Lifestyle and Nutrition Help

amy_1987

I'm looking for some guidance on my macros, nutrition, and lifestyle! I lost 60lb over ~18 months through restriction (~900 cal per day) with no focus on nutrients or health. I joined MFP last month for maintenance help and have learned to log accurately (I weigh everything). I'm using the TDEE method, set to lightly active for now (I'm still increasing my calories slowly so I dont blimp, but I'm also still losing weight at 1600, set to 1720), and log my exercise as 0 calories.

My goals are to improve my lifestyle and nutrition, be healthy and active, and maintain my current weight. My diary is open and there are pics uploaded.

I'm 5'2", 106 lb, 26 years, vegetarian, sedentary job.
Workouts - 43 min cardio 5 days a week (13 min elliptical, 30 min stationery bike), resistance training 3 days a week (using gym resistance machines, I'm currently educating myself about proper lifting programmes).
Macros - 60/20/20, 30g fibre (for "digestive comfort"!); set based on the 0.8 and 0.35 multipliers for my weight in lb.

Food -
Breakfast; 2 weetabix, 200ml unsweetened soy milk
Snack 1; 6 mini banana pancakes
Snack 2; cheese string
Lunch; 50g porridge, 200ml unsweetened soy milk
Snack; boiled egg (post gym)
Snack; go ahead crispy slices
Dinner; varies between (all homemade by me) lentil dahls, omelettes, frittatas, spaghetti bolognese, chilli, risotto, pasta with sauce. All with large vegetable sides (1/2 plate of 3 or 4 types).
Snack; 100g 0% fat yogurt (usually greek but bought tried regular natural this week)
= ~1600 calories (dinner dependent)

I'm very happy eating pretty much the same thing day in day out - as long as I vary my dinner it makes my life easy! My weekends have more variation; usually I enjoy two bakery cookies, but once a month I treat myself to some Ben and Jerries! This last week was my birthday so I did go out to dinner and have a McFlurry, but I usually only eat out 4x per year. I dont eat much fruit as it burns my stomach, and I have IBD (waiting on more tests) which limits me to cooked veggies (no raw). Pastas and rice are whole wheat, porridge will soon have added oat and wheat bran (as soon as I've finished my current bag). I dont drink much water so dont log it, mainly tea or coffee (often decaff), and homemade (from herbal tea bags) iced tea with ~0 calories, so not logged.

Questions
- are my macros set ok for my lifestyle?
- does anything stick out in my journal that should be changed?
- are there more miracle foods I'm yet to learn of? (MFP forums got me onto greek yogurt, banana pancakes and cheese strings)!
- any tips on further improving my lifestyle or nutrition?

I'm struggling a lot at the moment with obsessive tendencies, and just want to get things right so that it all falls into place and becomes natural. I'm completely terrified of getting fat again.

Thanks!

TavistockToad

5 cardio sessions and 3 resistance sessions is not 'light active'.

amy_1987

No but I'm increasing my calories slowly and plan to up the setting to moderately active, I just didnt want to blimp by increasing my cals to ~1900 all in one go. Is that not an ok way to do it?

TavistockToad

if you have been eating 1600 and still losing then upping to 1900 wont suddenly make you gain.

amy_1987

My TDEE for moderate exercise is 1982, so I've set MFP to heavy exercise (which is the highest setting I can get) which gives me 1830 calories per day to maintain and will work towards that for now and re-assess further down the line.

TavistockToad

My TDEE for moderate exercise is 1982, so I've set MFP to heavy exercise (which is the highest setting I can get) which gives me 1830 calories per day to maintain and will work towards that for now and re-assess further down the line.

i'm confused, are you using MFP or TDEE? if you are using TDEE, manually change MFP cals to 1982?

amy_1987

I'm using MFP to track calories and nutrients, but using TDEE numbers. I didnt know I could manually change calorie goals, will do!