Hello T-Nation, I’m an absolute beginner with and odd (at least I hope this is odd) situation. I’m 20, 6 foot, 250lb. , looking to lose weight and improve my diet, but my food choices are limited. My case is that I’m autistic, and I’m really sensitive to certain textures. I’d rather not go too far into this, but I’d rather starve to death that be dependent on foods in my ‘black’ list.
So far these are the good foods (At least, I’m under the impression that they are good foods) that I can get myself to eat.
-chicken, beef, some pork, most fish, turkey.
-Lettuce, potato.
-Apples, Bananas.
Currently, the ‘black list’ includes these:
-Eggs, all fruits and veggies not listed, nuts, sea food (besides fish), cottage cheese, pasta’s, Mexican/Chinese foods.
So my questions for everyone are these:
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Can I really get away with eating only these? I want to lose weight and get more energy (I’m in MMA, dedicated but have poor conditioning), so will these do it for me?
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If not, what foods should I really try to take off the ‘black list’. I’m serious about this, I’ll put myself though some mild/moderate mental pain for this goal, but I don’t want to do this all at once.
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I can drink fluids, meaning I can juice my veggies/fruits. Would V8 actually be a good alternative like the commercials claim, or should I juice my own, or should I really fight myself to eat the whole fruits/veggies?
Large forum I know, so I’m not expecting too much commotion on this post, but any advice would be amazing. I’m usually a guy that researches on his own, but this type of question isn’t really answered. Thanks ahead of time!
You only listed one vegetable on your good list and you said that all the others are bad. Have you TRIED all the other ones?
Add broccoli or spinach in there and you could get a respectable diet with those foods alone. It’s a shame to not have eggs though.
Hehe, broccoli is out of the question. I’ll give spinach another try. I get the impression that spinach is THE veggie to have, and eggs are THE breakfast item to consume…
Wow, interesting. Nuts are pretty wide-ranging in terms of their texture qualities, i.e. walnuts are very different from almonds are very different from macadamias, etc. in terms of mouthfeel. Maybe experiment a little with less typical varieties of nuts? Also, broccolini or baby broccoli has a completely different texture than adult broccoli if cooked correctly–much more crunchy, less mushy.
If you’ll excuse my curiosity, is your diagnosis autism or Asperger’s Syndrome? How has this changed your MMA training from what you perceive the “average person’s” experience to be?
From
http://www.figureathlete.com/readTopic.do?id=2147277
Extra-Lean Proteins
Bass
Bison
Chicken Breasts
Cod
Crab (try canned, instead of tuna!)
Egg Whites (boxed work well)
Elk
Flounder
Extra Lean Ground Turkey, Chicken, or Beef (at least 95% lean)
Haddock
Halibut
Orange Roughy
Ostrich
Perch
Protein Powder (Low carb & fat. Metabolic Drive is perfect!)
Tilapia
Shrimp
Snapper
Tuna
Turkey Breasts
Complex Carbs
Beans (black,red, brown)
Brown Rice
Cream of Rice
Ezekiel Bread
Grits
Oats
Oat Bran Hot Cereal
Quinoa
Rice Cakes (non-flavored)
Tortillas (corn, rice, or spelt)
Wild Rice
White Potatoes
Wheat Bran (FULL of fiber, perfect for low carb plans)
Yams
Healthy Fats
Almonds
Avocados
Coconut Oil
Flameout (personal favorite)
Flax Seeds
Flax Oil
Grapeseed Oil
Herring
Macadamia Nuts
Mackerel
Natural Peanut Butter (no oil added)
Olive Oil
Pecans
Pumpkin Seeds
Salmon
Sardines
Sunflower Seeds
Walnuts
“Free” Veggies (few carbs; mostly fiber)
Alfalfa Sprouts
Artichoke Hearts
Arugula
Asparagus
Bamboo Shoots
Beet Greens
Bock Choy
Broccoli (already a staple for most of us)
Brussels Sprouts
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Celery
Chard
Chicory
Chives
Collard Greens
Cucumbers
Endive
Escarole
Fennel
Jicama (some carbs, not entirely “free”)
Kale
Leeks
Lettuce
Mushrooms
Onion
Peppers (GREEN; red and yellow have carbs)
Radicchio
Radishes
Rhubarb
Sauerkraut
Scallions
Spinach
Water Chestnuts
Zucchini
it looks like you won’t have trouble meeting your protein requirements. I would also support the notion to give spinach another try. A little extra virgin olive oil on spinach (cooked or raw) is becoming one of my favorite foods. Also, what are your feelings about sweet potatoes? Most people on here will tell you that they are a much better carb source than regular potatoes as far as nutrients and such.
Have you tried Biotest’s Superfood? You could slam down a half serving of that twice a day to supplement your fruit and veg intake. I would also consider looking into either a fiber supplement, or adding something like flax seed meal to your diet.
-Curt
How does the texture sensitivity carry over if you blend the food? For example, if you take broccoli and some other veggies, and throw them in a blender with some whey protein and milk, does it still cause issues?
[quote]Sneaky weasel wrote:
If you’ll excuse my curiosity, is your diagnosis autism or Asperger’s Syndrome? How has this changed your MMA training from what you perceive the “average person’s” experience to be?[/quote]
Asperger’s Syndrome. And yes, there are some differences that I see in myself that others don’t seem to experience. I’ve overcome my symptom for the most part (hypersensitivity to sound doesn’t bother me), but I do feel pain/heat/cold differently from other people.
I’ve been kicked in the face and put to the ground (ref called the fight off, must have been a good shot) resulting in a bruise near my eye for two weeks, and I did not feel any pain. Yet get my on the bottom position in BJJ and have the guy on top press his elbows into me in order to get better position, and I feel like there is a knife sticking into me.
If I get the chance, I keep the fight standing where I know I can take the beating and dish one out.
And for the nuts. Tried Peacans, almounds, peanut, cashews, some other thing I’ve never seen before in my grandfathers house. Can’t stand any of them. Well, I’ll do peanuts if I have to.
As far as blending food, I can do liquid anything apparently. If I can blend it to the point were there are no chunks in the drink, I’m fine.