Eating with ADHD
Eating with ADHD
There are many reasons why eating consistently could be challenging, one of which being an underlying ADHD diagnosis. Or maybe, you do not have a diagnosis and you find that it is hard to eat consistently. Either way, this post is for you!
Eat on a Schedule
The goal here is to help your body to learn to trust you again and to create a routine. By starting to eat on a schedule, you will send a message to your body to expect consistent nutrition. This might help to increase hunger cues if they are absent. Lack of hunger cues can be caused by a myriad of things, one of which being a medication side effect. One of the most common things I hear from clients on a stimulant is that they do not feel hunger throughout the day, then they feel overwhelmingly hungry in the evening when the medication wears off.
Even if you do not feel hungry throughout the day, your body still needs energy to run.
Think about creating a schedule that works for you on most days. I would recommend trying to eat something within an hour or two of waking up, and then something every 3-4 hours to ensure consistent, adequate energy throughout the day. This will help to meet your needs, maintain energy levels, and prevent you from getting overly hungry at the end of the day.
When we enter into a meal or eating event in that overly hungry state, we can say goodbye to being able to check in with our bodies and say hello to acting like cavemen eating everything in sight until we potentially reach a point of being overly full.
The last thing I want is for this to land as encouraging new food rules. Rather, the goal is to create structure. As always this might mean that this is a tool that is helpful sometimes, and not always. I’d encourage you to talk to your provider about how to find the right balance of flexibility and structure with a meal schedule!
Alarms
To help maintain the schedule you set, create alarms to support follow-through. If you struggle with time blindness (i.e. losing track of time, struggling to accurately gauge how much time has passed, and struggling to manage your time), this tool might become your best friend. I’d recommend being honest with yourself here! If you know you are prone to stopping an alarm the moment it goes off, and that doesn’t mean you will inherently take a break to stop your task and eat, then set a couple alarms. For me, I know setting a few alarms 5 minutes apart and then one more 15 minutes later to ensure I have taken a break to nourish myself works best. Set these to repeat every day as you get started!
Create a To Do List
Sometimes a visual aid can be helpful, too. Consider creating a to do list either on your phone or on a piece of paper in the morning/ the night before, so that you can check off tasks as you go. Include your meals and snacks on the to do list so you can mark them as completed as you go through your day. For some people, it is helpful to include a mix of chores and work tasks on the same list as the food reminders. For others, having two separate lists is helpful. There is no right way to approach this, as long as it helps you to find more consistency in nourishing yourself.
Remember– not eating enough makes staying focused and getting things done more challenging. You are not saving yourself time by skipping a meal and “powering through.”
Pre-Packaged Foods
There is no moral value attached to food. Food prepared at home is not inherently any “better” than the food you buy at the store or from a restaurant. The most important thing is that you are eating– both enough in regards to volume and nutrients, and enough of the things that you like. I always recommend having a few items at home that require minimal prep so you can make a meal or snack in a pinch.
When creating a meal, the goal is to include a mix of all three macronutrients when possible:
Carbohydrates
Protein
Fat
IF you have access, time, or the ability, add in some fiber, too! This would look like the colorful elements on your plate, i.e. fruits and veggies
In a snack, I push for the goal of at least two different food groups.
If you are feeling stumped, check out these short lists below for inspiration:
Meal Ideas:
A frozen Trader Joe’s meal + a side (frozen naan, a snack food, veggies + dip, etc.)
PB&J + string cheese + veggies and dip
Bagged salad kit, rice (from frozen or fresh) + frozen pre-cooked chicken or canned beans
Chicken nuggets, frozen french fries, carrots + dip
Frozen pizza + bagged salad
Tuna/egg/chicken salad on a sandwich, or with crackers + a side
Pop Tarts + yogurt + fruit
Frozen burrito + tortilla chips
Snack ideas:
Peanut butter crackers + a piece of hand fruit (banana, apple, orange, clementines, etc)
Hard-boiled eggs (made on own or purchased pre-cooked) + toast or crackers
Toast with nutella/peanut butter/almond butter/etc. + banana
Yogurt + granola
String cheese, crackers, + fruit
Drinkable yogurt + pretzels
Hummus, vegetables, + crackers
Chocolate hummus + graham crackers
Some Things to Keep on Hand
Cheese sticks or Babybel cheese
Hand fruit (apples, bananas, pears, oranges, clementines, etc)
Granola bars
One of the most common questions I receive about granola bars is which one to buy. While some might contain more protein and keep you fuller for longer, if you don’t like the bar you are buying, you won’t reach for it as a snack. The most important thing here is that you are buying the bar you will want to eat. You can always add to the bar to meet your energy needs if it isn’t enough on its own!
Beef jerky sticks
Applesauce pouches or fruit cups
Snack packs of your favorite snacks (chips, crackers, pretzels, trail mix, popcorn, etc)
*These are just suggestions, and you can tailor as you see fit. If having more snacks throughout the day feels more attainable, go for it! Sometimes I encourage clients to think about food in regards to “eating events” in place of meals and snacks to help support consistency without labeling
Remember, there is no such thing as perfect eating, and fed is best. The most important thing is to eat enough, and from there you can focus on adding and adjusting to meet other health-related goals.
What else has been helpful for you? Let us know!
