Food, diet, and exercise help
cvdub16
Posts: 71 Member
So I have been attempting to be back at it since I had my baby in March and started working again in November but I am failing again. I'm trying to make good food choices while at work but I tend to cheat on candy and what not at work and then when I get home I start snacking on bad stuff. And don't get me started on the weekends, I often skip meals, we have 5 kids all together and I often focus on getting them fed and forget myself till I'm starving. I usually for work do coffee and English muffin for breakfast, then a salad or sandwich with lays pops for lunch and triscuits and cheese cubes for a snack but I am finding myself hungry so I start snacking on unhealthy things. I usually make pretty decent and healthy dinners though. As far as working out it's non existent. I find it hard between working all day and then taking care of the kids when I get home with one of them being only 9 months old to even attempt to work out. I also have to be up at 545 every morning. I guess I'm looking for advice for food and snacks that are healthy ( I can be picky though) and how to fit in working out with work and the kids. I really wanna loose this weight but I have had yet again a horrible start. Thanks in advance!
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Replies
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I'm going to get slack for this, but it comes from personal experience.
If I start my day off with carbs, I crave them all day. That's all I want and I eat WAY more than I should. If I start it off with fat/protein, I'm good and will be less hungry during the day. English muffins are low in calories, but you aren't getting much/any protein.
Can you either meal prep an eggy/meaty kind of meal (I do mine on Sundays for the week) to heat up for breakfast at work? I also get up at 5:45, but don't have kids. Unless you call "the furry one that lives with us" a child. LOL
I also avoid bread for lunch (I'm not low carb, I just put them in places during my day to make me fuller, longer).
Make sure salads have a protein on them, it will fill you up more.
I tend to eat my carbs at night, before bed, because then I'm not awake to eat and they make me sleepy. I've been "road testing " food for years, trying to figure out how they make me feel and if they are worth eating.
You don't need to exercise to lose weight, you exercise to feel good/health reasons. If your game currently is to lose pounds, all you need to do is count calories.
You may also be trying to lose the weight too quickly - having too little calories a day. Look into that.8 -
Sounds like a lot of your problem is time management. (5 kids and a job, you better believe time is a problem! Lol). Think about it now and have healthy snacks available easily.
Protein helps keep most people full longer and better. Your breakfast has very little protein, maybe add an egg or meat. Your lunch may be light on protein, too. If you have lunch at noon and it’s 6:30 or 7 by the time you get your own dinner, no wonder you’re hungry. Plan a pretty big snack so you won’t be so hungry for little snacks.
Good luck!2 -
I second that you don't need to exercise if you don't have time. Five kids sounds exhausting. You could just try to get extra steps in where possible - take the stairs, park far away from where you are going instead of close so you can some extra walking in - stuff like that.
I also agree about protein for breakfast. I do an "egg mug" which is just egg beaters in a mug sprayed with an olive oil spray and a wedge of laughing cow light cheese. Microwave it for about a minute and a half, and then stir and in under two minutes I have hot cheesy scrambled eggs (really egg beaters). I usually have a half an english muffin with a tsp. of light butter and part of an apple as well. I know a lot of people use a muffin tin to make little to-go omelets that last them all week that they just need to microwave (or even eat cold).
I can't imagine how hard it is with five kids but generally I would focus on trying to plan ahead for your meals as much as possible so you can stick to your plan rather than having to decide what to eat in the moment. Deciding in the moment is what is so hard, but if you're already "scheduled" to eat something (snacks included) I find it's easier to stick with your plan. On Sundays I actually track my meals for the whole week and then just make small adjustments where necessary.
One thing I've been doing is making a big pot of soup on the weekend, and then storing it in individual containers in the fridge so all I have to do is heat it up for dinner (and usually pair it with an english muffin). If it serves 6 I usually eat one that night, freeze two containers, and keep three in the fridge for the week. The MFP blogs just had a great article with 10 different low calorie soups. I made the cabbage and turkey kielbasa one and it is delicious - I'm having it for dinner again tonight!
Good luck - I know it's easy to say this with no kids (I also only have a fur baby), but planning ahead for my meals and walking have been key for me.8 -
I usually for work do coffee and English muffin for breakfast, then a salad or sandwich with lays pops for lunch and triscuits and cheese cubes for a snack but I am finding myself hungry so I start snacking on unhealthy things. I usually make pretty decent and healthy dinners though.
I'm another one who thinks the issue may be not enough protein earlier in the day/food choice.
Experimenting to see what is more filling from you would be a good idea. One question is when you start getting hungry and wanting to snack? Are you good between breakfast and lunch? If so, I'd worry less about breakfast, if not, I'd add protein to breakfast (low fat greek yogurt or premade egg cups would both be easy, or you could even add in more cals if you aren't going to waste cals on unplanned snacks). If the issue is more between lunch and dinner, I'd experiment -- salad with protein on it works well for me, but it seems like you might not be getting a lot of protein in lunch. Another idea would be to bring more and higher protein (as well as low cal) snacks -- maybe some low fat cottage cheese or greek yogurt or leftover chicken breast or hardboiled eggs for the protein and then raw veg or maybe berries for something low cal if you are feeling hungry or tempted to eat.
