Heart healthy diet?

mhausler93

Hi everyone. I'm needing some advice. I had open heart surgery a little over a year and a half ago. I'm currently 5' 5" and around 179lbs. The lowest I've been in my adult life was the year before my surgery, and I was 149 lbs, and I was working out several hours a day (farm work) to reach that point. I'm pretty happy sitting between 152-155.

I now don't do near that amount of physical labor, and I work in an office. After my surgery, I jumped up to 180. And that is where I've stayed, within 3lbs up or down depending on the day. I would really like to get back down to 155 or so.

That being said, I've yo-yo'd quite a bit. I've tried many different things, and I have a God awful sweet tooth. I've tried a whole30 approach, which works for me, but I felt very deprived and would end up binging on sweets. I've tried high protein, low carb, moderate fat. I end up feeling hungry and unsatisfied a lot. A friend of mine does Keto, and has had great success with it. I've been trying keto myself for the last few weeks, and while I can tell it does work, I struggle to get in all that fat. Plus, in the back of my mind, I'm constantly worried about what all that fat is doing to my heart.

Does anyone have any suggestions? I know that regardless, I have a killer sweet tooth and have to do something daily to keep that at bay. Lately I've been drinking a lot of sparkling water and that is helping.

I need something I can stick to and see results from. I also need something that doesn't require hours of exercise a day, or anything high impact, due to my heart condition.

Thanks in advance!

mhausler93

I forgot to mention that I am sensitive to dairy, so I can only consume small amounts of dairy a day, which also makes keto difficult.

seska422

I don't know about heart healthy, but you can lose weight by eating your normal foods in smaller portions so that your calorie intake is lower than your maintenance calories. You won't feel so deprived since you are eating what you want to eat, just less of it.

Try logging your normal way of eating for a couple weeks. You can then look back through and decide where you might eat smaller portions or make satisfying substitutions with other foods that you also like.

kommodevaran

Have you tried MFP's default 50% carbs, 30% fat, 20 protein? It corresponds with most "official" "healthy" guidelines, and I believe also the "heart healthy" ones.

KimiAR

Have you read Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease or Eat To Live? Either of those books may help with the component of "what" it "how" to eat that is heart healthy- mostly here it's just "lower your deficit"- eat less than you move. But that may or may not be helpful for your heart conditions. Just my .02.

jgnatca

Consider the DASH diet. It's pretty strict but it's nicely balanced.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/dash-diet/art-20048456

Instead of milk you could try soy milk.

AnthonyX150X

How big is the calorie deficit you are currently running? If it's too low, that may be what is making you feel deprived.

To have a heart-healthy diet, try eating more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and other high-fiber foods.

If you have a "sweet tooth', why not add something sweet to your calorie goal if it will make you stick to your diet plan longer? The most important thing in weight loss is having a calorie deficit at the end of the day.

You don't need to exercise for hours a day, trust me. You can create a calorie deficit without even exercising, but it would help to get some amount of regular exercise to add to your deficit and you can choose to eat some of those exercise calories back (for example: sweets).

MelaniaTrump

Mayo Clinic Heart Healthy Diet Recipes
http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/recipes

This is a quote from Time Magazine
"Research is mounting that saturated fat is better for you than processed carbohydrates like sugar and white bread"
http://time.com/4386248/fat-butter-nutrition-health/
The article makes no mention of a diet high in fruits, vegetables, and grains. (that would never sell magazines)
Many doctors will recommend the Mayo Clinic diet (the boring diet) for heart patients vs a Keto diet.

xvolution

jgnatca wrote: »

Consider the DASH diet. It's pretty strict but it's nicely balanced.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/dash-diet/art-20048456

Instead of milk you could try soy milk.

Pretty much this. It's designed to keep blood pressure down, and thus keep the stress on your heart down.

trigden1991

Eat the foods you like/want but stay within you calorie goal. This is the only way to reduce bodyfat without surgery!