How do you do it?

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RunConquerCelebrate
RunConquerCelebrate Posts: 956 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So the question is how do you do it? How long did it take you to figure out portions, calories for the items you were eating and figure out what to eat? do you follow recipes books? online recipes? measure food?

I posted this question on my profile to my friends, they are so good with their dairies. I see that they eat a lot of food but low in cals and good portions.

I am still struggling with that trying to figure out what to eat, portions, calories. I want to eat healthy and the right foods that give me the nutrition that I need and help me loose weight and have energy.
So I thought I would post the same question here in the forums and see what kind of answers I get.
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Replies

  • craek
    craek Posts: 201 Member
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    I mostly focus on portion. Dieting is the hardest thing for me to do. It's easy for me to commit to exercise but dieting is another story. I try to eat as healthy as I possibly can but portion is easiest for me and it has worked for me in the past!
  • sanura
    sanura Posts: 459 Member
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    I eat lots of vegetables, (at least when I'm really on track) they are so low in calories I can eat as much as I want, and I get lots of important nutrients.
  • Kate_UK
    Kate_UK Posts: 1,299 Member
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    I mostly focus on portion. Dieting is the hardest thing for me to do. It's easy for me to commit to exercise but dieting is another story. I try to eat as healthy as I possibly can but portion is easiest for me and it has worked for me in the past!

    Ditto. I weigh my portions so I know exactly how many calories I'm eating. Do allow yourself the odd treat if your really craving it though. If you try to go cold turkey you can end up binging. Good luck!
  • mariapuhl
    mariapuhl Posts: 529 Member
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    I eat a lot of salad - with super low-cal/low fat dressing that is good to start off a meal generally. Over the holidays that hasn't been happening but I've still lost weight with portion control.

    Basically, I've learned what a "portion" size of most things are so now I can eyeball it, but I started out measuring, weighing, etc. every little thing. That's how I had to change.

    Another good tactic - I just spent like 30 mins looking at the Chili's nutrition menu (there are 2 Chili's ads on my page right now lol), and seriously, when I look at what I used to eat and the portions and how horrible it is for me, it makes me not want to eat that stuff. I get more enjoyment now out of finding something I like just as much, but how many calories I "save" makes it even better than that high fat/cal meal I used to eat.
  • neelia
    neelia Posts: 750 Member
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    I use a measuring cup constantly. For my meats, I use a food scale (Walmart- $12). I try to stick to "healthy" foods like fruits and veggies, but I don't keep myself from my "old favorites"...I just watch the portion control of that "bad food".

    Also, I record EVERYTHING...no matter what!:smile:
  • emmyvera
    emmyvera Posts: 599 Member
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    GREAT Question! :smile:

    My process has been slow but I've noticed quite a difference in energy, sleep, strength and all over health.

    Some "guidelines" I keep in check (or try to :laugh: ) are:

    1. Stay right around my calorie amount. 100 over or under, but within that.
    2. Eat small meals, portions throughout the day. I usually eat around 4-5 "meals" a day.
    3. Drink lots of water and stay hydrated! Still working on going above and beyond on this.
    4. Exercise daily. If i skip a day, I do my darnedest to get back to it the following day.
    5. Try to get 7-8 hours sleep every night.

    I honestly think these 5 things have all worked together as team to make me healthier.

    As for portions, I do measure stuff or eyeball a little. I pack a lunch every day for work and have my things measure out so I don't get greedy at work. That leaves me with only what I packed.

    I also do my best to eat breakfast every morning. This makes a HUGE difference with my choices later that day. And one of my secrets as far as everyday diet is FIBER. I love fiber and I incorporate it everyday as much as I can to keep me full and my digestive system on track.

