Anyone want to be honest with me?

fvolley

I didn't realize my diary was that BAD. boo.

fvolley

Instead of buying cook books, invest in a book about basic nutrition.

I know basic nutrition. If I am correct your here too so you must have gotten overweight by eating unhealthy foods as well. Just because you know nutrition doesn't mean you always follow it.

jadethief

You might want to find those people that have successfully lost weight and take a peek at their diaries. It will probably give you lots of good ideas for meals that you can fix,

lalaglo30

I took a quick peek at your diary too over the last few days. Do you not eat meat? I don't see any eggs or lean meat. Those are important protein sources that can boost your metabolism. Do you like fish? Tuna or any other seafood? My suggestion would be more lean meat and eggs and better protein choices and more veggies which are full of fiber.

fvolley

I'll be honest....

It took you YEARS to get to this weight. In the process you picked up bad habits both in eating and thinking.

It will take you YEARS to correct this situation.

IF you have the fortitude to stick it out.

And that's a big if.

Let me tell you the truth that few of us want to talk about. There is good stuff in being fat. The fat is a protection against many issues and it becomes a convenient scape goat for our problems. And losing that protection can be very scary.

I'm saying this as someone who has gone from about 260 to 165 and is now bouncing (annoyingly so) between 165 and 170. Yes, I was pissed when I saw the scale hit 170 yesterday and moody and depressed and all of those negative emotions.

Then it sort of hit me. This is never going to be over. I will always watch the scale and what I eat.

It TRULY is a lifestyle change.

Deep breath, lots of them, and hold on for a great ride that will be every bit as exciting as a roller coaster.

But at the end. you will be healthy - that's the prize

Good luck sweetie

I am in it for the long haul. That's not the problem. I just grew up in a household that didn't eat well and it passed over into my adulthood. I started learning and reading about it all years ago. I still have a lot to learn that's why I asked for help. =]

giggitygoo

Thank you for mentioning that I do have SOME veggies and fruits in there. Should I be eating more fruits and veggies then in place of the kasha and cheese sticks?

That would be a really solid start.

Try snacks like: apple and peanut butter, carrots and hummus, avocado on toast (my fav), greek yogurt + muesli, etc

Lean meats are great for satiety and of course, protein: Chicken breast, eggs (mmm dinner omelet), Turkey burgers, fish, and lean beef

Legumes: Black beans, lentils, chickpeas

PS: do you follow any blogs? I have hundreds of healthy food blogs (and many indulgent ones too) in my google reader. It really helps with the healthy food inspiration.

Calliope610

Ok, fine, I don't know about basic nutrition, but look at my diary (it's open, I have nothing to hide). It contains a lot more than kashi and cheese.

fvolley

You might want to find those people that have successfully lost weight and take a peek at their diaries. It will probably give you lots of good ideas for meals that you can fix,

What a great idea!

rob1976

I reviewed your diary. I saw a couple of apples and bananas, some strawberries and a serving of carrots. Saw lots of string cheese and Kashi. Where are your vegetables, lean meats, chicken, eggs?

I heard meat was BAD. So I cut it out. But this is why I wanted people to look at my diary. I need HELP.

So I should be eating like what chicken breasts?

I bet the person that told you that meat is bad was a vegetarian. Chicken breasts are good, as are lean cuts of beef, fish, and occasionally pork. There's a reason why meat & beans have a place on the Food Pyramid.

I eat a cheese stick daily, but it's my guilty pleasure. I am from Wisconsin and I get headaches if I don't get my daily dose of cheese.

bcattoes

I have been doing this a lot longer than a week, I just started on here a week ago.

I need to eat more well balanced meals. Time to go to Barnes and Noble and buy some recipe books. This is exactly what I wanted though because I grew up in a house where fast food was dinner every night. So to me the way my diary looks IS healthy. That''s why I needed some more advanced people to slap me around a bit and tell me what's up!

dont waste money on cookbooks that may or may not have what you want ive done this. go to the search field here and search there are plenty of links and other goodies to help!

