What diet plan works best for you?

mkakids

5:2, combined with cico. I fast 2 days (500cals) and make sure not to eat over maintenance the others (I average this weekly...I may be over one night if we go out, but under the next). Maintenance for me is 2200kals. Eating 500 on 2 days gives me an automatic deficit of 3400cals....just under a pound.

I love how easy it is and prefer short term drastic deprivation (500 cals max) to mild long term deprivation (tdee-500cals or 1700cals per day, everyday).

Holly_Roman_Empire

I eat within my calorie limit while still getting adequate protein. Everything else that goes in is whatever I want it to be.

mkakids

gentryatkinson wrote: »

AmazonMayan wrote: »

I aim for 160g protein. 70-80g fat. 60g fiber. Rest falls where it falls.

It's pretty close to what is suggested for me.

And thank you :-)

Edited again lol I do have a lot to lose and I'm 6' tall so I have a lot of calories to work with.

Can you please list what protein you eat. I have a hard time getting my protein @ 60 grams. I need ideas for adding more protein. Thanks!

I can never get over 75g protein thru food. I dont like meat very much, which limits the options.

I almost daily have a scoop of protein powder. My favorite is body logix chocolate. 24g protein, 122cals and its the only one I have found to actually not taste bad. I drink it mixed with water, or if I have the calories, a frozen banana and milk. I buy it at Meijer. $24.99 for a big tub. Mu kids like it too and I often add thd vanilla flavor (which is slightly lower cals) to breakfast smoothies for them. Also, its made with milk from cows not given hormones/antibiotics.

Other good protein sources

Greek yogurt
Cottage cheese
Cheese
Eggs
Jerky (I make my own....easy and cheap!)
Tuna
Fish/beef/poultry obv.

huango

I cycle my calories.
I can't "diet" for too long before I feel deprived, so:
(I'm 4'11", TDEE = 1550)

- week 1 = lower calories = AVERAGE 1200/day
- week 2 = maintenance cals = AVERAGE 1500/day
- and back.

Even w/in each week, I have lower and higher cals.
cut-week: I do 5:2 intermittent fasting: so only 2 days do I really eat at low cals, and the other 5 are close to maintenance.

Cut-week: focus mainly on protein/veggies.
I schedule my treats/snacks into my no-cut-week.

Also helpful is to pre-plan/log in dinner, then I work with the remaining calories/macros to see what I can eat for lunch/snack (I hardly have breakfast anymore).

And no more night-time snacking. I used to eat ~100-1000calories EVERY night after dinner. It's been 55days of no night-time snacking!

Working out every other day, lifting heavy, Zumba, HIIT, etc.; I love my REST days.

Amanda

thecraftinista

Like a lot of people, I'm not on any set diet. I count calories, weigh food and watch my portions. I haven't cut anything out of my diet, I'm still eat carbs including pasta and bread but I limit how much I eat of them. I even had cake this weekend! I am not eating out at fast food restaurants a couple of times a week like I was and I'm making all of my meals from scratch while allows me to know exactly what goes into each meal.

I've lost nearly 28lbs since the beginning of January. I haven't gone to the gym yet but I do play sports three times a week and I walk just about everywhere....although this constant ice and snow we are having on the East coast isn't helping matters.

tat2cookie

I have a food addiction problem. So I do my best to stay clear from processed and packaged foods. It's a battle that I will have to deal with for the rest of my life. I stick with whole foods and lean meats. I'm a believer in finding what works best for you and your body. I can't eat sugar, bread, pasta or packaged meals. I end up feeling horrible and it triggers me to start binging, but others can eat that stuff without any issues and that works for them.

shreyashiganguly

I have only eliminated added sugar/ sweeteners. Other than that I eat everything and anything as long as it meets my calorie and macro needs. I try to eat whole food and avoid processed ones. However, that is the way I feel best.
I have set aside Sunday to have a serving of any of the desserts that catches my fancy. And also have a take-out or go out for dinner. I have scheduled the cheat treat so that I maintain the change without any feeling of deprivation.

ndj1979

OP what do you define as "processed"????

here is what I would say ...

