Just no good at this!

NewMeNewLife814
NewMeNewLife814 Posts: 4 Member
edited December 17 in Food and Nutrition
I really need some help when it comes to a routine with meal plans. I either have to much sugar or to many carbs and just enough calories or I just don't have enough calories. MFP has me set to 1600 calories a day. Any suggestions?

Replies

  • Lozze
    Lozze Posts: 1,917 Member
    At this point don't worry about macros. Aim to be as close to your calorie goal as you can be. When you're just starting out the most important part is logging and learning what you're eating. Try and eat your serves of fruit and vegs but if you can't hit them straight away just have one. Try and drink more water.

    Ignore all the people who tell you to eat clean, eat only this way or that way. Try and learn as much as you can. It's very overwhelming when you first start and having to hit all sorts of rules and be perfect can cause some people to go 'it's too hard' and give up.

    Most of all realize this is a marathon not a sprint. You'll have weeks where you stuff up. You'll have weeks you'll gain. As long as you keep eating healthy and keep going back to it you'll lose weight.

    Good luck!
  • NewMeNewLife814
    NewMeNewLife814 Posts: 4 Member
    At this point don't worry about macros. Aim to be as close to your calorie goal as you can be. When you're just starting out the most important part is logging and learning what you're eating. Try and eat your serves of fruit and vegs but if you can't hit them straight away just have one. Try and drink more water.

    Ignore all the people who tell you to eat clean, eat only this way or that way. Try and learn as much as you can. It's very overwhelming when you first start and having to hit all sorts of rules and be perfect can cause some people to go 'it's too hard' and give up.

    Most of all realize this is a marathon not a sprint. You'll have weeks where you stuff up. You'll have weeks you'll gain. As long as you keep eating healthy and keep going back to it you'll lose weight.

    Good luck!
    Thank you! I always hear people say eat clean.
  • mollysonnotice
    mollysonnotice Posts: 140
    Eat food you enjoy eating but is also healthy (mine is grapefruit). Its really important to have a good food you enjoy so that you can stay on track. Don't do the crunch where you try to lose it all fast, start slow, watch the calories and work up to everything else. It just comes with time :)

    Good luck and happy losing!
  • giantruss
    giantruss Posts: 100
    log you food honestly, try and hit your calorie goal and move , exercise or what ever... enjoy yourself!

    i promise the weight will come off! it has for so many here including me.


    dont make it too hard or be too hard on yourself.
  • Hope1971
    Hope1971 Posts: 110 Member
    There is SO much to learn! Take it slow, one day at a time and do your best...and don't give up, I have heard over and over that when people first start out by week 5 they are discouraged and give up..and that is usually just when your body starts to realize your not tring to kill it and just make it happy! lol. If they would only have the patience to wait it out a little longer they will see the results but don't make it that far...don't be one of those..you can do this. Its not easy, but so very worth it! We are all here to help any way we can!
  • ronnio_ron
    ronnio_ron Posts: 61
    being true to yourself with the odd cravings will help thru your initial days.
    to be honest, its going to be hard just to log in, rather than even keep track of what you eat.

    but over time, as you see your calories streamlining, you will understand whats good and bad for you and how much of the bad can you really have in a good week...

    Hit the gym as much as possible, and surely not everyday, but at least 3-4 times a week with very light strength trainings to start off with and increase as you mature in this whole process....

    learn to love this....and please do take small steps, and try to follow a plan, which you will make up.

    best
  • Lozze
    Lozze Posts: 1,917 Member
    Thank you! I always hear people say eat clean.

    Load of tosh. Is it a good idea for health? Yes. Is it needed to lose weight? No. Some of the more extreme people will tell you that processed foods will make you unhealthy and make it impossible to lose weight. Bollocks. Calories in calories out.

    If its something you decide to do at later date then good for you but when you're starting and everything is so overwhelming that it becomes too much. Focus on calories until you're a bit more comfortable with healthier eating.
  • Nickiii_123
    Nickiii_123 Posts: 134 Member
    Hi! I'm am kind of new on mfp too (I've been on here just over a month I think) and I am constantly going over on my fat, sugar or sodium limits that mfp sets for me. If I eat an apple and a banana in the same day I'm almost always over on sugar (and that's with no candy/desserts, just fruit) so I know how frustrating it can be to see those little red numbers on the bottom of your page day after day. This is something that I really want to look into but I guess now isn't the right time, it will take a while to research and sift through all the information out there to find something I am comfortable with. For right now I'm just concentrating on my calorie count, some days are good, some days not so much lol. I feel like if I tried to worry about all my counts right now I would go crazy! :( So I agree with the above poster: Its not a sprint, its a marathon and this is something I have to remind myself of daily. Setting small, obtainable goals when you are first setting out and not trying to fix it all right away may be the way to go. I fell like I should add the disclaimer that this is just my opinion, I know everyone is different and I don't expect you to think just like me ;p Just know you are not the only one with the 'little red numbers' issue. Its a problem now but I gotta believe that we'll both get there eventually :)

    But, in the mean time heres a few web sites that have been really helpful to me so far, maybe they can help you too...

    http://www.skinnytaste.com/ I like her style and she has lots of variety in her recipes. Most of the recipes include nutritional information too which is nice bc you don't have to enter every little thing manually.

    http://www.eatingwell.com/ is also a good site to poke around on. They have tons of foods, drinks, whatevers and you find sample meal plans, search for food by the calories it contains, the type, meal, etc. ( I have food allergies so being able to search for food I can eat and still have the nutritional information available is a huge plus).

    Anyway, I hope that at least some of this was helpful and I'm not blabbing at you :p lGood luck on your weight loss journey!
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