Newbie - Needs Advice

On Thu, 02 Sep 2004 14:20:28 -0400, Dally wrote:

Cinnamn112 wrote:

Let me know what you guys think of an 800-calorie diet... and what foods I
should choose at college.

I hated everything about your plan. How's that for succinct! :-)

I'd really appreciate it if you'd go read my post from yesterday (?) in
the thread "Here I go again" or from a few days ago in the thread "Just
Starting Out - Again - and need some support."

Read here for a while - Chris Braun is amazing and so are many others.
Oh, and go read http://www.stumptuous.com/weights.html and especially
read the "eating" section.

Dally, sick of typing.

Well, having been referenced here (though I don't know about "amazing"
:-) ), I feel I should say something too. Anyway, two years ago I
weighed 262; today I weigh 139. I'm 5'6", female, and 56 years old
(which makes it a lot harder than at your age -- the metabolism slows
down a lot with age). I used a calorie-counting method -- no "name
brand" diet book, just keeping track of calories and trying to get a
good balance of protein, healthy fats (more nuts and fish than beef
and full-fat dairy), and healthy carbs (more fruits, veggies, and
whole grains than white bread and sweets). I started out eating
around 1600 calories a day and never dropped below around 1200. 800 a
day is far too little, especially at your age. You will slow your
metabolism to a standstill.

Dally's suggestion to look at the stumptuous website is an excellent
one. It will also talk about weightlifting, which is a good thing to
take up if you're not already doing it.

I expect you have a reasonable sense of what's healthy to eat and what
isn't. Clearly the greasy college foods you mention are mostly not.
You need lean meats and fish along with your veggies and fruits. Is
it possible to get plain sandwiches -- preferably on whole wheat bread
? You said there's a salad bar. Does it include any kind of proteins
like turkey, tuna, or cheese? If not, maybe you can add something to
it -- a can of tuna, a couple of hard-boiled eggs -- something like
that. And you might want to bring your own salad dressing if they
don't offer any that are lower in calories.

Anyway, stick around and read -- you'll get some good ideas. And keep
asking questions.

Chris
262/140/ (145-150)

On Thu, 02 Sep 2004 14:20:28 -0400, Dally wrote:

Cinnamn112 wrote:

Let me know what you guys think of an 800-calorie diet... and what foods I
should choose at college.

I hated everything about your plan. How's that for succinct! :-)

I'd really appreciate it if you'd go read my post from yesterday (?) in
the thread "Here I go again" or from a few days ago in the thread "Just
Starting Out - Again - and need some support."

Read here for a while - Chris Braun is amazing and so are many others.
Oh, and go read http://www.stumptuous.com/weights.html and especially
read the "eating" section.

Dally, sick of typing.

Well, having been referenced here (though I don't know about "amazing"
:-) ), I feel I should say something too. Anyway, two years ago I
weighed 262; today I weigh 139. I'm 5'6", female, and 56 years old
(which makes it a lot harder than at your age -- the metabolism slows
down a lot with age). I used a calorie-counting method -- no "name
brand" diet book, just keeping track of calories and trying to get a
good balance of protein, healthy fats (more nuts and fish than beef
and full-fat dairy), and healthy carbs (more fruits, veggies, and
whole grains than white bread and sweets). I started out eating
around 1600 calories a day and never dropped below around 1200. 800 a
day is far too little, especially at your age. You will slow your
metabolism to a standstill.

Dally's suggestion to look at the stumptuous website is an excellent
one. It will also talk about weightlifting, which is a good thing to
take up if you're not already doing it.

I expect you have a reasonable sense of what's healthy to eat and what
isn't. Clearly the greasy college foods you mention are mostly not.
You need lean meats and fish along with your veggies and fruits. Is
it possible to get plain sandwiches -- preferably on whole wheat bread
? You said there's a salad bar. Does it include any kind of proteins
like turkey, tuna, or cheese? If not, maybe you can add something to
it -- a can of tuna, a couple of hard-boiled eggs -- something like
that. And you might want to bring your own salad dressing if they
don't offer any that are lower in calories.

Anyway, stick around and read -- you'll get some good ideas. And keep
asking questions.

Chris
262/140/ (145-150)

Thanks Chris!!! I just remembered we DO have a deli line with fresh-cut, lean
meats & whole wheat bread!! Yippee!! That's good with a piece of fresh fruit.
We also have an omelet bar at Nelson Dining Hall, I just learned today
(surprise!).

Would it be okay to have a bagel w/ cream cheese? I'm still learning about
"refined carbs" and a good ratio.

Thanks again for your advice & support!

Jen
228/188/153

Thanks Chris!!! I just remembered we DO have a deli line with fresh-cut, lean
meats & whole wheat bread!! Yippee!! That's good with a piece of fresh fruit.
We also have an omelet bar at Nelson Dining Hall, I just learned today
(surprise!).

Would it be okay to have a bagel w/ cream cheese? I'm still learning about
"refined carbs" and a good ratio.

Thanks again for your advice & support!

Jen
228/188/153

On 03 Sep 2004 01:30:34 GMT, (Cinnamn112) wrote:

Thanks Chris!!! I just remembered we DO have a deli line with fresh-cut, lean
meats & whole wheat bread!! Yippee!! That's good with a piece of fresh fruit.
We also have an omelet bar at Nelson Dining Hall, I just learned today
(surprise!).

Would it be okay to have a bagel w/ cream cheese? I'm still learning about
"refined carbs" and a good ratio.

Thanks again for your advice & support!

Jen
228/188/153

That's great about the deli line, and the omelet bar.

