Military Diet??

124

Replies

  • LexiAtel
    LexiAtel Posts: 228 Member
    edited May 2017
    MamaGraff wrote: »
    I wouldn't recommend it long term for sure but if you need a little boost, why not!
    This diet is simply low calorie. If you like snacking or are a big eater, this will be hard to follow.

    I'm with you; I'm not a huge fan of bread. Aldi's has an oat bran loaf for just over a $1 that is pretty tasty though.

    I'm thinking of buying Wheat Thins next time in place of the toast.

    Congrats on your recent weight loss, and I'm sorry about your father(in-law) *hugs*.



  • 3bambi3
    3bambi3 Posts: 1,650 Member
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    MamaGraff wrote: »
    I wouldn't recommend it long term for sure but if you need a little boost, why not!
    This diet is simply low calorie. If you like snacking or are a big eater, this will be hard to follow.

    I'm with you; I'm not a huge fan of bread. Aldi's has an oat bran loaf for just over a $1 that is pretty tasty though.

    I'm thinking of buying Wheat Thins next time in place of the toast.

    Congrats on your recent weight loss, and I'm sorry about your father(in-law) *hugs*.



    It's been 10 days. What have your results been?
  • LexiAtel
    LexiAtel Posts: 228 Member
    3bambi3 wrote: »
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    MamaGraff wrote: »
    I wouldn't recommend it long term for sure but if you need a little boost, why not!
    This diet is simply low calorie. If you like snacking or are a big eater, this will be hard to follow.

    I'm with you; I'm not a huge fan of bread. Aldi's has an oat bran loaf for just over a $1 that is pretty tasty though.

    I'm thinking of buying Wheat Thins next time in place of the toast.

    Congrats on your recent weight loss, and I'm sorry about your father(in-law) *hugs*.



    It's been 10 days. What have your results been?

    Posted on previous page, but in summary:

    Lost 6lb and up to two inches from varies parts of my body (I started measuring only last week, so it may have been more since the 16th).
  • nevadavis1
    nevadavis1 Posts: 331 Member
    My dad lost a lot of weight, even got under weight, eating c-rations in Vietnam, because most of it was so bad he threw it away.
  • LexiAtel
    LexiAtel Posts: 228 Member
    nevadavis1 wrote: »
    My dad lost a lot of weight, even got under weight, eating c-rations in Vietnam, because most of it was so bad he threw it away.

    If he was a gunman in war, he probably wasn't losing weight just from that. Those men burn 6k a day very easily (and their rations are only like 3k calories) :(
  • stanmann571
    stanmann571 Posts: 5,727 Member
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    nevadavis1 wrote: »
    My dad lost a lot of weight, even got under weight, eating c-rations in Vietnam, because most of it was so bad he threw it away.

    If he was a gunman in war, he probably wasn't losing weight just from that. Those men burn 6k a day very easily (and their rations are only like 3k calories) :(

    Each C-Rat or MRE is 3K Calories... for a total of 9-10K daily
  • LexiAtel
    LexiAtel Posts: 228 Member
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    nevadavis1 wrote: »
    My dad lost a lot of weight, even got under weight, eating c-rations in Vietnam, because most of it was so bad he threw it away.

    If he was a gunman in war, he probably wasn't losing weight just from that. Those men burn 6k a day very easily (and their rations are only like 3k calories) :(

    Each C-Rat or MRE is 3K Calories... for a total of 9-10K daily

    Oh, so they did get three? I was made to believe that they only got one, my bad.

    I had a few of those... yeah, I can see why he threw some out-- and I had some modernized ones! Yick...!
  • Jonna13
    Jonna13 Posts: 288 Member
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    DAY 1 (1,106 calories)
    Breakfast:
    1/2 Grapefruit (52)
    1 slice toast (70)
    2 TBsp peanut butter (190)

    Lunch:
    1/2 cup tuna (120)
    1 slice toast (70)

    Dinner:
    3 oz lean meat (cooked chicken breast: 84, give or take)
    1 cup greenbeans (34)
    1/2 banana (50, give or take)
    1 small apple (80, give or take)
    1 cup vanilla ice cream (300...? Highly depends on the type you get, I aim for 150 per serving).

