What 'food rules' or 'life rules' do you live by to maintain your weight?

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Replies

  • Alidecker
    Alidecker Posts: 1,262 Member
    I eat out for lunch once a week and dinner once a week.
    I never miss a Monday for workouts, it starts my week out right.
    Plan my meals weekly or I will go off track
    Drink 100 OZ of water a day
    I love cookies, but I have learned that not all cookies are created equal and I only spend my calories on the ones that are worth it.
  • anna_jewel
    anna_jewel Posts: 127 Member
    - I weight in daily, calculate my average for the week.
    - log what i do in a monthly calenday (average weight, food at maintenance or higher (/ for at maintaenece, x for above) exercise and steps (fitbit)) Its a quick, easy way to see how my month is going.
    - I have been starting to not log a few days a week (working towards intuitive eating and learning to listen to my hunger signals)
    - eat in moderation, i eat what i want but in smaller portions
    - i weight all my food, even on a not logging day
    - have a glass of wine every night, (even while losing weight)
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    -I eat mostly nutritious with some treats in between, everything in moderation
    -I cook as often as I can and eat mostly homemade meals
    -When I do go out, I enjoy myself and eat my favourite foods
    -I lift heavy
    -I keep active and move as much as possible
    -I only track/log my food if I feel I need to
    -I weigh in every few days
    -I always have goals to achieve
    -I try to be realistic with my goals and expectations (this one is still a bit of a struggle....)
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    edited April 2016
    I find not eating after 7pm works for me - this way it cuts down my naughty sugary snacks that I used to be prone to eat! (I constantly sip at water during the evenings which helps a lot)

    I fill up on plenty of foods with a good balance of protein/fat/fibre that way I don't feel hungry between meals. I find that I keep my carb portion of the meal small as its not as filling, I go heavy on the veg instead.

    I no longer eat foods that are bland or not appealing to me, if I choose to have a slice of cake, it has to be absolutely delicious or I wont waste the calories. Countless time I have binned my leftover slice of cake or bun because of that, or hubby gets the rest of it!

    I move as much as possible - am consistent with exercise - average steps 18k plus I strength train x 3 per week.

    Weigh in a few times a week to keep an eye that I'm staying in goal range +/- 5lbs.
  • lshawf
    lshawf Posts: 1 Member
    I have lost 32 pounds and am 10 pounds away from my goal weight. I have been following the iDiet plan which includes: eating three meals and two snacks a day, weighing and measuring portions, weighing myself daily and attending a weekly class online. There are scripted menus to follow while you are learning an entirely new way of healthy eating that includes fiber, protein, fruits and vegetables and even allows for a dessert if you wish. I have logged my food for 101 days! I would recommend the plan to anyone.
  • megzchica23
    megzchica23 Posts: 419 Member
    I have IBS, no gallbladder, and a hiatal hernia.

    So my rules are to stick to the diet for those.
    One cup of green tea is all the caffeine I allow myself.
    Drink my sleepy time tea every night.
    Always eat small meals (helps with the hernia)
    Don't oversleep on weekends. Get up go exercise, start laundry, shower, make breakfast
    Keep my calorie deficit.
    Never eat out more than once a week. Try to keep it to every other week but stuff happens.
    Make lunches for work every weekend.
    Drink 4 bottles of water at work
    Go outside and walk or read for lunch break

    And most of all, Don't stress the small stuff in life and be happy.
  • JanetMMcC
    JanetMMcC Posts: 410 Member
    What they said, pretty much.
    FWIW, I lost my first 40 or 50 lbs, starting a few years ago at 213, by cutting out white carbs and paying attention to portion size (trying to stay generally within what I remembered from Weight Watchers 15 or 20 years earlier, before the points system (about 3 servings starch, 6 to 8 oz protein, 1 or 2 (small) of fat, lots of veg, a couple servings fruit each day). For the first time in my life (I'll turn 64 tomorrow) I didn't have to obsess to lose weight.

    The last 20 lbs brought me here to really work at it. I've been maintaining since November. I'll probably be weighing and logging for the rest of my life, but the phone app makes logging fairly painless.

