What am I doing wrong? (Food/weight related)

[PeacefulChaos]

Forewarning: I am a difficult eater. There are many things I do not like. I am also a very simple eater - I don't want things that require me to do a lot of work in order to make them. :tongue_smilie:

Here is what I currently eat - sort of:

Breakfast - I usually get up around 9/9:30:

Usually, nothing. Maybe a cup of coffee. Maybe a slice of amish friendship bread. Occasionally a granola bar.

Never cereal because I hate milk. I used to do smoothies until I discovered they weren't really all that good for me (I made mine with pineapple juice, strawberries, blueberries, maybe a couple dark sweet cherries, and a little container of yogurt). I've done a scrambled egg in the past on a 100 calorie bagel, but honestly I just hate taking the time in the morning to scramble an egg (not to mention getting a pan dirty for one egg :glare: ), and I've also done scrambled egg, a few black beans, and a pinch of cheese on half a whole wheat tortilla for breakfast before - but again, egg is a pain. I don't really care for breakfast foods all that much in general.

Lunch - usually around 2/2:30:

Whatever we have left over. This week I had chicken & vegetable stir fry one day, southwest chicken wraps two days (rice, black beans, chicken, with some sour cream and cheese on a ww tortilla), and italian chicken pasta one day (garden rotini, chicken, cream cheese/cooking cream). Today I'm not sure what I'll eat because I don't have any leftovers in the fridge. I have salad but I'm out of dressing (I occasionally eat salad made with half and half spring mix and spinach with less than a serving of marzetti sweet italian dressing. I know the dressing isn't healthy at all - I don't care. It tastes amazing and I use less than a serving of it - I measured) so I won't be eating that. Most likely I'll end up eating some sort of snack food because it's what I have.

Sometimes in the afternoons (around 3ish?) I'll have a bowl of ice cream. I haven't for a few weeks, but I wanted some chocolate so I bought some Turkey Hill Double Dunker at the store the other night.

Dinner - at like 5-6:

We eat a lot of stir fry - once a week. We usually have something 'mexican' (I use the term loosely - tacos, nachos, enchiladas, southwest chicken skillet, fajitas or gorditas are the norm) once a week also. Usually some sort of pasta once. I don't make much of the meat/veggie/carb separate on the plate variety - we do a lot of things that are combined. Not casseroles, per se, but just stuff that isn't separate. Rice is a staple in our house - we probably have it 2-3 times per week and pasta 2. I eat on a small plate, not one of the big ones. I guess it's an 8"?

In the evenings - maybe around 9:30/10 - I often have a snack. I know the snacks should probably go but it's a habit of ours to sit and relax with a salty snack. :) So whether it be fritos, lays, crackers/chips and my dip concoction (sour cream with some chili powder, cayenne pepper, onion powder, and garlic salt), I usually have something then.

Over the course of the day I drink about 3 huge glasses of water (24-32 oz) and at lunch time I either drink one of the V8 sparkling 50% juice things (small can) or a small Dr. Pepper (the little bottles). On occasion if I really want a Dr. Pepper and the little bottles happen to be gone, I'll drink one of DH's huge bottles (24 oz) but that's rare. I drink Dr. Pepper when we go out to eat (also rare) because water in restaurants grosses me out.

Aside from the snacking at night, I don't see much wrong with what I eat -- yet I weigh 25-30 lbs more than I would like to. I know I should exercise, too, but I lack motivation and creativity in that department. :lol: So I'm just focusing on eating habits today...

[Mergath]

You need to eat breakfast. I was just reading an article about how skipping breakfast drops your metabolism and makes your body hold on to extra pounds.

[StephanieZ]

Why aren't the smoothies good for you?

 

IMHO, yogurt + whole fruit is waaayyy better for you than Amish friendship bread! (Mmm, that stuff is good, but, really, at least with the recipe we've used, it is pure junk -- refined flour, sugar, and chemicals from the pudding mix . . . )

 

So, if I were you, I'd go back to the smoothies for breakfast.

 

I think the "regular" meals you are eating can be anything from awful to great for you depending on your ingredients, preparation methods, and quantities. So, you might benefit from putting a few of your common recipes into something like myfitnesspal to get nutrition data. You can figure out of your fave mexican meal is 1500 cal or 500 cal . . . And make adjustments as needed.

 

Where are your whole grains? Fiber? I think fiber is way underrated. Are you getting enough of them?

 

Between the amish bread and the ice cream, that is a substantial amount of refined sugars. I personally love sugar, but I know it is awful for you, so if you want to cut calories, those are the first places I'd look. (Plus reducing bread/tortillas/pasta to reduce those nasty refined flours.)

 

Exercise . . . I have accepted that since I like to eat a lot of calories, I must maintain a very active life. :) 1800 cal/day is maintenance for a fairly sedentary 150# woman, which means she'd need to eat just 1300 cal/day to lose 1# a week. However, if she burns 800 cal/day exercising, she can eat 2100 cal/day and still lose 1#/wk. Or 2600 cal/day to maintain. I am much happier eating lots and exercising lots. :) Plus, it is so good for your mental state!

[SKL]

I'm also a picky and lazy eater. If I were you I might do the following:

 

1) Lose the ice cream, juice (even V8) and pop habits. If you *must* munch/sip at those times, choose a handful of raisins & nuts or something like that. As for the salty snacks, try some healthy varieties (I used to get some good baked tortilla chips but it's been so long - also some yummy rice crisps - from my organic food store - wish I could remember the names.) And instead of grabbing a bag, keep the bag in an inconvenient place and just put a reasonable amount in a bowl to sit and snack on.

 

2) Gradually reduce starches when practical, increasing protein if needed to feel satisfied.

 

3) If you don't already do so, switch to organic foods where practical, as they tend to satisfy more.

 

4) Not sure if this applies to you or not, but I drink a lot of coffee, and I got myself used to having it without sugar and with skim milk only (I'm gradually reducing the proportion of milk to water). Coffee it a great appetite suppressant and is healthy for most people to drink. If you're more of a tea person, the same applies - just keep the sugar etc. low.

 

5) If you "must" have a snack/treat, treat it as part of your regular meal. Don't eat a full meal on top of an "extra."

 

6) Do little things exercise-wise. What I do on a good day is (a) 5 minutes of yoga, (b) maybe 8 toe-touches or the like each time I finish a restroom break, © lifting each foot way up and pointing my toes when I'm walking to get a cup of coffee (if nobody's looking) - you get the picture. I also do some walking while my kids are playing at a park or whatever, but nothing sweat-inducing. Hey, it's better than nothing, and it's not really about getting "skinny" but about getting fresh air and sunshine and not getting too stiff/sluggish.

 

7) Make sure you are getting enough sleep, as it tends to be slimming somehow.

Edited September 1, 2012 by SKL

[PeacefulChaos]

Why aren't the smoothies good for you?

Well, I gained weight while I was drinking the smoothies. Granted, I gained more when I stopped, but when I put the smoothies into fitness pal they were insane on calories. Like, I could eat 2 pop tarts and it would be less calories than the smoothie for some reason. :001_huh:

IMHO, yogurt + whole fruit is waaayyy better for you than Amish friendship bread! (Mmm, that stuff is good, but, really, at least with the recipe we've used, it is pure junk -- refined flour, sugar, and chemicals from the pudding mix . . . )

 

So, if I were you, I'd go back to the smoothies for breakfast.

 

I think the "regular" meals you are eating can be anything from awful to great for you depending on your ingredients, preparation methods, and quantities. So, you might benefit from putting a few of your common recipes into something like myfitnesspal to get nutrition data. You can figure out of your fave mexican meal is 1500 cal or 500 cal . . . And make adjustments as needed.

Yeah, I used to put everything into fitness pal but it was such a pain putting new recipes in every day, kwim? With what I did put in, though, they all seemed to be reasonable.

Where are your whole grains? Fiber? I think fiber is way underrated. Are you getting enough of them?

What constitutes whole grains? :lol: Does brown rice count? (Since that's what I eat so often :D ) We do whole wheat pasta usually, and brown rice, and we do whole wheat tortillas, too. I was eating one of the 90 calorie fiber one bars for breakfast but then I tried a different flavor and it's waaaay too sweet for me! So since the box isn't finished I haven't bought a different one. :lol: Other than that I don't know where one gets fiber... yep, I'm pretty clueless about that stuff. :) Can fiber come from vegetables? We eat fair amounts of those - peppers, corn, and green beans, mostly.

