Hey everyone,

I REALLY need some input here, so i hope you all can help me out. Basically, i'm a recovering anorexic and i've been in therapy for about a year. I've had a *very* difficult time restoring my weight to a healthy level (not because i wouldn't eat enough, just cuz it wouldn't move), but now i'm at a weight that's pretty close to "healthy" on the BMI scale.

the problem? my meal plan. all along, with my meal plan, we just kept adding in calories here and there to try to get my weight up. the end result is that now, after a full year of therapy, i'm still counting calories religiously and 100% all the time. my meal plan is NOTHING near "normal" and it's just all about the calorie numbers. 200 here, 500 here, etc. basically, i'm SO SICK of counting calories that i'm ready to scratch my eyes out (i'm sure a lot of you can relate!)

so what my therapist and i are trying to do is come up with a new meal plan in which i DON'T count calories, but i'm still following some sort of plan that basically ensures that my weight won't slip dramatically. the problem is that i'm so locked into that "calorie-counting world" that i can't figure out how you establish a meal plan in which you eat relatively normally according to this plan that is based on something OTHER than calories.

and this is where you all come in! i would LOVE IT if you all could post what your assigned meal plans are, just so i can get an idea of how meal plans work and go into my therapist with some ideas. i know some types are based on x grains plus x fats, some are based on "food items," some are based on stuff i don't even know! i'm really looking for TONS of options so i can figure out what will work best for me, so PLEASE post me some meal plans that you follow, are supposed to follow, used to follow, etc.

girly, the reason i addressed you in the title was i remember yours was something like Breakfast = an "entree" plus X plus Y. that really seems like something i could do and actually enjoy (cuz frankly, sometimes i want donuts for breakfast, not two grains, one dairy, etc.!), so i definitely want your reply!

thank you all SO much in response and stay strong everyone!

Hey Joni

The meal plan I was given in recovery consisted of "cans" of food...where each can was approx 250 Cals (as we all later figured out lol). The thing that madeit tricky was that for me, without counting calories it was a little trickier to "add" cans of food once youve reached like the full max for meals..because snacks werent as definite...but after a while it kinda made sense..so here it goes lol:

Bfast: (3 cans) an 'Entree' of sorta like you said...usually this is like a bagel/toast/bread and cream cheese or butter, 2 eggs and 1 toast, 2 french toasts (made with 1 egg if you want to be specific)/waffles+syrup,2 bowls of cereal (2 cups of cereal, 1/2 cup of milk each) or 1 bowl of cereal+1 toast, a large pastry (muffin, danish, croissant...2 pop tarts..etc)..and so on...you kinda get the idea
- always add on 1 glassof milk (for calcium, but i had juice sometimes cuz i didnt feel milk went well with some entrees, and also with the "cereal" meals you getyour milk already so you dont have to have another drink there)
- 1 fruit: apple, orange, 2 cups watermelon, a banana, etc
- 1 yogurt (buy a 12 pack or else have about 1/2 cup)

** Note..afte ryou get used to this..combining things got "fun" almost...for example..waffles with syrup and the add ons became waffles with whipped cream and strawberries (and a glass of milk and maybe a yogurt)

LUnch: same sort of idea: an entree (here it was usually a sandwich made with 2 pieces of bread (hearty bread), a wrap, a bagel, bun, etc... with some sort of spread (butter, mayo, hummus...1 tbsp or 2 tsp depending on what it is), 2 oz meat (ie 4 slices deli meat, or 2 slices plus cheese, or 2 slices of cheese lol)
- add always a glass of milk (juice), veggies plus fat (ie/ usuallya salad with dressing or if you wanted like a side order of veggies with like butter or oil sorta thing)fruit and a 'dessert': here its usually like 2 cookies, a granola bar, a pudding, a small cup of ice cream or yogurt, etc

