stuck in a rut- need help asap

Itscrunchtime

Hello friends,

I've been on myfitnesspal for a long time it seems. I first started using it as a daily guide when I was trying to lose weight after my second child: 4 years ago. I got down to the size I wanted and then I was ready for another child. Well, here I am with an 8 month old and still carrying baby weight. I thought it'd be much easier than this but here's what it boils down to. I'm 160 and 5'3" tall. I want to get to 125-130ish or a size 6-8, whichever comes first. My problem is that I eat too much. I do really well most days but when night time hits I binge/overeat whatever you call it. I know I need to stop but I need help and encouragement. I've been 160 since the day I left the hospital 8 months ago....and I'd really like to lose 5 pounds this month. This is what I need from you. I need you to give me your best 400-500 calorie meal ideas you can. They need to be simple as I will probably have to cook something different for my kids and husband- but I'm ok with that for now because I have a goal to keep! Thank you all and I look forward to getting some positive results! I got down to 140 just before I got pregnant so I know I can do it again.
Suzie

06MustangGT

To make it easier for people to help you maybe include what you want your meals to consist of (nutrient wise). Are you looking for high protien low carb? low protien low carb? ect. Any food allergies?

4lafz

The easiest and fastest is to grill chicken or fish (kids like halibut and mahi mahi) with your favorite seasoning. You can grill or roast veggies as well - I use garlic to season and add a teasp of pecorino romano with they come off grill/out of oven. Get yourelf a nice grill pan for inclement weather. I also bake the halibut or mahi mahi with a little dressing (low cal italian or the Litehouse Tangy citrus orange) and a sprinkle of panko breadcrumbs. Grilled chicken and turkey bugers are great and fast too. Good luck!

Cokamo

A favorite quick meal for us is tacos...use 96/4 lean ground beef, hard taco shells, 2% cheese and some salsa and you've got a great meal...2 tacos for around 350-400.

Also, you can use lean ground beef to make a meat sauce. I use Hunt's no sugar added sauce. Meat sauce over a cup of paste for another 350 cal meal.

Another I like is boca burgers...don't know if you've tried them, but if you put a slice of 2% cheese on it and use a Sandwich thin as your bun, and add lay's light chips on the side, you have another low cal but tasty meal.

I don't usually good separate meals for me and my famiy, but I will try to cook healthier over all and plan my portion ahead of time.

You can do this.

Womona

Are you nursing? If so, you need an additional 500 cals/day above what you should be eating. I found I didn't lose any weight while I was nursing (then again I wasn't exercising or watching what I ate, so take that with a grain of salt!)

Sounds like you're doing well all day, then pigging out when the kids are put to bed? Could you be stress eating (gee, young children and an infant? What stress??? haha!) I find when I want to eat something at night after dinner, I either go with a cup of tea with honey, or something that takes to work to eat, such as shelled sunflower seeds. It satisfies that feeling of having something in your mouth but you're not scarfing down food.

Also, are you exercising?

Either way, it is very hard to lose those pounds, but as you have already experienced, they do come off. No reason they can't come off again. You can do this, and you have my support!!!!! Good luck!!!!

P.S. You asked for recipies. haha! I hate cooking, but fish with tons of veggies can usually keep you at 400 cals for dinner. Also, I love the Dr. Praeger California veggie burgers. You can get them at Costco. Stick a slice of Jarlsburg Lite on them and you have a quick, low calorie lunch.

shabydonner

If you haven't already checked it out you need to go to SkinnyTaste.com. I really can't say enough for that site. Gina comes up with the best balance between taste and health reducing the need to make two separate meals (just another stress we don't need) and she has all the nutrition facts on there for ya. I still typically do the recipe builder on here as I may use something slightly different or leave something out, or most commonly get a different number of servings. Just as an example of a great family friendly recipe try her Lighter baked Mac and Cheese. You get a full cup for a serving and it is just under 300 calories so you could easily still have room for some grilled chicken or whatever lean meat you prefer. My whole family (to be fair that's my parents, no kids) loved it. She also has a hot spinach dip and a hot artichoke dip that I combined into one and it was as good as any I have ever had in a restaurant. It makes a great snack for the evenings and is loaded with veggies. You can even use carrot or some other veggie to dip in it to make it even better. The hardest part of that one is sticking to one serving. So far I have loved everything I have made and there are so many options it will keep you busy for a while.