    DAY 2 (961 calories)

    Breakfast:
    1 egg (70, give or take)
    1 slice toast (70)
    1/2 banana (50, give or take)

    Lunch:
    1 cup cottage cheese (200, give or take)
    1 egg (70, give or take)
    5 saltine crackers (65)


    Dinner:
    6.5 oz COOKED chicken (300, give or take)
    1 cup broccoli (31)
    1/2 cup carrots (25)
    1/2 banana (50, give or take)
    1/2 cup vanilla ice cream (150...? Highly depends on the type you get, I aim for 150 per serving).

    DAY 3 (975 calories)

    Breakfast:
    5 crackers (65)
    1 oz of cheddar cheese (100, give or take)
    1 small apple (80, give or take)

    Lunch:
    1 egg (70, give or take)
    1 slice toast (70)

    Dinner:
    5 oz chicken (240, give or take)
    1/2 banana (50, give or take)
    1 cup vanilla ice cream (300...? Highly depends on the type you get, I aim for 150 per serving).

    TOTAL: 3, 042 calories


    This sounds really gross. I don't think I could get through a day yet alone 3. Reminds me of the cabbage soup diet-yuck!

    For me personally, I prefer variety, and choosing my own foods. Doing this 3 days would send me into binge mode big time on day 4. Not because of the calorie content, but because the food seems so bland and restrictive. No thanks.

  • LexiAtel
    LexiAtel Posts: 228 Member
    edited May 2017
    Yeah, the food is bland, I'll admit. But we did some twists to it with cooking (and get some decent brands of stuff, like the ice cream), so we didn't think it was so bad, even on the first week.

    It's also been weaning us off the junk food. And I'm adding less sweetner to my drinks (tea).
  • LexiAtel
    LexiAtel Posts: 228 Member
    edited May 2017
    I earlier stated that you could modify it your wants/needs. I said it works as a good default meal plan (it works 'as is' OR with your own changes).

    The diet itself lists substitutions on its own page. You don't have to eat exactly the things that are originally listed. It's just a basic idea of what 'they' want you to eat.

    A lot of what I've done on my own has been discovered through my own trial and errors. For example, I know how to make a low calorie chicken taste freaking awesome, cause I've spent the last fifteen years cooking and experimenting.

    I kinda consider this meal plan like a cookie recipe. As it stands, it's alright, but it needs some work to make it the way I like it, and so I've been adjusting it to my liking.

    I guess that's why I'm 'advocating' it so hard. It can be made into someone's own, which is what people need (but they first need something to start with that works). A lot of people have been creative with it, and have made some tasty looking/sounding meals!

  • LexiAtel
    LexiAtel Posts: 228 Member
    Exactly, that's you. Some people need financial advice, while others need meal plans listed out for them.

    It's kinda why Jenny Craig was such a success-- everything was there for them. They didn't have to do any work.

    Some people just need a little push to get started.

  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    I earlier stated that you could modify it your wants/needs. I said it works as a good default meal plan (it works 'as is' OR with your own changes).

    The diet itself lists substitutions on its own page. You don't have to eat exactly the things that are originally listed. It's just a basic idea of what 'they' want you to eat.

    A lot of what I've done on my own has been discovered through my own trial and errors. For example, I know how to make a low calorie chicken taste freaking awesome, cause I've spent the last fifteen years cooking and experimenting.

    I kinda consider this meal plan like a cookie recipe. As it stands, it's alright, but it needs some work to make it the way I like it, and so I've been adjusting it to my liking.

    I guess that's why I'm 'advocating' it so hard. It can be made into someone's own, which is what people need (but they first need something to start with that works). A lot of people have been creative with it, and have made some tasty looking/sounding meals!

