. I love seeded rye bread, too.

I used to detest eggplant except as moussaka or Parmesan. Since having
it at nearly every meal in Morocco I find there are many recipes in
which it is delicious with the addition of spices, cheese, or meat.

I'm not crazy about walnuts, but pecans, almonds, pistachios, etc. are
delicious.

As Ed said, try various versions of the same ingredient or give it up
and try a close substitute.

Healthy food doesn't have to mean cardboard-and-water.

gloria p

Julie Bove wrote:
> "Cheryl" > wrote in message
> ...
>> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>> you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.
>
> I don't. I can't.
>
>



I don't want to start a flame war, Julie, but I've noticed you say "I
can't." about a lot of the suggestions that are made here.

That attitude doesn't give you many options or do much to improve your
quality of life.

gloria p

The Cook wrote:
>
> I also have a couple of
> books by Martin Katahn, Ph.D. They are "T-Factor Diet" and "One Meal
> at a Time." The information in the 2 are pretty much the same,
> low-fat diets. He gives menus for a couple of weeks of "quick melt"
> and then others for maintenance. The menus contain a large variety of
> foods and no food group is omitted.

The T-Factor Diet is an old classic in the field. It's from the early
1980s. Very good for any low fatter. Anyone who does not get endless
hunger while low fatting should read it and see how it matches your
chosen plan.

I will point out that any good low carb diet is at least as healthy as
any good low fat diet. Classics in the low carb field are the Doctor
Akins New Diet Revolution series by Dr Atkins, the Protien Power series
by Drs (MD and Phd respectively) Eades, the South Beach diet series.
Very good for any low carber. Anyone who gets endless hunger while low
fatting should try low carbing. A high percentage of the population
stops getting cravings while low carbing.

The spectrum of low fat through low carb form an interesting perspective
on what it means to be healthy. Both work well for many but not for
all. Both work trigger less hunger in many than a calorie controlled
plan in between them. The plans in between are just as healthy they
just trigger hunger in more people.

Ema Nymton wrote:
>
> Every morning I cook a hot breakfast, which usually includes eggs of
> some kind. I need the protein, but it is easy to get tired of eggs.
> So, I try to change it.

Being an afternoon person I have no need for variety in the morning. By
lunch that's when I'm alert enough that I want variety. Humans are so
different from each other.

Kalmia wrote:
>
> Find diff ways to cook things.

There are ways to cook broccoli other than carefully dried, and deep
fried with no coating. Who knew? Trying different methods rules!

On 1/12/2011 12:08 AM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> Pick a food or two of interest. Then look for some recipes that use
> that food as an ingredient and see if they appeal to you. Try a
> different method of preparation. Some dislikes my go back to your
> childhood where mom just made some good foods taste horrible from
> improper cooking.

Thanks. Beans (not green beans) are one that I really wanted to like
because of the fiber benefits. I cooked some a while back with an
ingredient I like, cabbage, and I couldn't eat it. The beans just don't
appeal to me. That's just one example.

My mom was/is an excellent cook but she tended to cook mainly meat and
potatoes type meals. That was my dad's style of eating.

On 1/12/2011 3:33 PM, gloria.p wrote:
>
> As Ed said, try various versions of the same ingredient or give it up
> and try a close substitute.
>
> Healthy food doesn't have to mean cardboard-and-water.

I'll have to start perusing cookbooks and recipe sites. I want to add
more veggies, and reduce fat and sodium. Sugar isn't an issue as I don't
eat many sweets.

On 1/12/2011 12:16 AM, Steve Pope wrote:

> For example, I no longer like many forms of animal fats. This
> is not universal -- are some animal-fat-contining foods I still really
> like because the total culinary result still appeals to me. Examples
> that I like are ice cream, cheeses, salumi. But I've learned to
> appeciate smaller amounts, and in many other cases animal fat no longer
> appeals at all. This includes butter on vegetables, butter and cream in
> sauces, or butter in baked goods -- I see these as pretty much unnecessary.
> When I'm cooking meat I trim and skim and discard as much fat as possible,
> and I'm happier with the lower-fat result.

