I have a serios question

donna56
donna56 Posts: 412
edited September 20 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone! I joined a couple of months ago and didn't stick to a diet due to the fact I really didn't know how to go about calories, foods, etc that I should eat and not eat. Well last Tues I told my Dr that I really wanted to lose weight and he agreed that I really need to. My question is..... He put me on a 1500 calorie diet and it says not to eat cheese, pasta and nuts etc, but if I stay within my calorie range would it be alright to eat just about anything? I have been doing good I think, as far as calories go. I have stayed away from dairy except for my half of cup of 2% milk in the morning with my cheerios. I also haven't had any kind of pasta at all. This is kind of confusing to me.

Replies

  • slieber
    slieber Posts: 765 Member
    Looks like he's doing a reasonably low fat, low carb diet. It's up to you how you want to handle it. The idea is to make good food choices and stay within a certain calorie range. If you exercise, you need to make sure you also eat some of those, as well.

    There are loads of threads here that can help you. I use the Weight Watchers website as well as going to meetings, and this site, and between those three, have lost almost 40 pounds now - 30 of them within this year.

    If you're concerned about the food your doctor has prescribed, then I suggest you go to either a proper nutritionist or to something like Weight Watchers. They will show you the effects certain foods have on your calories in v. calories out.
  • SusieSonshine
    SusieSonshine Posts: 252 Member
    Hi everyone! I joined a couple of months ago and didn't stick to a diet due to the fact I really didn't know how to go about calories, foods, etc that I should eat and not eat. Well last Tues I told my Dr that I really wanted to lose weight and he agreed that I really need to. My question is..... He put me on a 1500 calorie diet and it says not to eat cheese, pasta and nuts etc, but if I stay within my calorie range would it be alright to eat just about anything? I have been doing good I think, as far as calories go. I have stayed away from dairy except for my half of cup of 2% milk in the morning with my cheerios. I also haven't had any kind of pasta at all. This is kind of confusing to me.

    You're on the way just by being here!

    My suggestion to you is to follow the link in my signature and watch the 90 minute video "Sugar: The Bitter Truth." It will give you a good foundation from which to start.

    All the best on your journey!

    Susie
  • SusieSonshine
    SusieSonshine Posts: 252 Member
    Oh! Also, check out the Zone Diet: http://www.zonediet.com and http://www.eatcleandiet.com
  • Zara11
    Zara11 Posts: 1,247 Member
    No, you can't just "eat anything." 1500 calories of Oreos will destroy your body, for example.

    Look at people's food diaries or google "healthy foods" to get some ideas. There are hundreds of websites devoted to information so that you can learn to make more informed choices about what food you put in your mouth.
  • missbabybee
    missbabybee Posts: 64
    I don't know much about dieting either, but I decided to do calorie counting. When you're on a restrictive calorie count, you have to remember that you need to spread those calories throughout the ENTIRE day. I realized that if I chose to eat a scone for breakfast (which was about 400 calories), I had to cut back at my other meals and/or snacks. Plus, I felt somewhat guilty all day long. On the other hand, when I chose healthier options, my meals were more balanced and complete. Plus, you feel better all day. You should find a nutritionist. They can tailor your nutrition plan as you progress.

    :happy:
  • weaklink109
    weaklink109 Posts: 2,831 Member
    Hi everyone! I joined a couple of months ago and didn't stick to a diet due to the fact I really didn't know how to go about calories, foods, etc that I should eat and not eat. Well last Tues I told my Dr that I really wanted to lose weight and he agreed that I really need to. My question is..... He put me on a 1500 calorie diet and it says not to eat cheese, pasta and nuts etc, but if I stay within my calorie range would it be alright to eat just about anything? I have been doing good I think, as far as calories go. I have stayed away from dairy except for my half of cup of 2% milk in the morning with my cheerios. I also haven't had any kind of pasta at all. This is kind of confusing to me.

    Calories are only HALF the battle. What about EXERCISE?? The simplest form of cardio would be walking, unless you have a physical limitation that prevents that activity. Cardio exericise will increase your metabolic rate, AND burning calories will give you some extra calories in the "Caloric bank" so you can make healthy choices and go a little over the 1500 calories...as in eating your exercise calories, which is something you will get more familiar with when you are on the site a while, unless you already discovered it.

    I question the wisdom of wholesale avoidance of certain foods. Nuts for example, have good fat in them and can be useful in suppressing appetite in small quantities. Cheese has calcium and a little bit can add flavor and texture to foods. As for pasta, if he was talking about the typical "white" pasta, then I agree, but to say "avoid all pasta" also excludes whole wheat pasta, which is much better for you.

    I do agree the zone diet would be a good place to start. It is nutritionally sound and should be relatively easy for you to follow. It will give you the nutritional guidance that it sounds like you might need.

    Good luck!!!
  • amymeenieminymo
    amymeenieminymo Posts: 2,394 Member
    You can't eat just anything as long as you stay in your calorie range, because A. You won't be getting enough nutritional value from stuff like funyons, cookies and bic macs.

    B. Foods that are really bad for you will pack a LOT of calories in a small package. For example, a big mac meal from Mcdonalds will probably put you at upwards of 800 calories once you figure in the burger, fries and a drink.....probably somewhere around 1000. That would leave you with 500 calories for the rest of the day. Would you feel satisfied with having one meal basically? No.

