I cannot seem to stay within my calorie goal

MJDuley

Do you like walking? It's always a start.

I have the same problem with having to weigh things after they are cooked though - but there are entries in the database for cooked food. For pasta though, it's always inaccurate, so if you can, make your own serving in another pot (I know... it's a pain, but for me it's the best way of making sure I'm logging properly). For what it's worth, 2oz of dry pasta is about a cup cooked (although obviously not very accurate).

Also buy a food scale. It's super easy, you just put it under your plate and tare it as you add more food and write down the numbers, this way no need to estimate or dirty measuring cups (you can't really measure solids in volume units anyway).

I do like walking. I used to walk a lot, but lately it's been so hot here (supposed to be 110 tomorrow) that unless I go out at 5am I get hot and light-headed to quick. I'm seriously out of shape! Until recently I was on my way to work by 5am, but that changes starting this next week (well, except for tomorrow and Wednesday, when I have to be at work by 4:45am and then drive a school bus all day; the other days I don't work). I'm planning to start walking this week. Today I woke up feeling sick to my stomach, which is why I didn't walk today.

I used to go hiking a lot when I lived at my old house (we moved 2 years ago), but now I'm half an hour away from the nearest hiking trails, so I can't justify making that drive every day (not to mention I won't have a car during the week). But I was thinking maybe every Saturday morning starting in July (I work every Saturday in June) I could head to the trails.

I need to talk to my dr. though, because when I do walk my hands and fingers swell up really badly and painfully after about 20 minutes.

MJDuley

Dont be too hard on yourself, it's all a learning process, it sounds like everyone has offered some really good advice and you have a great attitude that will get you through the long haul :flowerforyou:

Thanks! I did start drinking a lot more water in the past few days, so that's a start, right? And last night's snack was a lot healthier (and of smaller quantity) than usual. I know I need to focus on baby steps and not try to do too much at once.

I also have a HUGE weakness for hot chocolate, which I know is a big part of why I go over my sugar limit each day. My goal is to use up the current package (maybe about a week's worth left?) and then quit cold turkey. It's getting to hot for a hot drink anyway, lol!

Phrick

I cook for 4 also and I weigh portions prior to cooking (as well as after). I weigh 4 servings of pasta (dry), then cook, weigh the final result, divide by 4 and then I know how much of the final product is my portion.. Or, since most of the "official MFP" entries for meats are for RAW portions (official entries are the ones in the database WITHOUT an asterisk *) I will weigh out my correct raw portion, mark it with a toothpick, then cook everyone's food together. It takes maybe a minute longer in the preparation process but it's so worth it. My scale cost $20 at Walmart and is possibly the best food management tool I've purchased in this process.

nyiballs

When I started, I was a 250 lb man with calorie intake of 3000 on an average day. Now an average day for me is roughly 1350.

Tips I learned:

-you mentioned your frosting binge... THROW AWAY all frosting, chips, frozen fried crap, etc. 90% of what you eat should be fresh. The exception would be lean cuisine style meals.
- lunch is a glorified snack. Do a lean cuisine or soup or something, but try to keep lunch at, or below 300 calories.
- low sugar oatmeal, and egg whites are your new best friends for breakfast. You can have a bowl of oatmeal AND scrambled egg whites for under 200 calories. Throw in some strawberry, banana, apples, or grapes, and you have a filling and yummy 300 cal breakfast every day.
- dinner is lean protein and two veggies. I try to avoid pasta entirely now, and rice is brown rice in small amounts. 8oz is your biggest protein size now.
- remove butter and oil from everything. PAM it is.
- oh dessert... Sigh... Fruits are desserts too. Otherwise, SMALL portions of fat free yogurt, puddings, jello, etc. No more cakes, donuts, pies, pastries, frosting, cookies, etc.

What I've learned on my journey is that these changes are about long term success and emotional well being.