This is one thing I need to change. I DO like butter on vegetables. I
like many veggies, but also like the butter flavor with them. I will
have to take the advice of another poster in this thread and experiment
with herbs and spices.

On 1/12/2011 2:23 AM, Sqwertz wrote:
> On Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:50:43 -0500, Cheryl wrote:
>
>> I read about foods that are healthy but most don't appeal to me. How do
>> you change what tastes good? How do you adjust? Serious question.
>
> Don't eat anything for 3 days beforehand.

LOL! That's a little drastic but I have no doubt it would work.

On 1/12/2011 7:35 AM, Gorio wrote:
> I had the same dilemma. I weighed 235 after summer vacation (about 40
> lbs. above my BMI). I wondered what changes I might make to get down to
> my BMI level. Instead of thinking diet and reducing quantity, I had to
> think of what I did too much of and replace it with something better;
> but not necessarily give it up.
>
> My name is (Gre)Gorio, and I'm a bread addict. I thought quitting bread
> was absolutely out of the question. Still is. I'm sorry, I love pasta,
> bread (in all its forms) and other flour derivatives. I can't eat fake
> pasta or low carb bread. I can, however, eat only fruit for breakfast, a
> meat/vegetable combo (pot roast, chicken soup) for lunch, and whatever I
> want for supper (something with bread, I'll guarantee you that.) I've
> just cracked 200 ( I started doing this when I started back to school:
> Sept. 3, 2010). I'm losing the weight and eat as much/well as any other
> human should have a right to. I don't lay off at supper time. I eat
> great. My lunches are the envy of the teacher's lounge. Lean Cuisine
> that, mofo!! While others are eating nucrowave garbage in a box, I'm
> enjoying the real deal and (easily) double the portion they eat in the
> box. I'm feeling good and looking like a 41 yoa, slowly balding, scars
> all over, former wrestler, good hubby/dad, Greek demigod.
>
> Three to four fruit choices at breakfast, a great portion of pot roastm
> chili or other meat/veggie combo for lunch and a deliciously prepared
> supper. The lunch selelction means I have to cook two extra measl on
> Sunday. Oh, shucks, I hate cooking. NOT!!!!
>
> I can't say it will work for you, but I bet you can find something that
> will. It's not a diet, it's saving your dessert for dessert is all.
>

All good suggestions. I'm with you on the bread/starchy stuff. It's
tasty and filling and I can't imagine giving them up, but apparently it
is becoming poison to me.

On 1/12/2011 3:27 AM, Jinx Minx wrote:
> Start small, don't go gung ho, even if it's just one meal a week you try to
> make healthier. One meal becomes two. One bite of vegetable is better than
> no bites of vegetables. Start by incorporating healthy foods that you know
> you already like. Make a list if you have to -- out of sight, out of mind.
> If it's the same vegetable for every meal, so be it. Fresh fruits and
> veggies taste the best and look the best (I find I have more food
> "reverence" for them), but I don't shun canned. Learn to love your spice
> and herb cupboard -- they make all the difference in the world! Experiment
> to your heart's content. Think about putting lots of color in your meals,
> generally through the addition of vegetables (use colored peppers instead of
> just green, etc). Visually appealing foods tend to taste better. Don't be
> afraid to add fruit into cooked dishes, either. Try the old fashioned sneak
> approach: think about vegetables you can sneak into a dish or casserole to
> healthify it up a little. I focus more on portion control than content, and
> I don't use food substitutes (fake butter, fake sugars) or "low fat/low cal"
> products. I've lost 100 pounds and kept it off for several years now.
> Eventually, you'll find that the healthier you get, the more your body will
> crave these healthy foods over less healthy ones. And now that you've quit
> smoking, you'll be amazed at how much better healthy foods taste as well (or
> so I've been told).
>

Thank you! I know it isn't practical to make a big change all at once. I
like this suggestion!

On 1/12/2011 6:39 AM, jmcquown wrote:
> Define "healthy".

