Help me (vegetables, daily basis, mayo, work out)

[southkakkatlantan]

So I'm 5'1" 152 lbs and I just want to get to 140 (for now...mid term goal is 130). So, I started working out a month ago but only thing I've changed diet-wise is drinking more water and trying to cut back on sweets. Also eating smaller portions.

So I weighed myself for the first time in almost a month yesterday and I'm up 2 lbs. I've been exercising 4-5 days a week (usually an hour of cardio with 15-20 minutes of weights).

So I decided the diet must be the culprit and that I must count calories, which I am absolutely positively DREADING with every fiber of my being.

But anyways, I guess if I want to lose weight I have to do it.

So today I've had:

Breakfast at 8:00:
Chex gluten free cereal with 2% milk and half a banana: 392 calories

Lunch at noon:
Half sandwhich/half greek salad from Panera: 570 calories

I calculated I need to be at 1200 calories daily for now and I'm already shocked today to see how much I'm overeating when I consider the above to be 'light' meals for me.

Reason I need help: I have 238 calories max left for the rest of the day and it's only noon.

I worked out for almost 2 hours yesterday so I am going to be starving by 2 pm. I'm obviously going about this wrong.....

[photobuff42]

You need to start planning your calorie expenditures before you eat so that you can portion them out during the day. I would ditch the Chex and get a cereal higher in fiber and lower in sugar. You could also get fruit lower in sugar and higher in fiber, like blueberries.

You didn't say what type of sandwich but there are probably a lot better choices.

You could have yogurt and berries, or minestrone soup or some vegetables for dinner.

[southkakkatlantan]

Originally Posted by photobuff42

You need to start planning your calorie expenditures before you eat so that you can portion them out during the day. I would ditch the Chex and get a cereal higher in fiber and lower in sugar. You could also get fruit lower in sugar and higher in fiber, like blueberries.

You didn't say what type of sandwich but there are probably a lot better choices.

You could have yogurt and berries, or minestrone soup or some vegetables for dinner.

Yes, I am seeing this now. I just needed to start counting today to give me an idea of how I have been eating and to get into the habit of doing it immediately. I probably won't realistically be able to start planning everything out in advance til next week, as I grocery shop/cook on the weekend.

Dumb question:

If I go over my 1200 calories and work out that day I can still meet my 'net caloric intake goals', correct?

Example:

Eat 1400 calories one day but work out and burn 300 calories. I've effectively consumed 1100 calories and would still be within the 1200 needed to lose weight...right?

[Hedgehog_Mom]

I would have a chicken breast and veggies for dinner. You may go slightly over your 1200 calories but that's better than being too hungry tonight and making it harder to stick to your calories for tomorrow.

Also, 1200 might not be enough if you're working out that much. The calorie trackers I've seen usually give a range for the day...mine is 1200 to 1550, and the way that I usually do it is to stick to the low end of the range if I'm not exercising that day, and the higher end of the range if I am exercising.

As far as sticking to 1200 calories on a daily basis, it helps to plan all of your meals for the day in advance, then you know how many calories you can have at each meal.

[Hedgehog_Mom]

Originally Posted by southkakkatlantan

Eat 1400 calories one day but work out and burn 300 calories. I've effectively consumed 1100 calories and would still be within the 1200 needed to lose weight...right?

I think it's hard to know exactly how many calories you burn when you work out. Most fitness trackers that I've tried vary drastically as far as calories burned and it's hard to know what's right and what's not. I've found that for me, I can't lose weight if I eat back as many calories as the fitness trackers say I've burned.

[fleetiebelle]

Originally Posted by photobuff42

You didn't say what type of sandwich but there are probably a lot better choices.

And if you know you're going to someplace like Panera for lunch, you can look at their website before you get there in order to make better choices. A couple of their soups are under 200 calories, get the dressing on the side with your salad, and it's not a terrible option.

And if you're not using an app like My Fitness Pal or SparkPeople, they make it really easy to track what you eat.

[Miss Hepburn]

First try using 40 calorie slices of bread.
And don't try to cut down on sweets, just do... ...or buy
some Atkins candy bars.
Little things add up...use mustard, instead of mayo or ketchup or sweet relish.
Buy some stevia! Yay for stevia.

[southkakkatlantan]

Originally Posted by Hedgehog_Mom

I think it's hard to know exactly how many calories you burn when you work out. Most fitness trackers that I've tried vary drastically as far as calories burned and it's hard to know what's right and what's not. I've found that for me, I can't lose weight if I eat back as many calories as the fitness trackers say I've burned.

I'm going by the calories the machines say I burn (treadmill, elliptical, etc.)...

[southkakkatlantan]

Originally Posted by fleetiebelle

And if you know you're going to someplace like Panera for lunch, you can look at their website before you get there in order to make better choices. A couple of their soups are under 200 calories, get the dressing on the side with your salad, and it's not a terrible option.

And if you're not using an app like My Fitness Pal or SparkPeople, they make it really easy to track what you eat.

I'm using MyFitnessPal

[Wittgenstein's Ghost]

I would shoot for 1400 calories of food rather than 1200. If you are working out most days, you should be able to lose weight consistently at 1400 calories.

Do you have Celiac Disease? I am just trying to figure out the gluten-free cereal choice.