Getting 5 a day

Ouchette

I think I've been underestimating how big a portion of your 5 a day needs to be. This was a surprise to me because I thought that with what I thought was a healthy vegetarian diet, I was getting plenty! When I added up the portions in what I ate yesterday, it only came out at 4. I know the 5 is rather arbitrary, but if anything I thought the ideal was higher and 5 was meant to be a sort of achievable minimum.

I'm reluctant to add more food in on top of what I'd typically eat because my weight is healthy and stable and I don't feel like I need more. But I'm also reluctant to swap out protein, and I do feel like I need to keep some carbs because I do quite a lot of running.


What do you think? Should I sub out something to get more veg in? Add in more veg on top? Accept that I just don't have a big enough appetite to get enough in?

Here's what I had yesterday, which was a typical weekday in terms of food, although I'd probably have left out 1 egg and/or the noodles on a lighter exercise day.

Breakfast: Porridge and coffee (0 portions)

Lunch: Veg and lentil soup from the shops (1 portion, according to the label)

Pre-work out snack: half a pitta with hummous and about 4-5 roast cherry tomatoes with olive oil (1 portion, with the tomatoes being not quite a portion and the hummus making up the rest)

Then I went and did about 45 minutes of kettlebells, resistance bands etc, then about half an hour of running drills/intervals.

Dinner: Stirfry, made with half a pack of stirfry veg (2 portions), 2 eggs (post-workout protein!), half a portion of noodles, herb, spices etc.

2 purple Quality Streets

thegreatiam

can usually always add more veg, its quite low in calories, a bell pepper is about 15 cals an onion is about 20 etc.

Purple quality street is also a vegetable. DO NOT let anyone convince you other wise. If they try throw the wrapper at them and run away.

Alf Veedersane

thegreatiam wrote: »

Purple quality street is also a vegetable. DO NOT let anyone convince you other wise. If they try throw the wrapper at them and run away.

It's purple because - like everything else - the beetroot juice inside has stained it.

Lean ar aghaidh.

frag420

Lux23

You don't seem to eat much at all, have a couple of portions of fruit and then maybe bulk up the veg in your stir fry.