    Do some people need structure in order to have a plan to follow and be successful? Sure, absolutely.

    Is there anything specific about this arbitrary list of foods that results in weight loss that you wouldn't see from eating any foods at the same calorie deficit? Nope. You get that, right?

    You claim to be a good cook that likes to experiment. I just find it hard to believe that anyone who has kitchen savvy can look at a combination of plain chicken, plain toast, saltines, grapefruit, bananas, cottage cheese and hot dogs and think that is a canvas upon which they can build a tasty, healthy meal plan... that they couldn't do on their own with any of the millions of combinations of ingredients available to consumers today. Unless you're on some sort of cooking show and this is the "military diet challenge" why would you want to build a plan around such bland, limited ingredients?

    If you are making this plan your own, then why even say you are following the military diet? Why not say that you are eating a 1300 cal meal plan that includes a lot of chicken, some fruits and vegetables, and limited carbs - with the occasional treat?
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    I personally am not one who wants to have someone lay out meal plans for me, I prefer to plan my own meals... but I saw this quite some time ago and thought it looked like a reasonable plan that can be modified for an individual's calorie goals (1200, 1500, 1600, 1800) and the foods sure sound better than tuna, saltines, and grapefruit...

    http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/7_day_diet_meal_plan_to_lose_weight_1500_calories

    Thought I'd share in case there are some lurkers here who are looking for ideas and structure but not in the bland restrictions laid out by the Military Diet.

  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    Exactly, that's you. Some people need financial advice, while others need meal plans listed out for them.

    It's kinda why Jenny Craig was such a success-- everything was there for them. They didn't have to do any work.

    Some people just need a little push to get started.

    Nothing good comes from not doing any work.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    Skinnytaste.com also has weekly meal plans (dinner only) - all the recipes I've made from this site are really yummy.

    http://www.skinnytaste.com/meal-plans/
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    I personally am not one who wants to have someone lay out meal plans for me, I prefer to plan my own meals... but I saw this quite some time ago and thought it looked like a reasonable plan that can be modified for an individual's calorie goals (1200, 1500, 1600, 1800) and the foods sure sound better than tuna, saltines, and grapefruit...

    http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/7_day_diet_meal_plan_to_lose_weight_1500_calories

    Thought I'd share in case there are some lurkers here who are looking for ideas and structure but not in the bland restrictions laid out by the Military Diet.

    I saw this one a while ago and thought it looked pretty tasty. It's focused for people who might need some help to get started with cooking, meal planning, and storing leftovers. You just have to overlook the buzzwords "clean eating."

    https://www.buzzfeed.com/christinebyrne/2016-clean-eating?utm_term=.lwEX91nQA#.tfWPmAWbQ
  • LexiAtel
    LexiAtel Posts: 228 Member
    I did state previously that I didn't think the foods on the original plan had the fat burning chemistry that it had claimed.

    I just stated that myself and others have turned some of those bland foods into decent recipes, so I'm not sure where the confusion is coming from. Maybe I'm just strange, maybe I find the whole thing a challenge-- trying to make bland foods taste better.

    I didn't say I cooked for living or anything. I just meant that I've been incorporating good ingredients into my meals in replace of bad ones. I have a few recipes that are out of this world.

    I happen to like the fruits and veggies in this diet, and I tend to eat them plain anyway, so that's not a problem.

    I can't really call it my own until I make it 100% my own. I'm still eating a few of the listed meals (meat, broccoli, carrot, and apple tonight with ice cream and banana for dessert), so it wouldn't feel right to me.

    Besides that, I owe it credit for getting me started. I haven't been this low in a LONG time.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    I personally am not one who wants to have someone lay out meal plans for me, I prefer to plan my own meals... but I saw this quite some time ago and thought it looked like a reasonable plan that can be modified for an individual's calorie goals (1200, 1500, 1600, 1800) and the foods sure sound better than tuna, saltines, and grapefruit...

    http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/7_day_diet_meal_plan_to_lose_weight_1500_calories

    Thought I'd share in case there are some lurkers here who are looking for ideas and structure but not in the bland restrictions laid out by the Military Diet.