Think about eating that frosting... For the five minutes you were doing that, you may have felt pretty good, but days later I bet there is still guilt and shame. So was the five minutes worth of comfort worth the days of regret and guilt? That's what I think when I now see a plate of donuts or cake in the break room... Sure, I will enjoy it for a moment, but I will spend the rest of the day feeling miserable about it. Think of that misery when looking at the junk, and it will become a lot easier to realize, you don't need the food to be happy... It's the food that makes it harder to be happy.

serindipte

I cook for 4 also and I weigh portions prior to cooking (as well as after). I weigh 4 servings of pasta (dry), then cook, weigh the final result, divide by 4 and then I know how much of the final product is my portion.. Or, since most of the "official MFP" entries for meats are for RAW portions (official entries are the ones in the database WITHOUT an asterisk *) I will weigh out my correct raw portion, mark it with a toothpick, then cook everyone's food together. It takes maybe a minute longer in the preparation process but it's so worth it. My scale cost $20 at Walmart and is possibly the best food management tool I've purchased in this process.

This is how I do it, as well. Pre-weigh, re-weigh, then I math it.

alisonmarytuck

I would suggest cutting the portions of what you eat, rather than banning any foods per se. Quite quickly you find that you cant eat as much as you used to as your body adapts. I tend to opt fir smaller portions of e erything, mainly healthy with a few less healthy foods, and the wight is dropping steadily

Iwishyouwell

Nutritionally dense, high volume, relatively low calorie foods are your best friend when trying to keep satisfied, while staying within your limits.

Most fruits, vegetables, seafood, and some lean meats are great for filling you up while helping you stick to your caloric goals. If you're having trouble consuming 1800 calories, a pretty high limit for a woman losing weight, you're likely eating way too many foods that aren't giving you much bulk and volume for your caloric buck.

Satiation depends on the person. I know that if my diet is comprised foundationally of veggies, meats, fruits, and healthy fats, I'm satiated far longer than if I'm consuming mostly high carbohydrate foods like breads, sugary desserts, pasta, etc. That might keep others satisfied,but not me. Know what keeps you feeling satiated and concentrate largely on those foods. It doesn't mean you have to cut anything out, but keep those foods that don't do much for your satisfaction, or are triggers for overeating, to a limit.

_Zardoz_

When I started, I was a 250 lb man with calorie intake of 3000 on an average day. Now an average day for me is roughly 1350.

That is not a healthy amount for any man

-you mentioned your frosting binge... THROW AWAY all frosting, chips, frozen fried crap, etc. 90% of what you eat should be fresh. The exception would be lean cuisine style meals.

Don't throw away any food. if you don't want it donate it. People struggle to feed their families throwing good food away is just selfish

- lunch is a glorified snack. Do a lean cuisine or soup or something, but try to keep lunch at, or below 300 calories.

That may work for you but the OP is eating a very reasonable 1800 calories and can easily eat far more for lunch which is less likely to leave her craving other foods

- low sugar oatmeal, and egg whites are your new best friends for breakfast. You can have a bowl of oatmeal AND scrambled egg whites for under 200 calories. Throw in some strawberry, banana, apples, or grapes, and you have a filling and yummy 300 cal breakfast every day.

Personally my breakfasts hit around 500 calories a 200 or 300 calorie breakfast wouldn't keep most people going. As for low sugar stuff personally I'd rather just go for normal oats. Egg whites well I don't eat eggs but if your going to eat them eat the whole thing there's a lot of nutrition in the yolks

- dinner is lean protein and two veggies. I try to avoid pasta entirely now, and rice is brown rice in small amounts. 8oz is your biggest protein size now.

Sorry that just sounds mind numbingly boring. you don't need to deprive yourself of interesting foods

- remove butter and oil from everything. PAM it is.

Err If you eat dairy keep the butter and some oil the correct fats are good for you just reduce the amount to reduce calories

No more cakes, donuts, pies, pastries, frosting, cookies, etc.

Err No just no. You can have anything in moderation. I seem to have done pretty well still having cakes and pastries and whatever I want in moderation.

What I've learned on my journey is that these changes are about long term success and emotional well being.

