Meal Plans

guido2222

I am a very basic food eater - chicken; steak; ground beef; oatmeal; salads; subway...

I am at a plateau - keep losing and gaining the same lb or 2 over the last 3 weeks.

I feel my excercising is good. But I have tendencies to fall off track w/my food cause I don't have a plan to go by.

Does anyone have a really basic food plan that they can recommend - I'm good at sticking to things like that... when I'm told if you eat this for b/fast - this for lunch and this for dinner - w/your excercising you'll surely see a difference. COOL I can do that.

HELP...

sonjavon

Well... the difference between this and a "diet" is that you need to learn to make your own meal plan. No one can recommend that to you because you have a different caloric recommendation than someone else. Look back at your food diary and check your sodium... how often are you over on your sodium (my guess is the days that you eat Subway) - do those days correlate with your 2lb gain?

My meal planning starts with dinner... I decide what I'm making for dinner and plug that into my day (in the morning or night before). Then I look at my remaining calories and decide what to eat for the remainder of the day and plug that in to my diary. The only time I have ever been taken by surprise is if we decide later in the day to go out to eat... but that rarely happens - so when it does, it's not a big deal.

I suggest looking for great recipes that you love eating and creating your own meal plan. What kind of veggie do you like? Fruits? Grains? I'll be glad to offer suggestions on meal ideas!

holmesis

There are SO MANY meal plans out there. I have so many ideas that I can share with you. I had to learn how to eat properly and did this by reading The Eat-Clean Diet by Tosca Reno. Other avenues I used were Body-for-LIFE by Bill Phillips. (Checkout their websites!) Just to get you started check out this meal plan an old workout buddy sent to me. She's in the best shape . . . and body . . . of her life! Good luck.

Meal Plan
**** Here are a few key items to remember when eating clean
 Eat every 2.5 to 3 hours
 Every meal should consist of the essential macro nutrients which are carbs, fats, and protein
 Bring all your meals with you so you’re less likely to snack on junk especially while at work
 Drinks tons of water!!! Aim for at least 3 L a day or more
 Get a daily dose of Amino Acids such as Glutamine and BCAAs for post work out recovery
 Stick to protein shakes with low calories…Syntha 6 or Dessert by BSN are both great, taste great and contain those essential Amino Acids as well


Meal 1: (typically breakfast)
6 egg whites (they taste good with some salsa)
½ cup of Oats
½ cup of berries (blueberries are the best and are loaded with antioxidants)

Meal 2: (between breakfast and lunch)
10 Almonds/ or peanut butter
Apple
Fat free yogurt

Meal 3: (lunch)
Lean meat (tuna, salmon, chicken breast, etc)
2 servings of veggies
½ baked sweet potato or ½ cup of brown rice
10 Almonds

Meal 4:
Lean meat
Veggies (carrots or celery)

Meal 5: (typically pre work out depending on your schedule)
Protein shake
1 serving of fruit

Meal 6: (post workout)
Protein shake
1 serving of fruit
Amino Acids (Glutamine and BCAAs)

Meal 7: (typically dinner)
Lean meat
2 serving of veggies

Meal 8: (right before bed depending on your schedule)
Peanut butter
Low fat yogurt or cottage cheese


 Here are some examples of things you can plug into this meal plan

Protein: Chicken, lean stake, turkey, egg whites, protein shakes, veal, salmon, tuna, white fish, low fat cottage cheese

Carbohydrates: brown ride, whole meal pancakes, whole grain pasta, sweet potatoes/yams, apples, plain muesli, oatmeal/rolled oats, pumpkin

Fats: fish oil, olive oil, avocado, almonds, natural peanut butter

Veggies: Broccoli, mushrooms, tomatoes, lettuce (spinach is best), cabbage, cucumber, cauliflower, green beans, peas, zucchini

guido2222

I hear ya - but my biggest thing is I find that if I follow a strict plan than I do better - if I leave it up to myself than I never stay on track. My husband and kids don't follow my steps and they eat whatever and whenever they want so I try to stay away from the pizza an fried chicken stuff they are having so I felt a Turkey sub 6in w/ all the veggies was a better choice... No?

guido2222

Holmesis - ty - interesting I'll check the sites out and see what I can come up with. I followed a Protien Shake diet back in Sept for 12 weeks and lost 23lbs in that 12 weeks but found it hard to supplement shakes for meals (b/fast-lunch) I want to try and eat normal foods and still lose weight - but Im finding it hard to do.

sonjavon

I hear ya - but my biggest thing is I find that if I follow a strict plan than I do better - if I leave it up to myself than I never stay on track. My husband and kids don't follow my steps and they eat whatever and whenever they want so I try to stay away from the pizza an fried chicken stuff they are having so I felt a Turkey sub 6in w/ all the veggies was a better choice... No?

But a strict plan is not something that you can carry forward for the rest of your life. That's my concern. I've done a lot of diets... but the problem is when you fall off that plan you will gain again because you haven't learned to make real-life choices. I have lost and regained so much weight in my life... I dieted my way to almost 300 lbs!

When my husband and son order pizza I make a pizza of my own... I've been using a wheat tortilla, sweet baby rays bbq sauce, 2 oz shredded chicken, mozzarella, green peppers and onion. It's really good and no where near as many calories as ordered pizza. But if you want pizza - eat a piece and have a large salad with it. I eat a salad with every dinner. And a piece of fruit with every meal.

guido2222

Sonjavon - you are so right - thank you so much for sharing... I have to start making life changes...

godblessourhome

you are welcome to check out my food blog for supper meal ideas. take what works for you and scrap the rest.

tutujoli

Hi! I'm not as new here as I look (I lost my old log-in stuff..lol) What I've done is simplified it for myself.

Make a list of all of your normal breakfast choices and a calorie count for each one. Do the same for lunch, dinner, and snacks.

Now you have a mix and match meal plan! Start out with what you know (what you already have) and then you can start adding in new recipes.

i.e.

My list, starting out, looked like this:
Breakfast:
Yogurt with 1 cup multigrain cheerios - 290 Cals
Two eggs over easy, 1 Slice white toast, 1 pat butter. - 240 cal
etc etc etc

As I hunt out new recipes, I add them to my list. Each night I make out my "meal plan" for the next day (or sometimes the next several days) . I just pull out my list and plug in my foods.

cjm0014

great, legitimate question to ask, with some really helpful answers! thanks guys :flowerforyou:

Mamakatspokane

Look around at people who have public food diaries. Look see what works for you and what won't. I'm not a clean eater and eat more processed food than I should (we are workign on it) but my diary is open to friends so just friend me if you want to take a look, I was at 1200 now I'm at 1400 a day.
Good luck

aunienue

What helps me a lot is that I have a basket in the fridge. I prepare food for the basket. Bagged cucumber, pepper etc. Fruit in containers such as strawberries, grapes etc. Turkey pepperettes individually wrapped in foil, cheese strings etc. As a family, we eat healthier because when you go to put your lunch together it is often just a grab and go. Work preparing but worth it in the end.