Between the amish bread and the ice cream, that is a substantial amount of refined sugars. I personally love sugar, but I know it is awful for you, so if you want to cut calories, those are the first places I'd look. (Plus reducing bread/tortillas/pasta to reduce those nasty refined flours.)

Oh, dear. No tortillas or pasta? I'd be at a loss, I'm afraid...

Exercise . . . I have accepted that since I like to eat a lot of calories, I must maintain a very active life. :) 1800 cal/day is maintenance for a fairly sedentary 150# woman, which means she'd need to eat just 1300 cal/day to lose 1# a week. However, if she burns 800 cal/day exercising, she can eat 2100 cal/day and still lose 1#/wk. Or 2600 cal/day to maintain. I am much happier eating lots and exercising lots. :) Plus, it is so good for your mental state!

Yeah, I need to exercise but I'm terrible at it. With little kids it just seems pointless, kwim? :)

[SKL]

You need to eat breakfast. I was just reading an article about how skipping breakfast drops your metabolism and makes your body hold on to extra pounds.

 

I can totally relate to not being interested in breakfast first thing in the morning. Some alternatives that have worked for me were (a) just having a very small bowl before my 1st cup of coffee, or (b) waiting an hour or two but still eating in the morning.

[mjpeter]

I was overweight by about 20 pounds no matter what I did. Until I added extended walking I couldn't take it off.

[PeacefulChaos]

I'm also a picky and lazy eater. If I were you I might do the following:

 

1) Lose the ice cream, juice (even V8) and pop habits. If you *must* munch/sip at those times, choose a handful of raisins & nuts or something like that. As for the salty snacks, try some healthy varieties (I used to get some good baked tortilla chips but it's been so long - also some yummy rice crisps - from my organic food store - wish I could remember the names.) And instead of grabbing a bag, keep the bag in an inconvenient place and just put a reasonable amount in a bowl to sit and snack on.

So - I did say I'm difficult :lol: - I only picked up the V8 and soda recently. I've always done soda when out to eat, but never at home. I've always just had water, water, water. As far as the ice cream, I highly doubt I will ever get rid of it entirely. Talk about a life not worth living - one without ice cream! :D

2) Gradually reduce starches when practical, increasing protein if needed to feel satisfied.

 

3) If you don't already do so, switch to organic foods where practical, as they tend to satisfy more.

 

4) Not sure if this applies to you or not, but I drink a lot of coffee, and I got myself used to having it without sugar and with skim milk only (I'm gradually reducing the proportion of milk to water). Coffee it a great appetite suppressant and is healthy for most people to drink. If you're more of a tea person, the same applies - just keep the sugar etc. low.

 

5) If you "must" have a snack/treat, treat it as part of your regular meal. Don't eat a full meal on top of an "extra."

 

6) Do little things exercise-wise. What I do on a good day is (a) 5 minutes of yoga, (b) maybe 8 toe-touches or the like each time I finish a restroom break, © lifting each foot way up and pointing my toes when I'm walking to get a cup of coffee (if nobody's looking) - you get the picture. I also do some walking while my kids are playing at a park or whatever, but nothing sweat-inducing. Hey, it's better than nothing, and it's not really about getting "skinny" but about getting fresh air and sunshine and not getting too stiff/sluggish.

 

7) Make sure you are getting enough sleep, as it tends to be slimming somehow.

I wake up exhausted after 9-10 hours right now. Idky - maybe it's my allergies, maybe I'm just lazy. :tongue_smilie:

One thing I forgot to mention:

I have a hard time changing how I eat because I don't want to eat differently than everyone else in the house (particularly when it comes to meals - I don't want to have to do one thing for me and something else for them) and they could all use the extra whatever it is that I can't. :lol: (And have I mentioned that DH eats junk and still weighs less than me? Cinnamon raisin bread for breakfast, chef boyardee or a totino's pizza for lunch, and then our dinner. Not to mention he goes through a bag of salt & vinegar chips in 2 nights. :glare: )

I grew up on Schwan's - in high school I had a pop tart or half a muffin for breakfast, some of the fake cappuccino (you know, either the powdered stuff or the stuff from the gas station), a (Schwan's) hot pocket for lunch (unless I was at school, obviously), and we either had Schwan's or ate out at dinner (ate out around 4x/wk plus Sunday afternoons). So I have to admit, it kind of baffles me that I weigh so much more now than I did then, even if I am 13 years older... :lol: :D

[ThisIsTheDay]

Since what you are doing isn't working, I would say:

 

You need to eat breakfast. Don't let your body think it's starving; it will try to conserve calories.

 

You are eating too many white carbs. Replace that bagel/friendship bread/granola bar with whole grain carbs.

 

You are not eating enough protein.

 

Your fruit smoothie for breakfast is a lot healthier for you than nothing, or than a piece of white toast, or for what passes as a granola bar. The same thing with the dressing--a green salad with dressing is better for your body than the creamy pasta leftovers.

 

If you are eating chips, at least you are eating corn chips, lol. Sub in whole grain crackers (triscuits, for example) rather than white carb crackers for your snacks.

 

I'd also quit the Dr. Pepper, it's just more white carbs going into your body.

 

When I actually had 15 minutes to spare in the mornings and a bit more motivation, I followed Power of 10s eating and home exercise program. I wasn't even trying to lose weight, just shape up a bit, and I lost 10 lbs. I need to find that motivation again!

[SKL]

One thing I forgot to mention:

I have a hard time changing how I eat because I don't want to eat differently than everyone else in the house (particularly when it comes to meals - I don't want to have to do one thing for me and something else for them) and they could all use the extra whatever it is that I can't. :lol:

 

You can change the proportions you eat without changing the whole menu.

[YourFidgetyFriend]

I'm a picky eater as well and it's hard for me to eat breakfast (so I don't). I'm of average weight and what you listed seems like a lot of food to me. There is no way I could have 2 full meals + juice/soda + salty snacks/dip + possibly coffee/bread + possibly ice cream. Maybe I could see it if the snack was limited to 1 handful + tbs of dip, the ice cream was just every now and then and was a half cup serving (which you did state you haven't had any in 2 weeks), and the meals were pretty small. Even then, I'd chuck the juice.

 

Any chance you'd be willing to switch out the salty snack with dip for veggies with dip for day to day?

[Sumiller]

I can totally relate to not being interested in breakfast first thing in the morning. Some alternatives that have worked for me were (a) just having a very small bowl before my 1st cup of coffee, or (b) waiting an hour or two but still eating in the morning.

 

:iagree:

 

I, too, have no real desire to eat first thing in the morning but I do understand the importance of doing so. Therefore, I have found a few things that work for me.

 

1. If I'm in a rush out the door, I grab my coffee and a FiberPlus bar. It's not the greatest breakfast but it's better for me than a donut or poptart.

 

2. If I'm not in a rush, I usually have my coffee and then a small bowl of cereal. My two favs are Raisin Bran Crunch or Mini Wheats (brown sugar or blueberry). Both are filling and therefore I don't need to eat as much of it.

[PeacefulChaos]

I'm a picky eater as well and it's hard for me to eat breakfast (so I don't). I'm of average weight and what you listed seems like a lot of food to me. There is no way I could have 2 full meals + juice/soda + salty snacks/dip + possibly coffee/bread + possibly ice cream. Maybe I could see it if the snack was limited to 1 handful + tbs of dip, the ice cream was just every now and then and was a half cup serving (which you did state you haven't had any in 2 weeks), and the meals were pretty small. Even then, I'd chuck the juice.

 

Any chance you'd be willing to switch out the salty snack with dip for veggies with dip for day to day?

 

It probably is a lot of food. I think I just get bored, so I eat, kwim? Like I don't eat lunch til we finish with school - while everyone else eats lunch, I sit with them and talk to DH, usually. So then when I do eat, after skipping breakfast (which is most days), it's like 2-2:30 and I'm starving. So then I make the leftovers and I am still sitting at the computer, and I just get fidgety and get in my head that whatever (ice cream, crackers and dip) would taste good so I get up and get some. When we eat dinner I'm usually nowhere near hungry (because I just ate! :lol: ) so I make myself eat a portion of the food because it does look good, or it's something I like, etc. But then I'm hungry again at 9/10 most of the time, and once again I'm in front of the computer, so... yeah. It's a vicious cycle :lol: .