    I use recipe books and online recipes. I make a lot of modifications too. Like low sodium choices, or whole wheat instead of regular pasta. Stuff like that. I love getting inspiration for cooking ideas from other places and making it my own at home :blushing:
  • ObviousIndigo
    ObviousIndigo Posts: 382 Member
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    measuring food is probably the best way that I have found. I can count calories all I want but if I don't know the size of what I am eating it is pointless. I have a scale I paid $8 for and i weigh things that can't be portioned by cups. I try to make sure I keep my portions down. It is really hard for me to say no to something that tastes really good but I tell myself that if I don't have that second helping then there will be left overs for the next day. Then I don't eat the second helping. Ever! That's what helps me:)
  • paperboy
    paperboy Posts: 24 Member
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    The best way to get started... read your labels. All the measuring cups and everything else will come with time. But if you sit down with a box of crackers, you're going to want to know how many you can eat without blowing your budget.
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    I measure/weigh all my foods and record everything. I also tend to eat a lot of the same things - some people would find it boring, but I feel that it just makes it easier! Eggs and something else for breakfast (sometimes fruit, sometimes toast, sometimes another protein), salad and protein for lunch, sometimes with some beans or quinoa or something thrown in, and then dinner is usually a protein (chicken breast, fish, burger, etc.), veggie and then something like brown rice, quinoa, barley, beans, potatoes, etc. I know what foods I like and what combinations I like.

    Don't get me wrong - I try new things quite frequently and add the "keepers" into the rotation - ex. cauliflower crust pizza was a recent discovery of mine.
  • BrentGetsFit
    BrentGetsFit Posts: 878 Member
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    I started out following the meal plan that came with Power 90 RELIGIOUSLY. I ate only what was on that list. Over time though I just started studying labels and comparing. It takes me much longer to shop now, lol. That in turn led me to clean eating whereby I look for things as close to their natural state as I can find them, the fewer ingredients in something, the better. I also use eatingwell.com for healthy recipes and they give all the nutritional info as well. I've recently begun to calculate nutritional info for some of my old faves, it ain't pretty so now the challenge is to make them healthier. Good luck :)
  • NikaBeth03
    NikaBeth03 Posts: 7
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    Good question. I looked over the answers you received, and all I can say is that there are some dedicated people out there. My job and lifestyle leave me eating out quite a bit, and the thought of bringing out a measuring cup during meals would raise a lot of eye brows. That situation has created my list of simple rules: never go to eat hungry, I have a bag of dried fruit in my purse so that I never approach a meal on an empty stomach. 2. Start with half: I always separate everything on the plate in half and put one portion in a to go bag. 3. WATER, water with a lemon that I drink all through the meal. It helps fill me up and digest properly. Finally, listen to yourself. We all know that the item of cheesy goodness with the french fries is bad for our diet, so hold the cheese and replace the fries with fruit. That was my way of keeping "i can't eat that" out of my brain by replacing it with "I can, if I....".

    The gals that mentioned measuring cups were right on, but I had to adjust it for myself. I was terrible at knowing what a cup of something looked like, so to help I spent a week cooking for myself. That way I was able to really see what a proper portion looked like.

    My method is not the fastest, but I has helped me remain consistent. I am going for a life change, and not just a momentary diet.

    Oh ya, the food calorie counter on this site is great! I use it for every meal on my phone.

    I hope this may help you a little.

    ~Cheers
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    Good question. I looked over the answers you received, and all I can say is that there are some dedicated people out there. My job and lifestyle leave me eating out quite a bit, and the thought of bringing out a measuring cup during meals would raise a lot of eye brows.

    This made me laugh! I should've specified - I weight and measure everything I make at home - when I eat out (which I've really cut back on), I try to only eat at places with nutrition info published, and I look that up ahead of time so that I can plan. If that's not possible, I order something that's pretty standard, like a 7oz steak with steamed veggies and a baked potato (easy to know how much I'm eating) or a chicken breast with veggies, etc. I try to stay away from dishes that are all mixed up like the pasta dishes with lots of sauce and stuff like that.
  • Kath712
    Kath712 Posts: 1,263 Member
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    The best way to get started... read your labels. All the measuring cups and everything else will come with time. But if you sit down with a box of crackers, you're going to want to know how many you can eat without blowing your budget.

