surfinbernard

I do love it but haven't eaten any since being on MFP, it just costs too many calories. Once in a while for a treat I suppose I'd have it but on 1200 calories a day I just can't afford for it to make a regular appearance!

First of all the best of luck- that $1000 prize sounds like a fantastic incentive, the real prize of course will be being 60lb lighter! I agree with the previous post about very strict tracking and would add to it by suggesting you get into weighing foods out such as cereal, rice, potatoes, pasta, cheese, everything can…

Excellent post and very interesting thanks!

Beans- a veggie chili made with 3 different beans and TVP is high in protein, a chickpea curry, muttar paneer, hummus... Quorn- low in calories, cheap and high protein. Eggs if you eat them- low in calories, quick to cook and high protein.

I have found either way is fine for me but obviously don't have a big breakfast and train straight after, if you want to eat before go for fruit and yoghurt or muesli or something small and nutritious like that and have a good hour in between if possible. Working out having just eaten can give you stitch, belly ache,…

If you feel good, you're happy with your progress and weight loss, you are enjoying it and don't have any reason not to carry on then I'd stick with it for the while and see how things go. As you say everyone is different so it's about finding something that's working for you. I found that 'over-training' lowered my…

Welcome to MFP, it's an excellent weight loss resource, equally as good and beter than most expensive diet clubs and it's free. You'll soon be shedding those pounds! My top tip is: if you haven't already, get some digital kitchen scales to keep on top of portion sizes as the amount you can have as a serving is usually a…

I will offer my thoughts on why Slimming World did not work for me as this was the diet I tried to lose the baby weight the first time. Basically without portion control, and having a very big appetite after pregnancy and breastfeeding it doesn't return to normal straight away so you do get hungry... I believe that with SW…

I had a very similar experience to the author of this article. Last time I was where I am now (loosing the baby-weight) I was doing hour after hour of cardio each week and found my weight loss ground to a screeching halt despite 'on paper' being in a massive weekly calorie deficit so the weight ought to have been dropping…

I forgot about the plateau question... trial and error is a better way to figure out how many calories you need to be eating and it seems you have figured out your actual BMR is 1700 at your current weight. If you work with this figure to create your deficit based on this I'm sure you will have excellent results. Remember…

I hope I can help you with the confusion. BMR stands for basal metabolic rate which is the estimated number of calories your body needs (based on weight age and sex) to do nothing all day. Obviously very few people do absolutely nothing so this number is multiplied according to your normal daily activity level (not…

Apiece of fruit and a small handful of nuts or seeds.

I agree, it's going the same way here in the UK, people are getting fatter and fatter yet the habits of slimmer people are quite often ridiculed or criticised because they are seen as extreme deprivation or obsessive. Well maybe from the point of view of a heroin addice, not having any heroin is an extreme deprivation but…

No I do not believe that upping calories is the way to lose more weight! If you are struggling to lose your last few pounds I would stick to your 1200 and up the exercise just a little bit without eating all the calories back. If some on MFP were to be believed you could get fat by eating nothing, please don't be fooled by…

It's because fat is an insulator and keeps you warm, you will feel the cold more if you're thinner. On the plus side you will manage better in the heat!

I will probably be flamed for this, but I had the same problem when I exercised a lot and relied on exercise to create the calorie deficit. I used to diet with the old WW points plan (the same as calorie counting basically as the points equated to calories for the most part) and lost very nicely. I bought a stepper and…

I like Hovis Nimble, 48 calories a slice. I hear the Weight Watchers bread is good as well but I haven't tried it myself.

Yes I'd go to a doctor because any injury caused by exercise is likely to get worse if you continue that exercise without something changing. It could be you need different running shoes, or you could benefit from orthotic insoles, but your doctor can refer you to the right department. It's no fun being beset by injuries…

No I don't but I so sometimes fill in meals ahead of time if I know what I'm having as this makes it easier to budget the remaining calories.

I don't think you need to worry about making the numbers add up. If you are not hungry, are eating plenty of nutritious food, enjoying exercising and losing weight, I would just go with the flow a you may have fallen into a nice groove where you don't have to force yourself to lose weight any more, it's happening…

crudites and hummus, crackers with cottage cheese, low fat cheese or cheese spread, low calorie crisps, a boiled egg... if you really want something sweet you could try natural or artificial sweetener to make your own dessert, or artificially sweetened yoghurts and desserts but you may consider these unhealthy.

Opinions are split as to whether it's best to eat extra calories you have earned through exercise. Most on here I think are in the 'for' camp and will tell you about 'starvation mode', some of us choose instead to stick to the budget without adding extra for exercise as this works better for some. My advice would be to…

I agree that everyone is different, I have personally struggled to lose any more weight (in the past) while following a strenuous exercise regime and I tried 'eating back' some of the calories and not. The only thing I have found which works to get it moving again for me is stopping exercising as much as reducing my…

But there is a middle ground between 'cheating' and making some foods evil and off limits, judging by these posts anyone would think it's one or the other. Why not budget for the calories to have something you fancy like pizza, and have less of it and/or a less lardy version? I just feel that by continuing to see food as…

Please don't beat yourself up because that kind of negative thinking is what leads you to overeat so it's a vicious cycle if you let it go that way. Just draw a line under it and move on. Watch your calories, keep up your workouts and keep drinking water, be patient, your weight will drop! If you are finding it hard to…

My dirtiest food was Pot Noodle but I can't have MSG now so that's gone. I really love bbq spare ribs but being veggie i don't have those either!

I rather obsessively weigh myself each morning when I wake up and record the losses when I feel like it, sometimes every day, sometimes a few days depending on how quickly the weight is shifting.

Mushy peas! Everything else pretty much I like. I don't eat meat but I do like the taste.

That's absolutely brilliant, amazing even. It is so hard to get from nothing to where you are now, you should be really proud of your accomplishment!

YEs you will feel hungry if you normally eat more, try to choose the most filling foods for your calorie budget and avoid anything which is rapidly digested such as 'white' or sugary carbs because they cause more hunger shortly after eating them and a tendency to crave more. I often have a hot drink to stave off a hunger…