Hello Reader

When I asked in my survey what you'd most like help with, building balanced meals, getting enough protein and fibre, and eating for fullness came up again and again. So this one's for you.

I used to think I ate pretty healthily. But I didn't realise quite how ingrained some of the old diet culture 'rules' were.

It was mostly low fat. I'd always glance at the calories if they were available. Lower was generally better.

I'd take porridge into work for breakfast, but I'd be hungry by 10, white-knuckling it until mid-morning coffee.

Lunch would be a tasty-looking salad. Lots of veg to bulk it out, often with half a tin of tuna. Followed by rice cakes and an apple or banana.

By mid-afternoon I'd be hungry again, grabbing the Weight Watchers bar my colleague offered me.

And if I stopped at the supermarket on the way home, the bag of crisps I'd just bought would somehow end up on the passenger seat.

Just one more. Which became one more handful.

I never really asked myself why.

I didn't think about whether breakfast had kept me full. I didn't look at my lunch and wonder whether half a tin of tuna, vegetables, rice cakes and fruit was enough food. Of course it was!

I certainly didn't think about balance or satiety. I thought I was eating healthily.

Over the years, there were forays into vegan, plant-based and vegetarian eating too.

Again, I thought I was being even healthier. Surely I'd feel better. More energised. Cleaner, whatever that means. Maybe lose a few pounds.

Nope.

If anything, I felt worse. Although in fairness, menopause had also arrived, so I can't blame everything on the food.

Eventually I started eating meat again. Slowly at first. There wasn't one standout reason. I just had a sense that my body was asking for something different.

It wasn't until I started studying nutrition that I began to understand what that something might be. And don't worry, meat isn't the answer, in case you're wondering. But paying more attention to protein helped.

I started paying attention to what I needed to add to my meals. Rather than asking "Is this healthy?", I started asking: what is this meal actually going to do for me?

I later realised the question was really about satisfaction and fullness.

I increased my protein, partly because I was lifting weights and wanted to support muscle repair and growth, but also because it helps keep you full.

I paid much more attention to fibre – pulses, vegetables, fruit, wholegrains. Good for my gut (and, yes, regular poos), but also useful for helping meals keep me fuller for longer.

And instead of avoiding carbohydrates, I experimented with them, figuring out what worked best for me. I was active and needed the energy.

And after years of automatically choosing the low-fat version (thanks Rosemary Conley), I stopped assuming lower fat automatically meant healthier. Fat has important roles in the body, and it can also contribute to a meal feeling satisfying.

These days, when I'm putting together a meal, I'm thinking about what I call nutrition foundations.

What's my protein, what's my fibre, and where are the carbs I need for energy? And how can I add some healthy fat?

It's not just about balance though. I'm also looking at whether there's enough food to keep me going until the next meal.

And there's one more question. Will I enjoy it?

There's no point eating a nutritionally balanced meal if you don't enjoy it and end up wanting something else afterwards. Being physically full isn't the same as feeling satisfied.

Coming back to that salad I used to eat. If I made that old work lunch today, I wouldn't ditch the salad – I’d build on it.

I'd use the whole tin of tuna rather than half. I'd add some beans or chickpeas, some grains or sweet potato, a drizzle of olive oil, and perhaps some feta, avocado, seeds or nuts.

If you want a starting point, I use a simple plate: roughly a quarter protein, a quarter carbs (the higher-fibre kind), half veg or fruit, and a bit of healthy fat. No weighing, no tracking.

I'm asking that lunch to do quite a lot. It needs to keep my hunger and energy steady. It needs to taste good. It needs to provide nutrients. And it needs to get me through the afternoon without spending three hours thinking about what I can eat next.

That's very different from making the lowest-calorie lunch I can get away with.

I also pay attention to my body. It gives me useful information.

How long does breakfast keep me going? What's my energy like afterwards? Does dinner keep me satisfied, or am I searching the cupboards for crisps an hour later?

This isn't about whether I've been "good" or "bad". It's just feedback. I call it biofeedback.

Sometimes you'll eat the perfectly balanced meal and still fancy something sweet afterwards. That's fine.

I have a square of dark chocolate after most evening meals. Or in the morning, a date and a Brazil nut with my flat white. I eat them slowly and enjoy them.

It's not about never eating a biscuit again. It's the difference between enjoying a biscuit with your coffee, and scoffing the lot before you've even noticed. It's worth asking whether you're eating them because you fancy them, or because lunch didn't touch the sides.

When these foundations are in place, you may notice you’re fuller for longer, energy often steadies and cravings may quieten. And if weight loss is something you want, they're a much better place to start than another restrictive diet.

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​One small thing for you:

Last time, I suggested a few days of simple, balanced meals. If you tried it, or if any of this sounds familiar, don't start by trying to change your entire diet.

Just pick one meal. Breakfast is a good place to start.

Ask yourself:
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- Is there enough protein?
- How could you add some fibre? (Do that slowly.)
- Have you included some carbohydrate and fat?
- Is there enough food? If you're active, you might need more.
- Do you enjoy it? How could you make it more satisfying?

Change one thing and see what happens. You might find you stay fuller for longer, your energy is better, or you think about food less.

Or it might make absolutely no difference, and that's useful information too.

Hit reply now and tell me which meal you're starting with. No wrong answers, and I read every one.

After years of thinking eating well meant eating less of certain things, I've realised it's much more about giving my body enough of what it needs, in a way I enjoy and can keep doing.

And yes, there are still crisps in the cupboard. And I enjoy them now and again.
​
Not because half a tin of tuna has been expected to get me through until dinner.

Until next time,
​Kirsty​
​Nutrition & Behaviour Change Coach
​@kjrcoaching​

Food, mindset, and everything in between.

P.S. My research survey closes this week. If you haven't had your say yet, there's still time, and everyone who takes part goes into the draw for a free Nutrition Review.