Critique My Food Diary

StatHaldol

Nutrition buffs, please critique my food diary over the past few days and tell me what you would change. I'm 56 years old with no health problems and I'm about 60 lbs overweight. Too many carbs? I love fruit and it may be to my detriment.

Thanks in advance!

" Fat Mike" in Louisiana

juicemoogan

You have to change the setting to public first, or no one can see it except your friends..

StatHaldol

Thank you juicemoogan!! I thought I changed it but I had not!

heyghoge

gosh, you're male, right? i'd say right off the bat that 1200 calories looks really low - i think the general rule is 1200 for women and 1600 for males, bare minimum. a quick look at the past week shows you didn't even net that 1200. i feel like what you're eating is pretty good, but yikes, please eat a little more, unless this is under doctor supervision over time your body's gonna hold on to every calorie.

Sidesteal

Unless you are not properly tracking/measuring/counting calories, your intake is very low. You could probably double it and still lose at a good pace.

snakesandladders2

Hi StatHaldol!

Not sure I'm a "nutrition buff" but I do like to think about food and nutrition. Here is my critique:

Good:
- Low saturated fat
- You're clearly trying to get the protein in
- You're eating vegetables
- I didn't see any junk when I skimmed through your diary
- Mmm tasty! hehe

Suggestions:
- I think you need to eat more! You appear to be eating 900 - 1200 a day, which is not really enough. Try putting the MFP goal to losing 1 lbs a week and follow the calorie count it suggests to you. Then use the extra calories for healthy snacks.

- Try to eat a few meals spaced throughout the day - I eat 6 x a day. Eating several times a day will keep your metabolism going and make sure you never go hungry! I usually try to make sure that each snack has a source of protein in it.

- You said you like fruit! Nothing wrong with fruit, but you might want to eat a little bit less fruit, as it's very sugary. You're eating a lot of simple sugar and very little healthy complex carbs, like brown rice, wholegrain pasta, wholemeal bread, etc. Try incorporating some wholewheat stuff as it contains useful minerals and vitamins and fibre. A serving of wholemeal pasta / rice is between 30g - 50g dry.

- Very important: try to eat more "good oils": oily fish, nuts, avocados, olive oil etc. It's high in calories, but actually it will speed up fat loss (if you have it in moderation, obviously!), by signalling to your body that it's not going to starve. It also helps your body absorb protein and lowers the bad kind of cholesterol. And it's tasty. Win! I saw that you had some salmon, that's a good source!

- Basically try to think of a balanced diet, and all the different macro and micro nutrients you want, and aim for that. I think you're doing pretty well. Definitely eat more though, or your metabolism will grind to a halt, particularly if you're not a teenager anymore...it's cruel that as we age, our metabolism slows anyway, so you want to avoid slowing it down even further, if you can.


Hope this helps!

PS: I really want some pineapple now, having read your diary!

carrie_eggo

Your calories are way too low. How did you get 1200 for a goal?

kris4chloe

i agree you need to eat more. Choices look good, but looks like alot of either your lunch or dinner is just fruit. Are you juicing for one of those meals?

cantobean

Like others said, I think you need to eat more. It seems counter-intuitive but it can actually help you lose weight more effectively.

Also, the fruit is great, but do you feel full after eating a meal of just fruit? I'd be starving, and then after the sugar crash, really crabby! I like to try to get some protein and/or fat with every meal. I love carbs, including fruit and breads and such, but I always try to add a little cheese or meat or yogurt to keep me full longer.

jabberwockgee

You can set your goal to whatever you'd like (although it forces you to be at least 1200).

I also set mine to 1200, although I generally eat more than that.

JacksMom12

I'd die on that little amount of calories? What's your BMR? That's the amount of calories a day you need just to have proper organ function. It has to be way way higher than what you're eating. I eat AND lose on way more food than that and I'm only a 5'4 119 lb female, with a BMR of only 1200. Eating around 1000 calories a day as a male your size will be a sure fire way to have no energy and burn out pretty quickly! EAT!

Jenne1979

You should also be tracking your sugar intake. Too much sugar is not going to help, even if it comes from a natural source like fruit why not try one fruit for lunch with some cottage cheese or to accompany a bowl of soup? You should also aim to drink over the recommended 8 cups of water a day. Good luck!

StatHaldol

You guys are awesome!!! Thanks for the input!! My estimated BMR is: 1,680 calories/day from the "TOOLS" section here on the site. I kept my daily goal at 1200 calories a day because I have been on a 1200 calorie day diet back in high school (when I weighed as much as I do now) and lost a fair amount of weight. It was a diet my orthopedic surgeon had me on after a football injury.

I feel much better this week than before I started the diet.

Please continue to critique! I've learned a lot here!

Fat Mike in Louisiana