- dinner: dinner followed the same trend with lunch, just with different entrees...they were more structured like instead of 2 pieces of bread it was a cup or rice or pasta, instead of deli meat and cheese it was a chicken breast of 3 oz meat/fish (more if its lighter fish), and veggies with oil or butter etc...plus the add ons..
* for my sake here, for dinner, instead of having a "smaller" entree than most people would have and then add the entrees, I just figured out ways to have larger entrees altogether..like my milk would become the cheese on chicken parmesan, my pasta would increase to 2 cups..and the sauce would be the veggies..and id still havea drink..etc..after a while i played around with things like this but for the longest time I'd follow it exactly..ps..an entree is also fairly easy to sub..ie/ 2 slices of pizza, plus add ins...a 6" sub, etc

For snacks, it depended how much your meal plan "added" too. thus far each meal I described is 3 cans, so your whole day minus snacks woul dbe 9 cans (so if you wanted to speak in calories, about 2250).. therefore you add in snacks accordingly, btwn bfast and lunch, lunch and dinner and after dinner.I'd say try to limit yoruself up to 3 cans approx cuz more than that is a lil harder ...but for "one Can" of food for a snack..think simply..a muffin or pastry, 4 saltines or a handful crackers and a thumb size piece of cheese and an apple, a serving size of chips..essentially, 2 of your "desserts" or a larger "dessert" like a chocolate bar, etc...then to make it make sense..add 2 or 3 of these together..for example, a two can snack can be 2 cookies, an apple and a milk OR a cup of ice cream, a fruit and 2 cookies (ie make a sundae!) OR larger things altogether like a 99 cent bag of chips and a pop/juice, a Mcflurry, an ice cream shop larger scoop of reg ice cream or yogurt with toppings, a smal popcorn at the movies, etc

Also note that things liek condiments, marinades, veggies in sandwiches or on burgers, etc...they dont factor into the count and are essentially free :)

Hopefully this helps you out a bit let me know if you need clarification anywhere! :)

Hey Joni!
I can totally understand how confused you must be. As great as it is that your meal plan was based on calories and let you have a lot of leeway in food choices, it's a good idea for you to gain some insight into what is healthy for your body in terms of grains, fats, proteins etc...
My meal plan was based SOLELY on food groups (although I'm sure my dietician has some idea of how many calories it would amount to) and I love being able to eat what I want within that structure.
For example, my breakfast should consist of:
2 grains
2 proteins
1 dairy
1 fruit
and 1 fat
Which would be met by something like 2 slices of toast with butter, 2 eggs, 1 glass of milk and 1 piece of fruit. That is what I usually chose because it was easy and went together, as opposed to 2 eggs, 2 pancakes, 1 piece of cheese...etc.... I didn't want a shmorgasbord for breakfast, but I could have one if I wanted! Haha.
Lunch and dinner followed the same pattern - only food groups that I needed to meet as MINIMUMS. The tough part is figuring out what group foods go into that are already prepared or packaged. For example, a powerbar can count as something like 2 grains, 1 protein, and 1 fat or something like that. I find it easier to stick with foods that are one thing and one thing only...that's probably just ED wanting to stay safe, ya know? Da** him.
But anyway, I think this would be a good approach for you because then you'd get to know the nutritional value (not the acutal label, but the food group it comes from!) of foods...AND make sure you don't leave out things like fruits and vegetables. You could ABSOLUTELY have your donuts in the morning. 2 donuts, 1 glass of milk, 1 piece of fruit and 2 eggs - I'd count the 2 donuts as 2 grains and your fat.
Don't get too caught up on the groups and definitely feel ok -actually feel OBLIGATED to go OVER b/c it is set as minimums.

I'm so proud of you for coming as far as you have, Joni, and I hope you know what an inspiration you are to me. Please keep pushing and staying on top of your recovery. You are so awesome!!
Hope I helped a little...I'm going to post on my "grocery store rules" one now....

