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So I currently weigh 230 lbs and need to be 185 lbs within a year. It is a major goal of mine. Doctor says I can do it safely and recommends a paleo or keto diet. I am prediabetic, bordering on diabetic. Blood sugar is regularly about 135 in the morning. A1C is 5.7. Also I have high blood pressure.
I work 50 hours a week, so I can only really cook on Sundays. So I want to make dinners to last all week. Obviously I will change week to week, for variety and ensuring I get all micronutrients.
-Breakfast: 16 oz Bulletproof coffee (MCT oil, unsalted grass fed butter, and collagen protein). 0-1g carbs
-Lunch: 2 scrambled pasture raised eggs on a Trader Joes low carb wrap (3g net carbs). Will add diced organic ham and cheese, and salsa for extra flavor and protein. Side of veggies that I will cook on Sunday and portion out (string beans, broccoli, cauliflower or a mix, tossed in ghee or olive oil). On other days, I'll likely eat a turkey wrap with swiss cheese, lettuce and tomatoes). 20g net carbs total.
-Dinner: I plan to make 4 quarts of soup on Sunday which I will portion out throughout the week. Soup will be bone-broth based, with some peas and carrots OR onions, carrots, and celery, and chicken or beef. No rice or noodles, but I will be getting some carbs from the carrots and peas. 25g net carbs. Plus,
Side salad with tomatoes, cheese, artichokes, kalamata olives, and olive/avocado dressing with balsamic vinegar. 15 g net carbs
I plan to do a 16 hour per day carb fast (8pm to 12 pm next day), and then I expect these meals to contain 50-75g total carbs per day. Also, everything I buy is organic so nothing here is cured or with artificial flavors/preservatives.
I drink no soda, diet or otherwise. No juice. Just water sweetened with lemon, or stevia.
Does this seem realistic to lose 45 lbs in 1 year? Its about a lb a week or so. I will also likely go to the gym or at least walk 1/2 hour a day, 4 days a week.
If your plan was to lose 45 pounds in 2 months and keep it off, id say it wasn't realistic. However, 45 pounds in 1 year is absolutely realistic. On a healthy diet you can expect to lose 1 pound a week. So 45 pounds will work.
The hard part about your diet is that you will need variety. People get tired of eating the same thing all the time. One thing that I will say helps is to have a cheat meal once a week. This will help cut the cravings. I don't mean to have an entire pizza but to have a slice of pizza, or a hotdog or hamburger, or a side of fries instead of a salad once a meal wont hurt and as I said, it will cut down on cravings.
I lost more than that and I am a diabetic.
Grocery store rotissierie chicken was (and still is) my friend... already made, low carb.
They have "Cheap Chicken" Mondays at Jewel stores here. I still eat it frequently because I like it.
Now that I weigh a lot less, I can do much higher intensity exercise that I couldn't do before.
You'll find that you'll need to add more "Move more" so you can eat more and not gain.
Otherwise you'll have to stay on diets forever, which isn't all that realistic and causes people to fail and gain the weight back.
I like group exercise... it's like nearly free personal training. I do Les Mills at the Y, each class costs me less than a buck.
I'm not sure why there aren't more guys in these classes, but there just aren't. Many times I'm the only one.
If your plan was to lose 45 pounds in 2 months and keep it off, id say it wasn't realistic. However, 45 pounds in 1 year is absolutely realistic. On a healthy diet you can expect to lose 1 pound a week. So 45 pounds will work.
The hard part about your diet is that you will need variety. People get tired of eating the same thing all the time. One thing that I will say helps is to have a cheat meal once a week. This will help cut the cravings. I don't mean to have an entire pizza but to have a slice of pizza, or a hotdog or hamburger, or a side of fries instead of a salad once a meal wont hurt and as I said, it will cut down on cravings.
Yeah, I just don't want to spiral. I have zero willpower once I taste that pizza slice. I'm going to try different varieties with soup (maybe a stew or main dish occasionally). I like the bone broth idea for meals as its filling with not many calories or carbs. I'm not much of a chef either, most of these meals will be made in my instant pot.
I did more than that and I am a diabetic.
Grocery store rotissierie chicken is your friend... already made, low carb.
They have "Cheap Chicken" Mondays at Jewel stores here. I still eat it frequently because I like it.
Now that I weigh a lot less, I can do much higher intensity exercise that I couldn't do before.
You'll find that you'll need to add more "Move more" so you can eat more and not gain.
Otherwise you'll have to stay on diets forever, which isn't all that realistic and causes people to fail and gain the weight back.
I like group exercise... it's like free personal training. I do Les Mills at the Y.
I'm not sure why there aren't more guys in these classes, but there just aren't. Many times I'm the only one.
This is an excellent point. Its so hard to do anything strenuous now. I just weigh too much. But I'm hoping that will get easier as I lose.
And yes, I do buy my share of rotisserie chicken! I buy them at Costco, they're a little bigger for the same price and last all week.
I'm not a dietician or nutritionist, so I couldn't begin to evaluate what you're proposing. I can only tell you that thinking in terms of just fixing an immediate problem with some diet or other is less effective, and less healthy, than thinking in terms of a lifestyle change. It's a mistake to think like that, and fails without the accompanying change of attitude toward food and exercise.
What you have is a good start, a beginning, an effort to change behavior.
And yes, I do buy my share of rotisserie chicken! I buy them at Costco, they're a little bigger for the same price and last all week.
That plus soup and a salad sounds like a pretty good meal to me.
I also eat low carb fruit (mostly raspberries) every day.
I know how to make really good low carb crustless pizza, too. I'm making some next week.
Cheat days... they do happen from time to time.
Next one is Saturday. We have spaghetti dinner with meatballs and pork chops for Christmas.
It's a recipe from Italy handed down three generations.
That is the only day of the year we have it because it's a lot of work.
I'm not a dietician or nutritionist, so I couldn't begin to evaluate what you're proposing. I can only tell you that thinking in terms of just fixing an immediate problem with some diet or other is less effective, and less healthy, than thinking in terms of a lifestyle change. It's a mistake to think like that, and fails without the accompanying change of attitude toward food and exercise.
What you have is a good start, a beginning, an effort to change behavior.
If the OP can get into an exercise routine it'll make all the difference.
I found out how much when I got downed with that foot ulcer.
Started gaining weight almost right away. I have willpower, but diet alone just didn't cut it.
The higher level routine I'm on now has righted the ship and then some.
The ulcer turned out to be a blessing in disguise because it forced me to double down on my exercise program.
I'm not a dietician or nutritionist, so I couldn't begin to evaluate what you're proposing. I can only tell you that thinking in terms of just fixing an immediate problem with some diet or other is less effective, and less healthy, than thinking in terms of a lifestyle change. It's a mistake to think like that, and fails without the accompanying change of attitude toward food and exercise.
What you have is a good start, a beginning, an effort to change behavior.
I'm hoping to make this a lifestyle change. That's why I'm taking it slow at only a lb a week. If I lose too fast, or I am too hungry, I will make adjustments. For example, in the summer especially I'd like to add some fruit in. So perhaps my carbs might go to 100g in the summer if I eat a 25g carbs peach or cherries. Hopefully by then I'll have a better grasp on my weight loss plan and how it works with my body. Also, hopefully in summer by being more active I can burn off the excess carbs.
For example, in the summer especially I'd like to add some fruit in.
You can have fruit now.
Think of fruit that you would normally have to add sweeteners to.
I have raspberries all the time. Blackberries and strawberries as well.
Just for fun and to mix things up I even put this on it once in a while...
Many people here say no to artificial sweeteners, but I have 'em. To each their own.
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