Let's lose a bit of weight.....

[growerkari]

I had a massive dinner Thai green curry and pineapple rice, and some tom yum soup. All homemade, but coconut milk is soooo bad (but soooo good!)

I;ve got no idea how many calories i eat each day as I never eat anything out of a packet, or weigh anything. All homecooked stuff, so impossible to figure out (especially as im vegan, so when you google stuff its all for full fat dairy stuff.) I think my problem is more eating too much rather than what i eat?? Its all quite complicated.

Sounds yummy!

I think it all depends on what works for you, I try not to think too much about calories as some days I need to eat more than others. Instead I try to think about being aware when I eat, only eating when I am hungry, eating slowly & smaller portions.

There are so many different ways to loose weight, Weight Watchers for example, no longer use calories as a measure for their points system, instead the amounts of protein, carbs & fats together with the amount of food you eat are used.

Because I have to eat 5-6 meals, I use a small plate or bowl for all of my meals instead of a dinner plate

[growerkari]

Aha - but the bad news is that the more weight you lose, the fewer calories you need! According to the chart, when I started at 10.5 stone, I needed 1389 calores to give a healthy weight lose - by the time I am 9.5 stone, I only need 1337 - in other words, if I stuck to 1389 cals after losing a stone, I wouldn't lose any more (or lose it more slowly).

And if Two_Sheds who is kylie-like ate per my diet regime, she'd prob put on, not lose weight.

So if 1655 is enough for you to lose weight healthily at your weight, all well & good, but if you lose a stone or so (and want to lose more), you'd want to be reassessed by the dietician as you will 'stick' if you keep to the cals that you needed at your heavier weight.

(To slightly complicate the issue, the more toned you are, the more calories your muscles will use, so if you are exercising as you diet, the fitter you get the more calories you use which compensates for your body needed fewer calories if you are lighter. And there will be less flab because of the exercise too.)

I see what you mean, but its a little more complicated with the hypo. Since then they havent mentioned calories & its been more about health & finding a balance between eating enough to feel well and not gain.

I lost 4st pretty quick, but the last 2 are very difficult to move as if I cut the food down anymore I start to get ill again, so the emphasis at the moment is on moving more to see if that helps

[Two_Sheds]

the hardest bit would be my job - I work in someones house for days on end and wouldn't be able to weigh everything..

If you're serious about losing weight, you have to get some basic knowledge of calories and fat content (because fat contains a lot more cals than protein/carbs do). Bread itself isn't that fattening, but a whole loaf would be (also what we put on the bread is fattening... butter, peanut butter, mayo etc)

Coconut milk really isn't good for you: it's 88% fat, and saturated fat at that. You can use tomato juice instead as the sauce in curries.

As to measuring, you don't have to. Just buy foods that are low in fat to begin with (Mr TS was on a very strict 3% fat limit, but you could go up to 10% fat I reckon and still lose weight). I filled the cupboards with these low fat foods (tuna, soups, couscous, pasta, rice, curries etc) and made meals from them. Nothing tempting/fattening in the cupboards at all, because we can't be trusted with them.

Eating in someone else's house isn't a problem, just take a packed lunch. Mr TS had several of his meals while he was travelling - in hotels, on trains etc. He'd take a pack of couscous and add some boiling water to it - job done.

[growerkari]

Week 1, Day 2

Br: piece of peppered salmon, boiled egg
Sn: 6 almonds
l: noodles with prawns, brocolli & baby sweetcorn
sn: toast with peanut butter
d: large green salad with ham
s: half an apple & a yogurt

small glass of red wine

Exercise: Davina Body Buff 30mins, + 15 mins yoga stretch, walked 4 miles

[Two_Sheds]

Because I have to eat 5-6 meals, I use a small plate or bowl for all of my meals instead of a dinner plate

That's a really good trick - you soon get used to smaller portions and don't feel deprived

... its a little more complicated with the hypo. ...
I lost 4st pretty quick, but the last 2 are very difficult to move

Those last ones are the hardest - I've never managed to get the flab off my inner thighs, even though I cycle a lot. My body just clings onto it and won't let go! I already eat very little, and I couldn't live like Liz Hurley, on watercress soup, or exercise for 3 hrs a day like Madonna

You don't have to cut down your meals, just the cals that are in them. eg swap peanut butter for, I dunno, Marmite, swap cheese for tuna, swap choc bickies for oat cakes etc

I'm not a fan of WW I have to admit - they push expensive processed food at people instead of teaching them to understand calories and the values of protein/fats/carbs

[Hazel at the Hill]

Week 4, day 3 (day 24)

Breakfast: 2 x bananana sandwich
Lunch: poached egg, mushrooms, 1 bread
Dinner: mackeral salad, couscous
2 pts beer

Exercise: Ran up to the shops and back.

