Food Diary Help?

plaingirly
plaingirly Posts: 378
in Motivation and Support
Hi!

I am new to all this healthy eating lifestyle rather than diet stuff. Previous times I have tried to lose weight I have used meal replacement shakes!

I am logging everything I eat and drink but I don't know if I am making the best choices. I need things that are quite easy and quick as I work full time and am a part time carer as well. Plus hobbies and Zumba time!

Any suggestions for how I can improve what I am eating?

Replies

  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
    From the few days I looked at, it looked like there was a ton of pre-packaged/prepared foods. To start, I would work in more fresh foods. Prepared stuff is a killer on sodium.
  • mandapanda001
    mandapanda001 Posts: 370 Member
    I agree go with fresher foods. There are tons of recipes out there to utilize and some are quick and easy. Moderation is a biggie, you can splurge but dont' go overboard. Also if you start eating fresher foods, veggies, etc. your body will tell a difference. Good luck!
  • Lrdoflamancha
    Lrdoflamancha Posts: 1,280 Member
    Eat only food that have 1 ingredient. Such as chicken, nonfat milk, celery. All prepared foods have the 3 big weight loss killers. Fats, Sugar, Sodium. Eliminate prepared foods as much as you possibly can and you will see a massive improvement. Also eliminate, white foods. This includes white bread, white rice, white pasta, the white of potatoes.
  • castlerobber
    castlerobber Posts: 528 Member
    Hi!

    I am new to all this healthy eating lifestyle rather than diet stuff. Previous times I have tried to lose weight I have used meal replacement shakes!

    I am logging everything I eat and drink but I don't know if I am making the best choices. I need things that are quite easy and quick as I work full time and am a part time carer as well. Plus hobbies and Zumba time!

    Any suggestions for how I can improve what I am eating?

    You're getting 25% to 30% of your calories from sugar most days. While some of it's from whole fruit, which is fine, most of it is coming from smoothies and other processed foods. The current recommendation is that women should get no more than 20g/day of added sugars.

    I agree with the other posters who recommend eating real food instead of processed.
  • carlysuzanne85
    carlysuzanne85 Posts: 204 Member
    I totally understand being really busy and struggling to get healthy meals in. One thing that has really helped me has been prepping food in advance for the whole week on Sunday or whatever your day off is. Cook some things in bulk, like brown rice or a healthy soup or a few chicken breasts or a bunch of turkey meatballs, a healthy casserole, whole wheat pasta, etc, etc, chop up a bunch of vegetables in advance, and then portion things out into tupperware so you can grab and go for lunch or dinner. Buy things that are easy and fast for breakfast: Greek yogurt, fruit, whole wheat English muffins, etc. Make sure you are balancing whole grains, lean proteins, vegetables and fruit and drinking lots of water. Just keep experimenting and you will find ways that you can eat your healthy meals and still do everything else in life you need to, just takes some advanced preparation :)
  • afatwomanonamission
    afatwomanonamission Posts: 39 Member
    I agree with everyone so far. I try not to do any pre-packaged foods at all, and every day when I've completed my diary, I look at the nutritional stats to see where I did well, and where I could improve. Each day I try to integrate what I've assessed from the day before and build on that.

    Also, what I like about the 'one ingredient' rule as mentioned above is that most things (such as veggies) you can have in larger proportions (as opposed to the processed alternatives) so you feel more satisfied and full. They are also much more nutrient-rich, so you're getting the healthy benefits of fresh foods too.

    Other than the staples that I absolutely cannot forgo (ie, yogurt, canned tuna and my granola mix) I generally use the rule: no food with barcodes. So far, without adding exercise to the mix, I've lost 26 pounds and continue to lose just using that premise - I am only now integrating exercise (something I wish I'd done sooner). Some things are obviously very difficult or impossible to get barcode free, but as a guideline I find it's helped me tons.
  • krickeyuu
    krickeyuu Posts: 344 Member
    Well, it sort of depends on you ultimate goals. You can lose weight eating anything as long as calories in < calories out, so, if you eat your current diet at a deficit, you will lose weight. That said, if you want to be healthy, ward off disease, preserve muscle mass, keep your blood pressure and cholesterol in check, then you might want to limit the processed foods and incorporate more fresh food into your diet. You can spend about 4 hours on the weekend making things ahead for the week.
    Things I keep on hand: Brown rice, quinoa, whole grain cereal and oatmeal, whole wheat and sourdough bread, whole wheat and regular pasta, peanut butter, almonds and walnuts, eggs, greek yogurt, canned tuna, fresh salmon, Rotisserie chicken, fresh fruits and vegetables, white and sweet potatoes, no salt added canned tomatoes, low sodium soups. I can do a lot with just these things. Good luck on your journey. You can check out my diary if you like.
  • plaingirly
    plaingirly Posts: 378
    I think I need to find more things to add to my lunchtime salads. The bright salad bowl is just leaves with grated carrot and beetroot so I think they are ok but the chicken is barbecue flavoured .... Hmmm I thought about salmon or tuna but they would both be from cans.

    So far I have given up fizzy pop (I used to drink over a litre some days), white carbs, sweets and proper crisps like pringles as I just eat the whole tube. I really want this to be a lifestyle change but not a super expensive one!