 

Like, last night I had to force myself not to sit down in front of the computer with a snack after I got home from going out for dessert with my SIL. I had JUST had, maybe 2 hours before, an ice cream sundae on a chocolate chip cookie - obviously, I didn't need a snack and I wasn't hungry. I had to just keep reminding myself of that, but it's just what I do, kwim? It's what we've always done, our entire married life - sit down at night with a snack and watch something. Only in the last few years has it actually affected my weight.

Edited September 1, 2012 by PeacefulChaos

[PeacefulChaos]

You can change the proportions you eat without changing the whole menu.

 

Maybe this is part of my problem. If I do happen to be hungry at dinner, I often leave the meal still hungry, figuring I'll just eat a snack later, anyway, so I may as well not get full from the stir fry or whatever... Like, I have in my head all the ways I should eat at dinner (portion control, one serving, small plate, etc), but snacks don't ever get taken into account in my brain.

[nmoira]

I can't easily respond to a response within a quote, but calories are not the measure of "goodness" of a food. A smoothie made with fresh or frozen fruit (maybe some spinach thrown in) is far better for you than two poptarts, and if you add in some extra protein, is a fine stand-alone breakfast. Try to think of nutrients vs calories in bang-for-the-buck terms. Sodas and juices have little bftb. Daily snacks such as you list signify habit rather than "treat," and are far from healthy foods.

Edited September 1, 2012 by nmoira

[butterflymommy]

From what you are describing you're eating 5 meals a day. A bowl of icecream and chips with dip will equal a meal, respectively, in terms of caloric intake.

 

Unfortunately you're going to have to bite the bullet and put more effort into food preparation. I follow Eat to Live and I do have to do separate food prep for myself, mainly salad prep, washing/ cutting/ storing produce, cooking greens, plus some juicing.

 

If you don't want to radically change what and how you're eating you could drop all the snacks and do portion control with the other meals. it would probably be a good idea to count calories for a few days just to see how much you're eating, even if you don't want to continue calorie counting.

 

I don't calorie count anymore, but I have rules or goals with myself each day, namely--

 

Eat as much raw as possible including huge amounts of greens ("the salad is the main course")

 

avoid or completely eliminate sugar and refined grains

 

meat and dairy is no more than 10% of my daily intake

 

whole grains in moderation-- I try not to have more than 2-3 small portions a day

 

nuts in moderation

 

no soda, chips, desserts (ouch)... and if I do start eating bad stuff I switch to calorie counting so at least I know how much I'm eating.

[YourFidgetyFriend]

It probably is a lot of food. I think I just get bored, so I eat, kwim? Like I don't eat lunch til we finish with school - while everyone else eats lunch, I sit with them and talk to DH, usually. So then when I do eat, after skipping breakfast (which is most days), it's like 2-2:30 and I'm starving. So then I make the leftovers and I am still sitting at the computer, and I just get fidgety and get in my head that whatever (ice cream, crackers and dip) would taste good so I get up and get some. When we eat dinner I'm usually nowhere near hungry (because I just ate! :lol: ) so I make myself eat a portion of the food because it does look good, or it's something I like, etc. But then I'm hungry again at 9/10 most of the time, and once again I'm in front of the computer, so... yeah. It's a vicious cycle :lol: .

 

Like, last night I had to force myself not to sit down in front of the computer with a snack after I got home from going out for dessert with my SIL. I had JUST had, maybe 2 hours before, an ice cream sundae on a chocolate chip cookie - obviously, I didn't need a snack and I wasn't hungry. I had to just keep reminding myself of that, but it's just what I do, kwim? It's what we've always done, our entire married life - sit down at night with a snack and watch something. Only in the last few years has it actually affected my weight.

 

Is there a reason why you wait until after school to eat? Can you schedule in some food time before lunch since you are skipping breakfast (around 10-11)? Maybe eating earlier in the day will break the cycle.

[TranquilMind]

Forewarning: I am a difficult eater. There are many things I do not like. I am also a very simple eater - I don't want things that require me to do a lot of work in order to make them. :tongue_smilie:

Here is what I currently eat - sort of:

Breakfast - I usually get up around 9/9:30:

Usually, nothing. Maybe a cup of coffee. Maybe a slice of amish friendship bread. Occasionally a granola bar.

Never cereal because I hate milk. I used to do smoothies until I discovered they weren't really all that good for me (I made mine with pineapple juice, strawberries, blueberries, maybe a couple dark sweet cherries, and a little container of yogurt). I've done a scrambled egg in the past on a 100 calorie bagel, but honestly I just hate taking the time in the morning to scramble an egg (not to mention getting a pan dirty for one egg :glare: ), and I've also done scrambled egg, a few black beans, and a pinch of cheese on half a whole wheat tortilla for breakfast before - but again, egg is a pain. I don't really care for breakfast foods all that much in general.

Lunch - usually around 2/2:30:

Whatever we have left over. This week I had chicken & vegetable stir fry one day, southwest chicken wraps two days (rice, black beans, chicken, with some sour cream and cheese on a ww tortilla), and italian chicken pasta one day (garden rotini, chicken, cream cheese/cooking cream). Today I'm not sure what I'll eat because I don't have any leftovers in the fridge. I have salad but I'm out of dressing (I occasionally eat salad made with half and half spring mix and spinach with less than a serving of marzetti sweet italian dressing. I know the dressing isn't healthy at all - I don't care. It tastes amazing and I use less than a serving of it - I measured) so I won't be eating that. Most likely I'll end up eating some sort of snack food because it's what I have.

Sometimes in the afternoons (around 3ish?) I'll have a bowl of ice cream. I haven't for a few weeks, but I wanted some chocolate so I bought some Turkey Hill Double Dunker at the store the other night.

Dinner - at like 5-6:

We eat a lot of stir fry - once a week. We usually have something 'mexican' (I use the term loosely - tacos, nachos, enchiladas, southwest chicken skillet, fajitas or gorditas are the norm) once a week also. Usually some sort of pasta once. I don't make much of the meat/veggie/carb separate on the plate variety - we do a lot of things that are combined. Not casseroles, per se, but just stuff that isn't separate. Rice is a staple in our house - we probably have it 2-3 times per week and pasta 2. I eat on a small plate, not one of the big ones. I guess it's an 8"?

In the evenings - maybe around 9:30/10 - I often have a snack. I know the snacks should probably go but it's a habit of ours to sit and relax with a salty snack. :) So whether it be fritos, lays, crackers/chips and my dip concoction (sour cream with some chili powder, cayenne pepper, onion powder, and garlic salt), I usually have something then.

Over the course of the day I drink about 3 huge glasses of water (24-32 oz) and at lunch time I either drink one of the V8 sparkling 50% juice things (small can) or a small Dr. Pepper (the little bottles). On occasion if I really want a Dr. Pepper and the little bottles happen to be gone, I'll drink one of DH's huge bottles (24 oz) but that's rare. I drink Dr. Pepper when we go out to eat (also rare) because water in restaurants grosses me out.

Aside from the snacking at night, I don't see much wrong with what I eat -- yet I weigh 25-30 lbs more than I would like to. I know I should exercise, too, but I lack motivation and creativity in that department. :lol: So I'm just focusing on eating habits today...

Just what I noticed:

 

EAT BREAKFAST! Never skip breakfast. Protein at every meal is best, so make that egg!

 

You eat too much bread and rice. For weight loss, you've got to really minimize or eliminate this. Tough, I know.

 

Milk products are fattening if you have too much. Try the smoothies with just vegetables and fruit.

 

You need to ditch the ice cream, chips and sodas completely. Just find a substitute, if you must snack. Mixed, raw fruit. Hummus and veggies or rice crackers.

 

More protein and veggies, less bread, rice, snacks, junk drinks.

[PeacefulChaos]

I can't easily respond to a response within a quote, but calories are not the measure of "goodness" of a food. A smoothie made with fresh or frozen fruit (maybe some spinach thrown in) is far better for you than two poptarts, and if you add in some extra protein, are a fine stand-alone breakfast. Try to think of nutrients vs calories in bang-for-the-buck terms. Sodas and juices have little bftb. Daily snacks such as you list signify habit rather than "treat," and are far from healthy foods.

