DASH diet

dianaw819 · January 2013

I decided to start the DASH diet. I would love to be friends with other people who follow this eating plan for motivation, recipes, meal ideas, snack ideas, etc. Thanks in advance

dianaw819 · January 2013

If anyone has any helpful tips about this eating plan, or success stories, I would love to hear those as well

WinBattle · January 2013

Hi, I have started reading the book and plan to start as soon as I've read the first several chapters. Please let me know what you think of DASH so far. I want to lower my blood pressure which has been creeping up for years, although it's not hbp yet, it's a lot higher than my usual 106/72 that I had for decades. Of course, losing weight is definitely a goal, but getting healthier is my top goal.
Good luck.

ldrosophila · January 2013

The DASH diet is such a great diet and has some strong science behind it. Unfortunately, I am not on it at this time because I dont limit my salt, but I just wanted to say best to you cheerleading from the sidelines!

Stacyanne324 · January 2013

My husband and I are both doing it and loving it. It is definitely something I can stick with long term. I'm doing the DASH Diet weight loss solution plan with the two phases and am on the 4th day (down 4 pounds so far). I actually started last week but fell off the wagon for a three day weekend and had to start over. Now I know I can't cheat even a little during the first phase if I want to see it through and the weight loss and how great I feel are keeping me motivated. I'll friend you!

KANGOOJUMPS · January 2013

ITS GREAT FOR BLOOD PRESSURE!

jan1755 · January 2013

Just bought the book. Plan to start tomorrow. Is there a dash group I'm here?

fstender · January 2013

I just started this as well...On day 2 of the 14 day start. How are you doing with it...? Feel free to friend me~

fstender · January 2013

Im not sure about a group...but feel free to add me as a friend. I also just started this...on day 2 of the 14 day start..so far so good...

Just bought the book. Plan to start tomorrow. Is there a dash group I'm here?
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BrendaGuz · June 2013

Does anyone know if you can set up food tracker for DASH diet?

cheemstra · July 2013

I figured out how to set up the food tracker to work with the DASH Diet. I found the DASH Diet proportions for the Calorie and Nutrient goals on the LiveStrong website: http://www.livestrong.com/article/455388-dash-diet-proportions-carbohydrates-fat-protein/. They say that to follow the DASH Diet Plan, you have 27% of total calories from fat, 18% from protein, and 55% from carbohydrates. The diet is based on 2100 calories, although many people will not lose weight using that number.

In myfitnesspal, click on the Goals tab under My Home, then go to the bottom and select Change Goals, then select Custom. You cannot set the nutrient goals exactly to the plan because you are only able to select 5% increments. I set my protein to 20% and my fat to 25%. You can also change the totals for sodium (2,300 mg or 1,500 mg if you have high blood pressure) and potassium (4,700 mg), and calcium (1,250 mg). The problem is that you are only able to directly track five nutrients so you have to pick the ones you feel are most important. I have Carbohydrates, Fat, Protein, Fiber (they require 30 mg, which is double what myfitnesspal suggests), and Sodium.

I'm going to try this to see how it works.

deannawbennett · July 2013

I am also on the DASH diet (end of week 3. I set up the nutrient ratio and am doing fine on carbs, fiber, fat, and protein. Sodium is under the 1500 mark as long as we stick to the menu plan I set up each week. I am not getting close on potassium. Any thoughts on how to get this higher while keeping calories at 1200 a day?

susannamarie · July 2013

I am also on the DASH diet (end of week 3. I set up the nutrient ratio and am doing fine on carbs, fiber, fat, and protein. Sodium is under the 1500 mark as long as we stick to the menu plan I set up each week. I am not getting close on potassium. Any thoughts on how to get this higher while keeping calories at 1200 a day?

You may be eating more potassium than you realize, as many entries here don't have potassium entered. Pretty much anything except highly processed foods ought to have a nonzero value, even if it's very small.

Assuming that you DO need more, try some low sodium v8 or beet greens.

echelonokie · July 2013

I see people saying that they're starting or have started the DASH diet, but don't truly see any actual results. Has anyone had real success doing this diet? Success that actually lasted and the weight didn't come right back?

halfpintwts · August 2013

I have been hearing so much about this DASH Diet. Is it easier than most diets? Does it work? Are you keeping off the weight?

salladeve · August 2013

I figured out how to set up the food tracker to work with the DASH Diet. I found the DASH Diet proportions for the Calorie and Nutrient goals on the LiveStrong website: http://www.livestrong.com/article/455388-dash-diet-proportions-carbohydrates-fat-protein/. They say that to follow the DASH Diet Plan, you have 27% of total calories from fat, 18% from protein, and 55% from carbohydrates. The diet is based on 2100 calories, although many people will not lose weight using that number.

In myfitnesspal, click on the Goals tab under My Home, then go to the bottom and select Change Goals, then select Custom. You cannot set the nutrient goals exactly to the plan because you are only able to select 5% increments. I set my protein to 20% and my fat to 25%. You can also change the totals for sodium (2,300 mg or 1,500 mg if you have high blood pressure) and potassium (4,700 mg), and calcium (1,250 mg). The problem is that you are only able to directly track five nutrients so you have to pick the ones you feel are most important. I have Carbohydrates, Fat, Protein, Fiber (they require 30 mg, which is double what myfitnesspal suggests), and Sodium.

I'm going to try this to see how it works.

This is what I've done, and I just adjusted my goals to reflect the dash nutrients and lower sodium. I find it is really very much the same as any other healthy diet just really watching the sodium. I have not had a problems keeping the sodium low because I've pretty much cut out processed foods. It is doable and healthy, I'll know next month if it has helped my BP or not, at my check up.

ernestrodgers82 · August 2015

Thanks for the tip and the instructions on how to set up MyFitnessPal to track DASH Diet settings. My doctor recommended the DASH Diet to me as well. I not excited about having only one serving of meat per day but I'm also getting less and less excited about taking high blood pressure medication too.