set MFP to one pound per week loss, or half pound per week
log all your foods
get a food scale and weigh all solids and as many liquids as possible
set your macro in MFP custom settings to 30% carbs/35% protein/35% fats...
realize there are no "good" or "bad" foods, just food that your body uses for energy. Make sure to hit your calorie/macro/micro goals for the day and you will be fine. yes, this means you can incorporate some ice cream, cookies, pizza, etc into your day; just make sure that everything balances out.
repeat until you get desired results.

earlnabby

I guess the closest I can say is a combo of IIFYM and CICO. I count calories and exercise burn in order to determine how much to eat, and I set my macro targets to help me decide what to eat. Unlike many who calculate their macros, I had to start with my carb macro (diabetes) and then fit the protein and fat around that. (Most start with protein, then fat, and use carbs for the remainder). When I eat back my exercise calories, I cannot keep the same percentages because I have a carb maximum so discretionary calories have to be mostly protein or fat.

esjones12

I don't diet. I eat food at a calorie deficit. Sometimes I go over. I try to eat healthy foods because I like them and the way my body reacts to them. But I also eat junk here and there.

earlnabby

mkakids wrote: »

Jerky (I make my own....easy and cheap!)

How do you make your jerky? I want to start because I love jerky but hate how salty commercial jerky is. I don't have to watch my sodium closely, I just hate salty foods (well, except popcorn. Sometimes I just HAVE to have a big bowl of buttery, salty popcorn). Links to recipes and/or instructions would be helpful or feel free to PM me if you don't want to derail the thread. Thank you!!!!!!

TheVirgoddess

I don't do diets. I just eat food that I like and that fits my macros, so I can maintain a healthy balance. 70 pounds down so far.

AmyRhubarb

No diets here - I just aim to eat the right amount of cals each day, getting as close as possible to my macro targets as well. Knowing my BMR and my TDEE and eating between those numbers has been very freeing and effective.

This allows for events like weddings, birthday parties, holidays and vacations, along with favorite foods like pizza, burgers, desserts, cocktails/wine/beer on a regular basis, with no guilt or anxiety over falling off any imaginary wagons - I know my limits and stay within them most of the time, but I also know that going over once in awhile isn't going to ruin anything, either. It's part of enjoying life with a healthy lifestyle, and it's sustainable - I'm in this forever!

chattyabbey

cityruss wrote: »

.....
Taking personal responsibility, everything that goes in my mouth is put there by me, I have the choice as to what I eat.
.....

When I finally accepted this, and took ownership of the responsibility it totally changed my perspective for the better.

fishfish3

I don't pay too much attention to calories, but eat higher protein and do weight training. The magic trick for me that finally clicked was eliminating most carbs.

zyxst

Portion control. Weighing/measuring foods. Calorie counting.

runner475

sijomial wrote: »

Not so much a diet plan as a different eating pattern - 5:2, where you eat at maintenance 5 days a weeks and have 2 very low calorie days to create a small weekely deficit.
Didn't have to change what I ate or exclude anything and found it far easier than trying to maintain a daily calorie deficit.

Been maintaining with a 6:1 eating pattern for quite some time now - 1 very low calorie day and 6 days at a small surplus give me a calorie balance over the course of a week.

@Sijomial why did you move from 5:2 to 6:1? Any particular reason.

blktngldhrt

ketogenic combined with calorie counting. its the only thing thats worked for me.

justcat206

I pre-log my day to make sure I'm getting somewhere close to my ideal macros and staying within a reasonable range of my calories. I rearrange things to make sure I get a treat because I know I'll go crazy if I don't have one (could be as simple as a square of dark chocolate or as decadent as a huge Belgian hot chocolate). I try to make sure I get plenty of protein and fresh veggies, but otherwise there's no real diet plan. I've also learned to listen to my body - if something makes me feel sluggish or gross after I eat it, I just don't eat it anymore. And most mornings I fast until almost lunch time, but that's primarily because my calories are pretty low and if I eat too early in the morning I'm ravenous the rest of the day.

shreyashiganguly

@Justcat206 How low is your calorie that you need to be fasting till lunch? I was initially doing a crazy 1200 plan. I felt sick to be honest. Once I calculated my BMR and TDEE things became so much simpler.

shreyashiganguly

@ndj1979 Processed food to me are all of the things you would find in the inner sections of the grocery stores. Jams, cookies, chips, etc. I do lack the skills to bake bread or make pasta, so I do buy them after reading the labels carefully.
I prepare my food 90% of the time from scratch. Don't like eating things, when I don't know what can be in there.

