Low-salt diet, summer eating, busy, not into food

[Anonymous]

I need an August menu for me. My BP has gone wild from stress so want to see if a low sodium diet helps. Trying to lose weight but not aggressively.

Typical old diet:

Am: coffee w/cream, fruit smoothie, nuts.
Lunch: salami, olives, cucumbers, tomatoes, feta
Snack: fruit or chips
Dinner: French bread, fancy cheese, smoked salmon, lettuce, pickled veggies.

So yeah, tons of salt. I’ve been eating like this for years so it’s hard to make a change when I’m not a food driven person (not that I eat the exact same thing every day but close).

Following my summer preferences: no cooking, cold foods… ideas for low sodium?

So far I’ve ditched the AM nuts and just had the smoothie, tried sandwiches with just sprouts, tomato, hummus which was good, and had my normal dinner but with raw veggies instead of pickled. Having a lot of heartburn but maybe that’ll get better?? Have also obvs chosen fruit over chips in the afternoon.

Other good lunch and dinner ideas? Or high flavor not a lot of work to make or eat low-sodium foods?

[Anonymous]

Your lunch sounds like a village salad—could you swap out the salami for grilled salmon or chicken. Find a recipe you like with lots of herbs and spices, which add tons of flavor without sodium or calories. Also if you crumble the feta into little pieces and slice the olives you get the same flavor with less sodium.

I would also just do unsalted nuts instead if dropping the nuts—you don’t have much protein in your diet! You could also add some yogurt or (unsalted) peanut butter to your smoothies.

Tuna salad is probably pretty low but you should probably make sure you’re using low sodium bread for sandwiches. Tuna salad is also great with avocado instead of mayonnaise (not sure about sodium in mayonnaise). You could also make chicken/salmon salad with the leftovers listed above.

You could also grill or roast a bunch of vegetables at once, then add them to sandwiches or salads throughout the week.

[Anonymous]

Replace the smoked salmon with fresh and you’ll Be good to go.

[Anonymous]

Just a heads up, your BP could be high due to other things besides salt.

If you are exercising and very active, you NEED salt, especially in the summer, to replenish the salts lost through sweat. It does look like you have enough salt in your diet, but be wary of cutting it significantly if you exercise rigorously.

[Anonymous]

I’d put my energy into lowering stressors than into changing your diet. Where people go off the rails with salt is eating a lot of prepared meals like frozen meals or canned soups and in restaurants. There’s so much salt there. I can’t see how changing your diet (as you’ve described it) would have any real impact.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’d put my energy into lowering stressors than into changing your diet. Where people go off the rails with salt is eating a lot of prepared meals like frozen meals or canned soups and in restaurants. There’s so much salt there. I can’t see how changing your diet (as you’ve described it) would have any real impact.

Hmm, so you don’t think my diet looks salty? I agree that I’ve always thought it was healthy but my Dr said it was worth cutting salt back first.

I do drink a lot of coconut water when exercising so I think I’m okay electrolyte wise.

[Anonymous]

You need to cut out the salami, olives, feta, smoked salmon, pickled anything and much of the bread - all are very high in sodium. The trick to going low sodium is to make smart swaps that still give you all the flavor, mouth-feel and satiation of the salty foods you're used to. You need to read labels like a hawk because there's a shocking amount of sodium in foods that you may not even guess. Once you start eating low sodium your taste buds *will* change and you'll become much more sensitive to even moderate amounts of salt. Herbs, spices, vinegars, mustards (check for sodium) are you friends and can add tremendous amounts of flavor without the salt content.

Maybe try a caprese salad for lunch? In general fresh mozzarella and swiss are the lowest sodium cheeses so use them in meals instead of higher sodium cheeses like feta or gouda. Deli meats are crazy high in sodium, even the ones labeled "lower in sodium or low sodium." Boars Head has no salt added turkey and a couple of roast beef selections that are low in sodium if you're craving deli meat. The turkey is bland but an easy protein for salads, roll-ups with a good dressing, mustard etc. to add flavor.

Replace the bread with other no sodium carbs like potatoes, pasta or rice. There are tons of cold salads you can make that incorporate these plus veggies and sometimes a protein (or be creative and add your own) that you can make ahead and keep in the fridge for easy meals. I always like to keep some cooked protein in the fridge too that can easily be incorporated into dishes like grilled/baked chicken. Choose roasted, unsalted nuts - almonds and cashews are delicious! I also always keep tons of fresh veggies and fruit on hand for snacking and making into easy cold, "sampler style meals."