This may sound stupid and may not even make sense....

celestelovesmoney
celestelovesmoney Posts: 16
in Food and Nutrition
I'm feeling a little frustrated and discouraged because I've been having a tough time expending my calorie, carb, fat, and protein limits, while I also find myself exceeding my sodium and sugar limits by an unacceptable amount on a daily basis. I just started using MyFitnessPal's food/exercise diary again after a two week break so that I could try to make better intake choices on my own rather than to rely on this counter to aid me in determining what I can and cannot consume. Apparently, I'm not ready for that yet.

I suppose what I really am seeking is alternative food suggestions to help me fulfill these necessary requirements so that I can meet my daily goal. If you want, you can take a look at my food diary to get a glimpse of what I'm talking about.

I'm embarrassed because as you can see, I've made stupid choices that conflict with what I really need. Therefore, I'm setting my body into starvation mode because I'm not meeting the calorie limits that I need, while overdoing it on the sugars and sodiums. For me, I think my problem lies with portioning and still eating the types of food that I want, which aren't that great and that's why I'm not evenly meeting my limits and depriving myself at the same time. Are there any satisfying foods that I can replace some of that crap with to help me?

If this doesn't make sense, I apologize, I'm a bit tired right now, but I hope you can give me a little bit of insight.

Replies

  • divinenanny
    divinenanny Posts: 90 Member
    One way to lower sodium intake drastically is not to use (that many) ready made ingredients/meals. Try to find recipes for sauce or soups that have you make them, using 'natural' ingredients like tomatoes, basil etc.
    Another thing is to compare the list of nutrients while shopping. If you really want a can of ready made soup, which one is the best?
  • pinkdreams13
    pinkdreams13 Posts: 25 Member
    Don't feel embarrassed or stupid. I am still in the learning process too. I think I am getting better but I am still not able to fully account for everything I am eating without the food tracker. Here are some things that have been helping me get better at it:

    *Plan your meals ahead of time. This way, a few days before you eat what you are trying to plan, you can use the tracker to play with your meals so that way you can hit your macros every time.

    *Go on youtube and watch how other people prep their meals for the week. Prepping for the whole week is still new to me but it makes meal time very simple for me because all I have to do it grab and go. And I won't have to worry about what I am going to eat everyday. You want to make it as simple as possible.

    *Research, research, research!!!! Get on the internet and just start reading articles about healthy foods, healthier choices, and healthy recipes. You will be surprised of all of the good recipes you can find on the internet. Eating healthy is so not boring....I thought it was before I started that journey. It is actually quite tasty...lol.

    It is not that hard but we tend to make it harder. Planning meals is somewhat of the easier part for me. Sticking to them is the hardest part.

    Good luck and I hope this helps.
  • eylia
    eylia Posts: 200 Member
    I was going to say almost exactly what divinenanny suggested; premade meals are packed with sodium. Sometimes, it's okay, of course. But if you are able to make some of these things yourself (the soup, or fried rice for instance) you'll notice you'll be getting a lot more nutrition and less sugar and salt with your intake. Some potatoes, carrots, celery etc and some chicken maybe and a bit of stock on the stove for soup and it'll be ready in 30 minutes. I'd suggest having a little look online for a soup recipe that you'd like/is similar to something you might buy canned and make some up. If it's something you like, maybe make extra and freeze it in portions so you have something 'ready made' to go to.
  • Tazzymk
    Tazzymk Posts: 45 Member
    I agree with divinenanny. You get a lot more control if you cook yourself. Keep it simple with some chicken breast and steamed veg or salad.
    In regards to the treats a good way is to decide a day to have your treat meal/pudding/chocolate and make yourself promise to stay away from all other treats until that day. Build your will power by having a prize for good behaviour. :flowerforyou:
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    It's wonderful you came and posted this so it shows you really want this! Good on you :) I think you just need to try to go for fresh ingredients more as the above poster said so buy fresh or frozen fruit and veggies, meat, dairy etc.. etc..

    Foods that satisfy a lot are protein and vegetables so eat up BIG TIME on the veggies especially since most are lower in calories and the fibre in them will keep you full for longer than many other things. Drink quite a bit of water but no need to go nuts either and you can have it from teas/ herbal teas and other sources but if it has calories you have to count them so go for lower cals. Fats are also important so pick better fats like the ones in salmon/sardines/tuna and other oily fish, coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil, nuts especially I think almonds and walnuts .. omega 3's are good for you.
  • xampx
    xampx Posts: 323 Member
    You really need to cut down on the processed ready meals. The salt in them is immense.

    If you dont have time or ability to cook for yourself, have you considered an omelette? I can't actually make omelettes, they always turn into scrambled egg with stuff in them. But they are healthy, tasty, full of protein - which is important to retain muscle mass whilst losing weight AND it keeps you fuller for longer. Boiled eggs are great for snacks too. As is peanut butter.

    I can't be bothered with soup unless it has huge chunks of meat in it, otherwise its a can of watery salt with not much benefit to me.

    For my lunch everyday I get half a bag of pre washed salad leaves, some cucumber, tomato and other salad stuff as I like, and add about 150g (6oz ish) of protein such as sliced ham or chicken, and half a tub (5-6oz) of lower fat cottage cheese. I am going to have to start reducing the portion size because I could barely finish it and I was full until I ate again at 8pm. It was less than 500 calories, 32g carbs, 13g fat 60g protein and 116mg of sodium. This takes less than 5 minutes to make.

