Need some advice. Im new :)

amberhughes750
amberhughes750 Posts: 6
in Introduce Yourself
Hello Everyone!

My name is Amber and Im from West Virginia. I am wanting to start a new chapter in my life by getting healthy. I have to for many reasons: My health, my self esteem, my confidence and my family. The doctor put me on a Low Carb, High Protein diet. I also have a soon to be 2 year old. I weigh in at 199 pounds and am only 4foot 11inches. Im guessing my weight the doctor said is suppose to be 105 for my height, which seems impossible for me at this moment to get their. I have never cooked healthy food since i came from a country life-style (mashed potatoes, buiscuts, cornbread, meatloaf, ect.)
The prices of healthy food are high here, I think. I just need some ideas since I got paid on foods to get for this diet and some menu plans for dinner, lunch, breakfest, ect. Please help if you can and Id love to hear your stories and your eating habits.
Thanks so much!

Replies

  • Fig_1946
    Fig_1946 Posts: 65 Member
    Well, hello! Don't despair....you can do this. I'm about your height, and I was 210 pounds 3 years ago. I'm now down to 128.

    A very important thing to do is to learn portion control. (and no seconds!).

    Have steamed or grilled vegetables, or raw if you like. Lean protein....fish, chicken...grilled or broiled.
  • JojoEffeckt164
    JojoEffeckt164 Posts: 146 Member
    Welcome to MFP! Here are my starter tips

    - Keep EVERYTHING out of the house that you can't moderarte!. For me that´s e.g. peanutbutter I would eat a whole yar if you would let me...

    -After you put something on your plate, put the rest away and out of your view

    -if you go to work prepare your food at home and take it with you. I used to eat at the defac.... That was a horrible idea!

    - Log your food for the next day, before you got to bed that way. That way you can be sure you won´t go over your limits

    -move your butt! You will also lose weight without sport, but with sport it goes quicker

    Good luck to you! :flowerforyou:
  • amberhughes750
    amberhughes750 Posts: 6
    Wow thats very inspiring you are down to 128! Great job! As for grilled foods and broiled, is broiled like baked? And grilled...would I need a goerge forman grill? I have always fried my foods.
    Also thanks for the advice Jojo! Im new to the colarie counting. Hope I do ok; Do i still need to log if I am on a low carb high protien diet?
  • chadproud
    chadproud Posts: 8
    Welcome Amber!

    No need to get discouraged about how "far" you feel like you have to go and how impossible that may seem.

    Everyone has to start from somewhere!

    Using a George Foreman Grill is an excellent way to grill foods, but even if you don't have that option you can still cook foods in a pan, just use a light cooking spray instead of oils or grease.

    Logging your foods can and will help you no matter what diet type you are using. Especially in the beginning. Once you gain experience and feel comfortable with the foods that you're eating on a regular basis, it becomes less and less important to log stuff daily.

    Good luck!
  • allbarrett
    allbarrett Posts: 159 Member
    Mashed potatoes, biscuits, cornbread, meatloaf aren't bad...I eat all of these and have lost weight. As someone above said, portion control is the first step...make the things you love (and know how to make), calculate how many calories are in them (MFP has a very good recipe tool, so you can enter in everything you use to make your standard meatloaf, for example, then easily know how much should be "1 portion" to meet your targets), and stick to your target. Pick a reasonable target...you didn't gain weight in a week or two, you won't lose it in a week or two either.

    Try to add more vegetables to your diet, they add a lot of bulk (fill you up) but not a lot of calories AND they are full of nutrients your body needs. Steaming is great, as are baking and grilling, season to taste (but try to reduce the amount of butter or oils you use when you cook/eat them).

    If you are going to make meatloaf, consider going to a leaner ground beef (switch to "lean" or "extra lean" if you can). Try to pick up other cuts of meat like skinless chicken or turkey, if you enjoy fish, then add that to your repertoire. I never used to eat fish (I love it but my husband didn't) but we've learned new ways of cooking it and now have it weekly. If you enjoy cooking, use this as an opportunity to learn new techniques or expand your recipe collection. :)
  • D_squareG
    D_squareG Posts: 361 Member
    Hi! You can do this. I cook most of my own food and I was trained to cook by my country mama! I know and love the foods you mention. You can have them in moderation as long as they fit in your calorie plan.

    Cheaper sources of protein: tuna, chicken, beans, eggs, pork (lean). I eat eggs for breakfast every day. They help me stay full. I buy lots of chicken breast when on sale and keep in my freezer. I cook them to eat on salads or in stews or soups and even on sandwiches.

    The main thing is to measure accurately and log your food. If you can afford it, buy a food scale that weighs in ounces and grams and has a tare function(zeros out). You can get them at Walmart for about 15.00$.

    The other thing is to set realistic calorie goals. Hopefully your doctor helped with this.