 

I see. That's what DH said, too (regarding the smoothie) - I didn't believe him because all these people say 'Counting calories = losing weight' - or at least that's what I've always heard. So things like myfitnesspal, that's all they do is count calories, and I just thought that was the thing to do... granted, I don't do that, either, any more. :tongue_smilie:

Is it really more expensive to eat healthy? I felt like I was spending a ridiculous amount on smoothies - probably about $10 of our weekly grocery bill for one meal a day for just me.

[PeacefulChaos]

Is there a reason why you wait until after school to eat? Can you schedule in some food time before lunch since you are skipping breakfast (around 10-11)? Maybe eating earlier in the day will break the cycle.

I just prefer eating then. I got up and ate breakfast on Thursday and then was hungry at lunch time, a mere 2 hours later :001_huh: so I ate a little. I then found myself wanting to eat again in the middle of the afternoon anyway, so I felt like I was doing myself a major disservice by getting up and eating so much. I feel like I eat more if I'm getting up and having breakfast, followed by lunch with everyone.

Just what I noticed:

 

EAT BREAKFAST! Never skip breakfast. Protein at every meal is best, so make that egg!

 

You eat too much bread and rice. For weight loss, you've got to really minimize or eliminate this. Tough, I know.

 

Milk products are fattening if you have too much. Try the smoothies with just vegetables and fruit.

 

You need to ditch the ice cream, chips and sodas completely. Just find a substitute, if you must snack. Mixed, raw fruit. Hummus and veggies or rice crackers.

 

More protein and veggies, less bread, rice, snacks, junk drinks.

 

This makes me want to cry. :lol: I know you are right, but it seems like such an awful way to eat - meat and veggies. My least favorite thing (meat) is what I'm hearing I should eat more of... Sigh... :lol:

[acurtis75]

I can't easily respond to a response within a quote, but calories are not the measure of "goodness" of a food. A smoothie made with fresh or frozen fruit (maybe some spinach thrown in) is far better for you than two poptarts, and if you add in some extra protein, are a fine stand-alone breakfast. Try to think of nutrients vs calories in bang-for-the-buck terms. Sodas and juices have little bftb. Daily snacks such as you list signify habit rather than "treat," and are far from healthy foods.

 

 

:iagree: I would also suggest the blog 100 Days of Real Food as a starting place for learning what to eat.

[Scuff]

You will have a much easier time laying off the snacks and ice cream if you eat breakfast and lunch. I tend to do the same thing. I don't like to eat first thing and before I know it, I'vr been busy with everything else, it's 2 and I'm famished. But what everyone says about breakfast it true. And it will curb that desire to then eat the whole house. Also, there are reasons you're hungry again a few hours after breakfast. Your metabolism has gotten a jump start and has already worked through that food. You want your metabolism working. It's good to be hungry again. Also, I've found that I can't eat cereal in the morning. There's nothing of substance there. A bowl of cereal and i need to eat again. Protein, a balanced meal, will get you through til lunch. If I eat a ciuple egs and toast, I'm fine. Or add some protein to the smoothie.

[Dinsfamily]

One thing I forgot to mention:

I have a hard time changing how I eat because I don't want to eat differently than everyone else in the house (particularly when it comes to meals - I don't want to have to do one thing for me and something else for them) and they could all use the extra whatever it is that I can't. :lol: (And have I mentioned that DH eats junk and still weighs less than me?

 

In our house, everyone eats the same thing for dinner. I do eat differently from the boys at breakfast and lunch, but it isn't as big of a deal. Dh and I need to eat pretty healthy to maintain our weight (even with exercising 5-6x/week--which I just restarted after being a bit lazy for 6 month). I will often make the boys extra carbs such as rice or sweet potato fries, but dh and I either don't eat it or eat a small portion while the boys gobble up the rest. FWIW, your dinners didn't seem too bad to me aside from being carb heavy. Like a PP said, how you prepare them could make it or break it.

 

Is dh supportive in your efforts to get healthy? If so, maybe he could change with you and support your changes. My dBIL has a lot of trouble with getting down to a healthy weight because my dsis just doesn't understand his plight. It's hard not to partake in the Oreo binging when your super-skinny dw is scarfing them down.

 

Just what I noticed:

 

EAT BREAKFAST! Never skip breakfast. Protein at every meal is best, so make that egg!

 

You eat too much bread and rice. For weight loss, you've got to really minimize or eliminate this. Tough, I know.

 

Milk products are fattening if you have too much. Try the smoothies with just vegetables and fruit.

 

You need to ditch the ice cream, chips and sodas completely. Just find a substitute, if you must snack. Mixed, raw fruit. Hummus and veggies or rice crackers.

 

More protein and veggies, less bread, rice, snacks, junk drinks.

 

:iagree: I also agree with the others that you listed a lot of food for one day...especially in the snack dept. Cut out the juice, soda, and chips altogether! I too love ice cream, but it is a rare treat...maybe once a month...and that's a small bowl. Those calories add up and don't provide any nutrition.

 

I also struggle with eating breakfast unless I get up early and workout which is only 3x/week. When I don't eat breakfast, I'm more likely to make poor choices later in the day and especially evening. Lara bars have helped me on my late mornings.

 

Smoothies can be great. Dh and I make ours with frozen berries, protein powder, and water. Yummy!! Just remember that it is a meal and not a light snack. A handful of almonds can do the trick to curb a crunchy craving. I also like popcorn. Not a super healthy snack, but better than Fritos.

[PeacefulChaos]

Ok, here's what I'm thinking, at least to start with.

I go ahead and get up and eat breakfast - go for either the smoothie (sans yogurt? Do I put anything else in place of it, or just the pineapple juice and fruit? I have put nuts in my smoothies before but I don't keep them on hand because we don't really care for them, and I've done unsweetened applesauce, too, but I don't know if that would be as bad as the yogurt) or scrambled egg (would the 100 calorie bagel be ok or does it need to be plain toast? We eat wheat bread and I could do that, just wondering as I like the taste of the bagel a little more. :) ). I might have coffee (more likely with the egg than the smoothie, obviously). On Sundays, one of the Fiber One 90 calorie bars with my coffee as I run out the door.

Ok, then I go ahead and have lunch with everyone else. First question: Are the leftovers necessarily bad? I guess I have a hard time seeing leftover stir fry loaded with veggies as a bad thing. I do get it with the creamy pasta. I could eat rice and beans every day of my life, happily. :D I'm not saying that's my plan, I'm just saying... I can have salad on hand for days when I don't have leftovers, I suppose, though I'm out of the salad habit so it doesn't sound real appealing to me on a regular basis. Plus I'm afraid a little bowl of salad will leave me starving -- I don't like raw veggies except peppers and (obviously) spinach, but I don't eat just baby spinach salads because I heard it wasn't good for the kidneys, so I do half and half mix. So a salad, for me, is just lettuce mix and dressing - maybe a pepper if I have one (but we already go through about 3-4 peppers a week and they are super expensive!) Is something like a grilled cheese really bad? I know it's not good, per se... I'm just trying to think of something that won't leave me tempted to just cook up some pasta for lunch or eat crackers and dip instead. I also don't like lunchmeat. I can eat a peanut butter sandwich but I can't drink water with it, it makes me throw up. Literally. No idea why. :)

Then dinner just the same as I have been. I don't think dinner is the problem at all.

As far as snacks go, I'm thinking on it. I know that what I have are habits, not treats, as a PP said - I guess I'm thinking to myself, what constitutes it being a treat? Like how often can I have it then? Once a week? Less? And with the sodas, I can do those only when we go out to eat, no big deal. I just get tired of 75-100 oz of plain old water every day with nothing different, ever. So what does reasonable snacking look like? (Like I said, I don't like raw veggies. I love tortilla chips and salsa or dip, wheat thins, fritos, pretzels - either snyder's flavored or plain with dip, etc)

 

ETA: I love food. I think that's obvious, right? :) I don't know what would be harder for me to live without - sweet snacks or salty ones. I grew up eating a bowl of ice cream, every single night. Seriously. So I can't really imagine life without any chocolate! :lol: I hadn't had any and I was craving it so badly I was eating chocolate chips! :D DH does bring me a blended mocha every Friday when he comes home for lunch, which I drink after I eat lunch in the afternoon. I told him he could just bring me a regular mocha latte skim, but he never has. Truth is, the blended tastes better - it's dessert in a cup! And salty snacks is a relatively new staple - I didn't really start snacking on chips and stuff til we got married. We always had them in the house when I was a teenager, but my grandma kept them in the freezer (because we had them so long - it kept the chips in open bags from becoming stale) and I knew they were there but they just weren't the norm for me, I guess. (Yes, I've tried putting them in the freezer. I couldn't care less - I then just go get them out of there instead of off the shelf! :lol: )

I guess I tie food in a LOT to life. I'm not one of those people who 'eats to live' --- when I think about never having any more ice cream or chocolate, or whatever, it sounds depressing. What fun is life if food doesn't taste good? :)

Edited September 1, 2012 by PeacefulChaos

[LucyStoner]

Eat breakfast. Read the Omnivore's Dilemma.

