eating healthy

[Danny19]

hey guys its me again. if you have read my past posts you guys will know that ive been trying to lose weight. Last monday i started eating healthier and exercising regularly. I go to the gym for like an hour and a half monday-friday. when im on my way i hate the feeling of being lazy to go in, but once i start and feel the burn i love it and i get pumped. Now for eating i have cut soda from my life. all i have drank is water and milk. i try to avoid fatty foods and i have felt a lot better. however i still need to get on a diet because i feel like what i eat is stuff to keep me at my weight instead of losing it. Sometimes i get frustrated because i dont know what to eat that isnt fatty. Most of the time for breakfast. i make myself a sandwich with some yogurt and fruit on the side and water. i think its not bad but i dont know. sometimes i eat cheerios with soy milk. but i dont know if cereal is even good for losing weight. then in the afternoon i eat a normal meal like chicken with rice and salad. I dont add anything to the salad but some lemon juice. The chicken is differently prepared sometimes its prepared in a sauce my mom makes and sometimes its just grilled. Then at night i sometimes eat cereal, yogurt with fruit, or toasted wheat bread with cottage cheese kiwi and honey on top. those r my bigger meals. since i get hungry really fast now i usually eat something in between like a fruit with a large cup of water, a granola bar or a piece of toast. and before i head to the gym i eat a fruit and a granola bar and water.

and then right now i feel bad for eating burger king yesterday with a diet coke, i keep beating myself over it because i said i wasnt gonna drink soda anymore and i did. why do i do this!! and then i have been lagging to go to weight watchers. i kinda get shy and embarrassed to go and idk how their times work...

sooo my question is what do you guys think i should eat and not eat if i want to lose weight. or what else should i do. i really really want to lose at least 30 lbs for christmas. but the more better.

sorry if this doesnt make sense. thanks in advance for those of you that answer

[maverick]

what do you guys think i should eat and not eat if i want to lose weight.

Keep eating what you've been eating, and stay away from fast food/soda. It's really that easy. You gotta give it time to work though.

What helps me with those "bad food" cravings is to allow myself one cheat day a week. [I leave mine flexible because it let's me account for business lunches or whatever...] That way, one day a week I can eat whatever I want.

On that day, I don't go crazy eating what I want though, because if I've been really good the other six days of the week, I don't want to undo my progress.

I also try to make my workout on the day after my cheat day a little tougher, to sort of make up for it a little.

[ezkill]

It is good that you at least have put your plan to lose weight into motion, even if you did cheat and have fast food. The first step is taking action. However I noticed you said that you wanted to lose 30 lbs by Christmas. Everyone's body and physiology is unique. Depending on how large you are, how much you eat and how often you exercise, and of course your genetics and body chemistry, you may or may not lose this much. A better thing to do would be to set a reasonable goal, say 5 lbs a month, but to keep working as hard as you are. If you set the goal too high and don't reach it, you may be discouraged from making anymore healthy choices.

It's hard finding the right foods to eat... but as a general rule of thumb, if you are trying to lose weight and fat, don't eat anything breaded or fried. Stay away from food with a ton of cooking oil in it (i.e. chips, french fries, etc). Also stay away from eating too many sweets like ice cream, chocolate, cakes, and muffins. A lot of pastries contain a lot of butter and sugar, which isn't necessarily BAD for you, but it also isn't good in excess.

I would try eating a lot of whole grain foods, fruits, and veggies. Also try to have a lean protein with each meal. In the morning, try eating half a cup of oatmeal (dried) mixed with one cup water, plus 4 egg whites, and a serving of fruit. This is one example of how to get the right mix of whole grains, protein, and carbs in one meal.

You should always drink a large glass of water with each meal to make digestion of fiber easier, otherwise you may encounter problems. I have also been told by different people (and I have also read online in many places) that drinking 16 oz of water in the morning as soon as you wake up not only curbs your appetite, but it also boosts your metabolism by up to 27%.

Exercise is also important, and it sounds like you got that down. You have to reach a certain heart rate, however, to burn fat, lose weight or cardio training. You should try to combine weight training with cardio for maximum results. The more muscle mass you have, the more fat you burn... and the more cardio you do, you also burn more fat.

Lastly, try eating five meals a day, spaced 2-3 hours apart, between 300-400 calories each, or more depending on your calorie needs. I am on a 2500 calorie diet, which includes 90 minutes of cardio monday-saturday + weight training, and a complete day of rest on sunday.

[malachite]

Well, here is a short list of the big no no:
1. processed sugar, if it doesn't come from a piece of fruit ot honey avoid it.
2. carbs! cut them down.
3. whites! bread, rice, pasta they have gutten, which is a big weigh gainer.
4. saturated fats: just check the labels a little is ok, but cut what ya can.