Basically, I'd try different things and then use the Notes feature in your diary to comment on how they worked and when you were struggling or hungry.4 -
I love my snacks too. Like the others, I agree that having protein with every meal/snack does help keep you full longer, although it does sound like you're already mostly doing that. I also drink a lot of water (with the added bonus that I get exercise walking to the restroom every two hours
) I make individual bags of veggies + hummus for a fresh, crunchy snack, and if I forget/become lazy, I keep healthy high-protein snacks in my desk at work -- whole grain crackers, flaxseed chips, and nuts -- so if I do get hungry I can stay away from the vending machine. And I use the weekends to plan and cook (and pre-log) meals for the week.
But mostly, don't beat yourself up. You are working so hard for your family, and it's okay if you don't lose as quickly as other people on this site. Remember: a healthy, happy mom is an even better mom!3 -
Thank you all so far. I'm loving the advice. I agree I hardly eat any protein during the day. It's hard cause I can't stand the way chicken tastes our smells the next day or being reheated so I always stay away from it unless it's dinner or something I'll eat right after it's cooked. I have been thinking of doing smoothes again in the morning too. I do snack between breakfast and lunch and before dinner. I need more ideas for lunch and snacks too. Mostly everything haha.1
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Thank you all so far. I'm loving the advice. I agree I hardly eat any protein during the day. It's hard cause I can't stand the way chicken tastes our smells the next day or being reheated so I always stay away from it unless it's dinner or something I'll eat right after it's cooked. I have been thinking of doing smoothes again in the morning too. I do snack between breakfast and lunch and before dinner. I need more ideas for lunch and snacks too. Mostly everything haha.
Smoothies would be good, if you find them filling, especially if you make them with protein powder or Greek yogurt for protein.
Some other protein snack ideas would be crispy chickpeas or broadbeans, reduced fat cheese sticks (I don't mostly like reduced fat cheese, but the 2% milk cheese sticks are pretty good), dry roasted soynuts if you like them.
For breakfast or lunch, another option would be egg muffins/muffin-tin frittatas: There are a zillion recipes on Pinterest or via Google, and they're easy so once you understand the basics you can make them with leftovers as the veg/meat part, if you like. You make them in a muffin tin, freeze, then you can store in the freezer in a bag or freezer box, and zap one or two in the microwave when you want them.2 -
Another vote for more protein, and smoothies with protein powder and/or making batches of egg muffins to freeze then reheat when needed.
Hard boiled eggs are good snacks and you can bulk them out with raw veggies as mentioned above.2 -
I love my snacks too. Like the others, I agree that having protein with every meal/snack does help keep you full longer, although it does sound like you're already mostly doing that. I also drink a lot of water (with the added bonus that I get exercise walking to the restroom every two hours ) I make individual bags of veggies + hummus for a fresh, crunchy snack, and if I forget/become lazy, I keep healthy high-protein snacks in my desk at work -- whole grain crackers, flaxseed chips, and nuts -- so if I do get hungry I can stay away from the vending machine. And I use the weekends to plan and cook (and pre-log) meals for the week.
But mostly, don't beat yourself up. You are working so hard for your family, and it's okay if you don't lose as quickly as other people on this site. Remember: a healthy, happy mom is an even better mom!
Like @lcvrablik I love my snacks: I'm a grazer. So I make sure I can graze through the work day (using above suggestions like prepping when you've time [I know, time is the most scarce and valuable resource!] and pre-logging with tweaks come the day) on things that will satisfy my sweet tooth (red/orange/yellow bell peppers; fruit) top up my protein (dairy, nuts, roasted seeds/beans) and give me that savoury crunch (lentil/pea crisps, rice cakes). I'm still working on my satiety sweet spot, because while I do a fair bit of protein (and it doesn't have to be chicken. Look into things like legumes and beans - they can be worked into a lot of what you make anyway and generally add fibre and other nutrients that may help in other ways as well) that never seems to make me want to stop grazing.
In terms of time, the thing I love doing is using leftovers for either lunch or breakfast (the batch-prep of soups is along a similar line). So maybe start thinking about dinners in terms of what you'd want to be eating at a later meal! Not every night, but start with one or two a week, then see how that works, build from there.
I don't know what the age ranges are with your kids, but if there are ways they can start helping with meal prep over the weekends (mixing, mashing, using snips to cut up things like spring onion or herbs... There are two shows on the BBC youngest childrens network called 'I Can Cook' and 'My World Kitchen', they may be available on youtube to watch, but both have kid-friendly recipes online [I think you should be able to use the recipes, even if you can't watch the programmes through the BBC website - I am assuming you're in the States since you mentioned 'lays' and they'd be 'walkers' here...] if you need ideas/suggestions) which may in the long run afford you a bit more time. Or if there are ways you and your husband can rejig who's Parent On Duty so you get some time and don't feel forced into leaving yourself for last. Remember to put your own oxygen mask on before helping anyone else!