Ok, like Sheldon said, healthful. Less fat, lower carbs - not carb
free!, more fruits. Less red meat. Higher fiber but that would have to
be done slow because it doesn't agree with me but I'm sure I could make
my body adjust.

On 1/12/2011 10:18 AM, ImStillMags wrote:
> First, what is it that you don't like about those foods? Where
> does the dislike come from? Is it because as a child you were forced
> to eat something that you didn't want? If so, try a version of that
> food in a different food preparation.

One example is mushrooms. I've tried them before but I can't stand the
texture. Another is tomatoes though I like food with tomato sauce. I'm
not sure why! I was only ever forced to drink milk as a kid that I can
remember, and I like milk now.
>
> Was it a taste that you remember you didn't like....probably as a
> younger person....? Our tastes change as we get older, you might
> just like something if you tried it again with an open mind.
>
Good point.

> Second, if you are trying to eat healthier, you can do so by tweaking
> the way you prepare the foods you do like....for instance, a lower fat
> version of a recipe or substituting ingredients for high fat or high
> carb ingredients in a dish.
>
Exactly what I need to do. Thanks for responding!

>

On 1/12/2011 11:23 AM, The Cook wrote:

> I do no know of any food that is "unhealthy" when prepared in a
> healthy way and eaten in reasonable quantities.

There you have my dilemma. The preparing in a healthy way part.
Reasonable quantities isn't a problem. I have no problem with leftovers.

Some foods are touted
> as being more healthy because they have a particular attribute, more
> of a particular vitamin or mineral. I have a book, "12 Best Foods
> Cookbook." The 12 are blueberries, black beans, sweet potatoes,
> oatmeal, salmon, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, chocolate, walnuts, soy
> and onions. I don't see anything there that I personally don't like.
> And I don't think you are supposed to limit yourself to just those
> foods.

LOL! I see quite a few there that I don't *currently* like. That's why
my question because I really want to like them. Beans, sweet potatoes,
salmon, tomatoes, soy are not on my usual list. The rest are. I'll look
for that book, thanks!
>
> What you need to concentrate on is a healthy diet with the proper
> amounts of the elements we need to be healthy with the right number of
> calories to maintain your proper weight. I also have a couple of
> books by Martin Katahn, Ph.D. They are "T-Factor Diet" and "One Meal
> at a Time." The information in the 2 are pretty much the same,
> low-fat diets. He gives menus for a couple of weeks of "quick melt"
> and then others for maintenance. The menus contain a large variety of
> foods and no food group is omitted.

Cool! Thanks!

On 1/12/2011 4:47 PM, Doug Freyburger wrote:
> Ema Nymton wrote:
>>
>> Every morning I cook a hot breakfast, which usually includes eggs of
>> some kind. I need the protein, but it is easy to get tired of eggs.
>> So, I try to change it.
>
> Being an afternoon person I have no need for variety in the morning. By
> lunch that's when I'm alert enough that I want variety. Humans are so
> different from each other.

Same here. Breakfast isn't really a problem. I have just yogurt. I
like it, it seems healthful, and it fills me up until lunch. Lunch is
my main problem. And yes, I do bring the Lean Cuisine for lunch and
would like to change that. It again fills me up and the fat and
calories aren't high. Sodium is and I never thought I had a BP problem
but might be getting one based on last couple of years dr appts.
Weekends are when I can be the most creative. And dinner during the
week is sometimes just something thrown together which is where the
unhealthful part comes in. Sometimes cheese and crackers. Sometimes an
english muffin with butter. See the pattern?

On 1/12/2011 12:58 PM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> Can you give some specific examples of foods that you like,
> and foods that you think you should eat? For the latter,
> what about them doesn't appeal to you?

I think I've answered that in previous replies. Let me know if you
don't read them all and I'll consolidate. Thank you.

> It'd be easier to advise you if I had some concrete examples.
> (IIRC, your issues are about heart health.)

Heart health, the recent triglyceride thing, lose some weight, eat foods
that don't irritate my gastric system. High energy is also a goal.