Daily nutrition box. What should I put in it?

For one reason or another I’ve lost my way with food. Eating on the go, easy option, lack of interest, disrupted meal times etc etc

Some of those things cannot be changed currently so I’m going to start organising a daily nutrition box that I can eat throughout the day, it needs to be very simple with as little cooking as possible but give me my daily nutrition requirements. An ultimate lunchbox type of thing.

Suggestions and information sources would be appreciated.

Oats, flax, chia, berries, Greek yoghurt every day. Prepare meals with lots of organic vegetables and herbs the night before and take in a sealed box. Replace three meals with two and begin intermittent fasting maybe. Don’t drink bottled water and don’t eat processed.

Interested as to why you say don’t drink bottled water.  I agree from the plastic waste point of view but is there a nutritional difference?

Sandwiches,

Apple

Crisps

Maybe some kind of cheese string in a packet….

Not really. What will you actually eat? I’d not eat chia seeds by choice and if there was any choice I’d wander off and make a tasty and unhealthy choice.

What about shop prepared sushi? When I was out and about at work an Aldi/kindle/ Waitrose sushi was a healthy tasty lunch.

Thanks, Stanley’s along the right lines but I’m looking to (overcomplicate) take it to the next level 🙂

I’m looking for a basic daily list that delivers the calories and nutrients needed so I can just eat whatevers in the box

2 carrots – 50 calories

1 portion of spinach – x calories

Etc..

Grated carrot and peanut butter.

Flavoured to your preference. Chilli jam a good option.

Add salad.

Stick it in anything or eat it straight.

A bit of reading suggests around

5 veg portions – 200 calories

3 pieces fresh fruit – 300 calories

4 portions of whole grain – 400 calories

That’s as far as I’ve got so far.

OPs username checks out

Cake.

Cake and the finest wines known to humanity?

is there a nutritional difference?

It’s water.

is there a nutritional difference?
It’s water.

Yeah, but if ‘not bottled water’ means drinking from puddles then the nutritional content may be a little different, a little funky.

It’s water.

Sure, but if it’s posh mineral water, it has chemical impurities.

1 egg scrambled, tin of beans, 1cm sliver of cheese cut into cubes, yeast flakes.

delivers the calories and nutrients needed so I can just eat whatevers in the box

https://uk.huel.com/products/huel  ? Pretty much what it’s designed for… its balanced so you just need to use the amount of powder you want to maintain a specific calorie intake.

Yeah, but if ‘not bottled water’ means drinking from puddles then the nutritional content may be a little different, a little funky.

😀

As I understand it, the stuff that comes out of your tap is subject to more stringent quality controls than anything you’ll get in a bottle. That said, there’s no reason to avoid bottled water, just little reason to buy it unless you’re in London where the mains water tastes like crap.

They sell these at the canteen at work, I often get chips and gravy in mine

They sell these at the canteen at work, I often get chips and gravy in mine

Bottles of water?!

Yeah, they do still, lemon and lime, summer fruits, sparkling rosehip and chips n gravy.

@Mister-P

Interested as to why you say don’t drink bottled water.  I agree from the plastic waste point of view but is there a nutritional difference?

At a forum I asked the presentencing oncologist* what were the top 3 foods that he would suggest avoiding from a carcinogenic point of view. His first one to avoid was drinking anything from a “crinkly” bottle (ie. water). His second was to avoid bbq food, and I’ve forgotten his third!

*I’ve developed a major interest in food since getting diagnosed with stage 4 prostate cancer. I think it’s making a difference and I feel loads better 🙂

A bit of reading suggests around

5 veg portions – 200 calories

3 pieces fresh fruit – 300 calories

4 portions of whole grain – 400 calories

That’s as far as I’ve got so far.

I’d drop the fruit (too much sugar) and replace with berries. You can’t eat too much veg, but do try and get the best quality available, and aim for a big variety of colours.

Try and have a good breakfast if possible. Another idea would be to make smoothies and take them with you… avocado, spinach, sprouting broccoli, ginger and almond milk is my current favourite.

His second was to avoid bbq food, and I’ve forgotten his third!

I’d probably stop listening at that point to be fair.

I’d heard of huel but had no idea it was a meal replacement drink.