It IS important to eat though, you can't starve yourself or whatever you do eat your body will try to store. Think of food and fuel, the better fuel you put in the better your machine will perform.

[Marlowe]

My most important piece of advice is that eating healthy takes time. Make sure that you set enough time out in your day to cook for yourself, and if you don’t have time make something that you can store. I keep a few different things in my freezer to take out if I am pinched for time rather than getting fast food. I tend to cook things like stews. They are great one-pot meals that you can load with protein, complex carbs, and veggies, while avoiding adding fat. So for instance, I make a tomato and chicken stew that can easily feed me for a week. To give you a sense it has chicken, onions, tomatoes, green peppers, chickpeas or navy beans, celery, garlic, cauliflower, spinach, carrots, and pretty much anything else on hand. You need a tablespoon or two of olive oil to start it off. Chicken or bean chili is also a great way to go.

In general, vegetables are a great way to increase the volume (and nutrition) of meals without very many more calories. Also, I would tend to steer clear of white rice. It is pretty much straight up carbs with little other nutritional value other than its calories. Brown rice is better, as is quinoa. Both have more dietary fiber, nutrients, and protein per weight, as well as less calories and carbohydrates.

Finally here is a great tool that I like to use when cooking to help me evaluate the quality of meals: Nutrition Data. It is a date base that contains a lot of nutritional information on both processed and natural ingredients.

[Danny19]

thanks to everyone. i think i got an idea of what i have to do

[Austin]

Here's some tips to make your meals more healthy... well the ones you have listed.

If your yogurt is not "plain," and there is sugar/any sweetener in the ingredients, you should switch to a plain old yogurt. It took me a while to find the yogurt I eat which is european style plain fatfree yogurt (seems to have more protein and less sugar than the regular plain yogurt). Not too tasty but it's okay.

Make your rice brown if you don't already. Fiber keeps people satified and is healthy for your body overall.

Don't peel apples, etc. Also, I used to peel my kiwis but now I leave the skin on. It doesn't taste much different and the skin is good for you I think.

Don't give up! Your meal plan sounds pretty healthy. I don't see any vegetables except for a salad in it, though. You can steam green beans and brocolli and add it to your rice/chicken. It sounds like you're doing good. Just stay away from the fast food. :] They are packed with fats, sugar, and salt.

[ProfessorLepus]

Buy a rice cooker. They're pretty damn cheap and some will let you steam veggies while you're making rice in it. Here's the one I have, though I'm certain I didn't pay $45 for it. Seems like it was more around $30 at Target.

It's super easy, put in your rice (and veggies if it has a steaming tray), push a button and wait for a while until it beeps at you.

A tip if you're trying to lose weight: avoid avocados and guacamole like the plague. Avocados are healthy food, but they are quite fatty. Don't be deceived by its greenness!

[zeratul]

If you need to have your fast food, eat fried chicken. They are really greasy, but those are just chicken grease. Go to the gym after eating fatty chicken and burn it all off. It goes quick.

[TraceElement]

Try having "snack packs" ready at your house. For example, slice up a few carrots and put them in ziploc bags, or make your own trail mix with raisins, peanuts, sunflower seeds, and pretzels and again put them in ziplocs, preferably the smaller "snack" size. A glass of low fat milk with an apple with peanut butter is a good option. With these, they are on the healthier side and still will fill you up.
You asked about cereal, and if it's healthy. It depends on what kind it is. Cereals like cheerios, chex, and trix don't have much nutritional value if I remember correctly, save some whole grains. They leave you hungry quicker as well. Try buying Kashi, low fat granola, or shredded wheat (without the sugar coating, preferably) because they have a higher fiber content and will keep you fuller longer. Add some scrambled egg whites or egg beaters to keep you fuller without adding as many calories.
Also, if you want a small meal or large snack, try a smoothie. Low fat yogurt, frozen fruit, a splash of orange juice, and a handful of spinach. Yes, the spinach is strange, but it adds nutrients and extra fiber, and you can't taste it with all the fruit in it.
Hope this helps a little.

[Mr.Pushover]

I know you asked for a diet plan, but CARDIO!! Cardio is a huge weight loser, if that's what you're aiming for in the long run.

Your plan looks good, but if you do go to cardio training I would suggest a ratio (I use it as well [runner]):

Carbohydrates: 50, Protein: 20, Fat: 30.

Good luck!

[Thomas Miller]

Healthy eating play a vital role in our daily life. We should eat healthy food because healthy food make us healthy and we can live healthy life with eating healthy. I suggest everyone to avoid junk food because it is not good for stomach and health.