Great that it works for you but for the majority of people plans like yours are why people fail

Think about eating that frosting... For the five minutes you were doing that, you may have felt pretty good, but days later I bet there is still guilt and shame. So was the five minutes worth of comfort worth the days of regret and guilt? That's what I think when I now see a plate of donuts or cake in the break room... Sure, I will enjoy it for a moment, but I will spend the rest of the day feeling miserable about it. Think of that misery when looking at the junk, and it will become a lot easier to realize, you don't need the food to be happy... It's the food that makes it harder to be happy.

I think this is part of the problem people are seeing food as bad or evil. Food is just well food it is neither good nor evil.

Eat a balanced diet with a good mix of food groups control your portion sizes and include cakes and ice cream if you wish in moderation. The idea is not to make yourself suffer but to live and find a way that will enable you to eat like this long term

Good Luck OP

Edited to sort out quotes

serindipte

Think about eating that frosting... For the five minutes you were doing that, you may have felt pretty good, but days later I bet there is still guilt and shame. So was the five minutes worth of comfort worth the days of regret and guilt? That's what I think when I now see a plate of donuts or cake in the break room... Sure, I will enjoy it for a moment, but I will spend the rest of the day feeling miserable about it. Think of that misery when looking at the junk, and it will become a lot easier to realize, you don't need the food to be happy... It's the food that makes it harder to be happy.

When I see that donut or cake, I consider my over all day. I know that I can have that cake if I eat fish and veggies for dinner... then I enjoy without a hint of guilt. There's no need to throw everything out, avoid it, or feel guilty about it. Eat mindfully, balanced, and happily.

nyiballs

I'm surprised I'm being judged for sharing my experiences so harshly... Everyone has their own view.

I know many people who say, "I can have that cake as long as I only have X for dinner and exercise for Y more minutes..."

Here is my own problem there and why I do take a different tact. For me, and we are all different, I would have to consider myself a food addict. Some may scoff, but having lived how I have, I cannot describe it any other way. So, having that piece of cake would be like telling the heroin addict to just have a little heroin today as long as they don't have any tomorrow. I know that piece of cake will lead to a second piece of cake, and then a larger piece of cake the next day, etc.

The willpower for me is easier to just not eat the cake as opposed to eating in "moderation."

I'm hopeful that at some point in my life I will be able to simply eat the one piece of cake every 10 days, or the one bowl of ice cream, or the one donut out of the box. But I have found for me, and for many others who are starting out, it is sometimes better to simply remove the temptation entirely as opposed to attempt to moderate something g that you have done to excess for years upon years.

nyiballs

Also, I question how one can state my average intake of 1350 is not healthy without any context.

I sit in an office for 8 hours a day, and sit in a car for 3 hours a day. My average burn without exercise is roughly 1800. I'm still in a hardcore weight loss mode. A 400 calorie deficit is working quite well.

MJDuley

Thanks for all the tips everyone! Next time I'm at Walmart I will be looking for that scale!

I know my #1 biggest problem is not quantity as far as portion sizes per meal. I've never been a big eater. My portion sizes are smaller than the usual recommended amount. People always pick on me for how little I eat (when I was younger, before having 4 kids, people used to ask me if I was anorexic). I am a bad junk food eater. Chocolate is my nemesis. I can literally sit and go through half a bag of Hershey's Hugs in one evening if I let myself. Thankfully, I really don't let myself very often.

The frosting was leftover from a cake my daughter had to make for culinary class. I rarely eat cake, frosting, pies, ice cream, etc. Only at birthday parties. I had a small piece of birthday cake at my nephew's party last week and I couldn't even finish it. It's candy and cookies that get me. The longest I ever went without chocolate was 3 weeks and I was a raving lunatic by the end. My husband literally ran to our local convenience store, brought home a candy bar and threw it at me from across the room!

Even when I try to eat healthy I end up picking the wrong things, not because I crave junk, but because I'm just ignorant (but learning!). Like with the pasta, I just recorded it wrong because I was measuring quantity after cooking, not weight before cooking. So I think I'm eating healthy, then I look at the label and find out it has all kinds of unexpected garbage in it.

