Gym and diet

Clairie87
Clairie87 Posts: 10
edited November 2023 in Getting Started
Hoping someone could help me as I've never understood food and diets, and what is good for diets and what are a no no.

Obviously is understand fatty foods and and basic junk foods I.E crisps, chocolate, fizzy pop.....etc are bad I just wants to know what normal foods I can eat and what u should try avoid or have very little of, I'm not a massive veg or fruit lover although I do like veg and fruit just my likes are limited

Veg liked:
Lettuce
Carrots
Onions
Broccoli
Cabbage
Peas
Sweet corn
Green beans

Fruit liked:
Apples
White grapes
Oranges (just don't like the texture of the white skin that's left after peeling)

As u can see above my veg and fruit tastes are only small, but I think what I'm mainly confused on is, is bread, tortilla wraps, pasta ok to eat in small quantities

I signed up with my local gym last week which I start properly tomorrow and need a good diet to go along with it otherwise it's pointless and I won't lie I do plan on having a treat maybe once a week or if my will power will allow me once every 2 weeks. Also is there any good weight loss aids in pill form or shake form, I already use apple cider vinegar and garlic where possible.

Thanks and I'm sorry if non of this thread makes sense lol

Clair

Replies

  • randomtai
    randomtai Posts: 9,003 Member
    No food is bad.
  • CyberEd312
    CyberEd312 Posts: 3,536 Member
    No food is bad.

    QFT!! x 1000000000000000000000000000000............
  • ag27404
    ag27404 Posts: 47 Member
    This is a very broad question and you could get 100 people with 100 different opinions.

    First - Anything you eat is a diet (I.e. a panda's diet is bamboo). So I tried not to look at it as dieting but as a lifestyle change.

    Second - what I have learned, reading these message boards and other things, no only does everyone have their own opinion but something different works for everyone. I have done very well on a higher protein, lower carb diet. I'm careful where my carbs come from - which is mainly fruits and veggies. When I eat bread I try to eat whole wheat, multigrain.

    Third - I don't not allow myself anything. But I do have a few personal rules - 1. If I don't know the calories in something I'm going to eat, I look it up prior to eating them. Something's have really shocked me. Also, I think about whether or not the calories/fat/sugars are really worth it (for example - store bought cake that was brought into work, not worth it. Fancy cake from the local French bakery we bought for my dad's birthday? Totally worth it). I still eat fast food sometimes (life sometimes makes that happen), still eat pizza and other "bad" foods, I'm just way more aware and pay more attention to things like serving sizes.

    Finally - as you start to eat healthier, hopefully you wil find you are more willing to try new things. Once I stopped eating as much sugar, foods that used to taste good (fast food fries for example) now taste horrible and are easier for me to ignore. (Also, be sure to watch what you drink, that tends to be a sneaky place for calories and sugar).

    Good luck.
  • FireRuby87
    FireRuby87 Posts: 16
    Well when it comes to weight loss it's really all about calories. If you have a calorie deficet you will lose weight plain and simple.

    However the different foods affect how you feel when you're losing weight. If you fill up on twinkies, donuts, chips and lots of junk food, you won't feel quite as satisfied and full, you'll get hungrier more often throughout the day and you'll probably feel like crap. If you eat lots of unprocessed whole foods: fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean meats, exc. you feel more satisfied and healthy.

    There is nothing wrong with eating bread, rice, pasta, and carbs, heck if you're more active you should be eating more carbs to fuel your activities. You can still lose weight eating these foods, it's all about portion control. There is nothing magical about low carb.

    For veggies I believe a serving size is 1/2 cup. So having 2 cups of broccoli would count as 4 servings. 2 cups of leafy greens counts as 1 veggie serving. For fruit 1/2 cup berries is 1 serving, and 1 piece of fruit like an apple is 1. So if you're aiming for 5 servings of fruit and veggies a day having 2 cups of broccoli, 2 cups of leafy greens, and 1 or 2 servings of fruit would easily meet the quota its not hard.

    For a good estimate of how many calories you should be eating to lose weight I would calculate your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) and then eat 20% less: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    TDEE takes into account your exercise and daily activities so you don't need to eat back exercise calories.
  • Love4fitnesslove4food2
    Love4fitnesslove4food2 Posts: 711 Member
    Bread, wraps, and pasta are fine. Just log them and stay within your recommended calorie target. As you workout you "earn" more calories so if you log your workout you'll notice that your calorie target increases.

    If you have no problem with wheat bread, wheat tortillas, and wheat pasta then you might consider making the switch to those instead of their white counterparts but it's not required in order for you to lose weight.

