Need ideas as far as food:

Whatever bout the movies, i saved a mcdonalds hamburger and its over ten months old left it in the bag room temp and there's no mold at all. Colors are all the same. Only thing is its solid hard. No mold daamn it

 

I used to run MREs (meals ready to eat) Militarty food btw really good can get you fat quickly tho lots of calories and lots of fattening. I kept a box in my truck during winter never know.

 

Im seeing alot of foods with very high sodium. A couple examples are Ham, and any TV dinners such as "Hungry Man" as mentioned in this post. Protect your heart and ability to obtain/retain your Medical card from these high blood pressure causing foods.

 

you would be amazed just how many friends you can make just by using a george foreman grill outside the truck...onions, bell peppers and sausage or hamburger...quick, simple and easy to clean up...

 

There are some great ideas on here. I just skimmed through but one thing I didn't see too much much of is the cost of eating.

I changed my diet with saving money as my first goal and trying to eat healthy enough as well. In a year and a half time and without really even trying I managed to loose 50lbs. I wasn't really monitoring my weight I didn't even realize it until I stepped on a scale at my local Canadian Tire for the hell of it. I thought it was broken when it said 175lbs so I stepped on another scale, and another to get the same reading. I had dropped from 225 lbs down to 175lbs without actively trying to do so. I'm 5'10" tall.

The secret? Rice, potatoes and oat meal. All those things can be bought super cheap. 20lbs bag of good potatoes on sale for $5 sometimes, 12lbs box of oatmeal for $5 on sale, and there is always cheap rice to be found. I use the oatmeal for breakfast only but it could technically be fit in anywhere.

Now you can get good and full on those 3 things alone for super cheap and there is far less of a fat factor than many other foods. Of course you don't want to eat it just by itself.

Example, Stir fry. Cook up a lot a rice, a chicken breast veggies and sauce of your choice. You can get good prices on large quantities of chicken breasts.

Or, fried potatoes. Just potatoes, diced, in a frying pan with a bit of olive oil and spices of your choice. Its good combined with baked beans or just about any veggies, and whatever piece of meat you like.

In any case you can buy a whole mess of plastic containers. Cook in large volume on the weekend and put a couple weeks worth of lunches in the freezer. 75% of lunches could be based around rice or potatoes.

I'm not Mr. Health freak or anything, I was just trying to eat a little better and save money.

A couple other tips.

I buy pork chops on sale, nice big juicy ones and put them in the freezer. I usually eat one per week at supper.
Frozen fish, a healthy choice you can also stockpile in the freezer when on sale. I have fish at least once a week.
I just love spaghetti and meat balls and eat that once a week as well... and hell its cheap.

[Edit: A rice cooker is worth its weight in gold. I didn't understand the difference between that and a regular pot you put on the stove. Well you turn on the rice cooker and don't have to think about it again. It turns off when its done to make perfect rice every time and is super easy to clean afterward as nothing ever gets baked onto it and such. Best $15 I ever spent.]

Some people might be amazed what difference can be made on the wallet eating this way over the course of a year.


I was once told by a body builder that its sad people don't know what to put in their mouth. I had to laugh at this. But then he said any average joe that just wants to be healthy just has to look at the Canada Food Guide to know what to eat and how much. And then it really made a lot of sense to me. I would assume America has a similar food guide.

I eat fast food now and then, but I imagine it must be the super highway to death for people who eat it all the time.

Off the mark, you would all be disgusted if you saw what that body builder ate in a day for competition. I've seem him pack away a dozen fried eggs on a 15 min break, a 2 pound meat ball (yes ONE meatball!) for lunch on a different day...etc

 

Baked Beans, lots of baked beans. Not only are they good eatin'; they also have other benefits:

1. Will clear up yer sinuses.

2. No "skeeters" in yer truck while parking.

3. Lot lizards, scale inspectors and other "undesirables" will stay clear.

4. No whiney other drivers will take your truck while slip-seating and complain about yer smokin' (unless you bin eatin the spicy kind)

5. Bull haulers will move away from you.

 

When I used to do long haul I mostly ate grilled cheese sandwiches that I made with a cheap George Foreman grill.

 

I have a small grill I carry in my side box. If you have the time to stop, just pop it onto the catwalk and grill a burger, steak, or chicken. Naturally you'll need to keep the product cold until then, but it only takes about 20 minutes for cooking and is not as hard as it may seem. I bought the grill at wally world for $50 and it uses those small propane bottles. Never had a problem with it, except in the winter when it's snowing & blowing- it becomes a pain to get lit due to wind.

If you want to eat and not stop, consider cooking up meals and just packing them as leftovers then nuking it, or eating it cold. I went on the gluten free diet, and was so limited to my food choices that I eventually learned how the food was an addiction and not just fuel. Once I overcame the food addiction, it became easy to eat healthy stuff and not be depressed or have that jones for a Big Mac.

You're right about fast food. That crap is toxic and very unhealthy.

 

I agree with Judy Kay about making beef jerky at home. I like beef jerky, but one can't afford to buy that stuff too often at the prices they want for it in a store. Another good thing about jerky is it takes awhile to eat. So you kinda have an activity along with a snack. A "snactivity". I stole that work off a bag of sunflower seeds, but it fits the meaning, even as silly as it is.

 

Has anyone thought about making soups? Make you own and you have an easy balanced and healthy meal. On your time off, make enough for say a week or two (or more). There are alot of variety in soups and you'll never be bored with it. If you're otr, make enough for a week and freeze each individual serving in a zip lock freezer bag and when its lunch time, thaw out the soup in the microwave, dump it in a bowl, put it back in the microwave and fully cook it. Canned soups dont have much substance or nutrition and contain HALF or MORE of you daily serving/limit of sodium. Make you own, add meats & veggies especially onions and tomato and broccoli (those are most healthy and nutritious). Add spices you like and use kosher salt or sea salt. Day Cab drivers just keep a tub in the fridge of your soup and either get a Thermos container food jar to microwave your soup before you go to work and it will keep the soup hot for atleast 5 hours. Or get one of those Max Burton Stove to Go and heat up your soup in your truck. Besides variety in soup, sometimes I have to eat lunch when I dont want to or I snacked too much, soup is very easy to eat and swallow than a sandwhich, especially those peanut butter sandwiches i used to each and there were times id take a bite and it just sit in my mouth because i cant swallow it lol......got bored to death of PB..... Anyway, just my 2 cents.