I'm also a "grazer" and I've found that when I don't carefully track what I eat, I end up eating more throughout the day than I realize. I know I need to really get diligent about tracking every single day. Which should get easier now that I'm only working part-time through the summer and then I'll be a stay at home mom.

I'm also drinking more water lately, something I never used to do.

And I was a good girl and had a salad for lunch. I measured everything very carefully, used low-fat dressing and just a small amount of cheese.

missiontofitness

I'm surprised I'm being judged for sharing my experiences so harshly... Everyone has their own view.

I know many people who say, "I can have that cake as long as I only have X for dinner and exercise for Y more minutes..."

Here is my own problem there and why I do take a different tact. For me, and we are all different, I would have to consider myself a food addict. Some may scoff, but having lived how I have, I cannot describe it any other way. So, having that piece of cake would be like telling the heroin addict to just have a little heroin today as long as they don't have any tomorrow. I know that piece of cake will lead to a second piece of cake, and then a larger piece of cake the next day, etc.

The willpower for me is easier to just not eat the cake as opposed to eating in "moderation."

I'm hopeful that at some point in my life I will be able to simply eat the one piece of cake every 10 days, or the one bowl of ice cream, or the one donut out of the box. But I have found for me, and for many others who are starting out, it is sometimes better to simply remove the temptation entirely as opposed to attempt to moderate something g that you have done to excess for years upon years.

You are demonizing food, encouraging the OP to completely cut out perfectly fine foods, and your delivery did not help at all.

There is no need for the OP to cut out butter, pasta, ect. There is no need for anyone to do that. It works for you, but don't deliver it as if the OP needs to do exactly what you are doing. You can make suggestions without making it sound like your way is right.

missiontofitness

Thanks for all the tips everyone! Next time I'm at Walmart I will be looking for that scale!

I know my #1 biggest problem is not quantity as far as portion sizes per meal. I've never been a big eater. My portion sizes are smaller than the usual recommended amount. People always pick on me for how little I eat (when I was younger, before having 4 kids, people used to ask me if I was anorexic). I am a bad junk food eater. Chocolate is my nemesis. I can literally sit and go through half a bag of Hershey's Hugs in one evening if I let myself. Thankfully, I really don't let myself very often.

The frosting was leftover from a cake my daughter had to make for culinary class. I rarely eat cake, frosting, pies, ice cream, etc. Only at birthday parties. I had a small piece of birthday cake at my nephew's party last week and I couldn't even finish it. It's candy and cookies that get me. The longest I ever went without chocolate was 3 weeks and I was a raving lunatic by the end. My husband literally ran to our local convenience store, brought home a candy bar and threw it at me from across the room!

Even when I try to eat healthy I end up picking the wrong things, not because I crave junk, but because I'm just ignorant (but learning!). Like with the pasta, I just recorded it wrong because I was measuring quantity after cooking, not weight before cooking. So I think I'm eating healthy, then I look at the label and find out it has all kinds of unexpected garbage in it.

I'm also a "grazer" and I've found that when I don't carefully track what I eat, I end up eating more throughout the day than I realize. I know I need to really get diligent about tracking every single day. Which should get easier now that I'm only working part-time through the summer and then I'll be a stay at home mom.

I'm also drinking more water lately, something I never used to do.

And I was a good girl and had a salad for lunch. I measured everything very carefully, used low-fat dressing and just a small amount of cheese.

I got my food scale at Walmart. I really like the Taylor "Biggest Loser" one. You can stick your container on the scale, and then turn it on, and it automatically adds the tare so all you need to do is add your items! It was only $24.

As a tip, if you find yourself overeating certain items, or grazing, one suggestion I've made to people is pre-portioning everything out in little Ziploc bags, and writing down the macros (calories, fat ,sat fat, protein, ect) on them if you have to. If you find yourself going for a second bag, seeing the macros can help you see how much you're eating, and contemplate if you can fit it into your macros for the day. Takes time, but being conscientious of portion sizes goes a long way!

I used to have the same problem with chocolate. I could definitely eat a ton of it. But now I can grab 4-5 Hershey kisses (instead of the 9 serving size) and be satisfied with that amount...and even have the bag near me and not be tempted at all.

