Need some help

pandabearretherford

So I need some help with trying to plan my meals so I can stick with my calories I'm struggling really bad I need help so if anyone has any ideas I'm open to hear some plz and thank you

akilia112010

Do you think you may like the idea of meal prepping? You could make your lunch for the whole week or even for a few days to start therefore you know ahead of time what you're eating.

SherrySwett

I would like to plan healthy meals before I go grocery shopping so I don't buy the same old things and wondering what to eat. I live alone.

pandabearretherford

akilia112010 wrote: »

Do you think you may like the idea of meal prepping? You could make your lunch for the whole week or even for a few days to start therefore you know ahead of time what you're eating.

I tried that but with kids it's hard but I haven't tried just focusing on one meal

pandabearretherford

SherrySwett wrote: »

I would like to plan healthy meals before I go grocery shopping so I don't buy the same old things and wondering what to eat. I live alone.

See I have 2 kids and I have custody of my sister's and brother so in all I have 5 kids and I'm pulled all different way so it's hard

queenliz99

What do you normally make for dinner? Eat that but eat less now. Simple!

OverseasMom

One thing that helps me is to pick a breakfast and eat the same thing all week. It sounds boring, but it gets me off on the right foot each day and I make it something I like but is not heavy on calories. (For example, recently I've been eating oatmeal I make with skim milk, then adding a few craisins, nuts and honey.) There's something about not having to think about it that helps me.

bmayes2014

queenliz99 wrote: »

What do you normally make for dinner? Eat that but eat less now. Simple!

I agree with this. Until you can find a balance, eat less of what you normally eat. No 2nd helpings. If you can weigh it first (takes only a few seconds) you can accurately get the calories. Stay at your caloric deficit based on what you entered in MFP. Take the easy 'wins' like drinking water instead of high calorie drinks. etc. You can do it!

cathipa

You can still eat what you like, but its about portion control. Weighing your food will put things in perspective. Do you all share every meal?

weatheredcheese

pandabearretherford wrote: »

SherrySwett wrote: »

I would like to plan healthy meals before I go grocery shopping so I don't buy the same old things and wondering what to eat. I live alone.

See I have 2 kids and I have custody of my sister's and brother so in all I have 5 kids and I'm pulled all different way so it's hard

It is hard having kids in the house, but as a parent that is part of the challenge.
Getting the younger kids to bed will be key, regular bed time will allow you to plan around it.
Once the kids go to bed, I can prep for the next day (or next few days) and get a quick workout in.

Cooking in bulk and freezing separate portions can help to, allowing you to grab something out of the freezer and having the meal in MFP so you can quickly assign it.

TeaBea

You don't have to eat separate meals form the kids BUT, you may need to tweak things a bit. If they have chicken nuggets & fries.....you have chicken nuggets and a veggie side (ok, maybe a half portion of fries). The point is measure and log your favorites & then figure out where they fit. Find ways to lighten up meals as you go along.

This strategy will help you keep the weight off in the future. These are lifestyle changes, it won't happen over night.

courtneyfabulous

I do a really easy meal schedule:

Breakfast:
1 blueberry greek yogurt (Fage brand, sold as individual servings) with a side of fruit (whatever I have on hand- banana, apple, berries, persimmon, pear, etc.
OR I'll have 2 thin snacker rice cakes topped with 1/2 cup cottage cheese and a side of fruit.

Morning snack:
1 Protein bar (I like the builders bar by Clif in chocolate mint flavor).

Lunch:
Usually about 1/2 cup of some Carb (rice or potato or sweet potato) with a couple ounces of a protein (ground turkey patty, chicken, steak, pot roast, salmon, shrimp, etc), and some veggies. ~This is easy to throw together because on the weeken I cook up a couple batches of different proteins and then portion them out into snack size baggies, then throw those all in a freezer bag and put in the freezer. Then I can pull out 1 serving of whatever meat I want for lunch and just microwave it for a few seconds. I also keep pre cooked rice in the freezer, it comes that way, you just measure out how much you need and heat it up in the microwave. Or I will microwave a potato or sweet potato for a few minutes to cook it and have some of that. The veggies I usually just put raw cut up and microwave them with the meat and rice and it steams while those defrost. Or I will eat the veggies raw.

Afternoon snack:
Sliced apples and peanut butter, or some turkey or beef jerkey & a banana, or raw veggies & ranch, or some raisins & popcorn, or cereal, or a protein shake... I sometimes will have 2 afternoon snacks, it just depends what I'm in the mood for.

Dinner:
Same as lunch- a carb, a protein, and a veggie. But I usually make this fresh. The veggie might be part of a stir fry, or a side salad, or just steamed veggies. If you're short on time you could just pull some pre-cooked protein out of the freezer and use that for your dinner base.

Dessert:
If I still have calories left I'll have some berries and low calorie vanilla ice cream (I like the Halo Top brand), or 1/2 a protein bar, of just some fruit, or a yogurt, or if I don't have calories left then just some tea.

You can use this as a guide and just adjust portion sizes to fit your calories and macros, and the types of foods to match what you prefer.

The other way to do it is just eat whatever you want and count calories as you go and just stop eating when you hit your limit- but I feel like this is really hard compared to eating in a more structured way.

You could also pre-log your breakfast, lunch and dinner if you know what you're going to have, then just add in snacks if you have the room and you know exactly how much you can have this way.

Basically you will get the hang of it and learn as you go. It takes time.

Also you may have to adjust for special occasions- when I know I'm going to have a higher calorie dinner like pizza or something then I will skip my snacks & dessert or eat a smaller lunch or something. Or if I have a big lunch out with friends I have a smaller dinner and no afternoon snack... I like how flexible counting calories can be!

courtneyfabulous

You can also just do the math- divide how many calories you are supposed to have by how many meals you eat, then adjust your portions accordingly.

If your calorie goal is 1500, that's 3 meals at roughly 500 calories each. Or 5 meals at roughly 300 calories each. Or you could do a 300 calorie breakfast, 400 calorie lunch, 500 calorie dinner, and have 300 calories left over for snacks or dessert.

It's really up to you, but planning ahead is what will make it work.

pandabearretherford

Thanks to all those have been very helpful and I will have to try and see what works for me

daj150

For people who have hectic lives, families, etc. and planning has proven too challenging, the best thing to do is the following:
1) If you don't have picky eaters, including yourself, eat the same thing for breakfast and lunch, and for dinner alternate a protein, starch and vegetable.
2) If you have picky eaters or crave diversity, then learn calories of the foods you generally like, keep common meal ingredients on hand, shop each week for necessities and things that won't last longer than a week, like veggies and fruit, and then just get creative in the kitchen. There are so many 30 minute meals, 1 pot meals, etc. that you just have to search and you will find tons. It takes a little knowledge of cooking, but it makes life so much easier in the end. Good luck!