Don't know where to start.

pinkchevron

Hi there! I am am at a loss when it comes to nutrition, meal planning, and eating healthy. Any help in the right direction would be greatly appreciated. I'm getting back into mfp after a long break and ready to get serious about my health.

arditarose

Are you trying to lose weight? Do you have other health goals?

Start by logging your food and getting into a deficit. Add some fruit and vegetables if you are lacking.

H_Ock12

Set your goals in MFP and work every day to stay within your calories. You can't go wrong with simple meats, veggies, eggs, fruits, etc as long as you eat at a deficit.

Lounmoun

pinkchevron wrote: »

Hi there! I am am at a loss when it comes to nutrition, meal planning, and eating healthy. Any help in the right direction would be greatly appreciated. I'm getting back into mfp after a long break and ready to get serious about my health.

You should start with just logging what you normally eat and sticking to your calorie goal. You want to eat in a way you can sustain. You can alter your diet in small steps like getting more protein or having more vegetables on your plate.

A healthy diet is not a specific list of food but everything you consume working together to meet your body's needs. You need to look at nutrients of foods you eat and how they fit your whole day. There are a lot of ways to "eat healthy".
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/recreationandwellnesscenter/wellness/nutrition_corner/nutrition-101/

I eat the same foods I always did just in appropriate portion sizes for my goal. I look at my calorie goal and protein goal mainly. I try to eat more vegetables or fruits than I used to. I prelog my food for the whole day every morning.

Typically I eat things like this:
Breakfast- Greek yogurt, granola bars, cereal with milk, sandwich, dinner leftovers, fruit, cottage cheese
Lunch- sandwich, salad, or dinner leftovers
Dinner- something different every night of the month.
Snacks- things like fruit, chips, popcorn, pretzels, chocolate, cookies, granola bar, carrots, celery, broccoli, trail mix, deviled eggs, pickles, cottage cheese

For meal planning- I make a list of 28 dinners each month. I divide the list into groups of 7. This is my basic process- http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Lounmoun/view/my-meal-planning-process-765880
I post recipes and my monthly plans on my blog. https://lounmoun.wordpress.com/
You don't have to eat something different every day. You can reuse meal plans and just rotate them by the week or month.

I find food ideas on Pinterest a lot.
Other good sites for recipes:
http://www.budgetbytes.com
http://www.skinnytaste.com
http://www.allrecipes.com
http://www.ohsheglows.com
http://www.kalynskitchen.com/

Machka9

Go to the grocery store and markets in your area.
Do some label reading and research. Explore and discover what you've got available.
Select things you like which fit within your calorie limit.

Baddogbeanie

A simple start is, eat what you like and burn more calories than you consume. Slowly work into healthier habits so as not to jolt yourself into failure. The app will help you to see what you are eating and it's affect on ratios and proportions. Good luck... Available as a friend if you like.

kommodevaran

It's hard for others to point the way when we don't know where you are or where you want to go. "Eating healthy" and "getting serious about health" are very nebulous terms. How lost are you? What kinds of foods are you eating now? What is your eating structure like? What's your BMI? Can you cook (or are you willing to learn)? Do you have any medical issues, allergies, ethics or aversions that limit your dietary choices?

HeidiCooksSupper

My favorite source for how-to-eat-healthy information is Harvard's Nutrition source. Start with this page: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/

Their "Healthy Eating Plate" is a great visual that gives you a framework for what to eat at a glance.