[janeyo]

Didn't manage to get to class for 2 weeks, (toddler ill and half term), so was surprised to find I'd lost 1 1/2 pound this morning.

Maybe it was the blood they took the other day? Or that fact I'm being observed by the head in a lesson this afternoon and have worried it off!?!

[buzzingtalk]

Nice one for the tips guys

Problem with me is I'm vegan which makes convenience food impossible...let alone healthy stuff. As for watching fat, the only thing I eat with any semblance of fat in it is coconut milk (not an awful lot either) and nuts. I don't really eat butter, or mayo/dairy stuff, don't eat biscuits and stuff like that...I just eat waaaaay too much. I think I'm gonna have to do what someone over the page said, and weigh stuff then find a cup that holds it. I sometimes work straight for 3 days and trying to plan out meals is a right pain, especially when I have to cook it all at work (limited time, no spices etc) I can't really take the piss and bake a potato for example as the oven will be on for yonks.

I was a LOT thinner when I was at Uni, as all my meals were at home, and I was in complete control of my day. At work, your constantly around food, cooking it for clients, and they eat at bizarre times IMO (dinner at 5pm!!!!! I have mine about 7-8pm) so I tend to eat a bit then be hungry again as I'm a nocturnal person. When I'm at home, I eat when I want to eat and notice I eat much less, as I eat when I like

Gonna have a big salad and some baked sweet potato tonight, yum yum yum

[Hazel at the Hill]

I see what you mean, but its a little more complicated with the hypo. Since then they havent mentioned calories & its been more about health & finding a balance between eating enough to feel well and not gain.

I lost 4st pretty quick, but the last 2 are very difficult to move as if I cut the food down anymore I start to get ill again, so the emphasis at the moment is on moving more to see if that helps

I'd definitely ask the dietician/doctor to calculate that cal intake again - especially as that magic number was drawn up a number of years ago and you were 4 stone heavier. If you are still eating the same number of cals as you were when you were 4 stone heavier than you are now, no wonder you are struggling to lose more!

The last thing you want to do is make yourself ill, thought, so I guess that if you are not recommended to cut down your intake, then you are going to have to burn calories like mad in order to get down to where you want to be!

[Hilary B]

Taking a proper interest in your food really helps. By that I mean making every eating occasion something special, so that you eat slowly, thinking about every mouthfull, and enjoying it SLOWLY.
NEVER eat while doing something else.
For a vegan with a weight problem I would recommend a traffic-lights system, the 'green' means having plenty of low calorie veg on hand at all times for snacking. Celery has virtually no calories, carrot sticks don't have many, and both can be satisfying (and there are plenty of other green veg which can be used to fill holes in the appetite).
Most fruit is 'amber', you should include some, but don't over-do it, your protein sources, and bread also come on this page.
The 'red' things are strictly for occasional treats (maybe once a week) and might include the coconut milk, sugary things, and the few high calorie fruits (dates, banana, avocado....).

[Creemteez]

I heard that you burn more calories EATING celery than there are IN IT!

[buzzingtalk]

Oh that's where I'm going wrong - DATES. I love them, buy them by the boxload from the middle east every time I go out there! Yum Yum Yum. I don't really know anyone who has a healthier diet than me (honestly) I just scoff waaaayyyy more than I should Plus I got lazy recently. Just been to doctors and got weighted, I put on 6lb since september that is about precisley when I stopped cycling to work and when SAD cut in = staying in and eating.

[buzzingtalk]

Gonna have soup, salad and a roll for dinner methinks :/

[Two_Sheds]

DATES. I love them

23 cals per date, so a box is like what? 400, 500 cals? That's a whole meal (lunch or dinner)

Babe, it's not a healthy diet if you're eating for three (no offence intended btw)

[Hazel at the Hill]

Week 4, day 4 (day 25)

Breakfast: special k
Lunch: 2 x bacon, 2 bread
Dinner: sains skinny veg lasagne

Exercise: None