    I saw this one a while ago and thought it looked pretty tasty. It's focused for people who might need some help to get started with cooking, meal planning, and storing leftovers. You just have to overlook the buzzwords "clean eating."

    https://www.buzzfeed.com/christinebyrne/2016-clean-eating?utm_term=.lwEX91nQA#.tfWPmAWbQ

    It made me cringe, but I got past it. It does look like a good list. There are just so many recipes available these days on Pinterest and other sites... I just can't understand how a program that suggests such bland and random ingredients would ever pique anyone's interest. Especially for people who enjoy food, enjoy cooking. There's just no reason to eat saltines, tuna, grapefruit, hot dogs, and cottage cheese in order to be successful. Weight loss doesn't have to be punishment. It doesn't have to be inflexible. It doesn't have to be boring, tasteless, bland, or miserable.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    I did state previously that I didn't think the foods on the original plan had the fat burning chemistry that it had claimed.

    I just stated that myself and others have turned some of those bland foods into decent recipes, so I'm not sure where the confusion is coming from. Maybe I'm just strange, maybe I find the whole thing a challenge-- trying to make bland foods taste better.

    I didn't say I cooked for living or anything. I just meant that I've been incorporating good ingredients into my meals in replace of bad ones. I have a few recipes that are out of this world.

    I happen to like the fruits and veggies in this diet, and I tend to eat them plain anyway, so that's not a problem.

    I can't really call it my own until I make it 100% my own. I'm still eating a few of the listed meals (meat, broccoli, carrot, and apple tonight with ice cream and banana for dessert), so it wouldn't feel right to me.

    Besides that, I owe it credit for getting me started. I haven't been this low in a LONG time.

    We aren't talking about marketing your own diet plan. Just that if you are creating meals using these ingredients as a basis for recipes, and not just eating them as plain boiled chicken, plain broccoli and carrots with an apple, banana, and ice cream - then how is that any different than what anyone does who has a pantry/fridge full of ingredients and is using the MFP database to log the foods they choose to eat on a daily basis? If I make a stir fry with chicken, carrots, broccoli and have some ice cream for dessert, am I following the military diet? I would use wok oil and make a soy ginger sauce to go with it and probably serve it over some rice. So is it still one of the recommended meals, since the base ingredients are the same?

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Jonna13 wrote: »
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    DAY 1 (1,106 calories)
    Breakfast:
    1/2 Grapefruit (52)
    1 slice toast (70)
    2 TBsp peanut butter (190)

    Lunch:
    1/2 cup tuna (120)
    1 slice toast (70)

    Dinner:
    3 oz lean meat (cooked chicken breast: 84, give or take)
    1 cup greenbeans (34)
    1/2 banana (50, give or take)
    1 small apple (80, give or take)
    1 cup vanilla ice cream (300...? Highly depends on the type you get, I aim for 150 per serving).

    DAY 2 (961 calories)

    Breakfast:
    1 egg (70, give or take)
    1 slice toast (70)
    1/2 banana (50, give or take)

    Lunch:
    1 cup cottage cheese (200, give or take)
    1 egg (70, give or take)
    5 saltine crackers (65)


    Dinner:
    6.5 oz COOKED chicken (300, give or take)
    1 cup broccoli (31)
    1/2 cup carrots (25)
    1/2 banana (50, give or take)
    1/2 cup vanilla ice cream (150...? Highly depends on the type you get, I aim for 150 per serving).

    DAY 3 (975 calories)

    Breakfast:
    5 crackers (65)
    1 oz of cheddar cheese (100, give or take)
    1 small apple (80, give or take)

    Lunch:
    1 egg (70, give or take)
    1 slice toast (70)

    Dinner:
    5 oz chicken (240, give or take)
    1/2 banana (50, give or take)
    1 cup vanilla ice cream (300...? Highly depends on the type you get, I aim for 150 per serving).

