lowering triglycerides and getting to few calories

gordonlw

I know another "too few calories thread". I'm as surprised as anyone that I'm getting to few calories! More on that in a minute.

Lets start with me. I'm 38 yo male, 5'11 & was about 195 when I was tested a month ago. My triglycerides were 288, HDL 42, LDL 119, overall 219 (b/c of the tri's).

About 5 years ago I got tested for the first time. tri's then were 208 (I had drank the night before not knowing I shouldn't have). About a year and a half later I got tested again and they were in the 130's. I had very slightly watched what I ate and did not drink for a few days before. I was also about 20-25 pounds lighter back then. My wife got pregnant about three years ago and I gained 20 pounds right along with her putting me in the 190-195 range.

So needless to say 288 is much higher than where I was. This time I had the test at 9am. I fasted for 8 hours but now I read 10-12 hrs some places. Also around eleven the night before I at a number of oreo's we had left from playing santa. Normally I do not eat a lot of sweets and if I do it's not a large amount. I did not drink the night before but did two nights before.

I have read all over the net ways to lower triglycerides. I also went to a dietitian a few weeks ago. I did this because of the vast amount of different information I was finding!

I have the basics down,

Limit alcohol
loose weight
exercise
cut out added sugar
watch bad carbs, switch to 100% whole wheat/grains
eat more whole fruits and veggies

At the dietitian they weighed me while gripping handles on the scale measuring something (bmi, bmr??) and told me if sedentary I burn about 1750 calories or so and to shoot for 2000 calories a day. I find very different (higher) numbers when using the online calculators.

I have cut way down on beer going from 4-6+ most days to 1-2 most days. I switched to bud select or miller lite (around 99 calories and just over 3 grams of carbs).

I've started going to the gym more days than not doing about 25-35 mins of brisk walking on the treadmill. We also do easy to moderate hikes sometimes.

I've switched to all 100% whole grain carbs. examples are 100% ww bread, english muffins, pita etc

I'm eating more fruits and veggies, beans and healthy fats (all natural peanut butter, olive oil, cashews).

watching out for added sugar, hfcs, etc. I was having one maybe two sodas and day and now have none.

I started taking fish oil (and eating more fish).

I joined here (found the android app) and began watching portion size and counting calories.

I had read for high triglycerides to limit carbs (all "good" carbs now) to 150 grams (about 30% of my calories). I shoot for 30% (67 grams) from all fat ,7% (16 grams) from saturated, no more 35 grams of added sugar.

I love meat & fish so lean protein is not a problem but with fat at 30% and carbs at 30% it is next to impossible for me to get to the 200 grams of protein it says I need to reach my 2000 calorie a day goal. I was shocked at how few calories I'm getting! I'm not even taking into account the burned calories from exercise. I am adding the one or two beers and the fish oil though.

one problem I'm having is all the ways I know to add quick calories (nuts, peanut butter, cashews, avocados) also add a lot of fat and put me close to my fat limit for the day.

what I've now done is up my carbs to 175 grams a day. I've also upped some of my portions a tad. I mean 4oz of skinless chicken breast (or boneless pork chop) just isn't enough! this has made it a bit easier but I'm still having a hard time getting where I need to be in terms of calories.

So I'm looking for some advice here in regards to calories and the best approach for triglycerides. I'm usually coming 300-600 below my 2000 goal. I have already lost about 12 pounds but want to make sure I do this the right way and not drop too fast. my goal is about 165-170 or so.

in regards to triglycerides I feel I'm working in the right direction but need more options for sides with lunch & dinner that don't add a ton of carbs but have the calories I need. I eat plenty of veggies but they barely add any calories.

I also have a few questions in regard to added sugar vs natural sugar etc. On my diary any sugar is added to sugar. IE when I eat an apple for a snack it counts. I assume I need to deduct that from my added sugar count while also keeping track of fructose? also what about sugar in skim milk? it is the natural lactose but how to count it?

gordonlw

bump

also wondering if yellow grits are a good breakfast option. not a fan of oatmeal (when it's not loaded with sugar).