Feel free to add me if you want!

ImaWaterBender

Hi there. I swim every day. Wow, what a burn that is! I'm burning 900-1200 calories for an hour in the pool. I swim well now, but I only learned a year ago.

I also drink Metamucil twice a day as a fiber supplement. Fills me up and helps with my IBS and diverticulosis. Let me know if you need friends for support. Drop me a message.

DCarter1701

I do like walking. I used to walk a lot, but lately it's been so hot here (supposed to be 110 tomorrow) that unless I go out at 5am I get hot and light-headed to quick. I'm seriously out of shape! Until recently I was on my way to work by 5am, but that changes starting this next week (well, except for tomorrow and Wednesday, when I have to be at work by 4:45am and then drive a school bus all day; the other days I don't work). I'm planning to start walking this week. Today I woke up feeling sick to my stomach, which is why I didn't walk today.

I used to go hiking a lot when I lived at my old house (we moved 2 years ago), but now I'm half an hour away from the nearest hiking trails, so I can't justify making that drive every day (not to mention I won't have a car during the week). But I was thinking maybe every Saturday morning starting in July (I work every Saturday in June) I could head to the trails.

I need to talk to my dr. though, because when I do walk my hands and fingers swell up really badly and painfully after about 20 minutes.

You may want to check out Leslie Sansone's walking workout DVDs. They've helped me lose 28 pounds since November. I'm a SAHM and can't always get out for a walk, unless i go late at night after my youngest is in bed. So during naptime I put in a DVD and get a workout in. I started with the Walk Away the Pounds 1 Mile, worked up to the 3 Mile. I now alternate them depending on my schedule--the 1 Mile takes 20 minutes, the 3 Mile takes 45 minutes. I like that I can do them indoors, out of the heat (it gets hot here in the summers and I react badly to extreme heat).

Try drinking plenty of water before, during, and after your workout, maybe that will help with the swelling?

ChristinWrites

Also, I question how one can state my average intake of 1350 is not healthy without any context.

I sit in an office for 8 hours a day, and sit in a car for 3 hours a day. My average burn without exercise is roughly 1800. I'm still in a hardcore weight loss mode. A 400 calorie deficit is working quite well.

I am a 5'2 40 year old woman who works a desk job. I exercise 30 - 40 minutes on average per day - nothing too exhausting - I burn about 3-400 with exercise. My TDEE is 1900 - 2000 on a light day, more like 2200 when I workout harder (I have a BodyMedia armband that tells me what I burn)

If you are a male, you are larger than me most likely, so I have a hard time believing that you would only burn 1800 total calories per day with exercise unless you are extremely sedentary even outside of work. I'm not saying it to be judgmental or harsh, just that there is no way I would only eat 1350 per day at my size and age, when I can eat more and still lose. Something seems off to me with your numbers also.

tryett

Is there a mall nearby you can walk at when it's hot out?

jltheis7

Nyiballs, your tips are exactly what the research into food addiction recommends for food addicts. As not everyone on MFP is a food addict, some will scoff at what you posted. One of the important concepts I've learned in the last year and a half is to "protect my program", even going so far as to tell people "My doctor advises me to not discuss my weight-loss program as it can trigger my addiction issues." For truly genuinely supportive people, I recommend they research food addiction. For people wanting advice, I urge them to speak to their doctor because the source of their weight issues may not have anything in common with mine thus what they need to address will be different. And MFP has members with very different experiences with food and exercise not to mention different communication styles. As long as your doctor has no concerns for your health, continue with what fits you. That is my advice to OP, try different interventions to see what works; if it doesn't work, try something else. Best of luck!

nyiballs

TY j.

And what I would say to the OP and everyone else for that matter, is that there are literally hundreds of ways to achieve your goals of a healthy lifestyle and weight loss. People sharing their experiences should help give others insights into different options, strategies, challenges, etc. I would never tell someone it's my way or the highway... Far from it.
I hope the OP can learn something from my specific experiences.