    TOTAL: 3, 042 calories


    This sounds really gross. I don't think I could get through a day yet alone 3. Reminds me of the cabbage soup diet-yuck!

    For me personally, I prefer variety, and choosing my own foods. Doing this 3 days would send me into binge mode big time on day 4. Not because of the calorie content, but because the food seems so bland and restrictive. No thanks.

    Totally agree. It's also shockingly low vegetable, which is why I can't believe anyone is suggesting it is a way to learn to eat healthfully. 1 serving of veg on day one, 1.5 servings on day two, 0 on day three.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    I personally am not one who wants to have someone lay out meal plans for me, I prefer to plan my own meals... but I saw this quite some time ago and thought it looked like a reasonable plan that can be modified for an individual's calorie goals (1200, 1500, 1600, 1800) and the foods sure sound better than tuna, saltines, and grapefruit...

    http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/7_day_diet_meal_plan_to_lose_weight_1500_calories

    Thought I'd share in case there are some lurkers here who are looking for ideas and structure but not in the bland restrictions laid out by the Military Diet.

    I saw this one a while ago and thought it looked pretty tasty. It's focused for people who might need some help to get started with cooking, meal planning, and storing leftovers. You just have to overlook the buzzwords "clean eating."

    https://www.buzzfeed.com/christinebyrne/2016-clean-eating?utm_term=.lwEX91nQA#.tfWPmAWbQ

    It made me cringe, but I got past it. It does look like a good list. There are just so many recipes available these days on Pinterest and other sites... I just can't understand how a program that suggests such bland and random ingredients would ever pique anyone's interest. Especially for people who enjoy food, enjoy cooking. There's just no reason to eat saltines, tuna, grapefruit, hot dogs, and cottage cheese in order to be successful. Weight loss doesn't have to be punishment. It doesn't have to be inflexible. It doesn't have to be boring, tasteless, bland, or miserable.

    Absolutely. I'm too contrary to ever do a meal plan (the very thought makes me feel rebellious), but if I ever did one I'd want one that exposed me to some new foods and/or techniques so when I was done with it I would have gained some knowledge or skills.

    I'm hugely into Pinterest -- whenever I want to try something new or have extra of an ingredient on hand, I always look there first. I impulsively bought some rhubarb at the farmer's market this weekend and I found three different ways to use it there (I'm making carrot and rhubarb soup, pickled rhubarb, and rhubarb-infused vodka).
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    I personally am not one who wants to have someone lay out meal plans for me, I prefer to plan my own meals... but I saw this quite some time ago and thought it looked like a reasonable plan that can be modified for an individual's calorie goals (1200, 1500, 1600, 1800) and the foods sure sound better than tuna, saltines, and grapefruit...

    http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/7_day_diet_meal_plan_to_lose_weight_1500_calories

    Thought I'd share in case there are some lurkers here who are looking for ideas and structure but not in the bland restrictions laid out by the Military Diet.

    Yes -- another option for structure and ideas would be something like eatthismuch, especially since you can look at a few different calorie levels, macro options, and eating plans to get a good sense of how putting together a menu works. Even that would drive me nuts, what worked for me was thinking of every meal as basically structured around protein/vegetable/starch or fruit with some added fat (for cooking or accent) if it was otherwise low fat. Add to that a usual breakfast to take the thinking out of it, and it was a nice backbone.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    I personally am not one who wants to have someone lay out meal plans for me, I prefer to plan my own meals... but I saw this quite some time ago and thought it looked like a reasonable plan that can be modified for an individual's calorie goals (1200, 1500, 1600, 1800) and the foods sure sound better than tuna, saltines, and grapefruit...

    http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/7_day_diet_meal_plan_to_lose_weight_1500_calories

    Thought I'd share in case there are some lurkers here who are looking for ideas and structure but not in the bland restrictions laid out by the Military Diet.

