So now I have to.....

sunshine79

......... improve what I eat.

Further to my earlier post (it was called what's going on here) re: doing 'everything right' and still not losing I've been advised that I need to eat more. I think I eat quite sensibly at present but I'm a very fussy eater. :grumble:

Please take a look at my diary and give your comments/suggestions for improvements to my food. I am particularly interested in hearing from those who specialise in nutrition but all comments are most welcome.

Can anyone advise me of a realistic/sensible food plan I could follow to help me lose these last 9lbs?

FYI: I don't eat milk, eggs, cheese, yogurt, nuts, raisins .

Newfiedan

FYI: I don't eat milk, eggs, cheese, yogurt, nuts, raisins .

With this in mind you do have a lack of breakfasts in there, they are small at best and severely lacking in protein when you do eat them, that in itself will kill off your metabolic rate. Eating breakfast within 30 mins of waking consisting of nothing less than 30% protein will get you off on a wickedly better foot than you have been doing. Protein shakes with fruit in them, perhaps a serving of wild salmon. I also see a severe lack of good fats in there, so given that you do not like the above noted things try a good omega 3 supplement with meals like natures bounty.

MrsCon40

It does look like you do eat sensibly - but you need to eat more. If you're picky perhaps you could try to increase some of your portion sizes to what you're already eating.

Good luck!

sunshine79

@ Newfiedan - Because I don't really like breakfast foods I try to go for some sort of sandwich (with brown bread) or multiseed pitta with prawns or tuna or turkey bacon (grilled of course) to get my protein in????????

Newfiedan

yes i saw that but the protein content is still rather low, those are great choices just try for some more of them. Some days I see you hit 111g/day total which was awesome, but I would try to get almost double that protein that your averages show in at breakfast. On the other side of it workout wise look into HIIT (high intensity interval training) and MRT (metabolic resistance training). Both are great workouts, but you will need to fuel the body to endure and recover from these workouts.

robin52077

FYI: I don't eat milk, eggs, cheese, yogurt, nuts, raisins .

awww MAN! That's half my diet!!!!
I don't know what I'd do without eggs milk yogurt nuts and raisins! (not a big cheese fan though)

Oatmeal? Real oats, not instant packets... you can add cinnamon, or fruit (I was gonna say raisins! lol)

Peanut butter? Or is that included in "no nuts"?

One thing I really like is the Zone Perfect bars. They're balanced nutrition, great on the go, and so delicious they're like a "guilt free candy bar". Clif bars too...

Maybe add a bigger variety of veggies?

Ever try spaghetti squash? yummy topped with tomato sauce or even stir fried veggies and meat...

I can't think of any good ideas right now!!

Also what efconroy said "If you're picky perhaps you could try to increase some of your portion sizes to what you're already eating." Just eat bigger servings of whatever you currently eat!

sunshine79

@ Newfiedan - Great, you are such a wealth of knowledge, I can't thank you enough for all of your responses today. So, starting tomorrow morning (as it's already 7:30pm here) I will:

- double my breakfast protein intake.
- increase my water to 2.5 litres per day
- eat back my exercise cals.

Just one more thing - My personal trainer has me doing tabata intervals on the treadmil or rower (super intense) in place of HIIT so I think I have that side of things covered (I've done the research around tabata intervals & used them last year to drop some major weight before a medical condition caused me to gain 10lbs!!!!!).

My current work out schedule is

mon - aerobics high impact (45 mins) & spin 45 mins
Tues - Personal training
Wed - weights/resistance class
Thurs - boxing
Sat - bootcamp (starting this week)
Sun - body pump

I also do tabata intervals every other day before my classes. Question(s)

Is this too much (I'm thinking it is)?

I'm thinking of cutting back on the exercise by focusing on 3 x weights sessions (one of those being a PT session) incorporating interval training on the same day as my weights and just resting on the other days????

sunshine79

@ robin - thanks for your response. I can just about stomach oats so I'll try to incorporate them into my breakfasts and I will try to increase my portion sizes, but I feel full quite quickly so I'll have to so it slowly. Thanks again - you're a star :flowerforyou:

robin52077

My current work out schedule is

mon - aerobics high impact (45 mins) & spin 45 mins
Tues - Personal training
Wed - weights/resistance class
Thurs - boxing
Sat - bootcamp (starting this week)
Sun - body pump

I also do tabata intervals every other day before my classes. Question(s)

Is this too much (I'm thinking it is)?

I'm thinking of cutting back on the exercise by focusing on 3 x weights sessions (one of those being a PT session) incorporating interval training on the same day as my weights and just resting on the other days????

I normally wouldn't tell someone to exercise LESS, but most people don't do as much as you!:laugh:
I am thinking though, since you are having trouble getting enough calories in, that you WILL have to cut down the cardio in order to lower the amount of calories you DO have to eat. That way you can more easily eat enough?
Add more weight training. Slow, controlled heavy weight training, not circuit training interspersed with cardio, or those classes with the high fast reps with low weights... slow heavy lifting will focus on each muscle group, strengthening your body and increasing your metabolism without causing large calorie burns that need to be eaten back. Just make sure you get some protein in right after the session.

sunshine79

@ robin - cool. My personal trainer does proper weight training with me, (heavy, challenging weights with fewer reps but it always takes me to failure on each muscle group), so I'll stick with that. It's a shame I have to cut down but I think you're right. For me my work outs are part of my social life as I have lots of friends at the gym but losing body is very important to me so I will try cutting down starting from now.

Thanks again :drinker: :flowerforyou:

Newfiedan

A lack of at least 1 recovery day a week will mean that you really need to amp up the diet side of things and eat like an olympic athlete as even they need rest days.