Monday evening, 26-08-24: benefits of the Med Diet

Good evening, everyone!  Now I am back in my happy zone, I am on another mission which is to reduce my 'borderline' cholesterol measurements with tweaks in diet by using the principles of the Mediterranean way of eating.  I have three months before the next blood test!

I went shopping yesterday.  There wasn't a lot I had to get but I thought I may as well.  I have cancelled this week's Slimming World Kitchen subscription because it won't work alongside these changes so I'm still evens as far as finance is concerned and I have a lot more meals for my cash.

One item was walnuts and I'm going to have to be so, so mindful because nuts are one of the things that I could eat a big bagful of in less than half an hour so usually I don't keep them in the house.
Oh, well, maybe it is time I grew up, yes?

What I ate today

A lovely breakfast:

The bread is wholemeal so that's my grains.  The scrambled egg is my protein and the tomatoes were fried in a tsp olive oil so healthy oil there.  Would you call mushrooms a vegetable?  I always do but they are fungi, of course.  I don't know.

Half a healthy extra A and two syns.

Alex was here and I did a traybake.

Lean chicken thighs, loads of veg and cooked in olive oil.  No grains but plenty of fibre in the vegetables.  Watermelon for dessert - Alex's favourite.

A bit tricky to work out the syns but I think a fair estimate is four because there's loads left for another day and Alex had a lot more than I did anyway.

Dinner was avocado panzanella, using a BBC recipe as a starter..  I added some feta, used wholemeal instead of ciabatta, used roasted onion from lunch and also some roasted sweet potato.  It really was delicious.

No dessert.  It made a lot and I am totally full.

One healthy extra A, half a B and I have worked out that the rest comes to about five and a half syns.

Summary:

one healthy extra A

one healthy extra B

eleven and a half syns

My meal plans for tomorrow:

Well, I am out all day tomorrow on a coach trip to the three museums the V&A, the Science Museum and the Natural History Museum. 

B:  fruit and a few nuts to have just after we arrive (and I will also be desperate for a coffee by then!)

L: baba ganoush (2 syns), some focaccia, sliced into strips to dip in the baba ganoush, tomatoes and an orange

D:  leftovers of the chicken traybake from today - I plan to make more so there is some left over.

Exercise:   I will miss Groove, of course, but there will be plenty of walking.

The extra bit.

What are the benefits of the Mediterranean diet.  (again, notes I took while exploring - I won't call it research as it was far too random).  However, I did note that of all the 'diets' around, this one has the benefit of rigorous scientific research over many years to support it.

I find some of these a bit subjective but worth mentioning anyway . . .

1.  It reduces the risk of disease:
        including cardiovascular disease, heart attacks and strokes because it is low in saturated fat

        helps to reduce high blood cholesterol levels (this is my main focus)
        can help reduce the risk or things like type 2 diabetes, arthritis, cancer, dementia
        reduces levels of inflammation and encourages a healthy gut biome.

2.   It improves mental health
        has that 'feel good' factor

        can protect overall brain health

        can help protect memory and cognitive abilities

        it eliminates ultra processed foods - this has a multitude of benefits but it definitely impacts very             much on mental health in a positive way

3.    It helps with longevity 

4.    It can save money - I think that depends but it's a thought and I guess if it is more plant based and             less expensive lean meat based, it will in the longer term . . .

5.    It is more sustainable because

        it focuses on local and seasonal produce

        it can reduce carbon footprint

        it's much more plant based

        it is much easier to eat vegetarian

       Again, I think this depends on the individual circumstances but it's good that it does support                     sustainability.

6.    It is easy to stick to because

        it has a common sense approach (for sure)

        it isn't gimmicky - in fact it is a very, very old way of eating with roots firmly in the distant past

        no food groups are eliminated (three cheers)

        there are loads of supporting resources - and that's a fact!

At some point I need to compare this way with the Slimming World plan and really take on board what I need to change/adapt.  Not tomorrow though.