    I saw this one a while ago and thought it looked pretty tasty. It's focused for people who might need some help to get started with cooking, meal planning, and storing leftovers. You just have to overlook the buzzwords "clean eating."

    https://www.buzzfeed.com/christinebyrne/2016-clean-eating?utm_term=.lwEX91nQA#.tfWPmAWbQ

    It made me cringe, but I got past it. It does look like a good list. There are just so many recipes available these days on Pinterest and other sites... I just can't understand how a program that suggests such bland and random ingredients would ever pique anyone's interest. Especially for people who enjoy food, enjoy cooking. There's just no reason to eat saltines, tuna, grapefruit, hot dogs, and cottage cheese in order to be successful. Weight loss doesn't have to be punishment. It doesn't have to be inflexible. It doesn't have to be boring, tasteless, bland, or miserable.

    Absolutely. I'm too contrary to ever do a meal plan (the very thought makes me feel rebellious), but if I ever did one I'd want one that exposed me to some new foods and/or techniques so when I was done with it I would have gained some knowledge or skills.

    I'm hugely into Pinterest -- whenever I want to try something new or have extra of an ingredient on hand, I always look there first. I impulsively bought some rhubarb at the farmer's market this weekend and I found three different ways to use it there (I'm making carrot and rhubarb soup, pickled rhubarb, and rhubarb-infused vodka).

    I have started to shy away from Pinterest because I found myself constantly pinning, and never preparing, any of the things I had seen. It was getting to be a bit embarrassing and overwhelming plus my type A personality had me constantly trying to organize my boards in ways that would make sense - and then never actually use the recipes!

    Actually, I've joked many times that when I feel I should do a better job of meal planning, I should play Pinterest Roulette and somehow randomly select things that I have pinned with no rhyme or reason to them and then force myself to go with whatever came up. My husband used to do that to me on nights when we had nothing planned for dinner, he would thumb through my cookbooks and stick his finger on a page and ask me to make whatever it landed on. We had some interesting meals... and a couple became keeper recipes!
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    I personally am not one who wants to have someone lay out meal plans for me, I prefer to plan my own meals... but I saw this quite some time ago and thought it looked like a reasonable plan that can be modified for an individual's calorie goals (1200, 1500, 1600, 1800) and the foods sure sound better than tuna, saltines, and grapefruit...

    http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/7_day_diet_meal_plan_to_lose_weight_1500_calories

    Thought I'd share in case there are some lurkers here who are looking for ideas and structure but not in the bland restrictions laid out by the Military Diet.

    I saw this one a while ago and thought it looked pretty tasty. It's focused for people who might need some help to get started with cooking, meal planning, and storing leftovers. You just have to overlook the buzzwords "clean eating."

    https://www.buzzfeed.com/christinebyrne/2016-clean-eating?utm_term=.lwEX91nQA#.tfWPmAWbQ

    It made me cringe, but I got past it. It does look like a good list. There are just so many recipes available these days on Pinterest and other sites... I just can't understand how a program that suggests such bland and random ingredients would ever pique anyone's interest. Especially for people who enjoy food, enjoy cooking. There's just no reason to eat saltines, tuna, grapefruit, hot dogs, and cottage cheese in order to be successful. Weight loss doesn't have to be punishment. It doesn't have to be inflexible. It doesn't have to be boring, tasteless, bland, or miserable.

    Absolutely. I'm too contrary to ever do a meal plan (the very thought makes me feel rebellious), but if I ever did one I'd want one that exposed me to some new foods and/or techniques so when I was done with it I would have gained some knowledge or skills.

    I'm hugely into Pinterest -- whenever I want to try something new or have extra of an ingredient on hand, I always look there first. I impulsively bought some rhubarb at the farmer's market this weekend and I found three different ways to use it there (I'm making carrot and rhubarb soup, pickled rhubarb, and rhubarb-infused vodka).

