How do I know I have a healthy balanced diet?

dollx0
dollx0 Posts: 3
in Food and Nutrition
I am currently trying to lose about 10-15 pounds. My DD is 14 months and I still bf her on demand. Somedays she wants milk all the time, others not so much. I am exercising about 5 times a week. I really think my poor diet is why I am not losing any weight. I am a picky eater and eat way too much processed and fast food. Please help me. I need help figuring out how to have a balanced diet. Maybe someone has examples of a weeks worth of breakfast/lunch/dinner. And I am hoping this includes things I would enjoy, and that I usually have already at the grocery store. (I have a small budget.)

Does this sound balanced enough?

Breakfast - Egg on whole wheat bread, with fruit on the side.
Lunch - Turkey on whole wheat with fruit on the side.
Dinner - Steak with veggie


I feel like maybe I don't eat enough snacks? I tend to just eat three big meals a day... :\

Sorry I'm all over the place, this just seems so stressful/difficult to keep track of (on top of my normal day).Please help me.... lol Thanks

Replies

  • spaghetti93
    spaghetti93 Posts: 140 Member
    i don't snack much either and usually just eat 2-3 big meals. You can check your macros and make sure that you're eating the percentage or amount that your goals are set to. I consider a balance diet one that includes whatever ratio of fats/carbs/proteins works for you. See if what you're eating currently works after a week or two, and if you don't get the results you are looking for just keep tweaking it.
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    Just make sure you're getting enough protein and fats and take a multivitamin
  • tryskinni
    tryskinni Posts: 50 Member
    Like 5 times more green veggies, add dairy. Steak is high in the bad kind of fat so I wouldn't eat that daily. Maybe once a week, unless you know it's a lean cut.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    Just create a deficit for now and make slow changes to your food choices....don't complicate it because it sounds like that could be a problem for you at this point.
  • slroggemann
    slroggemann Posts: 168 Member
    more fruits and vegetables, add in some grains, and lean protein. I would avoid eating steak often.
  • dollx0
    dollx0 Posts: 3
    Thank you all. I definitely think changing to much at once ... or at least "thinking" I need to, is what is making me stressed about it. I should have put a grilled chicken sandwich down for dinner vs the steak. I rarely eat steak, it just came to mind. But I do eat a lot of chicken.. all the time. Lol.
  • dollx0
    dollx0 Posts: 3
    i don't snack much either and usually just eat 2-3 big meals. You can check your macros and make sure that you're eating the percentage or amount that your goals are set to. I consider a balance diet one that includes whatever ratio of fats/carbs/proteins works for you. See if what you're eating currently works after a week or two, and if you don't get the results you are looking for just keep tweaking it.

    I don't want to sound stupid, but what are macros?
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    Thank you all. I definitely think changing to much at once ... or at least "thinking" I need to, is what is making me stressed about it. I should have put a grilled chicken sandwich down for dinner vs the steak. I rarely eat steak, it just came to mind. But I do eat a lot of chicken.. all the time. Lol.
    Personally i think steak is better than chicken, so there you go, eat what you like.
  • spaghetti93
    spaghetti93 Posts: 140 Member
    i don't snack much either and usually just eat 2-3 big meals. You can check your macros and make sure that you're eating the percentage or amount that your goals are set to. I consider a balance diet one that includes whatever ratio of fats/carbs/proteins works for you. See if what you're eating currently works after a week or two, and if you don't get the results you are looking for just keep tweaking it.

    I don't want to sound stupid, but what are macros?

    (dont worry, you dont sound stupid, youre new and learning! :-) Macros are just the amount (grams/percentages) of each nutrient you're getting. Some people think that they need a certain amount of each to lose successfully, others claim that it doesn't really matter as long as you are eating your calorie goal. If you go to the "my home" tab then click on the "goals" tab you can choose to either use the recommended amounts that MFP sets or set them to whatever you like.
  • tobejune
    tobejune Posts: 177
    i don't snack much either and usually just eat 2-3 big meals. You can check your macros and make sure that you're eating the percentage or amount that your goals are set to. I consider a balance diet one that includes whatever ratio of fats/carbs/proteins works for you. See if what you're eating currently works after a week or two, and if you don't get the results you are looking for just keep tweaking it.

    I don't want to sound stupid, but what are macros?

    (dont worry, you dont sound stupid, youre new and learning! :-) Macros are just the amount (grams/percentages) of each nutrient you're getting. Some people think that they need a certain amount of each to lose successfully, others claim that it doesn't really matter as long as you are eating your calorie goal. If you go to the "my home" tab then click on the "goals" tab you can choose to either use the recommended amounts that MFP sets or set them to whatever you like.

    The main macros people talk most about are carbs (grains/ pastas/ bread/ etc) fat (oils/ butter/ nuts/ etc) and protein (meat/ dairy/ beans/ etc). Some other macros that might be worth tracking depending on your personal situation are sodium (if you're eating lots of processed foods this would be good to keep an eye on), calcium (your example menu seems pretty low, and being a woman AND BFing to boot makes calcium extra important!). MFP has some other options for other nutrients (or macros) to track.

    In general, I think in the beginning, just recording the foods you eat is a great place to start. Once you have a few weeks of food records it will seem less overwhelming to look at it as a whole and determine some things you're unsatisfied with in your diet and begin the smaller changes. Knowledge is power. And frankly, I think many people are just unaware of what they're eating!

    Good luck!
  • Larrybrown01
    Larrybrown01 Posts: 17
    Eating a balanced diet means choosing a wide variety of foods and drinks from all the food groups. It also means eating certain things in moderation, namely saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, refined sugar, salt and alcohol. The goal is to take in nutrients you need for health at the recommended levels.

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