 

Knowing that you need change is the first step so give yourself props for seeing that.

 

A lot of foods that seem hard are really easy if you spend a little prep time each weekend preparing for the week. I don't have time during the week anymore than any other homeschooling mom who hits the gym and has a plethora of appointments for a child on the spectrum. Having everything prechopped and a plan for what to eat makes it so much easier to eat than it was when I was defaulting to some crappy habits. I have a lot of lidded storage containers and we start the week with some made ahead items (chicken salad, bean salad, soups etc) as well as lots of on hand prechopped veggies and fruits. Making a salad or adding fruit to the oatmeal is as easy as grabbing what looks good. I don't have to do any work since I did it ahead....then when the kids are hungry? It's just as easy to plop a container of sliced berries on the table for them as it was to let them eat granola bars instead. I am way more likely to snack on chopped peppers and snow peas with hummus if it is all ready in the fridge. And while it may sound like a ton of work, it is really less than 2 hours for just me or less than an hour if we both work together on Sunday night. We can listen to music or podcasts to make it seem even faster.

[Dinsfamily]

Ok, here's what I'm thinking, at least to start with.

I go ahead and get up and eat breakfast - go for either the smoothie (sans yogurt? Do I put anything else in place of it, or just the pineapple juice and fruit? I have put nuts in my smoothies before but I don't keep them on hand because we don't really care for them, and I've done unsweetened applesauce, too, but I don't know if that would be as bad as the yogurt) or scrambled egg (would the 100 calorie bagel be ok or does it need to be plain toast? We eat wheat bread and I could do that, just wondering as I like the taste of the bagel a little more. :) ). I might have coffee (more likely with the egg than the smoothie, obviously). On Sundays, one of the Fiber One 90 calorie bars with my coffee as I run out the door.

Ok, then I go ahead and have lunch with everyone else. First question: Are the leftovers necessarily bad? I guess I have a hard time seeing leftover stir fry loaded with veggies as a bad thing. I do get it with the creamy pasta. I could eat rice and beans every day of my life, happily. :D I'm not saying that's my plan, I'm just saying... I can have salad on hand for days when I don't have leftovers, I suppose, though I'm out of the salad habit so it doesn't sound real appealing to me on a regular basis. Plus I'm afraid a little bowl of salad will leave me starving -- I don't like raw veggies except peppers and (obviously) spinach, but I don't eat just baby spinach salads because I heard it wasn't good for the kidneys, so I do half and half mix. So a salad, for me, is just lettuce mix and dressing - maybe a pepper if I have one (but we already go through about 3-4 peppers a week and they are super expensive!) Is something like a grilled cheese really bad? I know it's not good, per se... I'm just trying to think of something that won't leave me tempted to just cook up some pasta for lunch or eat crackers and dip instead. I also don't like lunchmeat. I can eat a peanut butter sandwich but I can't drink water with it, it makes me throw up. Literally. No idea why. :)

Then dinner just the same as I have been. I don't think dinner is the problem at all.

As far as snacks go, I'm thinking on it. I know that what I have are habits, not treats, as a PP said - I guess I'm thinking to myself, what constitutes it being a treat? Like how often can I have it then? Once a week? Less? And with the sodas, I can do those only when we go out to eat, no big deal. I just get tired of 75-100 oz of plain old water every day with nothing different, ever. So what does reasonable snacking look like? (Like I said, I don't like raw veggies. I love tortilla chips and salsa or dip, wheat thins, fritos, pretzels - either snyder's flavored or plain with dip, etc)

 

If I were you, I'd add the yogurt and chuck the pineapple juice. Pineapple juice has A LOT of sugar. You could get plain Greek yoghurt instead of that sugary or fake sugary stuff. It has a lot of protein in it. I would also leave out the grain at breakfast altogether.

 

Leftovers sound great for lunch. Grilled cheese would be a seldom treat for me.

 

I wouldn't eat any of those carbs for a snack. They don't offer any nutritional value. What about fresh fruit like an apple or Greek yoghurt with unsweetened applesauce in it...same thing with cottage cheese or put tomatoes in the cottage cheese? Nuts are a good snack too.

 

I just read your ETA: food does taste good...you might need to change your tastes and diversify your cooking. I always have to go through detox after Christmas and driving vacations. You can still have ice cream and chocolate but you have to make choices. Chocolate chips are a nice little treat for me. I like that a few dark chocolate chips go a long way and won't destroy a week of good eating like a heaping bowl of ice cream. As for me...I refuse to give up my sweetened coffee. It is my little slice of heaven each morning and I'd rather give up something else.

Edited September 1, 2012 by Dinsfamily

[SKL]

About the leftovers - when my sister comes to my house on Sundays, she cooks a wonderful "traditional" (aka heart attack on a plate) meal and leaves lots of leftovers. I will usually eat those leftovers for "brunch" around 10am or 11am, so they can take the place of breakfast and lunch. Then if I get hungry again in the early afternoon, I'll have a healthy snack (or sometimes another, smaller serving of leftovers). Sometimes I will serve the leftovers for dinner instead. But the key is that if it's heavy, something else has to get lighter or be eliminated for me that day. Unless I want my pants to be too tight.

 

Oh, I forgot to mention. I used to think I needed to drink something (usually skim milk) at every meal. At some point my doctor suggested I cut back on the milk, so I did so, very gradually. I no longer drink anything with meals. It's not necessary, it's just a habit that happens to add calories most of us don't need. (I was told that even drinking water with meals is not advised since it interferes with natural digestion.)

[Susan C.]

NO Bagels!!! I am thin, and a few summers ago, I started buying bagels and cream cheese. We all gained weight, and in the wrong places..... so we started sharing bagels (so ate 1/2) and still didn't ditch the weight. Bagels are high glycemic index, and they make you gain weight.

 

And as others said, no processed food. It is so bad for you. Good quality food is more expensive, but if you don't buy processed food (also expensive) then you will have the budget for it.

 

Since you don't like breakfast, maybe put simple dinner things in the crockpot and cook while you sleep? Or put oatmeal in the crockpot over night, then put a roast or whole chicken in for the day for dinner. Then those leftovers can be lunch.

 

Also, most of your eating is 2:30 - 10:30, stacked at the end of the day. That makes you gain weight too. You don't eat, then as you said, end up starving the rest of the day and eat junk. Not good.

[mothergooseof4]

Ditch the processed carbs. Eat breakfast. Ditch ALL items labeled "low fat" or "fat free." They are processed and your body does not know how to digest them.

 

Read this:

http://www.amazon.com/Practical-Paleo-Customized-Whole-Foods-Lifestyle/dp/1936608758/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346530503&sr=8-1&keywords=practical+paleo

 

And give it a month before you make any further decision. You will feel like heck for a few days at some point within the first two weeks....your body is learning to burn fat as fuel instead of carbs. This is a GOOD thing.

[Slartibartfast]

I buy quite a few eggs, I will hardboil about half a dozen at a time and keep that many in the fridge. I will have one for breakfast with a little oatmeal. The kids like them for snacks.

 

I do think the smoothie is still healthy, maybe add some flax or chia seeds to help. I would use real greek yogurt. Most greek yogurt is not *real* Greek yogurt. Check the label for cornstarch. If it contains cornstarch that is a bad brand and not one you should purchase. I would also ditch the juice for fruit to get the fiber.

 

It isn't just about "calories," but anitoxidents, vitamins, fiber, healthy energy and things like that.

Edited September 1, 2012 by Sis

[kiana]

It's really difficult to do without actually tracking how much you're eating.

 

You mentioned fitnesspal, how much do your days usually come out to, calorie-wise? I mean, if you're having meals + bowl of ice cream + snacks, I'd suspect the biggest problem is that your calorie intake exceeds your expenditures.