The internet is a great resource for recipes, espeically if money is tight, but there is nothing wrong with having a few good cookbooks around. I love mine and use them often.

meshashesha2012

what's wrong with cookbooks? i personally like them because i like having glossy photos and i hate having random sheets of paper floating around and there's no way i'm fooling with a smartphone or ipad while im chopping.

TEAM COOKBOOKS!


in any case, OP i agree with what most people have said. you have to give it time. i know with me i dont start seeing results until 4-6 weeks into it . like others have said this is a lifestyle change, not a race.

oi think you're making this way more difficult than it needs to be, this isn't rocket science. stop jumping on bandwagons of what's considered good or bad. good or bad is what you can live with and what's sustainable and what gets you the results that you want. if you like meat then eat it. the issues with it are more along the lines of HOW it's prepared and not the actual meat itself. eat fresh fruits and veggies. eat things that will keep your full. try to follow the macros of protein/carb/fat rations (40/30/30 is what i try to do ) and leave it at that. as long as stuff fits in your calorie goals and your macros then it's OK to eat.

again, relax and dont make this any more complicated than it need be.

i'm not sure if this has been answered because i havent read all responses, but what are you doing for exercise? i found that adding strength trainign was a great way to insure that what i was losing was pretty much only fat . so although i only lost 17 pound so far on the scale, that's resulted in me going from a size 22 to a size 14 :happy:

Krissy563

Just wanted to add:
1) Thank you for your openness to constructive criticism. A lot of people can't handle the truth. It's hard to change old habits, but that doesn't make it any less important to change.
2) Banish the word "diet." You are not on a diet. You are not dieting. You are striving to eat better today than you did yesterday.

fvolley

Ok, fine, I don't know about basic nutrition, but look at my diary (it's open, I have nothing to hide). It contains a lot more than kashi and cheese.

Didn't say you DIDN'T know basic nutrition. Just said you got here the same way we all did. By overeating the wrong foods and not watching your weight. You shouldn't judge so harshly. I am quite a bit younger than you and I have a lot to learn. But I do know basic nutrition, just not how to implement it properly. AND I WILL look at your diary thank you for offering.

fvolley

Just wanted to add:
1) Thank you for your openness to constructive criticism. A lot of people can't handle the truth. It's hard to change old habits, but that doesn't make it any less important to change.
2) Banish the word "diet." You are not on a diet. You are not dieting. You are striving to eat better today than you did yesterday.

"DIET" is just something I say. I know this is my new life.

Me48Plus2

It always amazes me that people say you need to eat back the calories you burn through exercise. Really people ?? Then why do it ? You need a calorie deficit to lose weight, plain and simple. Eat the calories you've alotted and the ones you burn through exercise should be excess stored fat.

fvolley

Right now I am just walking outside for exercise. I do have Jillian Michaels body revolution that I am going to start up too.

amymrls

I only step on the scale like 1 time a month maybe. Keep it up and be nice to yourself

now_or_never13

I reviewed your diary. I saw a couple of apples and bananas, some strawberries and a serving of carrots. Saw lots of string cheese and Kashi. Where are your vegetables, lean meats, chicken, eggs?

I heard meat was BAD. So I cut it out. But this is why I wanted people to look at my diary. I need HELP.

So I should be eating like what chicken breasts?

I'm not sure where you heard it but meat isn't bad. Nothing is bad unless you have an intolerance to a certain food or nutrient in foods. Everything is part of a proper diet.

All meats are good in the right quantities. Chicken and turkery are very lean meats. Bake them in the oven without the skin (or bake it with the skin on but than take the skin off before you eat it). Bake a ton of it at a time. Than you can slice up some for sandwiches or wraps. Chop some up for salads, stir frys, etc. Use ground turkey or ground chicken for burgers, meatballs, etc. Or use lean ground beef.

