I need help..

I'm 22 years old and I'm 6' tall. I was 250 pounds and I was in a bad car accident December 2015. As soon as I started walking February 2016 I made a change and started to hit the gym a lot and change my diet. I'm down to 218 pounds and I've been staying at this weight for the last 2 months. I've dropped from a size 38 jeans to 34. My biggest problem is in the car accident I destroyed my knee and my hip. I can not run without pain in the knee so I've turned to just lifting weights and trying to eat right. Unfortunately, I work construction so it's extremely hard for me to come up with a good healthy easily packed lunch that does not require a microwave and can be kept in my king box all morning. I can't do salads for some reason... If I don't eat enough or If I only eat salad for lunch, I get jittery and stomach pains and just don't feel myself.. I still have some excess belly fat and fat in my chest I'd like to get rid of but it just won't seem to go away.... My lunch currently consists of 1 pack of pineapples and 1 bologna sandwich. I also have a break at 9:15 am where I also eat 1 sandwich and 1 pack of pineapples. I don't feel like that's very fattening but obviously I'm not doing something right... Any help would be appreciated!
P.S. I'm not so much looking to lose physical weight, I just need to cut this fat off. I'm also taking SARMS called Critical Mass and also something called Repartition. They are weight lifting supplements that also help burn fat.
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Replies

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    Are you tracking your calories? If so, what is your weekly average? (Actual average, not goal.)

    You are either eating too much to lose or too little and retaining water. It's normally the former but it's hard to tell without more info.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    SteadyHaze wrote: »
    I'm 22 years old and I'm 6' tall. I was 250 pounds and I was in a bad car accident December 2015. As soon as I started walking February 2016 I made a change and started to hit the gym a lot and change my diet. I'm down to 218 pounds and I've been staying at this weight for the last 2 months. I've dropped from a size 38 jeans to 34. My biggest problem is in the car accident I destroyed my knee and my hip. I can not run without pain in the knee so I've turned to just lifting weights and trying to eat right. Unfortunately, I work construction so it's extremely hard for me to come up with a good healthy easily packed lunch that does not require a microwave and can be kept in my king box all morning. I can't do salads for some reason... If I don't eat enough or If I only eat salad for lunch, I get jittery and stomach pains and just don't feel myself.. I still have some excess belly fat and fat in my chest I'd like to get rid of but it just won't seem to go away.... My lunch currently consists of 1 pack of pineapples and 1 bologna sandwich. I also have a break at 9:15 am where I also eat 1 sandwich and 1 pack of pineapples. I don't feel like that's very fattening but obviously I'm not doing something right... Any help would be appreciated!
    P.S. I'm not so much looking to lose physical weight, I just need to cut this fat off. I'm also taking SARMS called Critical Mass and also something called Repartition. They are weight lifting supplements that also help burn fat.

    The body chooses where to lose the fat. It is not up to us.
  • SteadyHaze
    SteadyHaze Posts: 17 Member
    Hey guys, thanks for responding. I'm gunna be completely honest here.. I'm really new to this whole thing with watching what I eat and I'm not sure about my calorie intake nor can I say that I know of an efficient way to keep track or how much I should be taking in.. Basically, I've just cut out the stuff I know I shouldn't have.. Like sodas, sweets, deep fried food, etc.
    During the week I eat an egg sandwich in the morning and then the lunch I described in my main post and then for supper I try to eat chicken or any other kind of meat.
    To keep track of Calories on a sandwich I make, would I just add the amount of calories of the bread and lunch meat?
    I'm kinda lazy and cheap when it comes to making food... I wish I could find some simple easy recipes or just buy prepackaged food..
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    Buy a food scale at Walmart or Target or wherever. Weigh your food.
    Search for food or use the app's bar code feature and put your foods in the diary so you know how many calories a day you are eating.

    How did you prepare the egg? What size was the egg? Find your brand of bread in the data base.

    What is the pack of pineapples? You might be surprised at the number of calories.
  • kelsey_frame_666
    kelsey_frame_666 Posts: 37 Member
    First of all, well done on your weight loss. Keep doing the weights and walking as it's clearly working for you. As for meal choices try baked potato/sweet potato with a healthy filling like baked beans (protein), tuna or whatever you fancy. You can do them in the microwave so you could take one to work. For a sandwich I would also count the cals if you use butter/mayo or any other spread. Do you eat the same meals everyday?
  • oolou
    oolou Posts: 765 Member
    edited August 2016
    Use the MFP tools here to work out your initial goals. Bear in mind that these are estimates and that you may need to adjust them after the first month for something more accurate for you personally. Also it sounds like you don't have much to lose so it may be better to set a target of 0.5 pounds loss a week rather than anything more.

