Also, I’ve been having a lot of fun playing around with My Fitness Pal this week. It’s great not only for tracking your food, but planning out future days. You can try to optimize all your nutrients & then just eat according to the plan you’ve worked out. I’m finding it a real challenge to meet the potassium goal each day - I’ve decided to settle for about 80%, since I’m a small person anyway.
If you are at or below your goal weight, you are doing some things right!
For lunch and dinner, a carb/pasta is part of my 1400 calorie diet - 2/3 cup is a portion.
Before seeing dietitian, I was taking in way too much protein and was avoiding carbs. Finding the small protein and small carb portions together work to keep me more satisfied and keep under calorie count.
Keeping a food diary and keeping portion sizes down for calorie count.
Physically I cannot exercise like I could 9 years ago. Back then I was more active with elementary aged children and was very healthy. Tamoxifen now does slow me down - I have gotten use to it to a certain extent. Who knows how different I feel now - which part is aging, and which part of it is post chemo/radiation/Tamoxifen? However I am not super heavy, even with all the weight gain while I battled cancer. I am currently about 50 lb over my goal - so if I can continue a lb a week weight loss, I will be at my goal in about a year.
When one can get healthy enough to walk/jog w/o risk of injury - that is something many heavier people cannot do. I do better with weight loss with the weight bearing exercise.
So be grateful for the ability to exercise and modify eating to make the positive health changes. 
I loved Salt, Sugar, Fat! I read it just as I was starting a healthier lifestyle, and it was a great inspiration to keep me going! Fed Up was great too!
I only eat full-fat dairy as well, including milk and Greek yogurt.
For me, the types of carbs matter - I don’t eat processed, highly refined carbs (pasta, white bread, white rice), except rarely, but I do eat steel-cut oats, Ezekiel bread, and whole fruit daily. Eating clean has worked really well for me.
I use skim milk in my coffee. H and I as we age have gone from 2%, to 1% and now to skim milk.
I would be really battling weight, as I drink a lot of coffee!
Farro. Learned something new today.
Farro is delicious - you can make a nice salad with farro, tomatoes, mozzarella, basil and a little balsamic/olive oil - I love it. I have found it at our Costco - my rule is if we buy it we have to eat it so I’ve been experimenting with a few different dishes.
@acollegestudent, my physician told me not to count veggies and fruit as a carb the same way I would count a grain product. I eat the steel cut oats and Ezekiel products, but bread has always been my weakness. Oh yeah, donuts too…but I just have to say no to those.
C3Baker- I’m probably the worst eater on this thread. I have a lifestyle that involves a lot of meals with business associates and social friends, and it’s just hard to limit myself. I also cruise the office candy bowls and I like donuts. I eat pizza- not every week but at least once every 2 weeks. I try to watch my portions and eat lighter dinners- often with no meat if I’ve had meat at lunch. My breakfasts are a concoction of non-fat Greek yogurt, fresh ground (at the store) peanut butter, a little bit of honey and a sprinkle of Grape Nuts. It keeps me full until lunch- and I don’t eat a huge portion of the breakfast gunk. Lunch is my biggest meal, usually. I drink alcohol about 3 times a week- sometimes more if I’m on a business trip or vacation.
I just switched my fitness tracker from Garmin Vivofit to FitBit Charge. I succumbed to peer pressure from my daughter and other friends who are enjoying the social aspect of FitBit. There are things I like better about it and things I like less. I think it is more attractive, but I can’t switch bands. I miss having the readout on all the time. The main thing I miss is the red bar that grew when I was too inactive. With Charge I have to push a button to see my steps. I like the stair flights count, although I’m not sure how accurate it is. I like the interface with my phone. I’m not sure whether I like phone numbers popping up on it when I get a call on my phone or not. I’m only 2 days into it. I won’t like having to charge it, but it’s not that big a deal.
3.2 miles this morning in oppressive humidity/heat. I felt terrible. I’m at an very low weight for me- I think I am a little dehydrated, too. I’m not complaining about the weight, but I haven’t seen this weight in over 5 years and I’m not sure it’s for the right reasons…
busyparent, are you comfortable with adding a few free weights exercises to your daily walking?
BTW, your daily menu sounds fine - I want some of that split pea soup now! If you can, can the Pepsi and add some protein. The big Q is whether this kind of eating is sustainable for you. It sounds like you had 2 meals, breakfast and some main meal, so if you are accustomed to eating more meals, this would not work long-term.
MOfWC, Glad you were able to run despite the heat and dehydration.
I’m probably the next bad eater on this thread, especially this summer, which involved too much travel. Napa has great wine, Atlanta has nice restaurants, and Swedes eat waaaay too much potatoes and drink too much!!!
