What diet do you recommend that isn't so expensive

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  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
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    I recommend forking out the cash for a decent food scale, then cook and eat regular food in proper portions, weighing and measuring whenever you're dining at home. :smile: Accurate logging & consumption of foods you plan to stick with for the rest of your life is the best diet - especially if you plan out menus ahead of time and shop for what's in season and on sale.
  • lifeskittles
    lifeskittles Posts: 438 Member
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    If you MUST do the meals...Lean cuisine and Healthy choice meals are almost the exact same thing to those more expensive meal plans
  • sweetnsassy4evr
    sweetnsassy4evr Posts: 7 Member
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    Try to eat within 45 minutes of waking up and eat every 2.5 to 3 hours. You don't have to eat big portions or specific foods but keep track of calories and try to get lots of fresh fruit and veggies and some protein. A can of drained tuna with pepper is a great snack with lots of protein and only 100 calories and it's cheap. If you cut down on the snacks like candy and chips you won't be as hungry and won't crave as much. But be sure to have a little sweet something now and then so you don't feel the need to binge. I find that apples and pickles help me if my sweet tooth is starting to act up. If you eat every 2.5 to 3 hours (before you get really hungry) you won't get to the point where it costs a fortune for one meal because you want everything in the store. Good luck!
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 17,959 Member
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    On Cambridge I was allowed nothing but there shakes and soups was hard going but done the job.

    If it had "done the job" you wouldn't be here.

    IMO you need a fundamental rethink of what you're doing.

    QFT - I don't understand how people can gain all their weight back after a crash diet and still say the diet worked. If it didn't set you up with the tools you needed to maintain, it didn't work.

    MFP is free. You can eat what you want within your limits which means you can make it very financially viable by sourcing food that is in season, on sale, or generally cheap in any event. You will learn about food and nutrition and what works for you and in turn you will learn the tools to keep the weight off.
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,598 Member
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    Instead of doing a diet that has a name like Cambridge or South Beach and all that, make up your own meal plan by selecting high nutrient low calorie foods of types that you like and cooking from scratch. Track the calories on here so that you eat the right amount. Measure and weigh things so that you know what you are getting. It's cheap to get a food scale on Amazon.com for example. The cheapest way to eat is to prepare all your own food from scratch and stay away from prepackaged processed items, or these diets that always call for things no one can afford. Chicken is cheap and good for you. Get chicken breasts, remove the skin, eat 4 oz portions. Get fresh or frozen vegetables; pay attention to specials and coupons that your store may have. Apples and bananas are cheap and low cal and good for you. Bake potatoes and have a small one or half a large one, seasoned with salt and spices not butter. Eggs are nutritious, cheap, and low calorie. Greek yogurt is good and doesn't cost a fortune, again compare brands and use coupons. I bake my own whole wheat bread rolls. cheap and better for you and each roll is 170 calories. The way to eat the right proportions of food types without doing a lot of complicated analysis is to do the My Plate method. 1/4 of your plate is protein, 4 ounces (meat, fish, or eggs), 1/4 is starch, half a cup (potato, rice, corn, Lima beans etc) and half is either all nonstarchy veg, or half nonstarchy veg and half fruit. Like say a cup of green beans and a big slice of cantaloupe.

    I use coupons, store cards, etc to make things cheaper. If the store coupon says "$1 off any frozen food" then that includes good stuff like frozen vegetables, it doesn't have to be junk. There are many legitimate sites for downloading and printing coupons. Red Plum, coupons.com and your store site itself.
  • kaseyr1505
    kaseyr1505 Posts: 624 Member
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    I'm on the eat what I want, in a smaller portion diet. It's worked well so far!
  • gilmore606
    gilmore606 Posts: 45 Member
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    bro you need that cabbage soup diet works every time and cabbage is way cheap
  • Icandoityayme
    Icandoityayme Posts: 312 Member
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    I do the eat what you want as long as you stay in your calorie and macro goals and exercise diet. Works for me. I refuse to spend money on fads.
  • gilmore606
    gilmore606 Posts: 45 Member
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    bro don't listen to these haters talkin about a lifestyle change and healthy choices what you need is a magic bullet and cabbage soup is the weight assassinating fully automatic battle rifle of magic diets take it from me peace out
  • Wenchiness
    Wenchiness Posts: 126 Member
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    Don't diet. No no no! Eat what you want within your calorie guide and do it forever. Most people regain if they diet, change habits instead.
  • cincysweetheart
    cincysweetheart Posts: 892 Member
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    Eat whatever you want (just at a calorie deficit, MFP is free and can help you out with that.). I suggest healthy, whole foods because it'll improve your health and you'll feel more satisfied than if you were to say...eat McDonalds all the time. (Although mcD's can still be part of the diet on ocassion.) Shop sales and use coupons. Fresh fruits and veggies in season. Move more.

    It's the diet nobody wants to hear, but it will work and can be kept up long term, which is the key to makng sure you don't gain it back.
  • amykuh
    amykuh Posts: 27 Member
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    xx
  • MyOwnSunshine
    MyOwnSunshine Posts: 1,312 Member
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    I'd recommend a website called "MyFitnessPal" that let's you track your calories and exercise for free. I've heard good things about it. :tongue:
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
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    Stop paying to lose weight! It is so not necessary!

    Eat less food. Right there you save money. :) People are always saying that eating healthy food is much more expensive, but it isn't. I saw a dramatic decrease in my food expenditures when I switched. I don't even know why people say that. To excuse bad eating habits? I just don't know. But you can eat well for less, no doubt.

    Walking is free. So are jumping Jacks, dancing, stomach crunches and push-ups.

    A gym membership is nice and some are pretty cheap, but you can lose weight without one,

    Paying for diets - why? If you're determined to lose, you will! You needn't give anyone any money. If you aren't determined to lose, you could spend a million dollars and it won't help. The thing that works is YOU. Save that money for new clothes. :)
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    Stop paying to lose weight! It is so not necessary!

    For once, I agree with you. All the way through the new clothes.

    It really is so much more simple (and free) than people want to make it.
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
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    You can lose weight eating ramen all day (a very cheap US food). It's about how much you eat that determines how much you weigh. The best, cheapest diet, involves buying a food scale and using it to weigh and log food that you 1. Can afford 2. foresee yourself eating for the rest of your life.

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