Real food diet...is that a thing?

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AgidGirl
AgidGirl Posts: 138 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Well, here I am at the heaviest I've ever been. I haven't tried every diet out there, haven't yo-yo dieted, never taken a diet pill but, I have been REALLY LAZY about my health and fitness! What can I say, I'm a super wife, busy mom-of-three, I work full time, you know the drill. It's time for a change!

So, here's what I'm doing so far:

1. Eating only 'real foods', nothing processed.
2. Tracking what I eat here on MFP (1200 calories or less)
3. Cut out sugar
4. Replacing 1 meal a day with a protein shake
5. Drinking half my weight (or more) in water
6. Taking 1 serving of Amazing Grass each day

I've only been giving this approach a go since last Sunday. I have no problem with the food and I've been feeling pretty good, until yesterday. I think I might have hit a wall or something but...I'm exhausted! Any recommendations on things I can incorporate into my routine to help me feel more energized? Also, any tweeks or changes I should do with my 'plan'? Thanks so much for reading!
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Replies

  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    Is that wheat grass? My cousin in Uganda swears by it.
  • AgidGirl
    AgidGirl Posts: 138 Member
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    malibu927 wrote: »
    I'm a little surprised that a "real food" diet would include protein shakes, as that would seem too processed

    Hi there! It's actually a plant based protein...the ingredient list only has 5 ingredients! Check it out: https://www.amazon.com/Spring-Life-Plant-Based-Protein-Hypoallergenic/dp/B01N0LBV3T/?th=1
  • AgidGirl
    AgidGirl Posts: 138 Member
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    crzycatlady1 wrote: »
    If you're eating less than 1,200 calories a day, then of course you're exhausted.

    You're making this whole thing way more complicated than it needs to be-just enter your stats into MFP and then follow the calorie recommendation it gives you (it will have your needed deficit built in). Nothing wrong with eating more fruits and vegetables (which actually have a fairly high satiety level for the calories), but no need to do extremes like cutting out sugar, replacing meals with shakes or using woo supplements.

    Thanks! I have been within the MFP calorie recommendation everyday. I eat most of my 'food' during the day and have a shake for dinner...which for me is nice because I am usually running my kids around in the evenings until 8 PM or so :-p
  • AgidGirl
    AgidGirl Posts: 138 Member
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    cmriverside wrote: »
    Geez! How much weight are you trying to lose? How tall are you?

    I bet with your (ACTIVE) activity level (kids/house/job) you could eat closer to 1700 and still lose if you are logging accurately. PLUS you could eat more on exercise days.

    Listen to your body. If you're bonking it's because you're under eating.

    Thanks for your reply. I'm 5'4" and trying to lose 80-90lbs.
  • AgidGirl
    AgidGirl Posts: 138 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    AgidGirl wrote: »
    !

    I eat a primarily whole foods diet, but I think 100% whole food 100% of the time is pretty unrealistic...and frankly I really enjoy our Friday night pizza nights and whatnot. Not to mention I eat quite a bit in terms of minimally processed food good like dairy, canned tomatoes, canned beans, etc. I don't eat much in the way of added sugars, but I do usually have some small something or other for desert a few days per week and I don't avoid fruit or anything like that. Also, you don't need to do meal replacement shakes...and frankly, I wouldn't consider them to be "real foods"...they are highly processed food goods.

    I also make sure I'm taking in adequate calories. In regards to your calorie targets, they are pretty aggressive and it's likely that you can eat more and still lose weight...one of the issues with aggressive deficits is fatigue and when fatigue sets in you start start to mess with the CO part of the equation...less involuntary fidgeting...less moving in general...things like that. In essence, by being so aggressive, you can actually do yourself a disservice and make weight loss harder than it need be.

    Also, you shouldn't really be aiming to be below 1200...1200 is already a substantial deficit from your maintenance level of calories.

    Thanks for your kind and thoughtful reply. Yes, I agree I will not be eating whole foods 100% all the time. But, at this step of my 'journey' I feel like I need to cutout as many as possible. I feel like if I have a cheat meal (pizza, pasta, etc) I will fall back into my old ways.

    Based off of the reactions here (most of them mean, geesh) about the shakes I am going to reevaluate that part of my plan and add back in an actual dinner. It's hard having dinner on the go which is why I really liked the shakes!

    Thanks again, I really appreciate your advice!
  • TheCupcakeCounter
    TheCupcakeCounter Posts: 606 Member
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    Take your calories up - you should never be below 1200 and most likely should be closer to 1500 - and take a look at your protein intake. If you are trying to stay at 1200 calories you really do have to make sure you are eating the right calories. I eat a bunch of raw veggies over the course of the day because they barely count for calories which leaves a lot of room for protein, healthy fats, and good carbs so I rarely feel hungry or exhausted. I also cut out added sugars with the exception of the 70% dark chocolate square or glass of wine every other day or so.
    I think you are cutting too much too fast. Try picking one or two things and work on those and then when you get the right balance for you work on the next item. Or try the 80/20 rule as for most people it is easier to stick to. When I cut out sugar I didn't worry about anything else until it was my normal state of being (took a couple of weeks but I also lost about 8 lbs in the process). After I was set with that I started controlling my total sugar intake a little better and watched my caloric intake.
  • DEBOO7
    DEBOO7 Posts: 239 Member
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    real food and moderating sugar, plant protein.... this sounds like a ketogenic way of eating. If that's the case and you're serious about making a lifestyle change then check out a Facebook group called https://www.facebook.com/groups/OKL4Vitality/, they also have a group on MFP. Based on their macro chart, at your height, they'd recommend... 23g carbs 94g protein (can go up to 1.5x times this if hungry) and 70-164g fat. The method is... don't go over the carb (that's a limit), protein is a must, and fat is a filler not a target.
    To lose weight it would be 23g carb, 94g protein, 84g fat. Adjust the protein up if hungry.
    It's likely that the feeling exhausted could be your body entering ketosis as it exhausts the supply of glycogen and transitions to using ketones for fuel. There are articles around on keto flu. Perhaps spend some time searching and reading.
    I'm not saying that this is the best or only way to achieve your goal - and it's not a way of eating for everyone.
    It's all about personal choice and what works best for you.
    However as many have said... dropping weight is about a deficit, but you also need to remain healthy and maintain or build lean muscle. Dropping calories drastically won't necessarily get you where you want to be! It most often leads to giving up as it all becomes too hard.

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