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I would cut the oatmeal, as I see it, you are carb loading. Have an egg white omellette with veggies, green pepper, tomatoes, onion, spinach on alternating days, and increase your protien, and veg servings. Add a salad at lunch, with tuna, or other lean protien, I don't see enough servings of vegetables or fruit in your diet, but lots of carbs.
Inadvisable. Going low fat and low carb together is a recipe for failure.
Just to clarify, I thought the BMR is the amount of calories the body burns per day regardless, so I need to at least eat up to the BMR. Or am I misunderstanding?
BMR is the amount of calories you burn each day if you were to spend the entire day in bed.
So BMR can be used as a starting point for your diet, since it is unique to you based on your own sex/weight/height/age.
To lose weight, you need to consume less calories than you burn each day.
Using your BMR, you know you will always burn at least 1610 calories each day, regardless of what other activities and exercise you do that day.
So if you begin to eat less than the 1610 calories, you will also begin to lose weight.
A few nutrition books I read recommended eating approximately 10 x your "desired weight" in calories while you are dieting.
So if your goal was to weigh 140lbs, you would want to eat approximately 10 x 140 = 1400 calories per day.
Then once you've achieved your goal weight, then you would raise your calories back up to maintain your new weight.
To figure this number, take your BMR calories, and add to it calories burned for all your days normal activities. Then that would be the number you'd want to eat on a regular basis after you've reached your goal weight.
Personally, I just check my scale each day, to make sure I'm not gaining or losing any significant weight. I no longer count my calories, but I do continue to eat only healthy food in moderate sized portions.
He's trying to MAINTAIN his current weight, and he is having problems eating ENOUGH calories to do that. He's asking for advice on what kinds of -healthy- food choices he should ADD to his current menu.
Am I really the only one who got that?
OP - add proteins, -small- amounts of healthy fats (like fish, olive oil in your sauces, hummus, avocados if you like them, nut butters). You should also be eating more *fresh* vegetables as someone else recommended. Fresh doesn't necessarily mean raw, but it does mean not canned, not pre-packaged frozen.
Another recipe - a side dish you can mix in with your chicken meal instead of a sauce if you want to mix it up:
Par-fry the chicken in olive oil until it's almost cooked. Lower the heat, add a couple healthy fistsful of fresh, rinsed, and -towel/air-dried- spinach leaves to the pan, stirring briskly. Add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and a minced garlic clove just before it's ready to serve.
Dump over that pasta and enjoy.
*Make sure the spinach doesn't have much water on it or it'll splatter in the oil and burn you.
He's trying to MAINTAIN his current weight, and he is having problems eating ENOUGH calories to do that. He's asking for advice on what kinds of -healthy- food choices he should ADD to his current menu.
Am I really the only one who got that?
OP - add proteins, -small- amounts of healthy fats (like fish, olive oil in your sauces, hummus, avocados if you like them, nut butters). You should also be eating more *fresh* vegetables as someone else recommended. Fresh doesn't necessarily mean raw, but it does mean not canned, not pre-packaged frozen.
Another recipe - a side dish you can mix in with your chicken meal instead of a sauce if you want to mix it up:
Par-fry the chicken in olive oil until it's almost cooked. Lower the heat, add a couple healthy fistsful of fresh, rinsed, and -towel/air-dried- spinach leaves to the pan, stirring briskly. Add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and a minced garlic clove just before it's ready to serve.
Dump over that pasta and enjoy.
*Make sure the spinach doesn't have much water on it or it'll splatter in the oil and burn you.
Try re-reading his OP yourself !!!
Quote:
My goal is eat healthier, and also try to lose the belly with exercise.
I would:
increase vegetables & fruits
make sure the peanut butter has no hydrogenated oils
put freshly ground flaxseed meal in that oatmeal
add olive oil to a salad
add salmon to the mix
give up the beer if appropriate
I did read it. He is trying to eat healthier. He is also trying to lose his belly with exercise. He also is having trouble eating enough calories.
A person can be the perfect weight, and still have belly flab that can be exercised off. Dieting will just put him UNDER his desired weight, and will -not- eliminate the belly. He will tighten his abs with exercise. He will eat healthier, without losing any more weight (which, by reading his post, he implies that he has already previously lost).
I did read it. He is trying to eat healthier. He is also trying to lose his belly with exercise. He also is having trouble eating enough calories.
A person can be the perfect weight, and still have belly flab that can be exercised off. Dieting will just put him UNDER his desired weight, and will -not- eliminate the belly. He will tighten his abs with exercise. He will eat healthier, without losing any more weight (which, by reading his post, he implies that he has already previously lost).
Losing belly != losing weight.
The OP never stated he is at his desired weight. Show me where he ever stated that?
He DID state that he wants to lose his belly.
And to do that ... he needs to lose body fat!
A male at 5'4" ... 148lbs is considered overweight.
Here is a random website I found to show you ideal weights for men:
Results:
According to your height of 5' 4" your ideal healthy weightis 130 pounds. Your recommended weight range is between 116 and 145 pounds.
This was calculated using Hamwi formula, a simple formula commonly used by many clinicians.
Unless he ALSO plans to increase his muscle size ... he needs to LOSE WEIGHT to lose his belly.
And the OP never mentioned anything about wanting to increase his muscle size.
Once again ... from the OP's own mouth ....
Quote:
My goal is eat healthier, and also try to lose the belly with exercise.
My goal is eat healthier, and also try to lose the belly with exercise.
Clue #1: He doesn't say "my goal is to lose weight" or "consume less" or "lose the belly with diet."
Quote:
I tried doing one serving of each for a whole day, and I couldn't get to my 1600 calories, so it sounds like I need to eat more. Can I just simply increase the portions? Do the foods seem like a good balance of protein and carbs? I"m thinking of increasing the oatmeal and the turkey/veggies/pasta. Maybe peanut butter too.
Thoughts?
Clue #2: That entire paragraph indicates that he is concerned he isn't eating enough calories, that he feels he should eat more, to get "to" his 1600 calories.
Conclusion:
He is at the weight he desires to be but wants to tighten his abdominals with exercise, and he wants to maintain his current weight with healthier foods.
Since we don't know what kind of exercise he's doing, or the size of his portions of food, we don't know whether or not to recommend decreasing carbs. I don't recommend adding more, however I do recommend making those choices more nutritious with the addition of fruits/veggies/good fats.
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