Sabine_Stroehm

For me? A mediterranean style diet that essentially looks a lot like South Beach Diet phase 2-3. I very much limit heavily refined carbs (probably what the folks above call "crap"), and I try to build my diet around nutrient dense foods.
Did that while losing, been doing it for 14 years while maintaining.

So, yeah, I'm on a low crap diet.

BiggyFuzz

i personally find that having close to even amount of protein and carbs has helped me feel much better and shed some inches

PeachyCarol

cityruss wrote: »

No Diet™.

Counting calories and macronutrients.

Setting realistic goals.

Taking personal responsibility, everything that goes in my mouth is put there by me, I have the choice as to what I eat.

No deprivation of food groups.

Realising food is food, "junk/healthy/bad/good/fattening/processed" are all relative terms, and that with a bit of thought anything can be fit in to a balanced diet.

^This plan. My overall "diet" is gluten free (I have celiac disease) and vegetarian (by preference), but within those parameters, I eat food I enjoy. I tend to enjoy food most people would consider "healthy", though. I'm of the mindset that no food is off the table in the context of an overall good diet that is full of the otherwise nutritionally dense food that I usually eat.

RavenousRachel

Very low carb (30-50g/day) and moderate calorie restriction (20% down from maintenance) is working beautifully for me. And I have gotten very good at faking high carb recipes using cauliflower or turnips. Turnip gratin, a nice steak, sauteed spinach, and hollandaise sauce is a typical "diet dinner." I'm down 15lbs since Jan 1! And cauliflower cheese & garlic "breadsticks" are phenomenal.

Sabine_Stroehm

cityruss wrote: »

No Diet™.

Counting calories and macronutrients.

Setting realistic goals.

Taking personal responsibility, everything that goes in my mouth is put there by me, I have the choice as to what I eat.

No deprivation of food groups.

Realising food is food, "junk/healthy/bad/good/fattening/processed" are all relative terms, and that with a bit of thought anything can be fit in to a balanced diet.

Which is, of course, a diet.

runner475

I eat low to moderate carb diet and mostly 80% nutrient dense and 20% treats. You'll see me wandering in the outer section of grocery store.

Right now because I'm off season not training I follow TDEE method . Once the training starts I'll be switching to MFP method.

1 have lost 123 pounds with this lifestyle though now I have stopped losing pounds and instead lost 2 pant sizes and down one T-shirt size while hovering over same weight range.

Sabine_Stroehm

runner475 wrote: »

I eat low to moderate carb diet and mostly 80% nutrient dense and 20% treats. You'll see me wandering in the outer section of grocery store.

Right now because I'm off season not training I follow TDEE method . Once the training starts I'll be switching to MFP method.

1 have lost 123 pounds with this lifestyle though now I have stopped losing pounds and instead lost 2 pant sizes and down one T-shirt size while hovering over same weight range.

This is me as well: I'm a perimeter shopper for sure.

runner475

Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »

runner475 wrote: »

I eat low to moderate carb diet and mostly 80% nutrient dense and 20% treats. You'll see me wandering in the outer section of grocery store.

Right now because I'm off season not training I follow TDEE method . Once the training starts I'll be switching to MFP method.

1 have lost 123 pounds with this lifestyle though now I have stopped losing pounds and instead lost 2 pant sizes and down one T-shirt size while hovering over same weight range.

This is me as well: I'm a perimeter shopper for sure.

;-) COOL!!!

PeachyCarol

Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »

runner475 wrote: »

I eat low to moderate carb diet and mostly 80% nutrient dense and 20% treats. You'll see me wandering in the outer section of grocery store.

Right now because I'm off season not training I follow TDEE method . Once the training starts I'll be switching to MFP method.

1 have lost 123 pounds with this lifestyle though now I have stopped losing pounds and instead lost 2 pant sizes and down one T-shirt size while hovering over same weight range.

This is me as well: I'm a perimeter shopper for sure.

Same here. I think the only interior aisle food products in my own diet are frozen fruit, dried beans, almond butter, veggie broth (too lazy to make my own), bean pasta, and canned tomatoes and pumpkin. The kids and husband have a few more things from the inner aisles in their diets like bread, cereal, and crackers.