I don't have a therapist or nutritionist this time...never did a thing for me. So this round, I did quite a bit of research and do sort of a combination of 'units' of 200 calories, and try to get a grain, protein, and veggie or fruit into every 'unit.' I do the mini-meal thing since being full is a major trigger. It's exhausting to count so much but I've started estimating, and having it figured out gives me a little flexibility while still letting me trust myself. I have yet to approach fats, though. I really need to find something workable there.

I run/weightlift 2hrs+ a day so this might sound like a lot but it's not even enough to maintain...but it's a mountain of food :( Tons of protein as I would only like to gain minimal fat and lots of muscle mass to get my weight up 10lbs or so. I am trying to add more to this as I am still losing about 1lb a week, going to also try to switch from fat-free to low-fat versions. Gaining is NOT easy, I'm surprised. I thought my metabolism was hosed but I'm burning over 2000 a day somehow.

Breakfast: Oatmeal, fruit, scrambled egg substitute
Lunch: Turkey sandwich with lots of veggies on wheat bread
Dinner: Lean meat, rice, lots of veggies
Snacks: Cottage cheese & apple, yogurt w/protein powder, tunafish on wasa bread, string cheese, Luna Bars, graham cracker with peanut butter if I have the courage to tackle it. Usually 4 those a day or so.

Hey Joni!

Okay, here's my meal plan:

Breakfast:
2 starches
1-2 fat
1 dairy

Snack:
Ensure (or equivalent) + Fruit or Starch

Lunch:
3 starches
1 veggie
1 fruit
3 protein
1-2 fat
1 dairy

Snack:
same

Dinner:
same as lunch

Snack:
Ensure

Hope you get some good ideas from all these meal plans to help you out.

Keep us updated!

thanks SO much, girls! i am seriously getting SO excited about moving past the "calorie-counting" phase that i can't even see straight, lol! i KNOW it's going to be very difficult and anxiety-ridden for me for awhile, but dam*it, i'm READY for that! i want to get better SO badly and i feel like this is my biggest "hurdle" right now, you know?

anyway, with all the advice you guys put down, i've come up with a meal plan idea that i'm gonna "pitch" to my therapist on Monday. I'll write it here for you guys so you can give me some input prior to going in (maybe i missed somethin' big!) basically, i used girlygirl's plan the most (with adjustments for things i'd enjoy more) because i am VERY comfortable with all foods, i'm not sure that restricting my meals to a certain number of carbs/proteins/fats is as beneficial for me (if that makes sense). basically, i feel like (and my therapist agress) i have a very good grasp of "balanced/healthy" eating and controlling it that way might actually be counter-productive cuz it'll cause me to "not eat" certain things cuz they're too many carbs, not enough proteins, etc. (like for example, i know cereal, toast, yogurt and fruit is just as good a breakfast as eggs, toast, yogurt and fruit. i don't want to be worrying about carbs vs. protein, you know?)

anyway, all rambling aside, here it is! comments/suggestions definitely welcome!! :)

BREAKFAST:
Entree (wide range of things, basically what girly suggested above)
Yogurt
Milk/Juice/Beverage (like a latte or something)

SNACK:
Fruit

LUNCH:
Entree (sandwich on hearty bread - tuna/egg salad, pb & j, meat & cheese, etc. or a bagel & cream cheese, or hummus & pita or a wrap with whatever or something frozen like a hot pocket or small pizza thing, etc.)
Veggies/Salad or a Fruit
Soup or "Starchy Thing" (pretzels, animal crackers, fries, chips, etc.)
Milk/Juice
Small Dessert (2 cookies, a couple little chocolates, pudding, etc.)

SNACK:
"Starchy Thing" (like above, or like a granola bar (ANY amount of calories) or PB crackers or cheese &crackers, etc.)
Fruit or "Dairy Thing" (like string cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt, etc.)