    The other thing, if you are going to eat a lot of salt, drink a lot of water to compensate.

    Also, I notice your macros are set at really low protein and quite high carbs
  • pluckabee
    pluckabee Posts: 346 Member
    You shouldn't let the small details stop you from creating the bigger picture.

    If you've just started, don't sweat the small stuff like the macros. Your main priority is to log your food intake and eat at a reasonable calorie deficit. You have a lot of gaps in your diary - focus on doing this first.

    Once you've got a hold of the overall picture, start slowly changing your foods to fit your macros. Eat 1 less cookie and have more chicken at dinner for example. Slow sustainable changes are what you need, so fussing about with macros from the start isn't going to help you all that much.
  • celestelovesmoney
    celestelovesmoney Posts: 16
    Wow! Thank you guys, I didn't expect to get such incredible insight, but I have.
    So far, from your posts I am actually discovering different ideas that I never thought about before and having one less blind side actually opens up a bigger arena on how I can work on this.

    Wow, I really have made this a trillion times more difficult than it has to be. And as a couple of you guys have mentioned, I have really been feeling guilty about the processed meals because I think there should be more common sense on my side as I already understand that the sodium is through the roof when it comes to those.
  • divinenanny
    divinenanny Posts: 90 Member
    Well see, then you are half way there! You know what you have to do... Doing it is difficult of course (I NEVER cooked before MFP and still don't really like it) but you can find great (easy) recipes out there to make whatever you want.
  • celestelovesmoney
    celestelovesmoney Posts: 16
    Well see, then you are half way there! You know what you have to do... Doing it is difficult of course (I NEVER cooked before MFP and still don't really like it) but you can find great (easy) recipes out there to make whatever you want.
    Haha, I'm ashamed to admit myself that I'm not a big fan of cooking - it feels like a hassle, but I'm only creating a hassle by relying on processed foods. So I guess I have to ask myself "what's it gonna be?". I think I will have to spend a bit more time looking for some simple, healthy recipes to incorporate into my diet from now on.
    Thanks so much for your help, btw!! :D
  • MyJourney1960
    MyJourney1960 Posts: 1,133 Member
    Wow! Thank you guys, I didn't expect to get such incredible insight, but I have.
    So far, from your posts I am actually discovering different ideas that I never thought about before and having one less blind side actually opens up a bigger arena on how I can work on this.

    Wow, I really have made this a trillion times more difficult than it has to be. And as a couple of you guys have mentioned, I have really been feeling guilty about the processed meals because I think there should be more common sense on my side as I already understand that the sodium is through the roof when it comes to those.
    yeah, i was going to say that you are overthinking this but there you go, you figured that out yourself.

    It's easy to get bogged down with all the theories and practices, cause there is a LOT of info flying around here.

    I would also suggest, as others have said - stick to "real" food (without going into a whole discussion about what constitutes "real" - stick to foods that are as close to their natural state as possible, so that would be "making your own veg soup" vs opening a can, or throwing a few chicken breasts in the oven vs. getting McD's nuggets. If you are used to eating highly processed foods, it may take you a while to get used to the different tastes, but don't give up - eventually you will find that take out and frozen meals are too salty /sweet for you.

    And, as the Scouts say, Be Prepared. make sure you have bowls/bags of fresh veggies, prepare a bunch or two of steamed/braised brocolli, make a pile of chicken breast and freeze, make your own soups (easy peasy) and freeze, slowly you'll get the hang of it. if all else fails and you don't have anything prepare, then eggs are a good choice
  • eylia
    eylia Posts: 200 Member
    Don't be embarrassed, caring enough to come straight out and ask so early on means you're on the right track completely! As said meat and vegetables will be most filling. Carbs (rice and potato etc) are too, but incorporated in, rather than overdone. If you're unfamiliar with cooking, you might find that websites that offer recipes/recipe collections for students might be a good starting point-there are plenty of healthy, simple things to start with that aren't daunting. Even buying a whole cooked roast chicken from the supermarket might be a good idea to ease into things. A portion of pre cooked meat to have with salad, along side some veg, torn up in a soup or even a home made fried rice or stir fry. Bags of fresh mixed salad and frozen veg too, might make cooking be less of a big deal (after having the convenience of not) if you don't need to 'prep' everything for ages before hand. Best of luck sweet.
  • ncmedic201
    ncmedic201 Posts: 540 Member
    Some easy things for days you don't feel like cooking: Peanut butter and toast with some fruit makes a great breakfast. I have an egg poacher so that's a quick and easy way to make eggs for breakfast when I don't feel like standing at the stove. Also, making an omelette is an easy way to get more veggies in. Cottage cheese is decent on protein. Dinners I usually just put fish or other meat on a broiling pan and maybe some veggies to roast. Add a salad.

    I found it difficult to balance my meals until I started logging my entire day beforehand. Now if I want a specific treat etc I can easily work it into my day. Also, don't worry about the micronutrients as much unless you have a medical condition. I don't even monitor my sugar. Focus on the macros and learn one thing at a time. Its less overwhelming that way. I started with sodium because I have high blood pressure. Once I learned how to control that I started working on increasing my calories and now I'm focusing on my macros.

    Take your time, it's not a race. The more time you take to break it down and learn how to make this a change for life the more likely you are to succeed. And don't give up those foods you love! Learn to incorporate them into your life...moderation is the key.

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