Meal suggestions...

leslie_shoemaker

I am losing this battle with my weight loss. Can someone please help me with my meal plans? I do better having 2-3 simple meal options for every meal and just repeating the same things over and over. But, I don't really know where to even begin. I lost a lot of weight several years ago but now I'm almost to my heaviest weight again.

TavistockToad

Just eat a bit less of what you eat now... to lose weight, you just need a calorie deficit.

KevHex

I know from reading lots of posts that many of the successful, long term MFP members, eat what they want/need and stay within the daily and/or week calorie goals set for them by MFP. I do the same and try and eat a balanced diet and I am steadily loosing weight. My diary is open.

It is all about CI vs Co. Just try and work the food you want in to the calorie goals you have set. I'm not sure if I have helped at all, good luck though, I know how hard it can be putting all the weight back on once you lose it. There will be someone along soon with some good advice, I am sure :-)

Old_Cat_Lady

And, to make things worse, weight loss is harder as you get older (I think). Focus on healthy and the log religiously and this will work. If you don't have a food scale, run to to the store and get one.

LisaMoxon155

I eat excalty what i ate before i started MFP BUT less of it. Thats it. That simple. Lost 2 stone or 28lbs doing just that

DX2JX2

Eat what you want. Just keep to your calorie targets. It might take a little bit of experimenting but you'll soon find foods that you can consistently go-to so as not to have to add up your calorie totals every single day. I originally intended to eat the same things I did before getting on the weight loss train (just less of it) but soon found that I naturally gravitated towards healthier options because they were more filling.

For example, my traditional day on a 1700 calorie per day plan is as follows. Like you, I don't mind eating the same things over and over again because it keeps tracking very simple. I grill all of my chicken and portion my oatmeal for the week on Sunday nights and prep my lunches for work the night before:

Oatmeal (1/2 cup dry) with 10 raisins, one banana, vanilla extract, and cinnamon): ~300 calories

Deli turkey or chicken breast (5 oz.) on whole wheat with two slices American cheese, lettuce, mustard, and pickles: ~600 calories

Apple or 15 almonds: ~100 calories

Grilled chicken breast (6-8 oz), 1 cup rice, vegetables of some sort: ~600 calories

1/2 cup cottage cheese with 1/4 cup blueberries (~125 calories).

On Sundays, I'll mix it up and have a 500-600 calorie protein/fat heavy brunch (lox w/cream cheese on wheat english muffin, or an egg sandwich) a 700-800 calorie dinner, an afternoon snack if needed (but usually not), and a small dessert.

deannalfisher

pick some proteins you like - my go-to are chicken, shrimp, pork, turkey

pick some carbs you like - my go-to are sweet potato, squash, white potato and asparagus

add some healthy fats or fun foods - I'm a total cheese addict, also avocado and don't forget any oil that you cook with

if I decide I want to try something new - I do a recipe search, build it into MFP and eat that for several days - right now, its Farro with Corn and Gouda in a risotto type format

kenyonhaff

For me it was more of figuring out what meals/snacks/desserts were keeping me from reaching goals. Plenty of foods I was already eating were just fine as is, and they made the cut...making sure of correct portion sizes of course.

Next, I would do my usual grocery shopping run but being more careful to check out calories and serving sizes and macros. Instead of the 140 calorie bread I would buy, I might check out one that is lower calorie, offers more protein or fiber, for instance. It takes more time at first, but I found some great products I'd overlooked before.

Once I was more aware of what I was eating, buying, and so on it becomes more and more habit. I typically check before eating or buying, even sometimes when eating out. In time, I just found more and more things that worked for me and change just emerges out of these little changes.

Also, filling out the diary, and checking calories and macros you can get insights on what your diet needs tweaking on. For example, I realized that I needed more protein and needed to reduce carbs and when I did I felt better and was less hungry.

But have some patience and be willing to try new things.

HeidiCooksSupper

Use the diary to consider and plan what to eat. For example, I put in the ingredients from a recipe and see how many calories it is. Then I work around that. If a recipe has more calories than I want to spend on that meal, I'll think of ways I might change the recipe but still make a good meal. For example, I'm going to make us potato salad for supper but potatoes are fairly calorie-dense. If I make the same salad but sub green beans for half the potatoes, I've reduced the calories and, some might argue, ended up with a more interesting potato salad.