Thanks Stanley, Smoothies are an option on a daily basis.

Other daily needs

2 portions of dairy – 250 calories

2 portions of good quality protein – ? Calories

Essential oils

Is there anything I’m missing. Calories are probably around 1500 for my list where do I get another 1000 calories from

Fyi, calories are a bit of a red herring, that’s more for me to work out how much I need to eat to sustain a balanced weight over time.

Are you an adult, genuine question. If you are, how are you alive if you’ve no idea what to eat?

Food is one of the bog basics of life, surely you cannot be so unaware of it that you need to ask on here?

Search result 1 – search term “basic food requirements for an adult male”

Giant sausage roll

Cheese and chutney sandwich. Good wholemeal bread, decent mature cheddar (sliced not too thick) and homemade chutney. Salad on the side. Just embrace the not having to think each day about what goes in the box saves so much headspace.

If you like to graze rather than lunch just cut the sandwich into quarters.

As for Huel I can’t believe that ultra processed powder will be good for you in the longterm compared to veg, fruit and good bread.

For alternative snacky things a colleague often has sprouting beans in his food box. Pistachio nuts are also good and allegedly supply is increasing as the trees are very climate change tolerant.

Beef (muscle meat plus associated fats, connective tissues and bone marrow) eggs, salt and water is all the nutrition needed to thrive. 1 to 2 meals a day. Fast as long as you can each day but 16/8 is a good place to start. 23/1 is optimal

Butchers Dogs are fit for a reason.

As for Huel I can’t believe that ultra processed powder will be good for you in the longterm compared to veg

EDIT: You’d have to define ‘ultra processed’ –

If you chop an Onion in half, you’ve processed it. If you stick it in a blender and add some Garlic, it would then be ‘ultra processed’, would it not?

The specifications are:

1) Eating on the go

2) easy option

3) lack of interest

4) disrupted meal times

5) delivers the calories

6) delivers the nutrients

7) as little cooking as possible

I think that’s pretty much nailed the specified requirements…?

Giant sausage roll

I’d say regular sausage roll, as then you can add a scotch egg and a cheese and onion pasty, plus a few condiments.  A cheeky bit of mustard, for example.

https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/food-guidelines-and-food-labels/the-eatwell-guide/

Rather than calory counting you can use the NHS eat well plate as a guide for the volume to eat of each food group per day.

The Zoe website also has lots of information on general nutritional (no need to become a member).

Simple ways to eat lots of veg is making a big pan of soup and portion out for the week and keep in fridge or freezer.

Alternatively eat salads (ready mixed bags) with your dressing of choice, add wholemeal bread or microwaved (sweet) potato. Can also add tomato/pepper/ celery/sugarsnap peas etc or combine with tin of fish or boiled eggs.

Rye crackers , corn cakes with nutbutter, cheese, creamcheese, again can add veg or fruit.

Humus with fresh veg sticks or eat with rice cakes or similar.

Fresh fruit such as apples, kiwis, oranges, bananas and fresh or frozen berries. Eat on their own or add to plain yoghurt or (jumbo oat) porridge.

Make up a jar of mixed seeds, chopped nuts, flax meal and add a scoop to any meal you are eating.

Use nuts for snacking if you need to.

Drink water, tea, coffee.

Good luck!

Buying water in bottles in the UK is madness. Unless you want fizzy water. In which case good on you. Fizzy is God’s water.

as for oncology wotnot. Way BITD we had 5 Ss. Smoking. Sex. Sun. Spices. Spirits. These were the major cancer risk factors.

having now been involved in numerous programs for advanced and metastatic cancer these heuristic factors seem common. Thankfully there are additional genomic components identified that make for more focused treatment and science.

Edit

calorie counting is the best and easiest route to weight loss and weight maintenance.

Homemade overnight oats with plenty of different nuts, fruit and flaxseed, topped with greek yoghurt and fresh berries if possible.

If you are fasting just have this for lunch.

A big snap lid tub with as many different salad and raw veg things as possible plus tinned black beans or chickpeas with tuna, or salmon or mackerel.

These two are my life and its the amount of variety that stops me getting bored. Pickels, avocado, coleslaw, cottage cheese, vinigriette, etc.