    This is a good thread for explaining calorie counting and other useful threads are listed in a sticky near the top of this forum. Keep coming back with questions as they occur to you, as this is a great community for helping each other out.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1296011/calorie-counting-101/p1
  • SteadyHaze
    SteadyHaze Posts: 17 Member
    RodaRose wrote: »
    Buy a food scale at Walmart or Target or wherever. Weigh your food.
    Search for food or use the app's bar code feature and put your foods in the diary so you know how many calories a day you are eating.

    How did you prepare the egg? What size was the egg? Find your brand of bread in the data base.

    What is the pack of pineapples? You might be surprised at the number of calories.

    The egg I just make in the microwave and put it on bread. The eggs are extra large eggs that I get from a local farmer.
  • SteadyHaze
    SteadyHaze Posts: 17 Member
    I actually just found this page yesterday and I havnt been able to look at all the features so I will look up the foods I buy!
  • SteadyHaze
    SteadyHaze Posts: 17 Member
    First of all, well done on your weight loss. Keep doing the weights and walking as it's clearly working for you. As for meal choices try baked potato/sweet potato with a healthy filling like baked beans (protein), tuna or whatever you fancy. You can do them in the microwave so you could take one to work. For a sandwich I would also count the cals if you use butter/mayo or any other spread. Do you eat the same meals everyday?

    Thank you! And yes, I normally eat the same stuff everyday. I'm not a very picky eater at all and I'm also not addicted to sweets or anything. I used to always just get fast food for lunch because it was fast and easy, but I've cut that out completely.. I eat sweet Lebanon Bologna and cheese sandwich a lot because it's simple and I don't put mayo or anything on it.
  • AngelinaB_
    AngelinaB_ Posts: 563 Member
    edited August 2016
    SteadyHaze wrote: »
    I actually just found this page yesterday and I havnt been able to look at all the features so I will look up the foods I buy!

    Take it easy, one day at a time... I would make a hefty sandwich for lunch, with a lot of proteins and fiber, and then take it easier at night... you need your food to keep working. Construction is a moving job, not a desk job, so you probably can eat more than most of us. Maybe you are eating too little. Keep watching what you eat and take one day at a time.

    Change the bologna for a better cut, such as roast beef, turkey, turkey breast or tuna (make a tuna salad sandwich). Hard boiled eggs are excellent snacks.

    Forget about diet supplements, maybe that's why you are jittery. Don't use any of that crap.

    You didn't mention if you are male or female. If you are male, you don't have to worry too much, weight will keep going down. Don't eat snacks after dinner. Keep the beers and sodas to a minimum or none if you can. Have your breakfast, your morning snack and your lunch and then eat lighter after work. You are young too, so that helps. If you are female, don't worry again, weight will keep coming down but at a slower rate. Don't drink beer or sodas at all. Don't eat snack after work and a light dinner. Just be mindful what you eat. Good luck and don't give up, that's the most important trick of all.
  • AngelinaB_
    AngelinaB_ Posts: 563 Member
    edited August 2016
    SteadyHaze wrote: »
    I'm kinda lazy and cheap when it comes to making food... I wish I could find some simple easy recipes or just buy prepackaged food..

    You have to make your own food so you can eat more, more delicious, cheaper and less calories... you will see...

  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    I bring my lunch to work in an insulated bag with a freezable pack to keep things cold. The cold pack still has a frozen core when I get home at night 10 hours later so it does a really good job. I bought mine at Costco but you can easily find them almost anywhere now since it's back to school time. Would something like that be an option for you to keep your lunch and snacks in? It would greatly expand your food options.

