HELP- No idea what I am doing

Calm down...everyone starts somewhere. Get yourself a food scale, and a set of measuring cups...and start using them. Log everything...accurately...even if you don't make any changes right away. In s few days you'll see some patterns in your food choices...and can start making some healthier choices. Logging accurately is essential...there's no way around it..but it really is the best tool to help you get to your goals. You can do this!

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Hi, I am 20 years old, 151 pounds and am 5'7 1/2 feet. I want to lose 10 pounds, and I have no idea how to do it.

3 days ago, I weighed 152.4 pounds, and decided to overhaul my life. I went from eating tons of carbs to rice crackers, celery, salads, and fruits and veggies. I eat many many small portions of things. I am not sure if you can see my food diaries, but I don't think they are very accurate anyways because I never weigh my portions and don't type in proper brands or anything. I burn 350 calories every day at the gym, and am having a really hard time figuring out what I should be eating. I only have a one month gym membership (student, it's pricey), so I want to lose 10 pounds this month, then manage myself to be consistently around 142-145 pounds.

I honestly have no idea what correct portions should look like, because my parents worked a lot growing up so I was always alone and just ate microwave dinners and cereal. Now that I am an adult in my own place, I have no idea where to start. I have been eating this for the following two years: sugary cereal, a homemade hamburger, more cereal, a big bowl of pasta, bread, and ice cream.

Any help would be really, really appreciated, because I think I'm eating less than I should be right now and don't know how to safely eat more and still lose weight

Breathe Congratulations for deciding to act.

Because you have so little to lose you run the risk of a couple of issues. If you drastically cut everything and work out like a maniac you will probably lose 10 lbs..of water weight and then it will just come back OR you will not lose anything at all and just feel like garbage. When you are so close to your goal weight your numbers, your intake and your records need to be BANG ON to see results.

Having a scale is important to measure and track accurately but so is doing your research into how many calories you NEED, your BMR and TDEE are crucial at this stage. If you are not sure where /how look at the top of this forum..There is a HUGE sticky called Newbies Please READ ME..that's a good suggestion and a good place to start.

Don't try to change everything all at once, that will just make you frustrated and drive you to give up. Make small changes, cook more, stop using salt (if you do) avoid anything to drink that is not water, tea/coffee (WITHOUT anything added). You can do it

As far as WHAT to eat, here are some general thoughts on what I do, and it's been successful as a weight loss method:

Breakfast: Aim for 250-320 calories. Ensure there is protein, preferably iron, not much sugar. I usually do either oatmeal with milk and an apple, or cereal with milk. Cereal choices are usually Fiber One Honey Clusters, Crispix, or Kashi. Look for high fiber, low sugar, high protein, and high iron/vitamins. I always have one (my only) cup of coffee with low fat sweetened creamer. Lots of people do other types of breakfast foods - blended smoothes fully of veggies and fruit, eggs, protein shakes, etc. Read the boards and find something you like.

Morning Snack - about halfway between breakfast and lunch I have a snack of about 100 -150 calories. Usually something like greek yogurt, 100cal pack of almonds, fiber one 90 cal bar, fruit, etc. Always looking at protein!

Lunch - I aim for 350-450 caloies. normally I have a small portion of leftover dinner from previous evening. Try to make a nice salad out of fresh spinach (iron!), fresh veggies, no dressing. Other times I'll have a Healthy Choice meal or Lean Cuisine. Look for low sodium, low fat, high protein choices. Could also do a sandwich from Subway, or home made chicken or turkey sandwich, low sodium soup with salad, lots and lots of choices. Your selection should have lean protein, healthy whole grains, fresh veggies and fruits. Limit sauces, salt, fat.

Afternoon snack - usually I munch on carrots, cherry tomatoes, snap pea pods, grapes, celery, etc. in the afternoon. Sometimes I thrown in some peanuts - but I watch this to make sure it's a small amount, since they pile on the calories too.

Dinner- aim for 350-450 calories. Lean protein (chicken breast, pork tenderloin, ground turkey are my go-to choices), lots of veggies (steam-ready packages in freezer section are a godsend), healthy whole grain sides.

General principles: Eat as much fresh food as possible - shop in the produce section and frozen vegetable section. Low fat dairy choices are good in controlled portions. Lean protein! Avoid pre-packaged stuff as much as possible because of the salt and other preservatives that are in there. Choose fresh or frozen over canned vegetables. Cook as much of your own food as possible. Good fast food alternatives are Subway and Panera.

Don't forget - drink lots of water! All day!

It's not a bad idea to consider a general once-a-day multi-vitamin to start out. I use "One-a-day".

If you're not accustomed to cooking very much, start with a goal of one new recipe per week (or 3 per week, or whatever).

If you're not accustomed to fresh vegetables, start with a goal of trying one (or more) new-to-you items of produce per week to add variety and expand your options.

Finally - start reading! Use these forums, use google, learn, learn learn! What I've listed above is just one of a million ways to go about a healthy diet. (Some folks might quibble with what I'm calling a healthy diet!) Read, learn, continue to ask for advice, try some things, use what works for you.

Good luck!

Hi, I am 20 years old, 151 pounds and am 5'7 1/2 feet. I want to lose 10 pounds, and I have no idea how to do it.

3 days ago, I weighed 152.4 pounds, and decided to overhaul my life. I went from eating tons of carbs to rice crackers, celery, salads, and fruits and veggies. I eat many many small portions of things. I am not sure if you can see my food diaries, but I don't think they are very accurate anyways because I never weigh my portions and don't type in proper brands or anything. I burn 350 calories every day at the gym, and am having a really hard time figuring out what I should be eating. I only have a one month gym membership (student, it's pricey), so I want to lose 10 pounds this month, then manage myself to be consistently around 142-145 pounds.

