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Hi I am overweight and need help to try and start a diet plan. I am exercising everyday now and drink plenty of water but when it comes down to eating healthy I am having some trouble with that. I don't eat a lot of junk but I feel that I could eat better. I mostly snack on fruits and vegatables. I need to know a healthy why to cooking and fixing lunches. Could some one please give me some advice at ways to make healty meals.
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I had a weight loss problem, but found a weight loss program that works. The best thing is it offer a free trial, so nothing to lose, so I tried it and it works so suggest trying http://www.lossweight.2freedom.com
April 29, 2012 - 6:15amThis Comment
I do wish you the greatest of luck! But I don't think you're going to need it. It sounds like your motivation and energy is going to be enough to see you through.
Do rework your plan to include at least most of your exercise. It may only add a couple hundred calories to your total, depending on what form of activity you're doing, but that couple hundred calories will help. The key is to give your body enough calories to fuel it without undereating (starvation mode) or overeating (where you wouldn't lose any weight). If you rework your online plan and it doesn't seem right, come back here and run it by us. We can have an expert look at it for you and give you their opinion.
If you aren't sure how many calories are burned during certain types of exercises, here is a link to fitday.com that might help you:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/burned/calories_burned.html
You are doing great!! Keep it up and please come back and update us as to how it's going!
September 2, 2009 - 7:56amThis Comment
Thanks Diane, yes it is pretty hard to stay within that about of calorie intake. I dont know think it has taken into account of me working out two hours everyday because i didnt add it. So i guess i better rework my plan to include it. But i am hoping that i will be able to show off my hard work by christmas, so wish me luck.
August 31, 2009 - 1:34pmThis Comment
Hey guys thanks for all the helpful information. I am at the moment working out for two hours everyday. My eating habits are my biggest concern. I have joined a online weightl loss group, and I love my fruits and vegetables. My online program says that I should have an intake of about 1600 - 1900 calories a day.
August 30, 2009 - 7:42pmThis Comment
Two hours every day! Wow!!! That is a huge effort on your part, I'm very proud of you! I bet you're making progress already!
Your online program sounds about right. And loving fruits and vegetables will make weight loss easier for you, because there's always something you can eat when you're hungry or just wanting to snack. Are you finding it do-able to stay within 1600-1900 calories a day? (Does your online program take into account the exercise you're doing? Because depending on your workouts, you might actually need to add calories when you are doing that much activity. If you don't take in enough calories, your body will start thinking it's in starvation mode after awhile, and weight loss will slow and even stop.)
Congratulations to you. I know how great it feels to finally get on that journey and feel like you're moving forward.
August 31, 2009 - 9:22amThis Comment
I think exercise is key. I believe that if you get enough cardio, then things will change. At least that is how it worked for me. Once you notice the benefits and begin losing weight, then you start eating better. The time it worked, I decided not to change my eating habits. One thing at a time. The only exercise that was enough cardio and got my heart rate up was swimming. Everyone is at a different level, but swimming laps or treading water works. It's so hard in the beginning. I ended up losing 50 pounds in four months. It stayed off too. I wanted to eat better so that changed later. Good Luck!
August 29, 2009 - 11:27pmThis Comment
Hi Diana,
August 29, 2009 - 8:03pmThe answer to some of your questions I am a stay at home mom. I do cook meals for the family. I just turned 32 this year. I am about 70 pounds overweight and I would love to get about 50 pounds off. And yes I keep a food and exercise Journal.
This Comment
I'm glad you found this site, as you will receive some great resources and support!
I would be interested in hearing your answers to Diane's questions, as we could provide many "random" suggestions and informative tidbits, but without more information about you and your lifestyle, we will be lucky if a few of our nuggets of information are relevant to you and your family.
What have you tried that has worked in the past to lose weight? What is your motivation to lose weight? Do you have time to exercise most days of the week with a personal trainer or take a class at a gym?
Do you know how many calories your body needs to fuel itself, versus how many calories you are expending each day? This is one BIG piece of the puzzle, and merely cutting calories isn't as easy as it sounds to sustain. Weight Watchers has personally helped me lose 20 pounds (I am also a SAHM), and it took 6 months of following their plan and working out 1 hour most days of the week. I had to really put exercise and diet on the top of my list with much support and babysitting help from my family, in order to get to a healthy weight. (Now, I can have exercise as an important part of my day, but not necessarily the top...it's more balanced, now).
The best ways to cook include grilling and using the oven with as little added fat as possible. Some of my favorite cookbooks are: Cooking Light, Weight Watchers Momentum, Diabetes Comfort Food. They have healthy recipe suggestions that apply to any lifestyle! One of the Registered Dietitians I used to work with said that she adds a little fat (butter, olive oil, sour cream dip) to her vegetables instead of meats and grains, and ends up eating more veggies. I actually found that following the recommended "5 fruits and vegetables a day" is very difficult to do, and when I did this...I was satisfied longer and did not need to eat as much at mealtime. Some of the secret to fruits & veggies is the fiber: keeps you feeling fuller longer; same with whole grains with lots of fiber.
Do you have favorite recipes? You can also find ways to cut down on the fat and calories of recipes you already make with healthy substitutions.
If your family enjoys being active together, this is a wonderful way to get everyone involved in your weight loss goal. Go on a walk together in the evenings (we put our son in a stroller for half the walk so we can get our heart-rate pumping; then he gets to walk back home after playing at the playground). Go on bike rides together, go swimming, hiking, play ball in the backyard or park...anything to get you physically moving every morning and evening!
Sounds like you already choose healthy snacks, but some of my favorite are a handful of nuts, seeds and dried fruit (no added fat or sugar; some are fried!).
Let us know what you have tried, if you are able to go to a gym, use a personal trainer, a Dietitian or use an online weight loss program...these are all great motivators! It takes a lot of time and sustainable effort to lose weight, and having a weight loss buddy helps your chance of success, too!
August 30, 2009 - 1:26pmThis Comment
Hi, Brookland!
I'm so proud of you that you have taken these first steps toward a healthier lifestyle. The fact that you are exercising every day is HUGE!! And drinking plenty of water is important. Snacking on fruits and vegetables is a big step, too. Let's see if we can figure out some of the next things you'll want to do.
Are you the kind of person who does better working on this by yourself, or with some sort of a program?
May I ask how old you are? (It can be harder to lose once we get toward perimenopausal years).
How much weight would you like to lose?
What is your lifestyle like? Since you asked about lunches, I am assuming you work outside the home? Are you a person who likes 3 meals a day, or would you rather graze and snack during the day?
Are you doing anything to keep track of your food intake, like counting calories or keeping a food journal?
Are you cooking just for yourself or for a family too?
Here's one of my favorite recipe sites -- it's the site for Cooking Light, the magazine:
http://www.cookinglight.com/
And here are some brown-bag lunch ideas to get you started:
http://lowfatcooking.about.com/od/lunchrecipes/Low_Fat_Lunch_Recipes.htm
http://lunch-recipes.suite101.com/article.cfm/imaginative_brown_bag_lunch
http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/15-fresh-brown-bag-lunch-ideas
Have you looked at Weight Watchers' web site? They have tons of recipes (it's free):
http://www.weightwatchers.com/food/index.aspx
If you'll get back to me with the answers to some of my questions above, I'll try to point you toward more web sites that will give you ideas that will fit into YOUR life. Let me also introduce you to FitDay, which is a free weight loss and diet journal that is full of tracking features (it does us good to see how our exercise adds up!)
http://www.fitday.com/
Do these ideas help a little?
August 17, 2009 - 8:56amThis Comment