[cjzimmer1]

I go ahead and get up and eat breakfast - go for either the smoothie (sans yogurt? Do I put anything else in place of it, or just the pineapple juice and fruit? I have put nuts in my smoothies before but I don't keep them on hand because we don't really care for them, and I've done unsweetened applesauce, too, but I don't know if that would be as bad as the yogurt)

 

What kind of yogurt are you using. If it's sugar loaded than yes I can see where that is bad but I've always used plain yogurt in smoothies and that would be just fine. Also you can add some ground flax meal, chia seeds, or een just some wheat bran to boost the fiber content.

or scrambled egg (would the 100 calorie bagel be ok or does it need to be plain toast? We eat wheat bread and I could do that, just wondering as I like the taste of the bagel a little more. :) ). I might have coffee (more likely with the egg than the smoothie, obviously).

 

You talked about not wanting to dirty a pan for one egg. I fry up huge panfuls of them with assorted veggies and some meat. Then I just reheat some leftovers every morning. Or could you make a batch of hardboiled eggs and grab one of those everyday. For me my most common breakfast is leftovers, like the kind you are eating for lunch: stir fries, casseroles, a leftover piece of chicken.

 

 

Ok, then I go ahead and have lunch with everyone else. First question: Are the leftovers necessarily bad? I guess I have a hard time seeing leftover stir fry loaded with veggies as a bad thing.

 

It's probably not but it could be depending on how you are making it. Brown rice is definitely better than white, watch the sauces you add. If you are using premade stuff check the contents some of them are really loaded with sugar or other unhealthy stuff. We usually use fresh ginger, garlic, soy sauce and some chicken broth and maybe a little red pepper flakes for spice.

 

I do get it with the creamy pasta. I could eat rice and beans every day of my life, happily. :D I'm not saying that's my plan, I'm just saying... I can have salad on hand for days when I don't have leftovers, I suppose, though I'm out of the salad habit so it doesn't sound real appealing to me on a regular basis. Plus I'm afraid a little bowl of salad will leave me starving -- I don't like raw veggies except peppers and (obviously) spinach, but I don't eat just baby spinach salads because I heard it wasn't good for the kidneys, so I do half and half mix. So a salad, for me, is just lettuce mix and dressing - maybe a pepper if I have one (but we already go through about 3-4 peppers a week and they are super expensive!) Is something like a grilled cheese really bad? I know it's not good, per se... I'm just trying to think of something that won't leave me tempted to just cook up some pasta for lunch or eat crackers and dip instead. I also don't like lunchmeat. I can eat a peanut butter sandwich but I can't drink water with it, it makes me throw up. Literally. No idea why. :)

 

If you are only using lettuce/spinach, peppers and the dressing, than no I wouldn't say that is a healthy meal. It could be start the start of a meal but you really don't have any staying power with that. Could you make a taco salad? Add your beans to the salad, use salsa for your dressing and a small sprinkle of cheese. More veggies would be good for the variety of nutrients it would offer you.

Then dinner just the same as I have been. I don't think dinner is the problem at all.

 

 

As far as snacks go, I'm thinking on it. I know that what I have are habits, not treats, as a PP said - I guess I'm thinking to myself, what constitutes it being a treat? Like how often can I have it then? Once a week? Less? And with the sodas, I can do those only when we go out to eat, no big deal. I just get tired of 75-100 oz of plain old water every day with nothing different, ever. So what does reasonable snacking look like? (Like I said, I don't like raw veggies. I love tortilla chips and salsa or dip, wheat thins, fritos, pretzels - either snyder's flavored or plain with dip, etc)

 

Snacking is our house is fresh fruits or veggies only. No dip. I hate to say this but your chips, fritos, pretzels, crackers are all a bunch of high caloried carbs with very little in the way of any nutritional value. I would define occasional treat as once or twice a month. If you are tired of plain water, have your tired adding a squeeze of fresh lemon, lime or orange juice to it? My husband doesn't like water so I buy flavored tea bags (like blueberry, raspberry, peach). I brew those for him and then refrigerate it. It's unsweetened so no empty calories but it adds flavor to the water and he will happily drink it.

 

ETA: I love food. I think that's obvious, right? :) I don't know what would be harder for me to live without - sweet snacks or salty ones.

 

When I'm craving something salty, I will slice up a cucumber or radish and sprinkle salt on them. I know you said you don't like radishes but I find I will eat things with salt that I won't eat plain. If you are really desperate I would make air popped popcorn and lightly salt it.

[tammieb]

I understand where you're coming from!! By nature, my menu / eating habits are the same as your's! And, unfortunately, for years I had the same problems you're facing.

 

Since January of this year, I've lost about 40 lbs (38.5 lbs to be exact :001_smile:). Alot of it has to do with that DIRTY word --- EXERCISE :ohmy:!! As much as I hate to admit it, it does help!!!!!

 

But, on to a brighter note!!! Some subtle changes my martial arts instructor gave me REALLY helped me get a jump start!! A few have already been mentioned, but they're worth mentioning again........

 

1) ALWAYS eat breakfast! And, NO!!, there is NOT a "coffee" segment of the food pyramid :lol:! I didn't give up my coffee, just make sure I eat before I drink it.

 

2) Try having a protein and a carb for breakfast. Any mixture. Cheese toast, peanut butter toast, oatmeal and bacon or sausage. You get the drift. Having a protein and a carb for your first meal of the day will jump start your metabolism each morning and get you burning fat.

 

3) One thing I noticed in your post is the length of time between your meals. To keep yoru metabolism going, use the meal / snack / meal / snack, etc, schedule. To use that method, your meals need to be smaller to accomodate the snacks. If you're giving your body a small amount of protein about every 3 hours, your body has to keep burning it because we can't absorb protein.

 

4) Keep your fruits, carbs, and starchy veggies BEFORE dinner (no later than your last snack before dinner). This way your body has time to burn it before going to bed.

 

The really cool part is, if you'll follow these basic plans AND, yes!, get a little bit of that DREADED word, you can actually eat pretty much anything you want within moderation. I still have my Cordial Cherry ice cream about 2x's a week, just a cup and not a bowl.

 

And, the MOST IMPORTANT THING ---- become a CAMEL :lol:!!! Drinks TONS of water!!!!! If you're awake, you need to have a BIG GLASS of water and be sipping on it ALL DAY! Cold water is best because your body has to work harder to absorb it (the whole cold water / warm body temp chemical reaction).

 

And, lastly .......... STOP STRESSING!!!! I'd battled my weight my WHOLE LIFE!!! My husband always told me if I'd quit worrying about it and just "eat normal" it'd take care of itself. As much as I DETEST saying my husband's right, he was!!! Once I let it go, made a few slight changes, and started having fun beating up my hubby in sparring class (:boxing_smiley:) it really did start to happen on its own.

 

Hope that helps! There's lots of good ideas on here from the other ladies. Implement one or two at a time and see how it works for ya.

 

Hope ya have a great weekend!

[tammieb]

Sorry to post again, but if you have time to check out a book, it might help you. Dr Gregory Jantz is a doc who works with people dealing with eating disorders of all types. He's written a book called "The Body God Designed: How To Love The Body You Have While You're Getting The One You Want." AWESOME book!!! Goes into ALOT on perspective, mental attititude, slow and steady vs fad diets, and exactly what to eat.

 

I've seen alot of posts about the smoothies and fruit dilemma. In the back of this book (and you can google it online) is a list of the Glycemic Index for all fruits. That's what you need to look at. Fruit is natural sugar, but it's STILL sugar! So many people don't realize that. The best fruits to put in a smoothie are raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries. Unless you're working out ALOT and putting protein in with your smoothies, if your goal is to lose weight / fat, stay away from pineapples, bananas, peaches. Anything super "sweet" tasting.

 

Oh! And the other obvious that I forgot to mention...... if it's white, DON'T eat it! Substitute ----

 

Sweet potatoes for white

 

Brown rice for white

 

Whole wheat bread for white

 

 

You've gotten alot of GREAT tips! The ladies on this board are so great about helping out!

 

Good luck!!!

Edited September 1, 2012 by tammieb

[PeacefulChaos]

If I were you, I'd add the yogurt and chuck the pineapple juice. Pineapple juice has A LOT of sugar. You could get plain Greek yoghurt instead of that sugary or fake sugary stuff. It has a lot of protein in it. I would also leave out the grain at breakfast altogether.