My legs look like 4x4s - swollen from sitting on the plane for way too long. It will take a couple of days to get back to normal… Wearing my extra wide Munros for now.
I only buy skim milk, but keep half and half in the refrig for coffee - as iDad preaches, 1 T of cream tastes “oh so good” and isn’t going to wreck any good eating plan!!!
My yogurt of choice: Stonyfield whole milk plain. By the quart.
My yogurt of choice: either Trader Joe’s Whole Milk Greek Yogurt or Fage Total Whole Milk Greek Yogurt (both plain). I have to try the Stonyfield!
I think that working our way up to full fat will be much more fun than going the other direction!
50 Minute run, done.
I like plain 2% Fage yogurt. Or Lifeway kefir, also plain.
MWC - buy some of the Werther’s Original sugar free assorted hard candies - they are delicious and it will keep you from adding those empty calories. I got the 7.7 oz bag. 5 pieces is only 40 calories.
One has to decide if their weight/health goals mean taking certain foods off the menu, or maybe just limiting to a ‘taste’.
Decided to stop at McDonald’s for a 170 calorie ice cream cone, and the small chicken sandwich is 360 calories.
Have to make smart decisions every day…
30 minute run around the track! As much as I REALLY get bored on the indoor track, I find that I so want it done that I don’t take breaks - so where I might run 3 miles outside and have to pause for a car or to cross a street, on the track I just churn it out. So, good for stamina I’m thinking.
Speaking of pasta, my D who starts her freshman year has requested several meals before she heads off. She is a pasta lover!! Tonight she requested this 30 minute “quick lasagna” recipe - so, I’ll make it, but also do a protein on the side - tonight meatballs - and then just limit the amount of the pasta/sauce/ricotta/fresh mozz/basil mixture. And then plan extra veggies.
Speaking of sugar… I did not have a chance to go grocery shopping in Stockholm, so I studied the labels of the snacks offered to us on the plane on the way home. A pack with 2 delicious chocolate chip cookies was only 55 calories… mainly because the amount of sugar in them was cut to 1/3 of what is typically used by the US manufacturers.
BTW, the kid who has now lived in Europe for 2 months has lost her sweet tooth. She also eats much smaller portions because the food is very expensive, but the small amount fills her up, so she is not starving. She takes advantage of the free CrossFit like sessions offered at her office and also swims a couple of times a week and really likes the fact that she can walk all over without needing a car.
I really enjoy reading the Well blog in the NYTimes, although I have learned to be skeptical of all these studies they write about that have conclusions based on a sample size of 24 people or the like.
Here’s one about high intensity interval training – http://nyti.ms/1IJpRoU, “A Way to Get Fit and Also Have Fun.” It’s called the 10-20-30 training, and runners using this got faster.
You warm up with an easy jog (or pedaling or rowing), then ease into the intervals. The 30-second portion should feel relaxed; the next 20 seconds moderately hard; and the final 10 seconds a full gallop. Do five of the 10-20-30 intervals in a row without pause, then rest for two minutes by standing or very slowly walking about. Repeat the five consecutive intervals one more time and cool down. Add another set if you’re in shape.
I did this today, using this odd recumbent elliptical bike machine at the fitness club, and while I can’t say it was “fun,” it seemed like a good way to do high intensity interval training. I’ll do it again.
Another column that touches on something we talk about was this one, http://nyti.ms/1Ip43cT, on selecting running shoes. The conclusion was that pronation or impact control means nothing – what’s important is what feels best on your foot. Just what all those R&D people at the athletic gear companies want to hear.
Thanks, fireandrain! Interesting articles. And here is another quite relevant to the spirit of the thread article from the NYT on how Coke and their likes are trying to protect their sugary crap by funding studies that support the conclusion that healthy weight is all about exercise:
Day 2 almost done. Ate well although probably not enough, but it was very busy at work. Then did 30 minutes on the treadmill. I am better at maintaining a certain pace when on a treadmill. Thank you for suggesting weights. When I am living “clean”, I eat well, exercise aerobically and do the weight circuits. I don’t currently have access to a gym but have some free weights at home and a stretchy thing to exercise with. Even when eating poorly my exercise conditioning stays ok because I enjoy walking and riding my bike. When I was 42 I got a spot in the Marine Corps Marathon and on race day had not run in over 6 months, but went anyway and finished in 6 hours. Terrible time compared to what you guys do, but hey I was glad to finish and there were lots of stragglers after me. Lol
The issue I need to figure out if this is going to last for a lifetime is the mental part. I have certain triggers like chips and bread and interestingly feeling full triggers the desire to keep eating. So going to a restaurant and having a bigger meal after eating less makes me want to go home and keep eating.
After work I went to the library and checked out the Salt, Sugar Fat book and will start reading this evening. Thanks everyone!