DINNER:
Entree (Meat thing like chicken parmesan, sandwich/burger, pizza, etc. LOTS of flexibility with this one)
Starchy thing (Bread & butter, potato, rice, pasta, potato chips)
Veggies/Salad
"Other thing" (baked beans or soup or fruit or cottage cheese or something. this one's kind of a "swinger," you know? i also figure it can be eliminated for REALLY big entrees like 1/2 a frozen pizza or a big ol' piece of lasagna or something.)

DESSERT:
Regular Size Dessert (cookies, cake, pie, ice cream, chocolate, etc.)

So basically, that's it! What do you all think??? i'm really looking for maximum flexibility in my eating, where a meat/cheese sandwich, a pb& j sandwich and a tuna salad sandwich all become EQUAL competitors, you know? (cuz right now they're all different "calorie amounts" to me)

the only question i had was for girly about the breakfast part: can you "sub" things in anyway? cuz when i think pop-tarts or a big bakery muffin, i think "pretty darn filling," definitely more so than cereal and a piece of toast. so then i'd want to just have them with the milk/juice and the fruit later. if i had to eat a yogurt with them, i'd probably rather just not have the pop-tarts at all cuz A) it doesn't seem "normal" and B) i'd just get too darn full from that, you know? so couldn't those things just sort of stand alone? or is this just my "ED-brain" being a calorie monger (and knowing full well how many more calories those things contain than cereal)?!?!?! i just worry i'd stop even eating those things if i had to eat the yogurt with them cuz it's just too much food.

anyway, throw out some opinions girls and i'll talk to you all soon!

That sounds great Joni. I totally understand wanting to be FREE of the counting! You are ready, and that's a big accomplishment.

Are your 'hunger/full' signals working now? If they're giving you good feedback, you could go by these guidelines and then let those tell you if something had more or less energy. I know our signals can be broken for a while, but your fatigue/energy level is still a good barometer. Maybe that's a good way to help judge?

hey, just sort of "bumping" this up to the top. i REALLY would like some input from somebody, anybody! (ps - thanks, tallycat, for your reply! i definitely plan on working with hunger/fullness signals, but i still need to gain a little bit of weight yet, so i've gotta make sure i'm eating "enough," regardless of whether i'm full, you know?)

anyway, please girls/guys, just let me know if you think this plan is good/balanced/normal-ish/easy to follow/missing something big, etc? thanks!

Hey Joni! i missed ya too! i think that your idea and your most recent post is a GREAT idea for you. im actually jealous. I cant imagine WANTING to give up counting calories. im mean, all i friken do is count them. and now im even calculating fat% and protein%. Like im obsessed with the makeup of my diet. i try REALLY REALLY hard to get in 30% fat & 20%-25% protein. i mean thats TOTALLY healthy an not detrimental to my health but its just another one of those darn ed rules. or is it ed? b/c im sure alot of people who are on diets to maintain their wweight do that. or even bodybuilders probably do that. im not saying that im any of those things but my point is that people who dont have eds holding their hands do that kind of stuff too right? i really dont (or ed rather) want to give up the whole calorie counting and % counting beacause i dont trust myself to satisfy what i think (or ed?) is 'perfect' for me. is this ed??

well anyways..if you want anymore help, this is my meal plan..

breakfast:
1.5 cups of cereal
1 cup milk
fruit

snack:
granola bar

lunch:
3oz meat (ATLEAST) or cheese (or combo) or 3tb. pb
2 slices wheat bread
Fruit
dairy (usually milk)
1 starch

snack:
anything that adds up to 400 calories
(i usually pick a clif bar witha cup of milk)

dinner:
4oz protein
3 starches
2 veggies
1-2 fat depending of what i ate for the rest of the day.

dessert:
anything thats atleast 300 calories.

well anywayz..that what im SUPPOSED to be eating but now im dong my whole % thing. im still getting the calories up there just in different way, ya know. but anywayz..i think that your idea is going to be SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO X 8734627359175 AMAZING for you! i cant tell you how jealous i am..lol..

Joni where are ya?? :confused: