Critique my diet!

[bisous]

Thank you for the critiques!

I will ditch the muffin. Although I love what the bran does for me (sorry if TMI!) and must avoid nuts not for allergies but because my system just doesn't seem to tolerate them well!

I am not seeing how it is low on veggies or protein? I have greek yogurt for breakfast, meat and cheese at lunch and usually some kind of quality protein at dinner. I get 1 to 2 servings of veggies from my sandwich at lunch and salad, plus usually something at dinner and raw veggies for snack every day. But maybe that isn't as much as I think it is?

I do think there are too many carbs. Losing the muffin should help. I thought sourdough was among the more tolerated and healthier types of bread? I like whole wheat too. Having the carbs with the meat and cheese seem to make me feel fuller. I need to think about the greek yogurt. I like plain Greek yogurt but can only ever find the fat free kind and I don't like that kind. If I get the full fat, it has more calories but it tastes so much better! I feel like my body doesn't like fat. I'm not accustomed to eating a lot of it and it doesn't FEEL good to me.

I have thought about whole 30 but it is utterly impractical for me right now. Maybe I can start with what I'm doing and tweak things until they start to move towards lower carb? I really don't know if I can ever do a diet that forbids grapefruit in the morning, though!

I kind of love this diet. I feel really good. Maybe even too good! Like perhaps it isn't restrictive enough for me to lose weight. It has been 3 days and I don't even have a scale and don't plan on getting one so I don't feel like I'm losing. I just feel like maybe I SHOULD feel hungry. I'm basing my calorie intake on what MFP is telling me I need to do to lose a pound a week, approx. 1500 calories.

Thanks again for your thoughts. They are helpful!

[HannaAddict]

You can really jump start things and lose tons of sugar, but keep the good protein and creaminess, by ditching the sugar yogurt and having non-fat Greek yogurt and throw some berries on it. Some non-fat yogurt is good,iI like Fage. If you really don't like it, try and do it for a week and train your taste buds. I usually add sprinkle of blueberries and small sprinkle of raw almonds. The muffin has no good nutritional value, sorry to say. Maybe as a Sunday morning treat. Add some bran cereal in if you need it. For lunch, the lettuce on a sandwich is not a serving of veggies. You would be better off ditching the bread and Ive never heard of sourdough being good bread. Have it once in awhile but daily, you will have a harder time losing. Try a salad topped with turkey and/or cheese or hard boiled egg as other said. Do a roll up with meat and cheese and save the bread calories. Carbs aren't "bad" but they represent sugar so going low carb will make you eat less sugar. Try lean proteins and veggies, raw and grilled for dinner. Roast some, they get sweet and are filling. If you must have carbs, really monitor portions. And it won't happen overnight, hang in there. I would skip the bar and get some good dark chocolate and have a few squares of that, but bars don't do much for me. Good luck!!!

[AnnieW625]

I would add some more veggies. Can you sub a bagel thin or a sourdough English muffin for breakfast? I do that with a serving or low fat cream cheese and add a slice of deli meat and a bunch of lettuce. It keeps me full until around 10 or 11 and then I have usually a Zbar (chocolate is my favorite too and I have been eating them since before I had kids!) to give me some carbs before I go to the gym at noon. I then usually eat a lunch with protein and greens of some sort and if I am still hungry I will eat 1/2 a cup of non or low fat Greek vanilla yogurt (Oikos is my favorite or 2% Fage plain) w/some strawberries or raspberries. I will snack on carrots, grapes, or mini peppers throughout the day. I eat an apple on the way home almost every day. I need to better about snacking when I get home and am preparing dinner. Dinner is usually pretty balanced between protein, and veggies or fruit and sometimes carbs.

Have you thought about trying Weight Watchers? I go to a group at my work, but they were having a promo recently where "you can lose the first 10lbs on us," which I think means the first 10lbs you lose by attending meetings are free (most of the time they are $10 or so a meeting) and even if you have 20lbs. to lose as long as you are in your healthy weight range (based on your height) you only need to lose 5lbs., and then maintain for 6 weeks then you are a free member as long as you don't go over 2lbs. of your goal weight (and you can get the program for free and lose the remaining 15lbs). MyFitnessPal is a good option too, but I like the comraderie you get at a Weight Watchers meeting, and points are easier for me to count (I have been doing it for 11 yrs., but it does get easier).

I have issues digesting most types of bread especially whole wheat bread so I prefer to eat sourdough bread but unfortunately it lacks the fiber, but it is much cheaper than eating gluten free bread for breakfast or lunch (and has the about the same amount of fiber) and it doesn't wreak havoc with my ibs w/constipation (a bran muffin does nothing to help things along) so I get it as an alternative to gluten free bread.

[Aishe]

I need to think about the greek yogurt. I like plain Greek yogurt but can only ever find the fat free kind and I don't like that kind. If I get the full fat, it has more calories but it tastes so much better! I feel like my body doesn't like fat. I'm not accustomed to eating a lot of it and it doesn't FEEL good to me.

