elaineamj Member

I'm super short (only 5ft) so only get 1200 cals/day to lose weight. The salads I do enjoy (I like eggs, avocado, creamy dressings, some chicken) end up being very high calorie meals for me - about 500+ cals. So I have to eat salads in moderation. If I ate my favourite salads every day, I would definitely gain weight - not…

I use fitbit and trendweight the old fashioned way. I set up a fitbit account (I don't have a fitbit). I log my weight in there manually every morning (you can do this on your cellphone's browser or just directly in your laptop). The fitbit account syncs with trendweight so I just log in to my trendweight dashboard once in…

I lost about 25 lbs last year with MFP and kept it off all summer. And then gained 10 lbs from November to December. Got "serious" again in January but ended up just gaining an extra couple of pounds with a constant cycle of guilt, binge, guilt. I've started over and this time, purposefully incorporating 10-20% of junky…

My DH used to do it. And still does sometimes.He thinks he's being helpful. Of course, it just makes me rebellious and want to eat even more of whatever. He's been better since he started seeing me put forth serious effort in. Harder with annoying brothers though. Just stay firm in what you have chosen to do.

Your post sparked something in me. You made me realize that I have been having my own unhealthy relationship with food lately. I've been trying to eat more nutritious, made-from-scratch, whole foods and increasing my veggie intake (for the good of my body since I don't naturally reach for veggies). Just a couple of days…

One time I used my own body scale when my finished product was too heavy for the kitchen scale!! If your soup pot is too heavy for your kitchen scale (especially with soup added), try finding a lightweight large stock pot/bowl that is big enough to fit your entire container of soup and transfer for the weighing step. I…

LOL - I wasn't paying enough attention. So sorry! Even for a girl though, 1000-1100 is low, depending on height. At 5ft I am usually always the shortest adult in the room and had issues with fatigue at 1200 + half exercise cals. I have done many days at 1000 cals, but usually balance that out with higher cals on the…

I got a pressure cooker. I have NEVER successfully peeled eggs before :) Now I happily cook up a dozen at a time and bring deviled eggs to potlucks.

Ack - 1000-1100 a day? For a man? That's really low - I'm not surprised you are tired. I was on 1200 cals a day + half my exercise calories (as a super short 5 ft tall woman) and after a few weeks, DH told me I was looking exhausted and was acting edgy all the time. I paid more attention and noticed I was feeling sleepier…

This is what I do. not every meal, but many meals. My meals are veggie-heavy with a sprinkling of meat. I like being able to eat a larger volume. I've learned to really enjoy many things I didn't care much for before. I never really liked zucchini and eggplant and only ate tofu occasionally. Now I am obsessed with all 3.

It's something we know, but in day to day life, it is easy to rationalize away. Good for you for figuring it out! I'm currently on a maintenance break and doing fine on it - but I have been eating too many treats. Yes, I'm still in maintenance but I really could use those calories for nutritious food. I'm ok with some…

Thanks everyone! I like this way of thinking. And will add measurements in. I don't get much satisfaction out of measurements so have only been doing them once every couple of months or so. But will start doing it at least 1x a month to keep track of things.

I like the idea of periodic weighing just to stay in line. A little worried about portions growing larger over time.

Thank you - it was an amazing read. I've been reading more about her and her story. What made it truly inspirational was how hard the author worked to utilize every possible resource at her disposal. She didn't just cry "poor me" and spend her efforts blaming the system around her - although she didn't pull any punches…

I like that. New goal - try to reduce the amount of salad dressing! I use hard boiled eggs + shredded chicken/deli meat + avocado + salad dressing...so I know where all my cals are coming from!! That said, I LOVE Cobb Salad and get super excited about eating it and I'm happy to keep it that way :)

Look for: - large numbers - a way to change units on the front (eg from g to oz), some models the button is underneath the unit - a lengthy auto-shutoff. Some models shut off in 30 seconds. Mine gives it 2 mins. Much easier when cooking - Easy to clean/store EDIT: a tare function is CRITICAL I chose a stainless steel…

my store won't give them away- but they are DEFINITELY discounted after 10 PM- I should stop by more often and get them and freeze them. Because 1/2 price food. I'm making a concerted effort to reduce my food bill (MrMoneyMustache is influencing my life) and I did a great job going from almost 500 to 280 I think- total…

I personally don't care for the thicker texture of greek yogurt. I love my regular plain yogurt and its been even better since I've started making my own. I don't even like the flavored stuff anymore - love the tangy taste of plain yogurt!

Recipe builder. Weigh each item before you put it in (preferably raw). That all gets input in the recipe builder. I scribble this all down in a notebook to input later but you can input immediately (my hands are always wet lol). Instead of 6 servings, weigh the entire dish (I weigh the whole pot/pan and then subtract the…

Hmm...I've tried and I can't seem to use less than 3 tbsp of salad dressing, even when I make Cobb salads (which are chopped up small). Maybe my salads are too gigantic? My cobb salads tend to clock in at 400-450 cals each. Admittedly, they are big portions. Definitely a large entree salad type size.

It's when you pay attention that you realize just how much free food surrounds you. And it's nearly always high cal stuff.

Keep monitoring things. I like to use a weight trend graph to see my trends. Every 3 weeks, I evaluate and adjust my calorie levels up or down as needed. Personally, I found that dieting is "easy" when I eat a reasonable amount of calories. I started off with a higher deficit and while I was losing quickly, I felt deprived…

I bought a flat stainless steel scale from Amazon for $10. I wanted stainless steel so that I could put pots off the stove onto it without worrying about melting plastic. Flat seemed to make the most sense from the perspective of space/ease of cleaning/and putting giant pots on it. I even put my giant wok on it (the thing…

With stirfries, I use 1 tbsp of oil. Or sometimes I sub with chicken/veggie stock. Stock does the best job for the least calories. I've used sprays. My Misto completely clogged up so I gave up on it and one day I'll get around to buying a bottle of spray oil. I looked in Costco last week but they only had stock of the…

I do zoodles frequently. This zoodles Lo Mein recipe is my favourite. I use only Braggs liquid aminos (instead of the oyster sauce) and it's still delicious. It's practically no calories for a huge portion. Especially since many times I sub tofu or shrimp instead of the chicken. Also planning to make this Quinoa Stuffed…

That's crazy! I would have thought working in an office by yourself would help. It's hard for me to say no to free treats, and I too face a lot of temptation everywhere around me.

I just choose an entry that seems reasonably accurate. It's a huge guesstimate and I have to do it all the time. It hasn't affected me a whole lot though since I usually overestimate a small bit. I try and take entries from places like Chillis or Sodexo where I expect food to have higher calories. After that, I try my best…

Now you've challenged us frugalistas LOL! This is just with this week's Meijer ad. or Option C: I can feed my family of 4 for $4 with: - 2 lbs chicken thighs ($0.89/lb): $1.78 - 1 lb broccoli ($0.99/lb): $0.99 - 1 lb potato ($3.49/8lbs *more than I would normally pay): $0.43 and dessert - 1 lb apples ($1.19/lb): $1.19…

Thanks for your post - I hadn't realized that oats had protein. My DH has lost his appetite due to health reasons and I'm trying to find different calorie-dense foods for him to eat. He stopped eating his morning oatmeal - I'll add it into a smoothie for him instead. I also just bought some ground flax and will be adding…

Listen - this might be a bit "mean", but there's always reasons why it's too hard. Or it's too expensive. I live in Canada and groceries are definitely more expensive than in the US (I also visit the US often and grocery shop so I know the prices). So some things are more expensive where you live than the OP. That's where…