    Big ditto! It was very eye-opening for me to realize how much a serving was (ex. 7 pretzels, as opposed to however many I felt like eating!).
  • jcrossman60
    jcrossman60 Posts: 1 Member
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    All these suggestions are great: measuring or weighing portions, reading labels, eating healthy. One more thing that works really well for me is planning my meals in advance. I try to do a weekly menu planner every weekend. It makes it easier to shop and to stay on track. I don't even think about what I'm going to eat, I just check the menu that I posted on the fridge. There are tons of meal plans available online, for however many calories you want to consume each day. btw, the image of someone sitting in a restaurant with measuring cups literally made me laugh out loud. thanks for that.
  • ATT949
    ATT949 Posts: 1,245 Member
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    I use measuring cups, an Escali scale (amazon.com), read the labels on foods, and use the values in your food diary as your guide.
    These last three weeks have been a complete eye-opener for me because I've gone from eating "in moderation" to eating in moderation.
    For example, I love veggies…"eat all you want" and then I see that 2 cups of frozen veggies is 16 grams of carbs which is about 1/4 of what I need for carbs (6' 1", 279 lbs., exercise daily).
    Almonds? 1 serving (24 almonds) of those little lovelies is 160 calories - yikes!
  • RunConquerCelebrate
    RunConquerCelebrate Posts: 956 Member
    Options
    I mostly focus on portion. Dieting is the hardest thing for me to do. It's easy for me to commit to exercise but dieting is another story. I try to eat as healthy as I possibly can but portion is easiest for me and it has worked for me in the past!

    I have to agree I am new to this counting calories thing, I hate dieting and measuring things etc. But I know it works if you figure out how to do it. Thanks for the reply
  • RunConquerCelebrate
    RunConquerCelebrate Posts: 956 Member
    Options
    I eat lots of vegetables, (at least when I'm really on track) they are so low in calories I can eat as much as I want, and I get lots of important nutrients.

    That is what I need to start doing adding more vegetables to my diet. Maybe not getting enough
  • RunConquerCelebrate
    RunConquerCelebrate Posts: 956 Member
    Options
    Another good tactic - I just spent like 30 mins looking at the Chili's nutrition menu (there are 2 Chili's ads on my page right now lol), and seriously, when I look at what I used to eat and the portions and how horrible it is for me, it makes me not want to eat that stuff. I get more enjoyment now out of finding something I like just as much, but how many calories I "save" makes it even better than that high fat/cal meal I used to eat.

    I know what you mean the other I looked at a restaurants menu where I used to go a lot and when I looked at the calories I was amazed how I used to eat that LOL!!!
  • RunConquerCelebrate
    RunConquerCelebrate Posts: 956 Member
    Options
    GREAT Question! :smile:

    My process has been slow but I've noticed quite a difference in energy, sleep, strength and all over health.

    Some "guidelines" I keep in check (or try to :laugh: ) are:

    1. Stay right around my calorie amount. 100 over or under, but within that.
    2. Eat small meals, portions throughout the day. I usually eat around 4-5 "meals" a day.
    3. Drink lots of water and stay hydrated! Still working on going above and beyond on this.
    4. Exercise daily. If i skip a day, I do my darnedest to get back to it the following day.
    5. Try to get 7-8 hours sleep every night.

    I honestly think these 5 things have all worked together as team to make me healthier.

    As for portions, I do measure stuff or eyeball a little. I pack a lunch every day for work and have my things measure out so I don't get greedy at work. That leaves me with only what I packed.

    I also do my best to eat breakfast every morning. This makes a HUGE difference with my choices later that day. And one of my secrets as far as everyday diet is FIBER. I love fiber and I incorporate it everyday as much as I can to keep me full and my digestive system on track.

    I use recipe books and online recipes. I make a lot of modifications too. Like low sodium choices, or whole wheat instead of regular pasta. Stuff like that. I love getting inspiration for cooking ideas from other places and making it my own at home :blushing:

    Thanks for the tips and those five steps that is helpful information
  • RunConquerCelebrate
    RunConquerCelebrate Posts: 956 Member
    Options
    The best way to get started... read your labels. All the measuring cups and everything else will come with time. But if you sit down with a box of crackers, you're going to want to know how many you can eat without blowing your budget.

    I think that is where my problem is not reading the labels need to get into the habit of doing that.

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