Ok, question: What should I use as a juice or base for my smoothie? I have just gone with whatever we have on hand - grape, apple, orange even (though that tastes weird) - but my favorite is pineapple. I actually don't like yogurt at all, even in my smoothie much - I've done it in the past because I don't like milk and it was a way for me to get a dairy product in me. I really don't like yogurt on it's own, I think it's gross :lol: ...

I wouldn't eat any of those carbs for a snack. They don't offer any nutritional value. What about fresh fruit like an apple or Greek yoghurt with unsweetened applesauce in it...same thing with cottage cheese or put tomatoes in the cottage cheese? Nuts are a good snack too.

I hadn't thought about fresh fruit - everyone mentions veggies and with the exception of red peppers, I"m like :ack2: about raw veggies. :) I like applesauce but I've never tried eating unsweetened on its own. Is there anything else I could do with cottage cheese? I've never actually tried it by itself...

 

NO Bagels!!! I am thin, and a few summers ago, I started buying bagels and cream cheese. We all gained weight, and in the wrong places..... so we started sharing bagels (so ate 1/2) and still didn't ditch the weight. Bagels are high glycemic index, and they make you gain weight.

 

And as others said, no processed food. It is so bad for you. Good quality food is more expensive, but if you don't buy processed food (also expensive) then you will have the budget for it.

 

Since you don't like breakfast, maybe put simple dinner things in the crockpot and cook while you sleep? Or put oatmeal in the crockpot over night, then put a roast or whole chicken in for the day for dinner. Then those leftovers can be lunch.

 

Also, most of your eating is 2:30 - 10:30, stacked at the end of the day. That makes you gain weight too. You don't eat, then as you said, end up starving the rest of the day and eat junk. Not good.

I don't think we eat much in the way of processed foods. I make pretty much everything. Then again, I don't know what constitutes processed foods, but I'm thinking a lot of prepackaged stuff - sauces, boxed dinners/sides, etc - and we don't do stuff like that on a regular basis. :)

I definitely need to work on my timing. I wonder if my eating late in the day is having an effect on my sleep? I wake up exhausted after 9-10 hours...

About the leftovers - when my sister comes to my house on Sundays, she cooks a wonderful "traditional" (aka heart attack on a plate) meal and leaves lots of leftovers. I will usually eat those leftovers for "brunch" around 10am or 11am, so they can take the place of breakfast and lunch. Then if I get hungry again in the early afternoon, I'll have a healthy snack (or sometimes another, smaller serving of leftovers). Sometimes I will serve the leftovers for dinner instead. But the key is that if it's heavy, something else has to get lighter or be eliminated for me that day. Unless I want my pants to be too tight.

 

Oh, I forgot to mention. I used to think I needed to drink something (usually skim milk) at every meal. At some point my doctor suggested I cut back on the milk, so I did so, very gradually. I no longer drink anything with meals. It's not necessary, it's just a habit that happens to add calories most of us don't need. (I was told that even drinking water with meals is not advised since it interferes with natural digestion.)

I usually drink my water after the meal, if that helps any. I drink very little while actually sitting down to eat, unless my mouth is feeling really dry or something. I have to drink as much water as possible for my kidneys. :)

It's really difficult to do without actually tracking how much you're eating.

 

You mentioned fitnesspal, how much do your days usually come out to, calorie-wise? I mean, if you're having meals + bowl of ice cream + snacks, I'd suspect the biggest problem is that your calorie intake exceeds your expenditures.

I was coming out to around 1700-1800 calories a day or so.

What kind of yogurt are you using. If it's sugar loaded than yes I can see where that is bad but I've always used plain yogurt in smoothies and that would be just fine. Also you can add some ground flax meal, chia seeds, or een just some wheat bran to boost the fiber content.

Just whatever I can get cheap, mostly. :) It isn't all natural or anything like that - I think it's just regular old yoplait vanilla or something similar.

 

You talked about not wanting to dirty a pan for one egg. I fry up huge panfuls of them with assorted veggies and some meat. Then I just reheat some leftovers every morning. Or could you make a batch of hardboiled eggs and grab one of those everyday. For me my most common breakfast is leftovers, like the kind you are eating for lunch: stir fries, casseroles, a leftover piece of chicken.

I hadn't thought about hardboiled eggs - I love those.

 

It's probably not but it could be depending on how you are making it. Brown rice is definitely better than white, watch the sauces you add. If you are using premade stuff check the contents some of them are really loaded with sugar or other unhealthy stuff. We usually use fresh ginger, garlic, soy sauce and some chicken broth and maybe a little red pepper flakes for spice.

Yep, I use all brown rice and season with spices.

 

If you are only using lettuce/spinach, peppers and the dressing, than no I wouldn't say that is a healthy meal. It could be start the start of a meal but you really don't have any staying power with that. Could you make a taco salad? Add your beans to the salad, use salsa for your dressing and a small sprinkle of cheese. More veggies would be good for the variety of nutrients it would offer you.

I could try it, for sure. That actually sounds pretty good. That reminds me, I have a recipe for a southwest salad that has black beans and corn in it, with salsa and a little bit of ranch and cheese. How would that be, do you think? (Because just thinking about it makes me hungry... :) )

 

Snacking is our house is fresh fruits or veggies only. No dip. I hate to say this but your chips, fritos, pretzels, crackers are all a bunch of high caloried carbs with very little in the way of any nutritional value. I would define occasional treat as once or twice a month. If you are tired of plain water, have your tired adding a squeeze of fresh lemon, lime or orange juice to it? My husband doesn't like water so I buy flavored tea bags (like blueberry, raspberry, peach). I brew those for him and then refrigerate it. It's unsweetened so no empty calories but it adds flavor to the water and he will happily drink it.

I was drinking some of the 'green tea to go' in my water, and it didn't add anything except flavor. However, it's supposedly really bad for people with kidney stones, plus they stopped making the flavor I liked. I usually drank it in the evening, and drinking that actually kept me from eating a snack in the evenings.

 

When I'm craving something salty, I will slice up a cucumber or radish and sprinkle salt on them. I know you said you don't like radishes but I find I will eat things with salt that I won't eat plain. If you are really desperate I would make air popped popcorn and lightly salt it.

 

Sorry to post again, but if you have time to check out a book, it might help you. Dr Gregory Jantz is a doc who works with people dealing with eating disorders of all types. He's written a book called "The Body God Designed: How To Love The Body You Have While You're Getting The One You Want." AWESOME book!!! Goes into ALOT on perspective, mental attititude, slow and steady vs fad diets, and exactly what to eat.

 

I've seen alot of posts about the smoothies and fruit dilemma. In the back of this book (and you can google it online) is a list of the Glycemic Index for all fruits. That's what you need to look at. Fruit is natural sugar, but it's STILL sugar! So many people don't realize that. The best fruits to put in a smoothie are raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries. Unless you're working out ALOT and putting protein in with your smoothies, if your goal is to lose weight / fat, stay away from pineapples, bananas, peaches. Anything super "sweet" tasting.

 

Oh! And the other obvious that I forgot to mention...... if it's white, DON'T eat it! Substitute ----

 

Sweet potatoes for white

 

Brown rice for white

 

Whole wheat bread for white

 

 

You've gotten alot of GREAT tips! The ladies on this board are so great about helping out!

 

Good luck!!!

Well, it looks like as far as fruit goes I'm close to liking the right things - with the exception of the pineapple. We do brown rice, I don't do potatoes (too much work), and we have wheat bread (though I don't eat much of it).

One step at a time, I guess... though I have to admit I'm feeling fatter and fatter as this thread goes on, hearing all the things I should be eating compared to what I do... :lol:

[SKL]

One step at a time is right - you have plenty of time. Sounds like you are just about 30-ish, and this is a time when it's natural for food to stick more than before. What you want is to embrace a healthy lifestyle you can live with and enjoy, not to torture yourself. You'll find it. Being mindful of your food is a good place to start.

[Dinsfamily]

Ok, question: What should I use as a juice or base for my smoothie? I have just gone with whatever we have on hand - grape, apple, orange even (though that tastes weird) - but my favorite is pineapple. I actually don't like yogurt at all, even in my smoothie much - I've done it in the past because I don't like milk and it was a way for me to get a dairy product in me. I really don't like yogurt on it's own, I think it's gross ...