One day during the week make a HUGE salad and put it in the fridge. Than you can grab some to eat.This would give you a quick and healthy alternative so you don't grab a bar, cheese string or rice cakes. Add some of that chicken or turkey and you've got a great meal. Add that salad to wraps and sandwiches. Make homemade chicken fingers. I'm sure your daughter and fiancee would love them. Cut chicken breast into strips, coat with breadcrumbs than bake on a pan (put one of those cookie cooling racks on the pan and place chicken on top so the whole piece gets crispy). Cut up a potato, half a sweet potato and some carrots.. drizzle in olive oil and spices than bake those as well. It makes a not so healthy meal relatively healthy.

It seems like your daughter sometimes does eat healthy. So eat what she eats. If she is picky with veggies sneak them into sauces (put green peppers, carrots, onions, etc into a food processer and puree than add to spaghettie sauce.. might help soon to be hubby eat some veggies too).

Cook eggs in the morning... really quick to scramble some. I keep a huge container of baby spinach in the fridge. As the pan is heating up I grab a handful, chop and throw into the pan with some eggs and spices. Quick and healthy breakfast. Add some of the green pepper puree into it as well (I did that this morning and it's really good.. turns the eggs green but tell your daugther they are green eggs and ham!).

kelcro40

I started at 274 and have been loosing SLOWLY but consistently. 20 lbs since Jan 6. I am sure that isn't really super slow but I would like to loose 20 lbs a week- who the heck wouldn't? haa Patience. Just don't give up! Log in every day, log food honestly. And again, just don't give up!

fvolley

just peeked into your diary, it looks like you are living off cheese sticks and kashi...

I mean I don't even see any fruits and veggies, is this going to be sustainable as a lifestyle for you?

ITs NOT. That's why I asked. I realize now that my diet has been CRAP food. LoL. It did get me from 330 pounds to 220 though so I won't knock it too badly. But I guess it's time to change it up.

Me48Plus2

I should add that I take an awesome green powder vitamin supplement every day to be sure I get the proper nutrition. i don't think anyone can eat enough food to be sure they have all the vitamins and minerals they need - its just not possible. If you exercise, you especially need nutrition, or your body will not give up any stored fat.

TheCaren

This isn't a sprint we're on here folks. It's a marathon.

AmberLee2012

Make sure you track EVERYTHING...even small bites, drinks, and nibbles. Those all add up. You could be taking in quite a few more calories than you think. I even log my vitamins (they are 10 calories). I also don't think that things such as "light cleaning" should be counted as exercise. I see people do that on here a lot and that's fine for them, but it's just not something I do. Most people clean their house so unless I'm scrubbing walls and floors and working up a big sweat, than it's not going on my exercise log. I also put less time than I actually exercise on my log. For example, an hour of Zumba, I put 50 minutes instead of 60 to take into account the warm up and cool down. I believe that MFP overestimates calories burned. Just keep at it though. You are only in the first week so you have to give it some time. My diary is open. Feel free to add me

now_or_never13

It always amazes me that people say you need to eat back the calories you burn through exercise. Really people ?? Then why do it ? You need a calorie deficit to lose weight, plain and simple. Eat the calories you've alotted and the ones you burn through exercise should be excess stored fat.

When you follow the daily calorie goal MFP has set for you a deficit is already taken into account for weight loss. Eating exercise calories back is what the program is designed for you to do. Not eating them back causes too high of a deficit which will increase the amount of muscle you lose along the way.

The only time you wouldn't eat exercise calories back is if you are creating a deficit with exercise (as in eating your maintance calories).

The daily caloreis you are allotted already gives you a deficit to lose weight.

fvolley

I reviewed your diary. I saw a couple of apples and bananas, some strawberries and a serving of carrots. Saw lots of string cheese and Kashi. Where are your vegetables, lean meats, chicken, eggs?

I heard meat was BAD. So I cut it out. But this is why I wanted people to look at my diary. I need HELP.

So I should be eating like what chicken breasts?

I'm not sure where you heard it but meat isn't bad. Nothing is bad unless you have an intolerance to a certain food or nutrient in foods. Everything is part of a proper diet.