JosieRawr

It's easier if you open your diary to public so we can really see to give suggestions.

aceof89

I'm interested in following this. I too am 5'11", but am 45 years old and right now am down to 195 from 211 pounds. My Tri's were over 900 when 1st tested more than 2 years ago. Doc said I was off the chart. With medication and better diet my last test in March 2012 had my tri's at 197 with goal of getting under 150. As of the New Year I'm following the Dukan diet with my wife. I intend on getting tested again within the next few months. I'm not tracking to the detail that you are but MFP has really provided insight into what I'm taking in. I'm wishing you all the best in reaching your goals, and you are welcome to send me messages with any questions you may have. :happy:

gordonlw

It's easier if you open your diary to public so we can really see to give suggestions.

done. I forgot I set it that way. I'm still getting a feel of how to add things so realize it's not 100% accurate but it's a good ballpark. for example for yesterdays lunch and sundays dinner I list pork rib roast. what it was was pork stir fry I cut from the rib end of a whole boneless pork loan. so little things like that for me have been hard to figure out how to enter.

another thing I need to do is create my own recipes. for example when I make tuna salad I'm listing all the ingredients instead of just tuna salad. I want it to be accurate so i need to create my own and not use a "tuna salad" from the database.

also I show no dinner last night. well I was bad and had a couple slices of pizza. that is one thing that is gonna be tough and may need it's own thread in the motivation section I work two nights a week at a local independent pizza place (not in the database and no idea of the numbers). I go in at 5 and am there anywhere from nine to midnight. as hard as I try it is VERY hard not to eat pizza or other bad things while at work. any messed up/burnt pizza ends up on the table where I work so it's all literally sitting there like a buffet in front of me. this is due to health code. you can't eat in the klitchen so they move the food to the back area where us drivers are. the old me would have had more than I did but I still caved a had a couple slices. no meat just cheese, spinach & mushrooms.

lunch today I felt like I made a nice big salad with 4 oz of boneless skinless chicken tenders and veggies. I counted the oil I rubbed on the chicken and cooked in and it came to 426. breakfast was a serving of oatmeal with a 1/2 cup of strawberry's.at only 174.

dmkoenig

It sounds like you are serious about making big changes, keep up the great work! So I make no claims to be any expert in this stuff and can only offer my own personal experience with what I believed works well for me. Overall I am quite healthy for my age. I eat a lot of veggies, lean meat & fish, minimal fast food etc. but historically I enjoy eating a lot (both in quality, quantity, light alcohol (2-3 glasses/week) and certain things like cheese) and only in the past couple of months have made a concerted effort to track my caloric intake. Not competely there yet but working on it...

My cholesterol is pretty good but not outstanding, my weight okay but I can stand to lose 20 pounds easy. But my triglycerides have been in the 60-70 range for a few years now. The one thing I do a lot more than most of my peers in their mid-50's is that I exercise a lot (6-10 hrs/week), mostly fairly intense aerobic activity like biking, swimming, some group aerobic/strength classes at the gym, some running and a couple of tri's a year. I also take my Siberian husky on long brisk walks etc. which I don't include in my exercise log. So for me, I believe my low triglercides are a result of volume and intensity of exercise more so than the other factors like diet and so forth.

Therefore, if I would recommend something based on this one data point, I would say continue to stay the course on your good eating habits that you are developing, but if you really want to knock down your triglyceride count really target your exercise regimen, both in amount and intensity...and if you really like beer then drink something better tasting than Bud Lite or Miller, it'll be worth the extra 100 calories or so (assuming you can limit quantity)...

richardheath

Sounds like you are doing everything right! They will come down with time given your new diet plus exercise.

I'm male, 5"11, 45 years old. I was about 210 lbs a year ago, and down to 168, where I've been maintaining, since June 2012. My cholesterol was high back in June (222), but with some changes to my diet like you have made, it was 195 about 6 months later. I've just an apt with my primary care physician for another follow up.

As for the specifics: you can easily increase your protein intake (and calories) by adding a whey protein shake. As for the carbs - only excess carbs are going to be stored as triglycerides. If you are at a calorie deficit, then there aren't going to be any extras for the body to store. And don't worry too much about the fats either. Fat is not the devil is was thought to be a few years ago. It doesn't contribute to high cholesterol and is a good way of getting an energy rich food source.

And don't cut out good beer! Just limit what you drink. Life is too short for crappy beer!