Critique My Diet?

merrycat

In spite of my best efforts I'm really fighting for every pound. For the last two weeks I've been gaining and losing the same couple of pounds. I'm going to try kicking up the exercise to twice a day, but I'd love some feedback on my diet. Thanks!

anacsitham5

You only have about 400 calories logged for the day. That isn't good at all. You need to get at least 1200 otherwise your body will go in starvation mode and start using your muscle for energy. Eat something!

bethdris

If that is really all your eating, thats a big part of your problem. It's not what your eating, its that your not eating enough.

merrycat

That's because I haven't had supper yet today. Most days I have much more - most days I'm fighting to stay under my calories.

putnam80

MFP sets a goal, you need to be around that every day. Preferable that you be right on or if you can do it, a few hundred calories under. Starvation does not lead to healthy living.

putnam80

That is another reason then. You really need to eat your biggest meal earlier in the day and cut down as the day goes on. Or at least split them evenly. You are looking at 1000 calorie dinner then after almost nothing all day. Your body has been starving to run all day and then you throw all that food in there. not great results

crystalinda

Looks like you're consuming the majority of your calories in the later part of the day (lunch and dinner). Your breakfasts for the few days I looked at seem to be fairly light. Try to switch it around so that you start off with a larger breakfast low in fat and high in protein, shoot for 300-400 calories. A bigger breakfast with more protein will make you feel fuller longer and will keep your body out of starvation mode. Also try to track your snacks separately to get a better idea how many calories each snack is. One day you had over 400 calories in snacks which could be an entire meal in itself, this is not an issue if you're very active and you're spreading the calories out throughout the day, but looking at the meals you had that day, I'm guessing that might not have been the case. Having the majority of your fats and sugars earlier in the day when you're likely more active will allow your body to break them down more easily as opposed to having heavier meals later in the day like at dinner when you're likely winding down and less active. If your caloric consumption remains the same and you just spread things out and cut down on the carbs and fat then you may notice it in your clothes before you see it on the scale.

TS65

I went back a few days. Why are your carbs set so high? Try setting your goals (custom) to 40/40/20 or 35/35/30 (Carb/Protein/Fat).

Other than that, it looks good. I'd just try to reel back in the carbs and get more protein.

Oh... and drink more water. :flowerforyou:

bmonahan115

from the few entries i've seen you def are making a great effort at healthier eating, and your protein choices are wonderful, but i wonder why you have such a HIGH carb intake? those carbs turn to sugars and fats in your body more often than not, i'd say try two weeks on a lower carb (100g/day) diet and see if that helps you begin to shed, if so maybe switching your diet goals to a 45/35/25 protein/carb/fat diet will be a better balance for you to loose weight but not shock your body or gain if you decide to switch back to so many (empty) carbs..and i say empty because veggies are great, and even having a little fruit is a great carb, but rices and grains tend to just turn to sugars with relativly low fiber content compared to their veggie buddies (hell even a cup of strawberries beats out a cup of rice, plus the antioxidents and vitamins!!) outside of a lil tuning on your carb intake though, you look like you're doing gret making good choices!! righ ton!

putnam80

That is another reason then. You really need to eat your biggest meal earlier in the day and cut down as the day goes on. Or at least split them evenly. You are looking at 1000 calorie dinner then after almost nothing all day. Your body has been starving to run all day and then you throw all that food in there. not great results

merrycat

Thanks for the feedback, everyone! I am never hungry in the mornings for some reason, but I will try and force myself to eat more for breakfast. To answer an previous poster's question I usually have my snacks at random times between meals as and when I get hungry. Perhaps eating larger breakfasts will cut down on my snacking.

About the carbs - I will try to cut back further. Somehow I always end up eating a lot more than I intended to. And last night I was up laste fighting the urge to pig out on dinner rolls. Can you be addicted to bread?

bmonahan115

Thanks for the feedback, everyone! I am never hungry in the mornings for some reason, but I will try and force myself to eat more for breakfast. To answer an previous poster's question I usually have my snacks at random times between meals as and when I get hungry. Perhaps eating larger breakfasts will cut down on my snacking.

Try calorie dense foods in the morning to help you bump up your intake in the mornings. some protein with avacado would keep you full longer and is super healthy fats for your brain, yay for being sharper earlier in the morning and yes you're right it will help with snacking!

krueandliz

Dr. Oz just did a segment on being addicted to carbs, check out his website and see if it fits you.

krueandliz

Dr. Oz just did a segment on being addicted to carbs, check out his website and see if it fits you.

ruststar

Before you worry about what combination of carbs, protein, and fat to eat, start small and simply change when you eat your calories throughout the day. If you change everything at once you won't know what exactly did the trick. As you eat breakfast in the morning more often you will adjust. I find I can't eat all that much early in the morning so I break down a full breakfast into two meals that I eat before 10 AM.

oravavaara

I have to correct the people on here saying to limit your carb intake. I'm majoring in nutrition, and all my professors and textbooks advise 45-55% of your calories a day to be from carbs. Carbs are really essential- they produce the energy currency of your body. Without them, your body will start producing toxic ketones or catabolizing muscle (including your heart).

But the other advice is in line with what I know. Eat early in the day, break your meals up into three or more groups, and eat at least 1200 calories. Also, build more muscle mass! Muscle burns calories just by existing. I'm not talking about becoming a body builder, just doing things like taking the stairs is a good start!

WifeMomDVM

I personally prefer the zone diet, 40/30/30. And as someone suggested - strength training will help tremendously. I cannot recommend the book, "The New Rules of Lifting for Women" by Lou Schuler enough. It is changing my life (and my body). It's about $10 on Amazon. Worth every penny!