    I have started to shy away from Pinterest because I found myself constantly pinning, and never preparing, any of the things I had seen. It was getting to be a bit embarrassing and overwhelming plus my type A personality had me constantly trying to organize my boards in ways that would make sense - and then never actually use the recipes!

    Actually, I've joked many times that when I feel I should do a better job of meal planning, I should play Pinterest Roulette and somehow randomly select things that I have pinned with no rhyme or reason to them and then force myself to go with whatever came up. My husband used to do that to me on nights when we had nothing planned for dinner, he would thumb through my cookbooks and stick his finger on a page and ask me to make whatever it landed on. We had some interesting meals... and a couple became keeper recipes!

    It's like "Chopped" for Pinterest! I love it.

    Yeah, half the stuff I pin is stuff I know I'm never going to make. It's very aspirational. I'm never going to make the Earl Grey-scented vegan macarons . . . but I love pretending I'm the type of person who would!
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    I personally am not one who wants to have someone lay out meal plans for me, I prefer to plan my own meals... but I saw this quite some time ago and thought it looked like a reasonable plan that can be modified for an individual's calorie goals (1200, 1500, 1600, 1800) and the foods sure sound better than tuna, saltines, and grapefruit...

    http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/7_day_diet_meal_plan_to_lose_weight_1500_calories

    Thought I'd share in case there are some lurkers here who are looking for ideas and structure but not in the bland restrictions laid out by the Military Diet.

    I saw this one a while ago and thought it looked pretty tasty. It's focused for people who might need some help to get started with cooking, meal planning, and storing leftovers. You just have to overlook the buzzwords "clean eating."

    https://www.buzzfeed.com/christinebyrne/2016-clean-eating?utm_term=.lwEX91nQA#.tfWPmAWbQ

    It made me cringe, but I got past it. It does look like a good list. There are just so many recipes available these days on Pinterest and other sites... I just can't understand how a program that suggests such bland and random ingredients would ever pique anyone's interest. Especially for people who enjoy food, enjoy cooking. There's just no reason to eat saltines, tuna, grapefruit, hot dogs, and cottage cheese in order to be successful. Weight loss doesn't have to be punishment. It doesn't have to be inflexible. It doesn't have to be boring, tasteless, bland, or miserable.

    Absolutely. I'm too contrary to ever do a meal plan (the very thought makes me feel rebellious), but if I ever did one I'd want one that exposed me to some new foods and/or techniques so when I was done with it I would have gained some knowledge or skills.

    I'm hugely into Pinterest -- whenever I want to try something new or have extra of an ingredient on hand, I always look there first. I impulsively bought some rhubarb at the farmer's market this weekend and I found three different ways to use it there (I'm making carrot and rhubarb soup, pickled rhubarb, and rhubarb-infused vodka).

    I have started to shy away from Pinterest because I found myself constantly pinning, and never preparing, any of the things I had seen. It was getting to be a bit embarrassing and overwhelming plus my type A personality had me constantly trying to organize my boards in ways that would make sense - and then never actually use the recipes!

    Actually, I've joked many times that when I feel I should do a better job of meal planning, I should play Pinterest Roulette and somehow randomly select things that I have pinned with no rhyme or reason to them and then force myself to go with whatever came up. My husband used to do that to me on nights when we had nothing planned for dinner, he would thumb through my cookbooks and stick his finger on a page and ask me to make whatever it landed on. We had some interesting meals... and a couple became keeper recipes!

    It's like "Chopped" for Pinterest! I love it.

    Yeah, half the stuff I pin is stuff I know I'm never going to make. It's very aspirational. I'm never going to make the Earl Grey-scented vegan macarons . . . but I love pretending I'm the type of person who would!