 

Water. We fill our cup 2/3 full with frozen berries, add a scoop of protein powder (but you could use plain Greek yoghurt instead...no surgary yoplait), and fill to the to the top of the berries with water. Really, it's good! I add unsweetened applesauce to my boys' and milk for them. Dh also makes his and the boys' with a little coconut milk to make them creamy, but I don't like the taste or the creaminess.

 

I like to put a lot of things in my cottage cheese: unsweetened applesauce, tomatoes, and fruit like pears or peaches. I even made a dip from a recipe on the Internet that uses cottage cheese as the base and has a lot of spinach and artichokes in it. I can have a lunch meat roll up with that (though I know you don't like lunchmeat) or a lettuce wrap. Tonight, I'm putting it with some chicken and brown rice.

[tammieb]

One step at a time, I guess...

 

 

THAT is the KEY to success --- ONE STEP AT A TIME :)!!!

[TranquilMind]

This makes me want to cry. :lol: I know you are right, but it seems like such an awful way to eat - meat and veggies. My least favorite thing (meat) is what I'm hearing I should eat more of... Sigh... :lol:

 

I know. You have my sympathy! I'm trying to do it too in order to have a surgery that will heal better the thinner I am. Awful, I tell you. I really don't like veggies much, to be honest. I'm ok with well-prepared meat and eggs.

[PeacefulChaos]

So I went on a bike ride with the fam tonight - we went about 1.5 miles total. Not a lot (especially for everyone else!) but the first half I felt like I was dying. :lol: It must have been slightly uphill, because coming back was SO much easier. :D

But, in any case, I did something. Not much, but something.

Oh, and my hair is now long enough to go in cute wee pigtails. Which is exciting. It's the little things sometimes. :D :lol:

[Joyofsixreboot]

I scramble an egg in the microwave, so no pan, I put it in a Corelle bowl, stir and micro a minute. I plop it on half a ww English muffin and it's breakfast. Just a suggestion. My other go to best is half English muffin with a smear of peanut butter. Easy and protein.

Edited September 2, 2012 by joyofsix

[Annie G]

So I went on a bike ride with the fam tonight - we went about 1.5 miles total. Not a lot (especially for everyone else!) but the first half I felt like I was dying. :lol: It must have been slightly uphill, because coming back was SO much easier. :D

But, in any case, I did something. Not much, but something.

Oh, and my hair is now long enough to go in cute wee pigtails. Which is exciting. It's the little things sometimes. :D :lol:

 

:party:

 

Good for you!

[ThisIsTheDay]

I don't eat just baby spinach salads because I heard it wasn't good for the kidneys,

 

With everything else there is in life that is not so healthy to eat, I wouldn't worry too much about baby spinach and kidneys. Look at the bigger picture. Baby spinach is better to eat than iceberg lettuce, which is better than ... which is better than ....

 

This makes me want to cry. :lol: I know you are right, but it seems like such an awful way to eat - meat and veggies. My least favorite thing (meat) is what I'm hearing I should eat more of... Sigh... :lol:

 

Think of proteins, not necessarily meats: eggs, beans, cheese, yogurt, nuts. How do you feel about chicken or fish? Tofu?

 

You can add any of those into your salad. I don't like crunchy vegetables at all, so my salads can include things like beans, corn, avocado, tomato, olives, cheese; or chicken, nuts, strawberries, pasta (try whole wheat); or bacon, hard cooked eggs, artichoke hearts, olives, etc.

 

I add plain yogurt to fruit smoothies. It doesn't taste any different than flavored/sugary yogurt in the smoothie.

 

We just started eating green smoothies here, something I never thought I would ever say. I use spinach or kale, a splash of orange juice, a chopped apple, and whatever fruit or frozen fruit I have on hand. The greens are so mild that I can't taste them. Honestly, I can't believe we continue to drink/eat these, because we are not a green smoothie kind of family. :D I keep styrofoam cups on hand and fill up a cup to take in the car in the morning.

 

What if you made unsweetened iced tea? Added lemon (or lime) juice to your glass of water? I'd switch to a healthy dip (homemade salsa; orsomeone suggested hummus or a cottage cheese based dip) and a healthy cracker (Wheat Thins are not it; neither are pretzels). You want your ice cream; how about "light" ice cream with fresh fruit?

 

You're rght, it's too difficult to eat a completely separate menu than the rest of the family. They can make slight adjustments. If you're the one who does the shopping, you have a lot of control.

[Just Beachy]

OP, it is hard. It is a journey I am currently on myself. Truth is you are going to hear one person say to eat whole grains and another say to cut ALL grains. You need to figure out what it is you will be able to sustain. One thing almost all weight loss plans can agree on though is that sugar is the enemy. Some plans say ALL sugar is bad (even natural sugars like fruit and honey) if you are trying to lose weight. Other plans will say fruit is fine or eat fruit in moderation. I suggest you learn all the different names that sugar is listed as on ingredients and start reading labels. If sugar (by any of those names) is listed as one of the first 5 ingredients, don't buy it. If top 5 is too difficult, go with top 3. You might be amazed at just how much sugar is in the things we eat.

 

Also, about processed food..... we don't eat them only at meals. Chips, pretzels, jarred salsas, ice cream, etc., are all processed food. I know you don't want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen, but maybe consider doing batch cooking once or twice a month. A friend of mine makes up huge batches of breakfast burritos and freezes them in individual servings, so they are ready to go when she doesn't feel like or have time to cook. I'm sure there are other things you could do like that as well.

 

Finally, I present to you scrambled hard boiled eggs -- no more clean up than with regular boiled eggs. I have also heard of people placing their whole eggs directly on the over rack and baking them. That method has absolutely no clean up at all.

 

http://www.savvyhousekeeping.com/scrambled-hard-boiled-eggs/

 

:) Beachy

[Pawz4me]

OP, it is hard. It is a journey I am currently on myself. Truth is you are going to hear one person say to eat whole grains and another say to cut ALL grains. You need to figure out what it is you will be able to sustain.

 

Agreed.

 

I'm not one to talk right now, because I need to lose a good ten to fifteen. But years ago I lost 50+ pounds and have kept the majority of it off for 25 years now. How did I do it? Very high carb and low protein. And that's pretty much how I've kept (most of) it off all these years. That was the diet that was "in" back then, just like low carb, high protein is "in" right now. They're all essentially fads. They come and go and then come and go again.

 

Learn about good nutrition from reliable medical sites. Not sites trying to sell a book or enroll you in a monitoring plan. Listen to your body. Really listen. It knows what it needs to function well and will tell you if you listen. And that might turn out to be high protein/low carb or something else entirely.

[merry gardens]

One step at a time is right - you have plenty of time. Sounds like you are just about 30-ish, and this is a time when it's natural for food to stick more than before. What you want is to embrace a healthy lifestyle you can live with and enjoy, not to torture yourself. You'll find it. Being mindful of your food is a good place to start.

:iagree:

 

I especially agree with the bolded. This struck me on the original post

...Lunch - usually around 2/2:30:

Whatever we have left over. ...

Eating "whatever" can be problematic. Now there's nothing wrong per se with eating leftovers, but I find I gain weight when I'm the only person in the home eating our family's left overs. It's more like I'm eating to clean the refrigerator rather than serving deliberate portions of food and I tend to eat larger portions for the purpose of "finishing" the items so they don't spoil. That's like turning myself into a human garbage collector! I hate wasting food, but overeating even the healthiest of foods contributes to weight gain. To avoid leftovers, cook smaller portions the first time around and/or learn to get creative with serving leftovers to the family. Be mindful of your food. Avoid eating "whatever" by making conscience food choices.

Edited September 2, 2012 by merry gardens

[cathmom]

5 years ago I lost 25 lbs by following this plan:

 

I took the recommended number of servings of different kinds of foods from a book called Eat Well, LoseWeight while Breastfeeding. I worked out a plan by which I got all of those servings. I ate the same thing for breakfast and lunch every single day except Sunday. I allowed myself one afternoon snack and one serving of whatever I made for the family for dinner. Then I had a list of approved desserts. The things I ate had to be things my kids wouldn't devour and had to be easy to make and inexpensive to buy. I had a bowl of raisin bran with milk and a cup of oj for bf. a piece of fruit in the morning sometime. A bowl of frozen veggies microwaved with a bean burrito for lunch. Small snack. One serving of dinner. Approved dessert. More walking. And I lost 25 lbs in 5-6 months, with very little thinking about food. I find most "diets" make you think about food more, when really one needs to think about it less!