I honestly have no idea what correct portions should look like, because my parents worked a lot growing up so I was always alone and just ate microwave dinners and cereal. Now that I am an adult in my own place, I have no idea where to start. I have been eating this for the following two years: sugary cereal, a homemade hamburger, more cereal, a big bowl of pasta, bread, and ice cream.

Any help would be really, really appreciated, because I think I'm eating less than I should be right now and don't know how to safely eat more and still lose weight

Let me make this very simple for you. The responses here are all good information and all, but you're 20 and not significantly overweight.

Eat primarily meat, secondarily veggies, third fruit, limit everything else. Eat when you're hungry.

Start a strength training program with free weights (Stronglifts 5x5 would be a very good one) and stick with it for six months.

Run 10 100m sprints in 45 minutes on Saturdays.

Don't look at the scale for six months.

Report back in six months when you're about 130 and looking fantastic.

I added you as a friend cause were pretty close to the same stats!
Anyways, my suggestions;

1. Keep calm
2. Think about WHY your eating certain foods (ie- ice cream, sugary cereals.. is it emotional/convenience?)
3. Look for healthier alternatives (ie- high fiber, more protien etc)
4. Make your own food- you will drastically reduce fat/cals/sugar in most cases, and defiantly eliminate preservatives. (i made my own protien bars, and they are such an easy and convenient go-to snack)
5. Are you in Canada by chance? I dont know what other countires food guides look like, but Canada's food guide is an awesome guide to follow.. check it out
6. Vegetables are your friend.. bulk up your meals with them
7. Fruits are a great substitue for sugar cravings
8. Portion control- you mentioned you eat many small meals a day, which is awesome.
9. water water water. drink more
10. Green Tea- not a must, but I have had exceptional sucess.. it'sa thermogenic, speeds up metabloism and makes you feel good!!

11- Keep it up.. it will be slow, you dont have much to loose AND, it sounds like your pretty active. Fuel your body.

Best of luck!!

Lustrebass ... Just a thought ... Unless your Dr. has told you to worry about your iron consumption, women need LESS iron as we age. I see that you are 44. You really shouldn't have any worries about iron consumption unless, like I said, your Dr. has told you to worry about it. In fact, once women reach menopause, they need ZERO iron in supplement form. All vitamins need to be checked during that time of life to ensure you are not taking any additional iron in. (Not saying that you are menopausal, just throwing that info in for women who are.)

I agree with everyone else. Take a deep breath. You are doing a great job. Change happens gradually. You don't have very many pounds to lose, so be patient and kind to yourself. Be accurate with your portions. Good Luck to you!

My two cents -- at your height, weighing around 150 actually is a fairly normal weight. Are you more concerned about the number, or is it more about how your waistline looks? If it's actually the latter, I would take some measurements (waist, hips, thighs, whatever), and worry much less about the scale. Focus on adding more healthy foods into your day, and make sure some strength training is in your routine. Set your MFP to lose (at most!) a half pound per week, because you don't have much weight to lose at all. Then maybe measure yourself once every few weeks or once a month, and weigh yourself as infrequently as you possibly can. Hopefully you'll see that you're losing inches, even if the weight doesn't change that much

If you set yourself up to focus on the weight, you might get frustrated and think you're failing. Who cares what the scale says if you look awesome? I'll take inches off my waist over changes in a number (that no one else sees) any day. Good luck!

Hi, I am 20 years old, 151 pounds and am 5'7 1/2 feet. I want to lose 10 pounds, and I have no idea how to do it.

3 days ago, I weighed 152.4 pounds, and decided to overhaul my life. I went from eating tons of carbs to rice crackers, celery, salads, and fruits and veggies. I eat many many small portions of things. I am not sure if you can see my food diaries, but I don't think they are very accurate anyways because I never weigh my portions and don't type in proper brands or anything. I burn 350 calories every day at the gym, and am having a really hard time figuring out what I should be eating. I only have a one month gym membership (student, it's pricey), so I want to lose 10 pounds this month, then manage myself to be consistently around 142-145 pounds.

I honestly have no idea what correct portions should look like, because my parents worked a lot growing up so I was always alone and just ate microwave dinners and cereal. Now that I am an adult in my own place, I have no idea where to start. I have been eating this for the following two years: sugary cereal, a homemade hamburger, more cereal, a big bowl of pasta, bread, and ice cream.

Any help would be really, really appreciated, because I think I'm eating less than I should be right now and don't know how to safely eat more and still lose weight

Breathe Congratulations for deciding to act.

Because you have so little to lose you run the risk of a couple of issues. If you drastically cut everything and work out like a maniac you will probably lose 10 lbs..of water weight and then it will just come back OR you will not lose anything at all and just feel like garbage. When you are so close to your goal weight your numbers, your intake and your records need to be BANG ON to see results.

Having a scale is important to measure and track accurately but so is doing your research into how many calories you NEED, your BMR and TDEE are crucial at this stage. If you are not sure where /how look at the top of this forum..There is a HUGE sticky called Newbies Please READ ME..that's a good suggestion and a good place to start.

Don't try to change everything all at once, that will just make you frustrated and drive you to give up. Make small changes, cook more, stop using salt (if you do) avoid anything to drink that is not water, tea/coffee (WITHOUT anything added). You can do it

This. Make small changes you can stick to once you've lost the weight. Measure and log accurately. Set your goal for .5 lbs per week, not 2 lbs per week. You don't have much to lose so you want your goal to be realistic.