Do you like cottage cheese? It has even more protein than Greek yogurt.

[AnnieW625]

Do you like cottage cheese? It has even more protein than Greek yogurt.

It can be very salty though.

OP I am very picky about Greek yogurt, and fat free dairy in general, but I have found that the Oikos Vanilla nonfat Greek yogurt is the best tasting. I buy the large container and DD2 and I eat it throughout the week, I have about 1/2 cup per day. I bought the Chobani brand this week because the market I was at didn't have the Oikos, but the Oikos is so much better. I will do the Fage 2%, but don't like their nonfat either.

[echoesofspring]

add me to the choir of ditch the carbs, its the only way I can lose weight. You will have to make plans to have snacks though, or you will get hungry at least for the first week. If you do the bran muffin, do no sugar yogurt. I love grapefruit but it's probably too much sugar to have it in the morning + sugared yogurt + muffin. It will set you off in the wrong direction. Case in point, my family had been visiting and left today, it's been super hectic so I just ate whatever was available in the fridge. My dad left a whole peeled grapefruit in the fridge (its his thing). And I ate it. And was hungry all day.

How about a chopped salad instead of the sandwich. Salads are a PIA to prepare individually, but I assembly line our lunch salads once a week when I'm on top of things and I can make about 8 salads for DH and I in about 20 min or so. If everything's fresh they can last til close to the end of the week. That way you could get more veggies of nutritional value - spinach, peppers, carrots, etc.

[brittone2]

MedPage today recently had a piece written by an ob/gyn who was saying how when women would complain about not knowing how they quickly gained 20 lbs, she didn't really believe them. She went back for additional continuing ed and now specializes in part in menopause, etc. Her piece discussed how what she sees with a lot of with women is that they put on 5-10 lbs over the winter, in a crisis or stressful time, etc. and since that is often abdominal fat, it sets them up to be more insulin resistant and they have a tough time losing, or that 5 lbs spirals into more. In many cases, she says that 5-10 lbs easily spirals to 20 lbs because people feel hungry, etc. from the abdominal fat and insulin resistance. Her advice was that many women really need to cut back on carbs to starve that abdominal fat of more sugar and carbohydrates in order to jump start their weight loss.

For me, the breakfast alone would be too much sugar for me even spread over a whole day (sweetened yogurt+muffin), but I know I am insulin resistant thanks to PCOS.

eta: I thought you'd have to log in to read but it looks like it is available without logging in. FWIW, her recommendation of 5 carb servings per day from fruit plus additinoal complex carbs (brown rice, oatmeal, etc) would still be too carby for me, and maple syrup and agave would still have an impact on me, especially on top of oatmeal. But some of her explanation may be helpful?

http://www.medpagetoday.com/OBGYN/GeneralOBGYN/49865

[mmsmom]

IMO, the flavored yogurts all have too much sugar. You are better off buying plain Greek yogurt then mixing in fruit & a little honey if you need sweetness. You could also mix in bran if you want to keep the bran.

[georgiegirl]

IMO, the flavored yogurts all have too much sugar. You are better off buying plain Greek yogurt then mixing in fruit & a little honey if you need sweetness. You could also mix in bran if you want to keep the bran.

Agree. Buying plain and mixing in fruit/jam/honey will allow you to gradually cut back on the amount of sugar. I buy frozen organic berries from costco, defrost them and add them to plain Greek yogurt and add a touch of honey.

Huevos rancheros is another great breakfast...two eggs, salsa, beans and cheese/guacamole.

[gatorsmom]

MedPage today recently had a piece written by an ob/gyn who was saying how when women would complain about not knowing how they quickly gained 20 lbs, she didn't really believe them. She went back for additional continuing ed and now specializes in part in menopause, etc. Her piece discussed how what she sees with a lot of with women is that they put on 5-10 lbs over the winter, in a crisis or stressful time, etc. and since that is often abdominal fat, it sets them up to be more insulin resistant and they have a tough time losing, or that 5 lbs spirals into more. In many cases, she says that 5-10 lbs easily spirals to 20 lbs because people feel hungry, etc. from the abdominal fat and insulin resistance. Her advice was that many women really need to cut back on carbs to starve that abdominal fat of more sugar and carbohydrates in order to jump start their weight loss.

For me, the breakfast alone would be too much sugar for me even spread over a whole day (sweetened yogurt+muffin), but I know I am insulin resistant thanks to PCOS.

eta: I thought you'd have to log in to read but it looks like it is available without logging in. FWIW, her recommendation of 5 carb servings per day from fruit plus additinoal complex carbs (brown rice, oatmeal, etc) would still be too carby for me, and maple syrup and agave would still have an impact on me, especially on top of oatmeal. But some of her explanation may be helpful?

http://www.medpagetoday.com/OBGYN/GeneralOBGYN/49865

This was really interesting. And helpful. Thank you for the link!

Huevos rancheros is another great breakfast...two eggs, salsa, beans and cheese/guacamole.

Oh my goodness does that sound yummy right now!