    You actually have a decent list of fruits/veg that you like. You might try picking up a new fruit/veg at the supermarket each week just to see if you find any other winners.
  • Stage14
    Stage14 Posts: 1,046 Member
    Bread, wraps, and pasta are fine. Just log them and stay within your recommended calorie target. As you workout you "earn" more calories so if you log your workout you'll notice that your calorie target increases.

    If you have no problem with wheat bread, wheat tortillas, and wheat pasta then you might consider making the switch to those instead of their white counterparts but it's not required in order for you to lose weight.

    You actually have a decent list of fruits/veg that you like. You might try picking up a new fruit/veg at the supermarket each week just to see if you find any other winners.

    This is pretty much exactly what I was going to write.

    Wheat bread/pasta/tortillas will give you more bang for your buck because you'll feel fuller longer with more fiber, but you don't have to switch to lose weight and you certainly don't have to cut them out altogether. And your list of veggies is longer than mine, but I'm doing just fine and losing weight. Definitely try some new ones as you go, but sticking to the same 5-8 veggies won't hinder weight loss, it just makes your eating a little more monotonous if you aren't careful.
  • Clairie87
    Clairie87 Posts: 10
    Thank you guys I'm grateful in everyone's advice, I'm so happy that I was wrong regarding carbs I I eat these everyday, in some form and knowing now they are not bad (unlike I've been told) I'm even happier, I'm clueless with food, I did a 500 cal diet (naughty me I know but I did lose weight but gained all back when I stopped and I was in agony when I started eating normally again.

    I will never do a diet like that again, since doing it I have been more weary about what I'm eating, I no longer have meals on a 11inch plate I switched to a 9inch plate,

    I used to be addicted to fizzy pop, still love it but I've managed to stick to water only letting myself have some every now and again, I don't want a diet per say but more of a life style change I don't want my eating to feel like a job (if that makes sense)

    Appreciate everyone's in put

    Thanks again :)
  • unFATuated
    unFATuated Posts: 204 Member
    Losing weight is mostly about what you eat. Exercise (like going to the gym) is good for your mind and body, but it is not the main part of weight loss. You will lose weight if you are a caloric deficit (i.e. you burn more calories than you eat - but I don't like saying that anymore because a lot of people don't realise that they burn calories just by having their heart beating, breathing, etc - so they try to exercise off all of their intake for the day). There are stacks of shakes, pills and other 'quick' fixes on the market, but I would say as a blanket rule NONE of them work the same way as watching your intake and doing some activity. Yes, most of them will have you losing weight, but replacing meals with shakes or reducing your appetite with pills means that at some point you will have to stop doing using those and that's where most people have an issue - when they start eating 'normally' again they regain weight. It is always better to learn how to control your food intake and portion sizes and learn about what foods work best for you.

    I agree with the previous posters about there being no 'bad' foods (or 'good' foods for that matter). There are foods you should eat less of, as a rule, and they include the chips, chocolate, fizzy drinks etc. But they are foods that you will learn to fit in to your lifestyle eventually, as an occasional treat. There are foods you should eat more of, like wholegrains, vegetables, fruit, lean meat and other protein sources, and fats (things like avocados, olive oil etc).
  • sighless
    sighless Posts: 11
    I have found through trial and error, that my body adapts to my "diet" pretty fast. I see results for a few weeks, it slows, then stops. So I cycle. Cycle carbs, calories, eating patterns. Every 30-45 days I use "atkins induction" style, less then 50 carbs a day for 7-14 days, then carb reload with a feast of pasta, pizza etc. Spend a week at my maintenance calorie intake. Then drastically cut calories for a week, then alternate high cal (using carbs for higher cal days, needed for energy for weight/run training), low call days. On high cal days I hit the GYM or run. Right now I am using IF (leangains style, basically fast for 16 hours,8 hour eating window) which fits my schedule perfectly. Fewer, larger meals make it easier to control/track my macros and calories. I eat at 11:00 high protein meal, 1:30 healthy snack, 3:30 preworkout shake (protein powder, veggies, raw eggs and oats) 4:30 workout (1-1 1/2 weight training and stretching) post workout fruit and recovery shake (protein powder, eggs, fiber) cook a large dinner lot's of vegetables and lean meat (usually chicken or pork) eat by 6:30-7:00. I work out mon, wed, fri & sat. I also walk or ride my bike a couple miles a day, not so much because I want to burn calories, I just like being outside and moving around. I make sure I get 1 day a week where I eat something I REALLY want (hamburger, ice cream, calorie bomb cappuccino etc) keeps me from obssesing and the higher calorie treat tells my body that I am not starving. I try to eat a lot of protein and use weight training more than cardio. I figure more muscle, more cals needed and I get to eat more.

    May not work for everyone; but it fits my life.
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