All meats are good in the right quantities. Chicken and turkery are very lean meats. Bake them in the oven without the skin (or bake it with the skin on but than take the skin off before you eat it). Bake a ton of it at a time. Than you can slice up some for sandwiches or wraps. Chop some up for salads, stir frys, etc. Use ground turkey or ground chicken for burgers, meatballs, etc. Or use lean ground beef.

One day during the week make a HUGE salad and put it in the fridge. Than you can grab some to eat.This would give you a quick and healthy alternative so you don't grab a bar, cheese string or rice cakes. Add some of that chicken or turkey and you've got a great meal. Add that salad to wraps and sandwiches. Make homemade chicken fingers. I'm sure your daughter and fiancee would love them. Cut chicken breast into strips, coat with breadcrumbs than bake on a pan (put one of those cookie cooling racks on the pan and place chicken on top so the whole piece gets crispy). Cut up a potato, half a sweet potato and some carrots.. drizzle in olive oil and spices than bake those as well. It makes a not so healthy meal relatively healthy.

It seems like your daughter sometimes does eat healthy. So eat what she eats. If she is picky with veggies sneak them into sauces (put green peppers, carrots, onions, etc into a food processer and puree than add to spaghettie sauce.. might help soon to be hubby eat some veggies too).

Cook eggs in the morning... really quick to scramble some. I keep a huge container of baby spinach in the fridge. As the pan is heating up I grab a handful, chop and throw into the pan with some eggs and spices. Quick and healthy breakfast. Add some of the green pepper puree into it as well (I did that this morning and it's really good.. turns the eggs green but tell your daugther they are green eggs and ham!).

YOU are TOTALLY right!

I was just being lazy and grabbing quick fixes instead of making good truly healthy full of nutrition meals. I read that book "skinny *****" and they said meat is full of antibiotics and chemicals that can actually make you fat so I have been staying away. Tha's why my diet is the way it is too...partly.

ledivakim

You dont know how to prepare healthy meals? Meal prep is important. I joined instagram to spy on my kid and neices and nephews, but it opened up a whole new world to me. through that i learned easy recipes and learned to meal prep for several days so i wont have to think about it, or eat crappy food. perhaps you can check it out. I am ksofoxxy, u can look me up and link to all the meal prep help i found.

fabry12

I think the secret is in have a balanced diet with real nutrients. Unfortunately processed food does not provide you all the nutrients your body needs. Plenty of vegetables and a nice variation of lean meat, fish/seafood, carbs, fruits.

When I start to be on diet a make an effort to cook a lot, nothing very complex but a lot of vegetables since they contain the less calories and the more nutrients. Be sure also to incorporate enough proteins as well.

meshashesha2012

It always amazes me that people say you need to eat back the calories you burn through exercise. Really people ?? Then why do it ? You need a calorie deficit to lose weight, plain and simple. Eat the calories you've alotted and the ones you burn through exercise should be excess stored fat.

because some of us have hard a$$ed workouts.

for instance my base calories are 1400. i can very easily burn 1200+ calories on a day when i've split my workout day between lifting weights close to what i weight (or more ) and then going back to do a running/sprint session. i do that 3 days a week. and the other 3 days i can burn 600-900 calories with my cardio..considering i'm trying to preserve all my lean muscle then if i didnt eat back at least part of those calories, i'd be risking muscle loss which i absolutely do not want. besides that i wouldnt have the energy to get through those workouts.

brendaschmitt1

It looks like your carbs are a little high and your protein is low. You need protein to feel full. Carbs turn into sugar then fat. Try to keep carbs at 100-150 protein at 100-125. Drink lots of water too because on some days your sodium looks high. Other then that dont give up . Think of it as getting healthy not just a diet. It takes time to see a difference so try to be patient.

Adriennerp720

Don't be discouraged! You didnt gain the weight overnight & you wont lose it overnight!!!
Try sticking to your calories or going under---try fruit & water to fill you up when you get hungry--cut out any late night eating you may be doing. Also watch your salt...it makes you retain water. Keep your head up Girl!!!