What are some basic food choices to get started?

debraredlin72
debraredlin72 Posts: 1 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am new to this and want to be successful. I need a simple weekly plan to get started and get used to things before I delve into cooking recipes, etc. Do you have a "go to" week that will be lower in calories (1360 is my number), simple and yet I will see results with? Starting simple and building on success! Thank you!

Replies

  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    I like looking on Pinterest for low calorie meals
    https://pin.it/6BBoSnI I have mine saved under Food and then Weight Watcher Meals. Hope that helps.
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,756 Member
    Not sure any one will be comfortable planning a week for you, not for lack of desire to help but rather that type of planning really depends on what you want to accomplish and what some of your needs might be. Are you exercising, do you have allergies, things like that kind of matter.

    I agree a complete overhaul might not be warranted when smaller portions might be all that is necessary.

    I could recommend some foods that have become part of my 'staple'. I wasn't a big consumer of most of these prior to a desire to lose weight a few years ago. I remind you, they are my 'go-to's' because they serve my needs (lower calorie, higher protein)
    - cottage cheese and yogurt mixed together (my go to late night snack or lunch)
    - tuna
    - artificial crab meat
    - protein bar (shop around, some are quite high in calories and sugar)
    - eggs


  • carakirkey
    carakirkey Posts: 199 Member
    As others have said, best to adapt your normal way of eating gradually by adjusting portions and adding in more veggies, but if this helps- these are some of my "go -to" foods- Spinach, Bell peppers, Yams/sweet potatoes, Eggs, Thin rice cakes, salsa, low calorie yogurt dressing, Chicken, ground turkey, white beans, tuna, grapefruit, green and herbal tea.
  • Kandisn29
    Kandisn29 Posts: 92 Member
    I’ve been trying to sneak in fruits and vegetables as much as possible into my usual routine. They are normally lower calorie and very filling, so it makes it easier to eat smaller portions of other foods and skip out on unhealthy choices (like the constant donuts and cookies at our office). I especially love avocado and bananas.
  • rosebarnalice
    rosebarnalice Posts: 3,488 Member
    This recent article in Good Housekeeping
    lays out
    a week of menus and some meal planning tips for a 1290 calorie diet. It might give you some inspiration :-) httpsss://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/diet-nutrition/g4351/1200-calorie-diet-plan/
  • ReenieHJ
    ReenieHJ Posts: 9,724 Member
    Typically I try to eat around 300 calories at the 3 meals, leaving another 300 or so to use during the day. Sometimes a meal might only consist of fruit and veggies if I had more at another meal. I stick to basics for myself since it's easier, I'm lazy, and don't love cooking. :blush:
    Breakfast might be:
    Oatmeal/almond milk and sugar-free syrup, coffee
    Omelet(1 whole egg, 2 whites) filled with lots of mushrooms, spinach, onions, peppers
    Lunch:
    whatever veggies/fruits I have available plus a protein such as hummus or chicken
    Dinner:
    pretty much same as lunch :) (See? easy and lazy)

    Snacks are usually 0% plain yogurt with sugar-free syrup, peanut butter on bread, rice cakes

    Make it simple and sustainable
  • elmusho1989
    elmusho1989 Posts: 321 Member
    Fruit is a good processed sugar replacement, for me anyway.
  • AshHeartsJesus
    AshHeartsJesus Posts: 460 Member
    edited January 2021
    The ingredients you buy will adjust the calories

    Breakfast
    French toast = 2 slices low cal bread with 1/3 cup egg whites, couple pinches of stevia, vanilla, and cinnamon
    Protien pancakes= buy a mix make a batch and freeze the leftovers, top with pb2 powder and jelly
    Oatmeal= lower sugar packets or 1/2 cup quick oats stevia, and berries
    1 scrambled egg with spinach on 1 slice of toast

    Lunch
    Grilled chicken salad
    Grilled chicken and red onion warmed up in a pan topped with a lowfat cheese slice and wrapped up in a low carb wrap with greenbeans, and whatevef fruit you love
    Baked beans and cottage cheese with a side of veg and fruit
    Joseph lavash pizza= joseph lavash bread topped with pizza sauce lean meat of choice parm and a lowfat cheese

    LORD JESUS guide 💟
  • LisaGetsMoving
    LisaGetsMoving Posts: 664 Member
    I took what I was eating before and tweaked it to get the calories down. For instance, 2 fried eggs and 2 pc of buttered toast for breakfast became 1 egg plus 1/2 cup egg whites for scrambled eggs and 1 piece of unbuttered toast. Sandwiches for lunch became opened faced (one piece of bread), ditching the mayo. T, o create the dinners that we have regularly, I put the ingredients of what I cook into the Recipe maker function . For taco salad, I ditch the cheese, measure the seasoned cooked ground beef or chicken and make sure to count out exactly 10 tortilla chips. Salad greens, celery, cucumber, radish have hardly any calories so I never limit them. Tuna is another low fat high protein food that works for me. If I want to tighten up the calories in, I limit the bread, tortilla/chips, rice, potatoes... all the starch carbs.

    It will get easier to create your own meal plans once you start logging in your foods. Do it every day, and put everything in. Then you'll notice what works for you.
  • missysippy930
    missysippy930 Posts: 2,577 Member
    What works for me is all foods that I like in moderation. Staying in a calorie deficit. Moving more. Paying attention to macros. Raw veggies prepped and ready to grab for quick snacks. I always have bananas and fresh or frozen fruit on hand.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    I agree with what everyone else has been saying -- it's impossible to plan a week for you, since we have no idea what you enjoy eating, what you have in the house, what your cooking skills are, etc.

    I would start by making some basic decisions, such as how often you want to eat and when and then write down what you ate last week at those meals and figure out from there how you can improve them to lower the cals and make them (perhaps) healthier and more filling. Then you will have a plan for week 1. As you log, you can see if there are other tweaks to make or if you need to make adjustments due to hunger, etc.

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