    As much as I love bologna and cheese sandwiches they aren't really very good for you, especially every day. Most deli meats and cheese have a lot of sodium in them and too much sodium will cause water retention. You might buy some of those packs of tuna that come in envelope-type packets. You could add one of those restaurant packets of light mayo or salad dressing to it and eat it right out of the pouch if you wanted. Hard boiled eggs do pretty well without refrigeration, too.
  • SteadyHaze
    SteadyHaze Posts: 17 Member

    Take it easy, one day at a time... I would make a hefty sandwich for lunch, with a lot of proteins and fiber, and then take it easier at night... you need your food to keep working. Construction is a moving job, not a desk job, so you probably can eat more than most of us. Maybe you are eating too little. Keep watching what you eat and take one day at a time.

    Change the bologna for a better cut, such as roast beef, turkey, turkey breast or tuna (make a tuna salad sandwich). Hard boiled eggs are excellent snacks.

    Forget about diet supplements, maybe that's why you are jittery. Don't use any of that crap.

    You didn't mention if you are male or female. If you are male, you don't have to worry too much, weight will keep going down. Don't eat snacks after dinner. Keep the beers and sodas to a minimum or none if you can. Have your breakfast, your morning snack and your lunch and then eat lighter after work. You are young too, so that helps. If you are female, don't worry again, weight will keep coming down but at a slower rate. Don't drink beer or sodas at all. Don't eat snack after work and a light dinner. Just be mindful what you eat. Good luck and don't give up, that's the most important trick of all.[/quote]

    I am a male. Soda is a zero! I drink a 2 gallon water cooler of water every day at minimum and lunch and supper I drink lemon lime water.
    However, how big of a deal is it to drink beer? Does that make a huge difference? I don't Want to make myself sound like an alcoholic, but after working all week I tend to switch to beer..
    I just completed my diary of food for today and it said I was like 1,800 Calories under today. Is that good or bad to be under?
    I do not like tuna or any fish at all. I love eggs and meat tho. I will try hard boil eggs for snack! Thank you guys so much for the help!
    I do take a lunchbox to work with an Icepack. The problem I have is I work 10 hour days 5-6 days a week and I BARELY can handle making a sandwich every night. But if I could find detailed recipes (because I'm horrible at shopping) for something I could make a lot of at once and package it for the week that doesn't require a microwave or anything that'd be perfect.
    The other thing is I always feel like I'm starving by the time I get home from work, does that mean I should eat a bigger lunch?
  • Colorscheme
    Colorscheme Posts: 1,179 Member
    Can you do swimming? I get knee pain and when it's bad, I can't run. But swimming is gentle on the joints. There's also rebounders [mini trampolines], which are supposed to be low impact.
  • ole496
    ole496 Posts: 32 Member
    You and I are almost exactly the same size. Your weight is closer to ideal especially if your photo is actually of you and you look to be in pretty good shape already. The lunch part is easy, I pack a lunch everyday. Eventually you will learn to read labels and eat the serving size listed on the packages. Log all your food including your condiments into the MFP App to track your calories. Don't cheat yourself and it's really quick and easy after about a week of logging using the app. You need to be very consistent in what you log. Buy a digital food scale and some measuring cups/spoons. After awhile, you'll learn what a proper portion size looks like. Here's a decent lunch. Make a sandwich on wheat bread. Use ham, turkey or both...or peanut butter (good protein source) and natural jam/jelly. Measure your portions. Toss in an apple, orange or banana. Add one cup/container of Chobani Yogurt. Add some carrots or celery. A 3oz serving of baby carrots is 35 calories approximately and it's very filling. Bring some protein powder in a small shaker cup and add some water for a mid-day snack. Every few days I sub in some cottage cheese in a small container (1/2 cup serving size), maybe grapes or celery with peanut butter. You'll take in roughly 450-600 calories for this meal. I like the eggs for breakfast, keep up with that. That is a great source of protein for a weight lifter but ditch the sandwich part. Pick up some chicken sausage links to help reduce fat and heat those up in the microwave. Sub in hot oatmeal, peanut butter toast, fresh fruit, (small 4 oz cup of juice once a week), protein shakes, smoothies, healthy cereal with almond milk, whatever else that is a healthier option for breakfast. Once in awhile you can bring along pre-made soup in a cup and just add hot water. You can microwave water and put it into a small thermos, it will actually stay hot until lunch. Then mix it together at lunch time. Just watch the sodium level on that type of stuff so spread those out a week. For Dinner I look at whatever calories I have left and sift thru the fridge until I find some combination that both sounds good and fits into my allotted calories for the day. If you have a bum leg, weightlifting is a great alternative to cardio for weightloss. Your body will continue to slowly burn off the calories as it recovers from lifting. If you can't do much cardio at all then you can circuit lift, meaning moving from machine to machine quickly with few breaks. Use lighter weights and higher reps. After 10 mins your heart should be pumping and you can work thru all muscle groups without doing much damage. You'll be surprised at how strong and fit you can be using that method. If you manage your calories carefully at a slight deficit and you feed your body back some or most of the calories you burn off you will lose weight. Calories in/Calories Out. The last 15-20 pounds is very, very difficult to lose and will take some time. If you can lose 1 pound a week at the very end consider yourself lucky. Lifting weights will help transform what you see in the mirror as well so you may not notice that leftover fat.