    Read the posting 'your guide to sexy pants'. Just searching the forum for it. It is priceless.

    Good luck. You can do it. Don't look at the whole amount, just make small goals and achieve them.
  • ew_david
    ew_david Posts: 3,473 Member
    Baby steps.

    Make a reasonable calorie goal. Stick to it. Get some exercise. And most importantly, have patience. Those that fail are the ones who have unrealistic expectations and go to the extreme.

    You can still eat all the foods you eat today, just in smaller amounts.
  • amethyst7986
    amethyst7986 Posts: 223 Member
    Take the word "diet" out of your mind, this is a lifestyle change-- for me the word "diet" has a negative effect, I learned that I eat and behave better when I say healthier lifestyle-- diets are temporary, lifestyle changes are long term.


    Set small goals for yourself and reward yourself

    Plan a head--I take snacks with me to work (fruit, veggies) and make my meals a head of time and I haven't eliminated all the unhealthy food from my life, but I have limited it to certain days and given myself rules--if I will be going to the gym I will have a sweet treat, only one cup of coffee a day (bc I load it full of calories), etc

    Take it one day at time-- the best advice I received from a personal trainer/body builder/friend was "it takes time to gain this weight, therefore it will take time to get rid of it" YOU can do this good luck!
  • shyfranklinstein
    shyfranklinstein Posts: 61
    Hi there! To get started, just be totally honest with yourself on activity level, level of will power (where most people need work) and I used this site and calculate my TDEE, BMR, and then times your TDEE by 15% to start then subtract that number from the TDEE. Be patient and consistent! Get most of your food from whole nutrient dense foods and the rest can be fit into treats!

    http://iifym.com/
    http://iifym.com/bmr-calculator/
    http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/
    and I use these workouts when I cannot make it to the gym
    http://www.drsarasolomon.com/

    Hope that helps!
  • JojoEffeckt164
    JojoEffeckt164 Posts: 146 Member
    Definately "YES" to the log question... Losing weight is all about calorie-in and calorie-out. Burn more than you eat -> lose weight
    Plus you will have some pretty nice surprises. Some things I used to eat where like half of my daily goal already. I would have never thought how many calories my old brakfast used to have!

    If you have a blender you can also try green smoothies. I just started with them and WOW I love them!!! I have one for every breakfast now =) Very Yummy!

    I use for my morning smoothie:

    100ml water
    100ml apple juice
    1 Apple
    1 Banana
    150g spinach (frozen)
    5g quality oil (e.g. linseed oil)
    (sometimes some fresh mint leaves too)

    You can see how it looks in my current profile picture
  • amberhughes750
    amberhughes750 Posts: 6
    Ok thanks everyone for the advice I really appricieate it. I would love to make smoothies I just got to get a blender. LOL. As for the mashed potatoes and stuff, I heard that they are high in starch. Anything white is high in starch and not good to eat. Some are my friends are on this "thing" where they dont eat anything white (potatoes, bread, pasta, ect.) Thats why I was just wondering if its still good or bad that I eat. I understand I eat them in moderation.
    Is it true that in moderation when eating dinner, one spoon (the plasic cooking spoons) is enough of a serving for that item?
    Thanks in advance. I am just trying to get as much information as I can that will help me. :)
  • shyfranklinstein
    shyfranklinstein Posts: 61
    Do not get confused with weird spoon servings and whats good to get rid of and what not. You will start demonizing certain foods. Eat what you want (should be 80% nutrient dense) and make room for treats if you want. If you want a small breakfast and big dinner, have it. Just hold yourself accountable for cals in vs cals out
  • JojoEffeckt164
    JojoEffeckt164 Posts: 146 Member
    I love love love potatoes! They have only 70kcal/100g and keep me full for a long time...

    I don´t believe in low carb diets anyways but that´s up to you of cause! Just do what feels right for you =)
  • D_squareG
    D_squareG Posts: 361 Member
    Ok thanks everyone for the advice I really appricieate it. I would love to make smoothies I just got to get a blender. LOL. As for the mashed potatoes and stuff, I heard that they are high in starch. Anything white is high in starch and not good to eat. Some are my friends are on this "thing" where they dont eat anything white (potatoes, bread, pasta, ect.) Thats why I was just wondering if its still good or bad that I eat. I understand I eat them in moderation.
    Is it true that in moderation when eating dinner, one spoon (the plasic cooking spoons) is enough of a serving for that item?
    Thanks in advance. I am just trying to get as much information as I can that will help me. :)

    You don't need to cut out starch, just count it. It isn't "bad" for you.

    Don't rely on spoons to measure portions, especially when new to this. Get a food scale. At the very least, use a measuring cup or spoon.
  • amberhughes750
    amberhughes750 Posts: 6
    Ok ill do that. Thanks everyone.

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