retrain food likes/dislikes?

I need to hear some success stories about how you retrained your taste buds to want healthy foods and how you did it please!

Currently the only veggies I like are potatoes - mashed only,corn,peas in a can,carrots not raw and the only fruit I like are bananas,apple sauce-not whole apples,pears in a can.

I have a long road ahead of me! I'd love to be able to eat a salad!!!!

I am proud that I think I have a grip on my sodium intake yesterday it was under 1250mg and today if I stick to my food log which I plan to do it will be under 1000mg. I'm a big salt addict so that's a huge deal for me.

I'm having problems getting my carbs down yesterday 55.8%,today 53.2 %, I have to find other things to eat besides potatoes,fries and bread! at least it's whole wheat hehe

Any help would be great, Thanks

Maybe you need to challenge your tastebuds a bit.  I found the packaging to be an issue too.  I did not care for veggies because I remember the sad canned veggies of my youth served every night served in Parkay and get this--milk!  But once I was in college, I tried just about everything offered and developed new tastes I never knew I had because they were not part of my mother's no-fuss cooking repetoire.

I am not sure of the data behind people having to eat salad.  The key is to eat more veggies period.  Frozen and fresh are much better than canned.  Veggie meals, not single items, taste much better than the individual item in my opinion.  Kidney beans are a case in point.

I am sure there are tons of veggie main dishes on this site.  Ask for recommendations.

I eat whatever I like, i just make sure I am getting full on something lower cal

like diet pop intead of juice or reg pop

like a big inside round steak without potato

basically try to sub the starches out of your diet within reason, proteins are very filling (ie. steak, chicken) vs. starches (toast, bread)

you will find that you graze less and feast when you eat

If you don't know what to do with a new vegetable, try foodtv.com, it's the Food Network's website and it's got tons of recipies.  I also bought a cookbook dedicated specifically to vegetables.  It lists what they are, when to buy them (like what season), how to tell if they're ready and gives recipies that include the veggie.  Thanks to it, I've discovered I have a taste for grilled asparagus and fennel and have a much faster way to cook artichokes (which if you've never had them, you really should.  They're delicious!)  Remember, too, that if you don't like the veggie cooked one way you might like it cooked another.  I despise steamed broccoli and cauliflower but I love them stir fried or roasted.  And I am totally with you on the onions.  I like mine cooked to DEATH.

For salads, try adding more stuff to them.  I like my spinach with goat cheese (100cal/oz, but I only use half an ounce, since it really is a lot) and raspberry dressing.  Or put manarin oranges in with an Asian inspired dressing on some kind of leaf lettuce.  I find raisins taste really really good on a salad with ranch but I try to stick to a small amount of ranch and just dip my lettuce into it so I don't get too much fat from it.

I have had limited success with the whole "retraining my tastebuds" thing.  I still dislike tomatos, but if they're in or on something salty, I'll eat them.  Or if they're dried.  I don't like bitter greens, but I'm learning to deal.  When I went away to school, I learned to love onions, mushrooms, zuchini, squash, asparagus (which I'd never had before), cauliflower and broccoli.  I found that I'm a visual person.  If it looks pretty/delicious, then I'll eat it, even if I don't like it all that much.  That's how I'm learning to deal with bitter greens.  Just keep trying things.  You'll find stuff you like. 

tiamat, your veggie cookbook sounds great...what the name of it?

Ummm... Let me look.  It's called Vegetables by James Peterson (He gets no points for creativity on the title!)  Here's an Amazon link, but I'd try Alibris first.  They're a used book site and I've had a lot of luck finding books for a LOT cheaper there.  And it's a type of recyling, if you think about it.

I don't have mine with me at the moment.  Maybe I can have my friends bring it to me when they come visit.  It's a good season for Farmer's Market veggies!

Thanks tiamat!  I found it on Amazon and on Alibris both.  never heard of Alibris, thanks for that too!

Heee, glad you like it.  I can't remember where I heard of it, but it's been a sanity-saver.  Books that I just CAN NOT find anywhere else show up there.  Hope the cookbook helps.