What To Eat When Nothing Sounds Good (2024)

Last updated on November 23rd, 2023 at 05:09 am

What do you do when nothing sounds good to eat? Or perhaps… just not good enough to satisfy an intense food craving?

Food apathy can happen for a variety of reasons including:

• Eating disorders
• Illness or injuries
• Stress
• Depression/Anxiety
• ADHD
• Food fatigue from having a specific food too much

Whatever the reason, feeling frustrated because pretty much all food sounds unappetizing can be stressful.

In this article let’s dig into some of the reasons why your favorite foods have lost their magic. I have included some food strategies to get something on the plate even when you’re unmotivated.

5 Reasons Food Doesn’t Sound Good

If you’re racking your mind as to what to eat and nothing sounds good- you’re not alone. Sometimes a disinterest in food can be related to medical conditions, stress, or eating disorders.

5 Reasons food doesn’t sound good include:

1. Altered hunger/fullness cues because of irregular meal patterns
2. You’re binging and restricting which causes you to hyperfocus only on specific foods to satisfy
3. You have a diagnosis of OCD which complicates meal prep and grocery shopping
4. You have a diagnosis of ADHD that causes difficulty with meal prepping and even remembering to eat
5. Vitamin and mineral deficiencies that alter the taste of food

Even if the food doesn’t soon good or you feel unmotivated to eat, it’s super important you still eat.

Skipping meals will cause even more food apathy.

Easy Prep Meals When Nothing Sounds Good

In order to get out of our caveman brain (caused from starvation) we need to eat some damn food!

In order to break a food apathy cycle we must:

• Eat often. At least every 4 hours but ideally more frequently.
• Eat a variety of foods and include all food types
• Balance out those meals and snacks with carbohydrates, protein, and fat

If you don’t eat regularly or restrict certain types of food you are likely to experience intense cravings for specific foods. This can make all other food seem unappetizing.

Grocery Shopping With Food Apathy:

Don’t feel like eating? Nothing sounds good?

Well, guess what? Not having food in the house is not going to help. However, grocery shopping when nothing sounds good sucks.

Helpful tips for grocery shopping with food apathy include:

• Keep a running Instacart list. Add food to it throughout the week that sounds good or practical.
• Shop with a buddy. Get motivation from their choices.
• Shop when you’re hungry if possible
• Keep a grocery list in general
• Commit to one new recipe a week and get the ingredients onto the grocery list
• Stock up on canned meats and veggies
• Stock up on frozen entrees, veggies
• Keep a pantry of dried goods like lentils, quinoa, and spices for emergencies
• Shop the deli. Keep a mix of prepared salads and sandwiches to mix and match.

Meal Prepping When Nothing Sounds Good:

Sometimes food sounds unappetizing simply because we don’t have the patience to cook it when we’re hungry.

Instead, try batch cooking when you aren’t even thinking about food but have a bit of free time.

Things you can batch cook to help with appetite include:

• Seasoned roasted veggies
• Quinoa
• Lentils
• Baked chicken
• Roasted seasoned diced potatoes
• Sauces
• Hard-boiled eggs
• Overnight oats
• Pancakes or muffins

Having an assortment of foods you can access easily at any time can really help when nothing sounds good to eat.

Nothing Sounds Good For Dinner

Dinner can feel overwhelming when you’re hungry and nothing sounds good.

13 super easy meals you can whip up for dinner in 10 minutes or less include:

1. Pre-made salad with canned beans and dressing or hummus
2. Avocado wrapped in lunch meat
3. Frozen Burritos (add additional beans or frozen veggies if you like)
4. Fresh bean and cheese burrito
5. Microwaved nachos with canned beans and salsa
6. Meat & veggie sandwich
7. Peanut butter and Jelly Sandwich
8. Top-roman with salsa (add frozen veggies if desired!)
9. Pre-made black bean burger
10. Tuna fish or chicken salad on crackers or rice cake
11. Canned soups with garlic bread
12. Toasted English muffins with pizza sauce, sliced meat & veggies
13. Frozen meal (toss some extra frozen veggies or beans on top if desired)

These dinner ideas can fall into the lunch category as well!

Easy Breakfast Foods When Nothing Sounds Good

If you are restricting your food, breakfast can be the most common meal that is missed. Let’s change that by making breakfast the easiest meal of the day.

11 Breakfast foods that take 5 minutes or less include:

1. yogurt
2. smoothies (made with frozen fruit)
3. a piece of fruit
4. toast with avocado
5. toast with peanut butter
6. frozen waffles with peanut butter
7. cereal
8. toast with butter
9. bagel with cream cheese (add fruit if adventurous)
10. Overnight oats or instant oats
11. scrambled eggs

Remember- you don’t HAVE to have a breakfast item just because it’s morning time.

If typical “breakfast foods” sound gross, eat some spaghetti or a sandwich instead. There are no food rules here.

Eating Disorders and Food Apathy

Eating Disorders can cause an overall disinterest in food.

Eating disorders that are likely to result in taste changes or no food sounding good include:

• Bulimia nervosa
• Anorexia nervosa and atypical anorexia
• Orthorexia
• Binge eating disorder
• ARFID (avoidant restrictive food intake disorder)

Some of the reasons eating disorders can cause food to sound unappealing include:

• Delayed gastric emptying
• Zinc deficiency which causes taste changes
• Fear of food
• Compulsive exercise which can decrease appetite

If you’re in weight restoration from an eating disorder, you will probably find most foods do not sound good. It’s important to work with an eating disorder dietitian to make sure your nutrient needs are being met.

If you are suffering from a restrictive eating disorder, your meal plan should be discussed with your treatment team. You will need to develop a specific eating disorder recovery meal plan in order to meet your needs. Your eating disorder voice may be too loud for you to make food decisions on your own.

Eating disorder treatment typically involves a team that will support you virtually, in person, or both in resuming a normal relationship with food.

How To Make Food Sound Good Again

A few things must happen before foods start to sound tasty again including:

• Getting rid of the rules of diet culture
• Practicing intuitive eating
• Stop counting calories
• Challenge fear foods
• Respect your body and understand eating is the greatest form of body respect
• Stop body checking
• Practice journaling and using body positive journal prompts
• Practice food neutrality
• Try eating dessert first to stimulate your appetite

If you are suffering from an eating disorder, check out these eating disorder recovery recovery books to see the latest research and journeys of others struggling with food.