I also have a tub of mixed nuts ate work and at home. Almonds, cashews and hazlenuts with a seperate tub with brazil nuts in so I don’t eat too many. This is my snack if I’m peckish.

Plus an apple and a banana.

Huel available on CO-Ops mealdeals if you haven’t got time with a pot of fresh (not always…) fruit.

I have a contigo flask you can drink out of, always have a herbal tea with slice of ginger inside, on the go. That and a banana stops me snacking.

Portion up unsalted nuts and dried fruits, seeds.

Just get organised so you dont find yourself hungry out and about.

Always leave a bit of supper in a tupper for next day.

Mix up meals or you ll get bored, different textures, flavours, colours.

Good luck

https://www.sciencefocus.com/news/water-bottle-unhealthy-study

I (sometimes successfully) try to eat healthy meals when at home. By this I mean cooked from actual ingredients; heavy on the veg easy with the meat; as much variety as I can manage. I’m talking about stuff like chilli (lots of chilli), soups, pasta sauces with lots of tomatoes and peppers, vegetable ‘shepherds’ pie …

I don’t really enjoy cooking, so I make waaaaay too much and freeze the rest into portions in small boxes. They are tasty when cold, delicious if I can find somewhere to heat them. I usually take a pot of greek yoghurt mixed with a little honey and whatever soft fruit I’ve bought (pomegranate seeds are great for this, strawberries are excellent). Bananas as they are healthy and filling, and I usually have a couple of portions of porridge oats my bag as I can usually find a microwave somewhere. I make these:

You will need a food processor or feisty blender and a lined loaf tin or baking tray or plate.

<b>225g cashews, almonds, pecans or a combo of all of these</b>

<b>265g dates</b>

<b>60g raisins or sultanas</b>

<b>60g dried cranberries or cherries</b>

<b>1 teaspoon vanilla extract</b>

<b>1 teaspoon almond extract</b>

<b>1/4 teaspoon salt</b><b></b>

Take a kilo loaf tin and line with cling film or line a baking tin or plate with cling if rolling into balls not bars.

Add the nuts, dates, raisins or sultanas, cranberries or cherries, vanilla and almond extracts and salt to the bowl of your food processor.

Process until you have a rubble like but soft doughy texture. The mixture will easily form into a ball shape when it’s ready, this may take a couple of minutes to come together in your food processor.

Press the mixture into your lined loaf tin and flatten out the surface. If you would rather, you could just roll the dough into large walnut sized balls and leave to set in the fridge like the bars. Pop in the fridge to firm up for at least 2 hours. Once set, cut into bar shapes, wrap in greaseproof paper and store in the fridge for at least two weeks. For the balls, simply store in a food bag and store in the fridge.

… as they are easy, yummy, and I’d guess healthier than shop bought versions – certainly a lot cheaper.

Of course I sometimes end up in Greggs anyway, like any right-thinking human being, but not as often as you might think.

I would definitely recommend the Greek yoghurt and the home made naked bars as they are so easy to carry around, eat anywhere, and they are so tasty they stop me from lusting after sugary snacks.

Not to derail the thread, but…

Thankfully there are additional genomic components identified that make for more focused treatment and science.

Edit

calorie counting is the best and easiest route to weight loss and weight maintenance.

Genomic and somatic components have dominated cancer research for the last 50 years. Possibly because there’s money in it. Loads of evidence to support other components of cancer; metabolic being the biggest.

Calorie restriction will work in the short term but it’s pretty well known that it fails most people in the longer term. It’s more about where the calories come from… not all calories are equal! I’d give the Huel a wide berth; lots of nasties in that ingredient list.

https://nutritionfacts.org/topics/daily-dozen/

see how many of those you can cover off..

For the first time in a long while I’ve felt an interest in what I’m eating so that’s a win already, thanks all for participating. Some good reminders and suggestions already.

Calories – personally I just need to know the numbers, historically I’m not someone who struggles to lose weight so I don’t want to sleep walk into a different issue.

My list is taking shape and it will be grazing rather than meals mostly

5 portions or more veg

3 portions fresh berries/fruit

2 portions dairy

5 portions whole grains

2 portions quality protein

Some ground seeds

Water

What’s the general view on keeping carbs below a certain level at each sitting, is that just for diabetics or beneficial for anyone?