Help! can not shake this weight off :-(...Must lose 40kg.

therealhyper

Hello.
Really need some support advice to get me on track. ..very depressing at moment with my current start / stop diet and training.

I used to be a lean 80kg with a strict diet and regular training.

Sadly I am currently around 120k and would like to shake the weight off.and be healthy again.

I have no issues with the training side I could tweak it here and there...generally I train very hard but my diet is where I need support on...

I train approx 5/6 days a week with running/cardio and some strength training.

My diet usually lasts a few weeks ...I can not seem to stick to a strict diet or stop the evening snacks / take outs.

I know I need to stick to the diet but am finding it extremely difficult.

My typical diet is as per below (when I stick to it).

I would like to restart my diet in the next few days but can anyone kind enough give me some pointers....how do I curb cravings / late eating / snacking and stick to the diet.
Or is my diet wrong? What foods should I add or remove.

The daily calorie intake is 1610
Thank.you.

Breakfast
Porridge / Museli
Medium Latte (Skinny where possible) with sweetner

Snack through the day
Fruit Banana /Apple
Upto 2 further coffes (machine or costa type..skinny)

Lunch
Grilled food ie Grilled chicken salad / Tuna salad / Chicke Painni wholemeal
Low calorie/zero calorie drink/water
Fruit - Banana /Apple

Dinner
Either diet protein shake
And / or grilled chicken steak / salad
Tea with sweetner

Lleldiranne

I think the key is going to be finding a balance between this diet you listed and your normal eating habits. There is no need to make it all so different (unless you genuinely enjoy those kinds of foods all the time, but I suspect you wouldn't have such a hard time sticking to it if that was true).

Maybe start with logging your normal (non-"diet") eating for a week or two. Then look at it to see where you can make changes to get your calories where they need to be - for example, cutting down on a few serving sizes or eliminating one un-needed thing. Once you've got calories under control, you can make a few more changes to start meeting your necessary macros. There is no need to completely eliminate every treat or food you enjoy. There are scores of people on this website who've lost a lot of weight while still enjoying their favorite foods in moderation.

For more details, check out this link:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1175494-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants?hl=sexypants

psych101

There aren't any specific meals or foods that you should be eating. I think you're falling off the wagon after a couple of weeks because you're cutting your calories too low to support your lifestyle and/or you're drinking all your calories.

Read the sexypants thread - start over. :flowerforyou:

wonderwoman234

There aren't any specific meals or foods that you should be eating. I think you're falling off the wagon after a couple of weeks because you're cutting your calories too low to support your lifestyle and/or you're drinking all your calories.

Read the sexypants thread - start over. :flowerforyou:

This! You will have more success cutting calories moderately so you can stick with it. I am losing weight without ever feeling deprived or starving.

Yagisama

Come up with a plan that you can do for the long term. For example, I know I could never continue low carbs or other restrictive diets for a long duration, so I never attempted them.

I like to keep it simple. I just use the MFP calorie goals. I try to stay under the calorie goals and try to meet the minimum fat and protein intake. I don't worry too much about carbs, though most of the time its under my current limit of 190g. Keep in mind these limits will need to be re-evaluated as you lose weight.

My main protein sources are chicken, turkey, almonds, cashewes, peanut butter.

Lastly, there are no "crap" foods. You can lose weight if you meet the caloric and malnutrition goals each day.

markja

So, do you carb much? Starchy food is the foundation of your diet. Cut back on the starches, add in some vegetables and you'll see improvement. My body seems to respond better to less starch, this is only my experience. A little starch is cool but, I know that I could never lose weight eating that much starch.

Springfield1970

Slow down, get your numbers right.

Eat enough protein (.8g per lb), fat, and fill the rest up with the right kinds of carbs (high quantity and high GI around workouts, lower for the rest of the time.)

Don't have a high deficit and intense sport combo. You'll screw up your body. Work out your burns and go for -15/20% cal deficit at the MOST.

If I were you I'd stop eating at 6/7pm. Eat enough in the day and ban takeouts. You're binging in the evening coz you're restricting too much.

Also, after a smaller dinner, busy yourself somehow, have a hot drink, and a small bowl of Greek yoghurt, almonds and honey. It's saved me from overeating time and time again. It's my signal to my body that EATING HAS FINISHED FOR THE DAY OK?

Ps it's not WHAT you eat that works around here, it's the numbers to a greater extent. You'll have to start logging. Also, although you could cut 500 a day, you're looking at something quite a lot bigger than 1610.

therealhyper

Thanks all...Appreicate the rresponse and suggestions will take these on board.

Any food suggestion types to support a 5+ days of intense training?

The app has suggested a 1610 calorie per day diet. ..is this realistic? What sort of calorie intake should I try and work with?

manicautumn

Try replacing the latte with plain coffee or espresso some days. Gives you some wiggle room if you want dessert or need a snack later in the day while still allowing you to get the caffeine.

It's a lot easier to stick to a plan when you're able to eat your favourite foods while doing it.

MelodyandBarbells

Thanks all...Appreicate the rresponse and suggestions will take these on board.

Any food suggestion types to support a 5+ days of intense training?

The app has suggested a 1610 calorie per day diet. ..is this realistic? What sort of calorie intake should I try and work with?

I plugged in your numbers to the app. If you change the 2 lb per week goal to 1.5 lb per week, just doing that gives you about 300 more calories per day, and is still a great loss rate. Additionally this number does not even take into account exercise , so if you're training you very well could still lose the 2 lb per week. If you still feel deprived you can change again by adding a 100 calories per day until you can actually stick with it

Here is the "sexypants" thread referenced earlier:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

It will be hard to suggest specific food types because we can't know what satisfies you. Many of us just try to hit our calorie numbers while also getting enough protein (aka hitting your macro nutrient targets). The link should explain some of this to you a bit better.

Linnaea27

Thanks all...Appreicate the rresponse and suggestions will take these on board.

Any food suggestion types to support a 5+ days of intense training?

The app has suggested a 1610 calorie per day diet. ..is this realistic? What sort of calorie intake should I try and work with?

I think if you want to try and lose 2 lb a week, and you exercise as much as you do, a 1610 cal/day diet is very realistic. Exercising will add calories for you to eat back, so you'll no longer need to restrict your intake as much as you do when you're "successfully dieting."

One very important point I want to make is: try eating high-protein, low-sugar foods for breakfast, morning snack, and lunch. Doing that, I found, is they key to not being hungry and overeating, for me. If I have sugar and carbs in any significant amount in the first half of the day, I will be hungry constantly for the rest of the day and will usually end up wanting even more sugar and carbs.

I often eat Greek yogurt with whey protein and some berries and coconut or hemp seeds for breakfast. Try something like that; whenver I eat oatmeal or cereal of some kind for breakfast I'm hungry an hour later.