    One of my good friends gave me a gift of "foodie dice" for Christmas this year. There are 5 or 6 dice, and one has protein, one has starches, one has vegetables, one has cooking methods, and one has an ethnic cuisine type... I'm not sure what the last one is. Maybe desserts. Anyway, you roll the protein die, the cooking method, and the ethnic cuisine and find out that for dinner you are having roasted korean pork. Then you figure out you're having brussel sprouts and farro with it. It's really fun. I played with the combinations and decided I needed to put it away till a day/night when I was feeling adventurous in the kitchen. I should probably dig it back out again...
  • LexiAtel
    LexiAtel Posts: 228 Member
    edited May 2017
    I can't explain why it works, but I've been on 1200 diets before and never had this much success (weight + inches). It could all be psychological for all I know. I wish I knew for sure... and I'm sorry that I can't help you further.

    There's a fb page for this diet if anyone's interested. Tons of good results posted there. You'd probably have that here too, but because it's a fad and all, people are afraid to admit that they've done it.

    For the record, when I first saw this meal plan, I pretty much wrinkled my nose at it. I only read the article that popped up on my newsfeed just to see if I could make some sarcastic comment about it to the friend who posted it.

    I saw in the comments of the article that people were losing, and I was like "Hmm... strange...". So that's when I started the research.

    Several people claim to have lost weight on different sites (at least ones that don't have a lot of people slamming someone for even remotely suggesting it).

    So, I thought to try it for three days (and a friend joined in with me), and we both lost weight. And even when you're supposed to eat the maintain weight with an added calorie 'diet' on the four days and didn't (hard to pass up a dipped cone o.o), we still kept the weight off.

    We decided to follow through 100% last week. I didn't get an increase rate in weight loss though, but my friend did. He lost 11lb :)

    So like I said, I don't know why this meal plan has been more successful than our own that we have made up. It just is.

    And there's nothing more that I can say to 'defend' it. What's there is there. Take it or leave it.

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    LexiAtel wrote: »
    I can't explain why it works, but I've been on 1200 diets before and never had this much success (weight + inches). It could all be psychological for all I know. I wish I knew for sure... and I'm sorry that I can't help you further.

    There's a fb page for this diet if anyone's interested. Tons of good results posted there. You'd probably have that here too, but because it's a fad and all, people are afraid to admit that they've done it.

    For the record, when I first saw this meal plan, I pretty much wrinkled my nose at it. I only read the article that popped up on my newsfeed just to see if I could make some sarcastic comment about it to the friend who posted it.

    I saw in the comments of the article that people were losing, and I was like "Hmm... strange...". So that's when I started the research.

    Several people claiming to have lost weight on different sites (and least ones that don't have a lot of people slamming someone for even remotely suggesting it).

    So, I thought to try it for three days (and a friend joined in with me), and we both lost weight. And even when you're supposed to eat the maintain calories on the four days and (hard to pass up a dipped cone o.o), we still kept the weight off.

    We decided to follow through 100% last week. I didn't get an increase in the weight loss weight though, but my friend did. He lost 11lb :)

    So like I said, I don't know why this meal plan has been more successful than our own that we have made up. It just is.

    And there's nothing more that I can say to 'defend' it. What's there is there. Take it or leave it.

    Above you said you were adjusting the meals to fit your preferences, here you say you follow it 100%.

    I'm not sure what exactly you're trying to convince people of, but nobody denies here that people will lose weight with a calorie deficit and that many people can get to a deficit by following the "Military Diet." What is being challenged is that this is an especially good plan. You can reach a deficit eating just about any combination of foods. Most people will enjoy other strategies more (you yourself have said you have had to make changes to this to make it more palatable), most people will find it easier to meet their nutritional needs on other strategies, and most people find find it easier to develop long-term sustainable habits to maintain weight loss on other strategies.

    If someone *likes* saltines and vanilla ice cream, they can have those and lose weight. But you can lose weight even if you hate saltines and never eat them or if you'd rather spend your "ice cream calories" on biscotti or red wine or ranch dressing.