    There is another possibility in that what you think is fat might be skin or it can also be a type of fat that the body cannot process and burn off. There is a name for it but I can't remember what it is off the top of my head. A friend of mine had that problem and had to have some liposuction to get rid of it.
  • xvolution
    xvolution Posts: 721 Member
    edited August 2016
    SteadyHaze wrote: »
    I am a male. Soda is a zero! I drink a 2 gallon water cooler of water every day at minimum and lunch and supper I drink lemon lime water.

    That's a lot of water to drink daily [that's 4 times the amount of water recommended in the 8x8 water plan (8 8oz glasses of water) ]. Something tells me that some of that bloating and weight might not be fat, but excess water. 2 gallons of water weighs around 16 pounds.
  • ole496
    ole496 Posts: 32 Member
    Some other issues you were having involved being hungry by dinner time. If you are getting hungry you should increase your protein intake all day starting with breakfast which will curb your appetite some throughout the day. You may have to plan on eating two smaller meals at work for those long 10 hour days. You might have to eat a lighter breakfast to get yourself out the door then start eating one of those meals 3 hours into your day and space them out. If you get hungry, there are great foods that are filling that don't have a lot of calorie penalty. My go to is baby carrots mentioned previously. Hard boiled eggs was a really great suggestion. Protein and fiber foods like apples and peanut butter really help as do protein shakes.

    If you want a beer after work, enter just one beer into your snacks part of the app right away in the morning then plan your meals accordingly throughout the day and save those calories for yourself when you get home. In reality you should stay away from beer as it contributes directly to the gut factor in a big way. But if you have to have it, then have it. I plan ahead if I know I'm going out to dinner and even shop the menu items online and pick what I want to eat, then fill in other calories as the day goes on until I'm all out. It's no fun when you go to a restaurant and can't eat what you want because you didn't plan for it.

    Also, buy a couple protein bars and keep one in your lunchbox but don't plan on eating it unless you've got no choice or you work later than expected. Unfortunately that protein bar will become part of your caloric dinner plans.
  • AngelinaB_
    AngelinaB_ Posts: 563 Member
    edited August 2016
    SteadyHaze wrote: »

    However, how big of a deal is it to drink beer? Does that make a huge difference? I don't Want to make myself sound like an alcoholic, but after working all week I tend to switch to beer..

    The other thing is I always feel like I'm starving by the time I get home from work, does that mean I should eat a bigger lunch?

    I wouldn't think it is a big of a deal specially for a male and so young, and plus you are watching your calories. So no if you want to have your beers have them.

    Yes, I think you are eating too little. Maybe a more satisfying lunch would help you feel better. Make it protein and fiber dense.

    If I were you, I would make friendship here, or go to the boards, and see what everybody is eating and simply copy recipes or ideas you think you would like and make it fit to your daily calorie goal and your lifestyle, that's it, it has to work for your day to day living and you have to feel you can keep up with it.




  • cebreisch
    cebreisch Posts: 1,340 Member
    Most people have indicated the supplements are crap and not to take them. I did try to take supplements to burn fat and can say that they did nothing except freak out my liver. My liver enzymes went crazy and when I quit taking the supplements to burn fat, my liver was fine and the number came back great.

    It doesn't really sound like what you're eating is that bad. I would however take the time to log everything. Good, bad, ugly, whatever. Whatever you eat goes on the food log. That way you know where to start making changes - whether to increase protein or decrease carbs or find better types of carbs or increase fiber, - whatever.

    Last - make sure you hit your water intake. That'll really help a lot.