Limiting calories does not mean making less interesting food. It just means making informed choices. So, for example, let's say I want to make a cherry-based dessert. I could make cherry pie which includes sugar and cornstarch in the filling and delightfully fatty pastry crust or I could make a cherry clafoutis, which is cherries baked in a lightly sweetened, eggy batter. A clafoutis is not only easier to make but is less calorie-dense.

Here's my recipe for clafoutis which is called a flaugnarde if fruits other than cherries are used. It's VERY simple but company-ready. https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/dessert/fruit-dessert/cherry-clafouti.html

DX2JX2

deannalfisher wrote: »

pick some proteins you like - my go-to are chicken, shrimp, pork, turkey

pick some carbs you like - my go-to are sweet potato, squash, white potato and asparagus

add some healthy fats or fun foods - I'm a total cheese addict, also avocado and don't forget any oil that you cook with

if I decide I want to try something new - I do a recipe search, build it into MFP and eat that for several days - right now, its Farro with Corn and Gouda in a risotto type format

Counting calories in farro is killing me. Did you happen to weigh cooked farro to see the conversion from dry? Do you know how much 1/2 cup dry weighs when cooked?

deannalfisher

I didn't sorry! mostly because I cooked it like a risotto, so it had veggies all mixed in - but probably similar to rice (would be my guess)

TeaBea

leslie_shoemaker wrote: »

I am losing this battle with my weight loss. Can someone please help me with my meal plans? I do better having 2-3 simple meal options for every meal and just repeating the same things over and over. But, I don't really know where to even begin. I lost a lot of weight several years ago but now I'm almost to my heaviest weight again.

I've lost and re-gained too. THIS time, I won't make any changes that I can't keep for a lifetime. I still eat the same basic meals, but I have tweaked recipes a bit (more veggies, less fat, less sugar). Fewer snacks AND tracking portions....no more mindless eating. More movement. If that means a pedometer, you will burn more calories. Look for some kind of lasting change.

I rotate 3 breakfasts....2% Greek yogurt "parfait" with FiberOne or Kashi GoLean cereal. You can add frozen raspberries and chopped nuts if desired. Protein, fiber and fat.

Or crockpot oatmeal made with 1% milk, cinnamon, and add 1/2 mashed banana before reheating. Protein, fiber and fat.

Or homemade egg McMuffins...bake eggs 9 eggs+9 egg whites in a 9" square pan. Cut into nine servings. Freeze eggs and Canadian bacon in zip-locks. In the a.m. re-heat eggs while toasting a high fiber English muffin, add a slice of 2% cheese. Protein, fiber and fat.

Lunch is leftovers or salads, or sandwiches or soup, or cottage cheese. I pack veggies and fruit so I'm not tempted by the vending machine.

Dinner......start with protien and build from there.

jgnatca

Breakfast - refrigerator oatmeal alternated with crustless quiche.

Lunch - leftovers in a wrap or topping a romaine salad. Use a little vinaigrette to get your healthy oils. Finish with an apple or berries.

Dinner - chicken, fish, tofu or beef alternated. Mix and match your starchy carb (3/4 cup) pasta, rice, potato, or roasted sweet potato. Fill up half your plate with more salad or other vegetables (cucumber sticks with ranch, green beans, carrot).

Change your sauces for variety. There's butter chicken, spaghetti, BBQ, white sauce with Parmesan or bacon, or Teriyaki.

There.

Lounmoun

leslie_shoemaker wrote: »

I am losing this battle with my weight loss. Can someone please help me with my meal plans? I do better having 2-3 simple meal options for every meal and just repeating the same things over and over. But, I don't really know where to even begin. I lost a lot of weight several years ago but now I'm almost to my heaviest weight again.

I would suggest looking at what you are like to eat and reduce portion sizes to fit your goals, learn to make lower calorie versions, add more low calorie vegetables to your day. Try prelogging your food so you can see how things fit and make better choices.
You want to eat in a way you can sustain long term even after you get to your goal weight.

You can search the internet for sample meal plans for your calorie goal.