    For calcium, I have my morning coffee with 1/3 cup dry skim milk and a bit of sweetener, sometimes with a squirt of milk flavoring (chocolate - makes for faux mocha, aka fauxcha) or coffee flavoring. I'll have either reconstituted dry skim with a squirt of the orange flavoring (think dreamsicle) or a cup of Dannon Light & Fit vanilla yogurt at lunch. Sometimes a quartercup of low-fat granola or a half cup of strawberries goes into the yog.

    With maintenance cal set at 1510, I generally manage to save 150 to 250 calories for a tad bit of good chocolate at the end of the day. :)

    And my weight ha been trending ever-so-slightly downward. If that keeps up, I'll decide whether I want a lower weight or more calories. :)
  • JanetMMcC
    JanetMMcC Posts: 410 Member
    Bodies do work differently. My usual breakfast is coffee and skim - 1/3 cup of dry skim mixed into a mug of coffee, with a bit of sweetener or flavoring - and one half of a low-sugar nutrition bar. I'll have a midmorning snack of up to 200 cals - soemtimes a piece of fruit, sometimes nutrition bar, sometimes raisin toast and butter or whipped cream cheese.
    Then lunch - about 2 oz protein, lots veg, a bit of fat - maybe Smart Balance, maybe 50 cals or so of salad dressing. I'll have another couple snacks during the afternoon. oddly, I find it easier not to eat at home than at work, unless it's a desparately busy day at work. (Like Sunday, when I put a spaghetti squash into the microwave for 6 minutes, forgot about it for the next 4 hours, hit the 6-minute button, forgot about it for several hours ... put it in the fridge that night (in a plastic shopping bag, so's to catch any leak) and finished cooking it Monday.
    One way or another, i usually manage to save 150 to 250 calories for Good Chocolate at the end of the day. :)
  • Carnhot
    Carnhot Posts: 367 Member
    Be honest
    Trust the system
    The only legitimate chocolate is that bought by someone else for you
  • ReaderGirl3
    ReaderGirl3 Posts: 868 Member
    edited April 2016
    -weigh daily and record on an app I have
    -track food/stay within maintenance calorie parameters (stopped doing this for a while and started re-gaining, back at it!)
    -measure out portion sizes with a food scale (90% of the time is my goal)
    -go in twice a year for blood work panels

    and then one new thing I'm doing-eating a little under my maintenance calories during the week and rolling those into Friday-Sunday. This is working really well for me and it's now a part of my maintenance plan :)
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
    - Take photos of myself regularly, which enables me to look at myself more objectively than I do in the mirror.
    - Always eat breakfast and rarely eat later than 5pm.
    - Eat protein first, then vegetables.
    - Limit carbs.
    - No added sugar.
    - Exercise every day.
  • Gisel2015
    Gisel2015 Posts: 4,136 Member
    -Weigh myself few times a week; take measurements when I remember. I trust the mirror and my clothes more than the measuring tape. I never took any progress picture.
    -Weigh and log my food when I eat at home or if I find the menu and/or nutritional information on line when eating out.
    -I eat out twice a week and sometimes three times a week, but it doesn't derail me from my goals. I know what to order and how much to eat.
    -I usually don't log my food when I am on vacation. I just watch what and how much I eat.
    -I exercise 5 times a week; combination of strength training, fitness classes and moderate cardio.
    -I eat a variety of vegetables, fruits and lean protein with moderate consumption of grains and beans
    -I have deleted food items from my "eating" list because they are not worthy the calories or because I can live without them.
    -I don't have a sweet tooth or a binge problem.
    -My macros are set to 35% carbs and protein and 30% fat, and I try to meet them as consistently as possible.
    -I don't eat all my exercises calories unless I am hungry. I use them as a buffer to compensate for when I eat out.
    -I stopped logging and I closed my MFP account almost 2 years ago and I maintained my weight for six months. I came back to try to do a recomp (not happening much) and to keep better control of my macros (doing very well)
    -I have been maintaining for over five and half years.
  • Shells918
    Shells918 Posts: 1,070 Member
    -Work out every day
    -Weigh myself daily
    -Take measurements monthly
    -Order responsibly at restaurants
    -Don't binge at night
    -Don't eat exercise calories
    -Keep the carbs low and the fiber high
  • gym_foodie
    gym_foodie Posts: 9 Member
    Lots of great tips are already covered.

    But I follow an additional rule:
    1. At least ONE treat per week to keep me sane :)

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