Look at my diary and.....

Two things I'm noticing. I would recommend more fresh fruits and vegetables, definitely. Secondly, I see that your dinners are your highest caloric intake. Try inverting your meals. Eat a large breakfast, a medium lunch, and a small dinner. I've found this works for myself and other people I know.

Oh, and drink more water!

Good luck!

You are doing really well with your protein and sodium intake! My fitness coach says that these are two of the most important things...I would agree that you need more fruits and veggies though and maybe one shake as a snack I am just starting over and added you as a friend for inspiration!

-if you are going to have shakes have 'real' shakes as of in with fruit and veggies and natural juices or milk
-veggies for every meal! (if you do smoothies or shakes add a hand full of spinach, kale, celery, cucumber something fresh and green)
-drop the soda
-fruit

for snacks chop fruits and veggis and put them in ziplocks you said you work a lot if you have them prepped cut them up for the wk and you can keep them at work

Looks like a lot of protein, but seems healthy enough. Probably will want to add some real food like you said for lunch.

It's really not. Everything I've been reading suggests 1/2-1gram of protein per lb of bodyweight which for me would be 170grams. I eat at least 100 grams per day and am losing great. I was going to suggest she increase her protein intake to 25-30% because what she ate today would be good for everyday, vs. 45grams that MFP has her set for.

I agree, more real food... fruits, vegetables, whole grain things... try brown rice, whole wheat buns, whole wheat or multigrain pasta. When you make your meal think whole grain, healthy fat, lean meat, vegetable. So it could be... brown rice, chicken sauteed in olive oil with broccoli - just for an example.

For breakfast, try 100% whole oats (I buy the quick oats that microwave in 01:30) and add frozen or fresh fruit and honey or agave if you need sweetener (stay away from refined sugar). Add an egg or two and you have a great balanced breakfast. For lunch, have a sandwich ... rye bread, whole wheat, tuna or fish or turkey with some spinach, bean sprouts (great on sandwiches, yummy crunch!), some green onions. Add some nuts for healthy fat - pistachios, almonds, walnuts.

I definitely agree with replacing shakes and soda with real food. The nutrients in fruits and vegetables are much better for you than a shake that just has one or two of the nutrients extracted from these foods and put into powder or liquid form. The fiber that comes along with whole fruits and vegetables also helps your body process the sugar in the fruits more slowly and is good for your gut. If you want a quick smoothie, there are plenty of good homemade ones out there, and I'd be happy to give you any recipes or tips to make them yummy and healthy!

I also recommend adding more whole grains, and I don't mean whole wheat bread, because that is still considered more of a processed grain. Try lentils, barley, quinoa, brown rice, or others.

If you really don't feel like you have much time to cook, there are higher quality frozen and pre-packaged foods out there, and I am happy to share some great brands with you if you would like!

I have a question about all these suggestions. I am just starting out on all of this. I, too, am staying under my calorie and protein numbers...etc. But it is mostly with processed foods. The problem for me is the COST of fresh foods. How do you balance that? I have been trying to keep a closer eye on the calories and fat content of the foods I buy, which has really upped our grocery bill, leaving us little to no money for fresh vegetables and fruits.