And my last bit of advice/observation: forgive yourself when it goes wonky! Absolute perfection all the time doesn't exist outside a lab setting (and possibly not there). You're here, you're trying, that's huge. Keep testing, assessing, adjusting and readjusting. It will be a movable feast anyway. Find out what works for you for now, and know that there's a good chance that will change in time as well.
Sending you fellow-mum fist-bumps and hugs: you're doing great!3 -
You're eating too often. 3 meals a day + at least 2 rounds of snacks, no wonder you're struggling.1
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CardinalComb wrote: »You're eating too often. 3 meals a day + at least 2 rounds of snacks, no wonder you're struggling.
Nope. I eat like her and I've lost 20lbs in about 3 months with 3 meals and 3 snacks a day. I eat from 7am to 8:30pm, every 2-3hrs. That's not it.
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Wow thank you all so far!! I'm loving all the advice and suggestions. I'm definitely going to take them all into consideration. I need to plan more that's for sure.1
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I love my snacks too. Like the others, I agree that having protein with every meal/snack does help keep you full longer, although it does sound like you're already mostly doing that. I also drink a lot of water (with the added bonus that I get exercise walking to the restroom every two hours ) I make individual bags of veggies + hummus for a fresh, crunchy snack, and if I forget/become lazy, I keep healthy high-protein snacks in my desk at work -- whole grain crackers, flaxseed chips, and nuts -- so if I do get hungry I can stay away from the vending machine. And I use the weekends to plan and cook (and pre-log) meals for the week.
But mostly, don't beat yourself up. You are working so hard for your family, and it's okay if you don't lose as quickly as other people on this site. Remember: a healthy, happy mom is an even better mom!
Like @lcvrablik I love my snacks: I'm a grazer. So I make sure I can graze through the work day (using above suggestions like prepping when you've time [I know, time is the most scarce and valuable resource!] and pre-logging with tweaks come the day) on things that will satisfy my sweet tooth (red/orange/yellow bell peppers; fruit) top up my protein (dairy, nuts, roasted seeds/beans) and give me that savoury crunch (lentil/pea crisps, rice cakes). I'm still working on my satiety sweet spot, because while I do a fair bit of protein (and it doesn't have to be chicken. Look into things like legumes and beans - they can be worked into a lot of what you make anyway and generally add fibre and other nutrients that may help in other ways as well) that never seems to make me want to stop grazing.
In terms of time, the thing I love doing is using leftovers for either lunch or breakfast (the batch-prep of soups is along a similar line). So maybe start thinking about dinners in terms of what you'd want to be eating at a later meal! Not every night, but start with one or two a week, then see how that works, build from there.
I don't know what the age ranges are with your kids, but if there are ways they can start helping with meal prep over the weekends (mixing, mashing, using snips to cut up things like spring onion or herbs... There are two shows on the BBC youngest childrens network called 'I Can Cook' and 'My World Kitchen', they may be available on youtube to watch, but both have kid-friendly recipes online [I think you should be able to use the recipes, even if you can't watch the programmes through the BBC website - I am assuming you're in the States since you mentioned 'lays' and they'd be 'walkers' here...] if you need ideas/suggestions) which may in the long run afford you a bit more time. Or if there are ways you and your husband can rejig who's Parent On Duty so you get some time and don't feel forced into leaving yourself for last. Remember to put your own oxygen mask on before helping anyone else!
And my last bit of advice/observation: forgive yourself when it goes wonky! Absolute perfection all the time doesn't exist outside a lab setting (and possibly not there). You're here, you're trying, that's huge. Keep testing, assessing, adjusting and readjusting. It will be a movable feast anyway. Find out what works for you for now, and know that there's a good chance that will change in time as well.
Sending you fellow-mum fist-bumps and hugs: you're doing great!
Thank you so much for this!! I love your ideas!1 -
Planning ahead is the only way I can stay on track at work. I write out a list of healthy and filling snacks then I make sure I have all the ingredients for them. Then I spend a little time on the weekend prepping those snacks so they are easy to grab and take to work. I even plan ahead for what I am going to take to work for breakfast, lunch and snacks so I'm prepared when I leave in the morning.
Fill up on fruits and veggies throughout the day and then add in some protein like greek yogurt, string cheese or nuts.
You've got this! Just plan ahead!2 -
At night, you can pre log / portion and weigh all your food for the next day. So you have something ready to snack on at work. And ready to snack on while you cook or feed other people. The goal is to literally eat it all. Just not anything extra.3
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Hard boiled eggs and fruit make easy healthy and filling snacks.1
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I am with you on the taste of reheated chicken EXCEPT when it has been grilled. For some reason I don’t mind eating leftover grilled chicken.
I usually grill about 6 pounds of chicken and use it in various recipes through the week, which would make great meal prep for your lunches as well. That and cooking the big Costco pork tenderloins in my instant pot. They are versatile once they are shredded and can be a great source of protein for dinner and lunch recipes throughout the week as well.0 -
I don't like reheated chicken, but I'm fine with cold chicken (although typically cold chicken cooked on the bone, which is how I tend to do it most of the time).0
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