PART TWO 

LIGHT MEAL OPTIONS 

These are intended for either lunchtime or evening depending on when you have your main meal. 

Portion size is important and I use a large cereal bowl or soup bowl approximately 6 inches or 15cms in diameter and 4inches or 10cms in depth. You will be having three snacks per day in addition so you will soon adjust to having slightly less at this mealtime. 

Most of these can be prepared and stored in the fridge saving you time.  Jacket potatoes can be wrapped in foil and rice and pasta salads keep well too.  I do suggest that you prepare your salads at the time as fresh fruit and vegetables do lose much of their goodness when cut.  The exception to this is the fresh fruit salad which is stored in unsweetened apple juice which can be stored for three or four days in an airtight container in the fridge. 

• Raw Vegetable salad with chopped jacket potato – drizzle of olive oil.  Green tea.
• Brown rice salad with onions, mushrooms, peas with half a chopped chicken breast, green tea.
• Whole grain sandwich with chicken breast, drizzle of olive oil and seasoning, lettuce and tomato. Green or peppermint tea.
• Spanish omelette made with an egg, a little cold potato, chopped red peppers and onions.  Can be made in the microwave without oil.  Peppermint or green tea.
• Homemade vegetable soup (can be made and frozen)  Use onions, peppers, mushrooms, carrots and any green vegetable with a salt free vegetable stock cube.  Season to taste and you can make spicy.  One wholegrain or olive bread roll with olive oil.  Green tea
• Half an avocado with prawns in teaspoon of mayonnaise, green salad and piece of wholegrain bread.  Green tea.
• Raw vegetable salad with tin of tuna in brine.  Corn tortilla.  Green tea
• Sugar Free baked beans on two slices of whole grain toast drizzled with olive oil. Green tea
• Homemade gazpacho with pureed tomato, cucumber and onion.  Small jacket potato with light cream cheese. Green tea
• Corn tortilla wrap with lettuce, tomato and two rashers of lean bacon.
• Small pizza base with 1 oz of grated cheddar, onion, tomato puree, asparagus tips and chopped chicken.  Green tea.
• Cold pasta salad with chopped spring onions, broccoli, cucumber and tomato and fresh shrimp.  Green tea.
• Whole grain French bread with fresh baked salmon, cucumber and scrape of mayonnaise and seasoning.  Green tea.
• Two poached eggs and steamed asparagus on two slices of wholegrain toast.

It is the turn of the snacks now and these are important as we often turn to high fat sugary options during the day for convenience.  More than anything, substituting healthy alternatives into our diet can make a huge difference to both our weight and our well being.   

SNACKS. 

It is important that you do not go more than two or three hours without eating something so that your body keeps working and using energy.  You do not want your blood sugar dropping and by eating regularly throughout the day you will find that you are less tired and more inclined to do the exercise that you need. 

I suggest making up your fresh fruit salad and putting it into a large sealed container in the fridge and make a habit of having one bowl with low fat yoghurt every day.  This will give you at least two of your portions of fruit that you need.  Make sure that you leave at least two hours after your main meal before eating the fruit salad as it digests very quickly and can cause acidity if it interferes with the digestion of tougher and more fibrous foods.  I find that it is a very useful snack in the evening around an hour before I go to bed. 

On that basis that takes care of one snack per day and here are some examples of others that you can take to work with you or in your handbag if you are out shopping etc.  If you are out and do not have anything to hand then stop for a cup of tea and a piece of toast or toasted teacake.   

Eat mid-morning, mid-afternoon and about an hour before bedtime. One snack per day to be a cereal bowl of fresh fruit salad with low fat yoghurt.Have a cup of green, peppermint or black tea with the morning and afternoon snack. I have given you sufficient examples for you to get the idea of what sort of snack we are looking at.  Get creative and find foods that you enjoy and can fit into your lifestyle that are healthy and energy giving.  Please avoid buying the so called healthy energy bars.  They are usually laden with sugar and are not as healthy as they are made out to be. You can however make your own cereal bars using oats, whole grain flour, dried fruits and honey so find a good recipe and adapt to keep healthy.  These can be stored in an airtight container in your desk or at home and the only proviso is that you don’t become so hooked that you cannot stop at one digestive sized cookie at a time!  

• Bowl of fruit salad with low fat yoghurt every day.
• Homemade cereal cookie with a cup of green tea.
• Orange and apple
• Banana and 6 walnut halves.
• Half a melon with berries.
• Two rice cakes with scrape of butter and marmite.
• Two Ryvita with scrape of butter and jam.
• Two large plums and 6 walnut halves.
• Apple and Pear
• Piece of toast, drizzle of olive oil and sliced tomato.
• Banana or other fruit smoothies with 400ml of semi skimmed milk and teaspoon of honey.
• Sunflower seeds unsalted (small handful)
• Pumpkin seeds unsalted (small handful)
• Pot of low fat live yoghurt.
• Two Ryvita with light cream cheese and tomato.
• Pot of low fat rice pudding.  (you can make your own with cooked brown rice, semi skimmed milk and honey)
• Cold hard boiled egg and a banana.  

You now have the basis of a healthy diet that includes most of the essential food groups and nutrients.  It can be adapted for any age group or lifestyle and if you can introduce your friends and family to this way of eating you may well be saving them many health problems in the future. In particular young children adapt to this type of eating very well with a little patience and you will find a difference in not only their general health and energy but also in their behaviour as they are weaned away from processed foods with their preservatives and colourants. 

For the next three weeks I shall be providing you with some recipes to compliment the programme that are easy to prepare and good to eat.