Opening my diary and looking for advice

AnswerzPwease

Just curious what ways I can improve going forward. I weigh almost everything as long as I'm home at the time.

Just please make it constructive!

Thanks.

kgeyser

First thing I would recommend is cleaning up your entries. You have an entry for peanut butter sandwich - is that yours or did you find it on the site? If it was on the site, you have no idea what kind of bread or peanut butter was used, or how much - so that entry can't be trusted. You also have some "generic" entries which probably aren't right. This link is helpful with navigating the database: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1234699-logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide

You are low on protein. I would ditch the lean cuisine/healthy choice meals and eat real food. I see you have an entry from Wegman's - they sell individually packaged chicken breasts there. 3 oz cooked is 110 calories and 21g protein. You could precook some of those at the beginning of the week, take them for lunch with a salad or veggies, and have the same number of calories for lunch with a lot more protein. I cook a bunch at the beginning of the week and use them in salads, sandwiches, wraps, on their own, etc.

Do some comparison shopping for the foods you like. Your Wegman's greek yogurt at 4 oz is 80 cal and 10 g protein; my Fage 2% is 7 oz, 150 cal, and 20g protein. Sure, mine has fat and yours doesn't, but dietary fat is a good thing because it helps fill you up. You have plenty of calories available, so eat real versions of food, not low fat or low cal versions. Eating more protein and fat help you feel fuller longer.

AnswerzPwease

First thing I would recommend is cleaning up your entries. You have an entry for peanut butter sandwich - is that yours or did you find it on the site? If it was on the site, you have no idea what kind of bread or peanut butter was used, or how much - so that entry can't be trusted. You also have some "generic" entries which probably aren't right. This link is helpful with navigating the database: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1234699-logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide

You are low on protein. I would ditch the lean cuisine/healthy choice meals and eat real food. I see you have an entry from Wegman's - they sell individually packaged chicken breasts there. 3 oz cooked is 110 calories and 21g protein. You could precook some of those at the beginning of the week, take them for lunch with a salad or veggies, and have the same number of calories for lunch with a lot more protein. I cook a bunch at the beginning of the week and use them in salads, sandwiches, wraps, on their own, etc.

Do some comparison shopping for the foods you like. Your Wegman's greek yogurt at 4 oz is 80 cal and 10 g protein; my Fage 2% is 7 oz, 150 cal, and 20g protein. Sure, mine has fat and yours doesn't, but dietary fat is a good thing because it helps fill you up. You have plenty of calories available, so eat real versions of food, not low fat or low cal versions. Eating more protein and fat help you feel fuller longer.

Yeah it says PB Sandwhich but its really just PB. I double checked the C/F/Ca/P against whats on the jar. I've seen changed to a more descriptive match.

Which generic entries did you see? (so i can fix them). I try to match everything up to the label or the USDA before accepting!

Thanks for the recommendation on the Fage. I didn't purposely buy low fat - just what I saw on the shelf!

kgeyser

I think you had some generic entries for fruit. Finding the USDA entry can be a pain in the butt, and the ones that say USDA are not generally it. If you type "fruit name, raw" into the search, the USDA (non-asterisk) usually comes up first or close to the top.

twinskins

Well first off - the greek yogurt is a great choice! I've recently discovered Dannon Greek w/ Peaches and it has 12 grams of protein, which is great even for just a snack. I also tend to eat a lot of lean cuisines / smart ones meals at work during lunch time, because they are quick and easy. Every now and then I will have time to make a salad in the morning. I like the poster above's suggestion of buying chicken breasts and cooking them at the beginning of the week. I'm sure that would have a lot less sodium than the meals. I have learned recently that fast food (or any food dining out) is going to be extremely high in sodium, regardless of whether it is low in calories/fat. Even a chicken breast cooked at a restaurant is loaded with sodium. With that said, how much water are you getting in every day? I am awful at drinking my water, so I know how hard that is and the amount I'm supposed to get, I just don't see how that is humanly possible! lol I aim for 48-64 oz a day (6 - 8 cup glasses). I have found that using the Smart Water active bottle that holds almost 24 oz is a good measurement for my goal. I know if I drink two of those bottles per day, then I've met my personal goal of water consumption. Good luck! P.S. Peanut butter also has good fats in it - I hate how many calories there are though for 2 measly tbsps!