Evaluate Me?

Welcome aboard. The starting can always be the hardest. One foot in front of the other. But if you are like many of us you will not regret it. As a number have people have said Ido not see yogurt and cheese filling you up, which is part of why you are snacking as you seem to indicate. I might suggest looking into small meals that have turkey or chicken in them, maybe produce a daily menu for the fridge if you lose track easily. Now a lot of this is trial an error, and it is not always easy, I tend to intake too much soda for instance, but is am trying. And paying attention to what you eat is a big start.

Hello, and welcome to MFP. It's great that you are getting started and already reaching out to others for advice.

After looking through your entry, it looks like most of your caloric intake is coming from snacks, rather than from your meals, and most of it is coming from dairy. Dairy is okay in moderation, but with little fiber and the high amount of saturated fat found in cheese, the calories and saturated fat content add up, without providing much satiety. I try limiting your dairy intake to 2-3 servings/day. I actually like greek yogurt because it is has a creamier consistency and fills me up faster. Also, I would recommend making sure that your meals have good sources of carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats in every meal to help keep you from feeling hungry and including fiber-rich foods will keep you satisfied longer and are good for your health (good sources are fruits, vegetables and whole grains and legumes).

Another reason why you are probably so hungry is that you are not getting enough calories in the morning. After going an entire night without food, your body needs energy to start the day, so a good breakfast will get your metabolism going so that you burn more calories throughout the day and help to reduce your appetite. I would also try to reduce the amount of processed foods, and try to get most of your energy from whole foods, which tend to be nutrient dense and have less calories, so you can eat more food.

As for your caloric intake level, this is probably too low, and could be another reason why you are so hungry. Especially if you are exercising, it is important to make sure that you are not eating less calories than your body need to properly be able to function. Having too low of a caloric intake can actually slow down your metabolism, making it harder to lose weight. We may think that the less calories we eat, the more weight we will lose, but when the body does not have enough fuel, it goes into starvation mode and burns less calories to try to preserve them to carry out basic metabolic processes in the body.

Hopefully some of these suggestions have helped. Remember to be kind to your body, this does not have to be a miserable experience where you feel like you have to deprive yourself to try to lose weight. This can be a great chance to discover new food that is healthy and delicious and enjoy the process of becoming a more healthy you. I wish you all the best and, once again, commend you for reaching out to others for support.

Try eating porridge for breakfast, it keeps me full till lunchtime and is very good for you. X

Thanks to all of you for the quick answers! About the Swiss Cheese: I really TRY to let it be just a snack, but I very quickly lose track and before you know it, I've eaten the whole package! :sad:

I will definitely look at some other folks' diaries and see what I can use for myself.

Thanks again. I'm glad I found this place!

Bill

I understand about swiss cheese and yogurt. I could live on it!

Welcome Bill! When I saw you were in early stages of Alzheimer's, my first thought was a Low Carb High Fat diet, as recent studies have shown this to be very helpful in slowing the progression. Then I looked at your diary and saw that you were indeed following that diet already. I assume that is intentional?

You are doing well to stay away from sugars and grains as much as possible, but don't be afraid to add fresh veggies to your diet to help bulk up your meals and add some much needed fiber. Especially with the level of cheese you are eating!

Chef salads with cheese, boiled eggs, ham, chicken, bacon, sunflower seeds, avocado, etc will be great meals for you that don't have to be cooked on the stove or in the oven. Use olive oil dressings as well. The healthy fats in olives, olive oil, avocados, seeds, nuts, and even egg yolks are all very good for brain function and healing.

Best wishes for you for better health.

Hi Bill,

Another idea that may work for you would be if you could have your wife cook bacon for you ahead of time, as well as some scrambled eggs, then pkg it in the refrigerator so all you need to do is microwave it for a few seconds. This would enable you to have a hot breakfast that would be more filling than yogurt, which you could save for your morning snack.

Kathy

I would perhaps stop waiting until the clock strikes 12 to eat the next days allotted calories.
I guess doing it daily would mean its all the same, but waking up in the morning with a few hundred calories already spent would bug me. Eat supper at a normal time if your schedule allows it, maybe a snack later on, but stop waiting until midnight for more.

That seems like good advice! I just started and put in the .5 lb a week, and I'm darn hungry with that. I think I would just fail if I tried to do any more. As it is, i think I must have been taking in way more calories than what it recommends.