    Dieting isn't as hard as a lot of people make it out to be. You can go to extremes (extreme meaning putting a lot of effort into it, not meaning to offend anyone who does this) and only eat clean which is only whole foods....if it doesn't come from nature, you can't eat it. Then others do a lot of restrictive diets like the one your doctor put you on. That's not very practical because if you always deny yourself foods that you love you will never stick with healthy eating. Also, while there are downfalls to cheese, nuts and pasta, there are LOTS of upsides to those foods too like calcium, protein and good fats. And yes, we DO need carbs, so cutting out all carbs isn't the answer either.

    It's pretty simple really....eat healthy like fruits, veggies, lean meats and stay within your calorie range. If there is a food that isn't so good for you but you have room in your calorie allotment and you really want it, go for it because you still have to enjoy life, but make sure you limit it and don't do it all the time. Good luck!

    P.S. a tip to cut calories though is I would switch your milk from 2% to either 1/2% or fat free skim. Much less calories, better for you and you will get used to the difference in taste very quickly. I LOVE milk and I have no problem drinking skim. Oh and drink lots of water, at least 64 ounces a day. Water is great for you and will help flush out all the bad stuff.
  • donna56
    donna56 Posts: 412
    Me Donna again. I want to say thanks to everyone that replied. I also want to say that I said " eat anything" loosely. I very seldom eat junk food and my weakness would be pasta. That I could live on. but now know better. I think I am doing pretty good with my choices and I guess time will tell. I am eating more of the fruits like oranges and apples. Actually I work at Arbys and that is partially the blame LOL for my weight. Now the only thing I eat from there is the grilled chicken and the salad and diet caffeine free pepsi.
  • slieber
    slieber Posts: 765 Member
    If you do choose pasta, you could try for pasta that's high in fiber. I can't eat pasta due to a gluten intolerance, and generally, rice pasta has very little fiber. But I get a goodly amount by choosing BROWN rice pasta.

    What you want to be looking for, in my experience, is food with "resistant starches." These are high fiber foods that take a long time to digest. The longer the time in your system, allegedly the less hungry you'll be.

    I will admit that I haven't found that to be perfectly true, for myself, but everyone's a bit different. It works but it really depends on what resistant starch food I've chosen. Same with protein, btw. A higher protein diet allegedly makes one less hungry, but I haven't found that to be the case, for the most part.

    One thing that does work is to have a snack (a healthy snack) every 2-3 hours. Keeps me from going nuts later.

    Hope that helps!
    S.
  • SusieSonshine
    SusieSonshine Posts: 252 Member
    If you do choose pasta, you could try for pasta that's high in fiber. I can't eat pasta due to a gluten intolerance, and generally, rice pasta has very little fiber. But I get a goodly amount by choosing BROWN rice pasta.

    What you want to be looking for, in my experience, is food with "resistant starches." These are high fiber foods that take a long time to digest. The longer the time in your system, allegedly the less hungry you'll be.

    I will admit that I haven't found that to be perfectly true, for myself, but everyone's a bit different. It works but it really depends on what resistant starch food I've chosen. Same with protein, btw. A higher protein diet allegedly makes one less hungry, but I haven't found that to be the case, for the most part.

    One thing that does work is to have a snack (a healthy snack) every 2-3 hours. Keeps me from going nuts later.

    Hope that helps!
    S.

    LOVE the whole grain rice pasta!! The only thing is that ya have to make sure you don't boil it too long or it turns to mush! lol! And I add flax seed meal to EVERYTHING so there's never a problem with fiber! Also, flax oil is a VERY healthy fat, and if a tsp or so is added to a salad, or veggies, or whatever! it helps to keep ya satisfied! YUM!
  • missbabybee
    missbabybee Posts: 64
    ...
    P.S. a tip to cut calories though is I would switch your milk from 2% to either 1/2% or fat free skim. Much less calories, better for you and you will get used to the difference in taste very quickly. I LOVE milk and I have no problem drinking skim. Oh and drink lots of water, at least 64 ounces a day. Water is great for you and will help flush out all the bad stuff.

    A tip on drinking skim milk, if you drink it ice cold, you can't tell the difference. If I am drinking a glass wth a meal, I pour a glass and put it in the freezer while I prepare the meal, then pull it out when I sit down to eat. It's cold and refreshing and you can't taste the difference.
  • missbabybee
    missbabybee Posts: 64
    Me Donna again. I want to say thanks to everyone that replied. I also want to say that I said " eat anything" loosely. I very seldom eat junk food and my weakness would be pasta. That I could live on. but now know better. I think I am doing pretty good with my choices and I guess time will tell. I am eating more of the fruits like oranges and apples. Actually I work at Arbys and that is partially the blame LOL for my weight. Now the only thing I eat from there is the grilled chicken and the salad and diet caffeine free pepsi.

    I thought I wouldn't be able to give up rice. I'm a carb junkie through and through, but rice wasn't an option, it was mandatory on my plate! Growing up, we ate rice with EVERY meal. Even lasagna! :blushing: LOL Once I started to prepare meals that had tons of flavor and filled me up, I didn't even notice that the rice was gone. I do allow myself once a week to have brown rice, but I found that even on the days that I would allow myself to have rice, I won't have any and I don't really miss it.
  • LeeiaL
    LeeiaL Posts: 40
    Hi, Donna...

    Congrats on your decision to lose weight the right way! I'd love to give you some advice but I don't have much to go on (i.e., food intake, exercise habits, etc).

    I will say that by just cutting out refined sugar and carbs, you will do yourself a favor and help your weightloss efforts.

    BTW...not everyone has to cut carbs to lose weight. It depends on the individual.

    Good Luck!
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