    Lunch times are a pain! There is a fridge at work but the microwave is broken so I have to take things that don't need heating.
  • TheNEWMonicaB
    TheNEWMonicaB Posts: 129 Member
    Eating fresh/unprocessed does take more time, but you can make it easier. Take a couple hours on one day of the week (I do Sundays) and do a prep day. Chop/prepare all your veggies and portion them out, roast a whole chicken or bake some chicken so it is ready to go, cook gome ground beef or turkey so it is ready to go into a recipe or salad. Just doing that so you have things that are quick to grap and heat are a HUGE timesaver. :)
  • Linda_Darlene
    Linda_Darlene Posts: 453 Member
    This! :-)
  • BohemianCoast
    BohemianCoast Posts: 349 Member
    I don't actually think there's that much processed food here, even though it's packets -- though I'm not much on OatSo simple, or Activa pots; it takes 30 seconds longer to make these things yourself from oats, yoghurt and fruit, and it's much better for you. I'm not seeing a lot of drinks on there; the odd smoothie, but no alcohol, soft drinks, or tea and coffee. Are you sure you're logging all your drinks?

    My real concern is that this looks like a set of 'diet' food, rather than the sort of food you're going to be able to happily enjoy for the rest of your life. You're way under calories too -- I don't think you should eat them all back cos sometimes the MFP calorie counts are a bit generous, but you should probably be eating a good proportion of them back. You lost 6 pounds last week -- obviously the first week is faster, but that's not going to be sustainable. That day you were 1000 calories under your target; were you hungry? People who are hungry should eat more.
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
    I think I need to find more things to add to my lunchtime salads. The bright salad bowl is just leaves with grated carrot and beetroot so I think they are ok but the chicken is barbecue flavoured .... Hmmm I thought about salmon or tuna but they would both be from cans.
    Canned tuna would be fine, same with salmon.. so long as it is packaged in water. You could add boiled egg, celery, nuts/seeds to the salad and that would add in some other healthy fats too. Garbanzo beans / chickpeas are fun times too.
    So far I have given up fizzy pop (I used to drink over a litre some days), white carbs, sweets and proper crisps like pringles as I just eat the whole tube. I really want this to be a lifestyle change but not a super expensive one!
    eating healthier hasn't been much more expensive over the long haul, but the results have all been worth it.
  • plaingirly
    plaingirly Posts: 378
    I don't really drink tea or coffee - my main thing was drinking fizzy pop and whole cartons of Tropicana fruit juice! Now I just drink water most of the time. There will probably be alcoholic drinks tomorrow night as it is the work Christmas party!

    I really thought I would HATE eating salad but I actually look forward to it - crazy!

    I have cut my portions down but the main thing has been stopping eating just because I am bored! Mindless snacking was an issue for me. I haven't been hungry at all in the 3 weeks I have been eating healthily. Plus the exercise calories seem crazy high!

    Oh - the six pound loss was the first two weeks. I didn't weigh myself the first week! :)
  • plaingirly
    plaingirly Posts: 378
    I think I need to find more things to add to my lunchtime salads. The bright salad bowl is just leaves with grated carrot and beetroot so I think they are ok but the chicken is barbecue flavoured .... Hmmm I thought about salmon or tuna but they would both be from cans.
    Canned tuna would be fine, same with salmon.. so long as it is packaged in water. You could add boiled egg, celery, nuts/seeds to the salad and that would add in some other healthy fats too. Garbanzo beans / chickpeas are fun times too.
    So far I have given up fizzy pop (I used to drink over a litre some days), white carbs, sweets and proper crisps like pringles as I just eat the whole tube. I really want this to be a lifestyle change but not a super expensive one!
    eating healthier hasn't been much more expensive over the long haul, but the results have all been worth it.

    I buy tuna in spring water - not sure what the salmon is in. Will have to check! Boiled egg sounds nice and chickpeas. I will have a go at using the bought salad as a base and adding things to it. Maybe cottage cheese too!

    I bought some almonds as a snack but wasn't sure how many to eat at a time. Hoping to replace the Snack a Jack packets with "real" food!
  • carlysuzanne85
    carlysuzanne85 Posts: 204 Member
    Not having a microwave at work can be a pain, for sure. You can still build a huge salad with a wide variety of veggies and some cold, already cooked chicken or turkey or beans or whatever your choice, that's very satisfying. There's a lot you can do with having a refrigerator. Quinoa can be really good in a cold salad. You can also bring some whole wheat bread or rolls to go along with your salad to make it more filling along with bringing fruit, yogurt, and the like for healthy snacks. I also love having low fat cottage cheese to snack on and lean deli meats. There are a million ways you can make a delicious and healthy sandwich to put in the fridge at work too. Then you can enjoy those hot meals for dinner at home :)
  • twinketta
    twinketta Posts: 2,130 Member
    I commend your bravery opening your diary :-)

    I took a look back over maybe 5 days.

    If I was you I would try to add more protein, and as other people have said, try to avoid pre packaged stuff (sodium and sugar)

    Also, I know you want to lose weight but personally I would try to eat a little more and if not reach your target on MFP then at least maybe only a little under.

    It is so hard when you first start and you want to see mega results...you will learn as you go, I did for sure x
  • jennifer_a00
    jennifer_a00 Posts: 186 Member
    Plan your meals ahead of time! Add veggies in if possible. Shop the outer edges of the grocery store, there is less of the processed foods there! It can be fun to eat healthy once you get going!
  • plaingirly
    plaingirly Posts: 378
    I think I really do need to plan what I am going to eat!

    I find it hard to eat all the exercise calories back. MFP has set my target as 1400 which seems high (not compared to when I was eating junk!) without adding in the exercise calories back in. Maybe nuts and seeds are the way to go!

    I am under today but I am not hungry at all so I don't know if I should eat something for the sake of it but I am sure I will be over tomorrow which should balance it out.

    Never thought I would have an issue eating enough calories!! :)
  • twinketta
    twinketta Posts: 2,130 Member
    It`s all a learning curve...I am sure you will do well x

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