I'd be careful with the bagels and cream cheese. Bagels are
surprisingly high in calories. A regular-sized bagel (like you can
buy in packs in the store -- not like the really big ones in some
delis) has 280 calories, whereas a piece of bread has around 80-90.
And it's unlikely your school serves whole grain bagels, whereas whole
wheat bread is probably available.

And cream cheese has 100 calories per ounce -- also kind of high.
(There are lower-fat versions, but probably not what's served at your
school.)

These aren't bad foods, but it's a big part of your daily calorie
budget so you'd have to plan accordingly. There are lots of better
380 calorie meals.

By the way, something you haven't mentioned as a criterion in
selecting foods is fiber content. That's important for health and for
weight loss, so you might want to think about it a bit. For example,
it's one of the things to look at in breakfast cereals.

If you haven't seen it mentioned yet, let me recommend www.fitday.com.
Lots of people here use it to track their daily calories and
nutrients. (I don't -- I have a rather elaborate spreadsheet that DH
and I developed -- but I think fitday is a good approach.) You can
learn a lot just by experimenting with it for a while, even if you
don't do it long term.

Chris

On 03 Sep 2004 01:30:34 GMT, (Cinnamn112) wrote:

Thanks Chris!!! I just remembered we DO have a deli line with fresh-cut, lean
meats & whole wheat bread!! Yippee!! That's good with a piece of fresh fruit.
We also have an omelet bar at Nelson Dining Hall, I just learned today
(surprise!).

Would it be okay to have a bagel w/ cream cheese? I'm still learning about
"refined carbs" and a good ratio.

Thanks again for your advice & support!

Jen
228/188/153

That's great about the deli line, and the omelet bar.

I'd be careful with the bagels and cream cheese. Bagels are
surprisingly high in calories. A regular-sized bagel (like you can
buy in packs in the store -- not like the really big ones in some
delis) has 280 calories, whereas a piece of bread has around 80-90.
And it's unlikely your school serves whole grain bagels, whereas whole
wheat bread is probably available.

And cream cheese has 100 calories per ounce -- also kind of high.
(There are lower-fat versions, but probably not what's served at your
school.)

These aren't bad foods, but it's a big part of your daily calorie
budget so you'd have to plan accordingly. There are lots of better
380 calorie meals.

By the way, something you haven't mentioned as a criterion in
selecting foods is fiber content. That's important for health and for
weight loss, so you might want to think about it a bit. For example,
it's one of the things to look at in breakfast cereals.

If you haven't seen it mentioned yet, let me recommend www.fitday.com.
Lots of people here use it to track their daily calories and
nutrients. (I don't -- I have a rather elaborate spreadsheet that DH
and I developed -- but I think fitday is a good approach.) You can
learn a lot just by experimenting with it for a while, even if you
don't do it long term.

Chris

(Cinnamn112) wrote in message ...
Thanks for the posts!! I did read some of the backlogged posts, and was
surprised to see how many calories I should be eating.

I got some Special K cereal today (3 boxes, and I get a free pedometer! w00t
w00t - free stuff rocks!), tomato soup, and those Lean Cuisine meals are
filling and low in calories.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

this is all diet-food crap. You need ~1800 kcals/day, and you're not
going to get it from this.

I made this EXACT same mistake -- eating a Lean Cuisine and thinking
it was enough for dinner -- 300 kcal IS NOT ENOUGH FOR DINNER. *** YOU
NEED 5-100 kcal/hour of life, so eat wisely throught the day to fuel
your body and not starve it.


Special K sucks too, it's got all kinds of crap carbs in it that will
make you hungrier sooner.

Get Cheerios if you must have cold cereal in the morning. What I do is
sprinkle some of my stevia-sweetened protein powder on it every
morning to balance it out better (more protein to even out the
blood-sugar shock from the carbs in the cheerios).

Also, I don't have "clean" sources of protein at my college. We don't get
skinless meats - we get fried bacon, burgers, and hot dogs. What to do there?
I can't cook in my dorm: we only get a fridge/freezer/microwave - George
Foreman and the likes aren't allowed.

find a protein powder you like and use it as a supplement. One serving
is 50c and is good for 150-200 kcal of protein.

At college they have enough protein for you if you eat wisely. Find a
calorie budget that has you losing 1-2lbs/week and you can eat
anything within it.

LOW FAT DIETING IS NOT THE ONLY ANSWER!!!!

I lost 50lbs in 6 months easy on a moderate diet plan, cutting useless
carbs and eating a balanced diet high in protein.

Heywood

44"/36"/33"

(Cinnamn112) wrote in message ...
Thanks for the posts!! I did read some of the backlogged posts, and was
surprised to see how many calories I should be eating.

I got some Special K cereal today (3 boxes, and I get a free pedometer! w00t
w00t - free stuff rocks!), tomato soup, and those Lean Cuisine meals are
filling and low in calories.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

this is all diet-food crap. You need ~1800 kcals/day, and you're not
going to get it from this.

I made this EXACT same mistake -- eating a Lean Cuisine and thinking
it was enough for dinner -- 300 kcal IS NOT ENOUGH FOR DINNER. *** YOU
NEED 5-100 kcal/hour of life, so eat wisely throught the day to fuel
your body and not starve it.


Special K sucks too, it's got all kinds of crap carbs in it that will
make you hungrier sooner.

Get Cheerios if you must have cold cereal in the morning. What I do is
sprinkle some of my stevia-sweetened protein powder on it every
morning to balance it out better (more protein to even out the
blood-sugar shock from the carbs in the cheerios).

Also, I don't have "clean" sources of protein at my college. We don't get
skinless meats - we get fried bacon, burgers, and hot dogs. What to do there?
I can't cook in my dorm: we only get a fridge/freezer/microwave - George
Foreman and the likes aren't allowed.

find a protein powder you like and use it as a supplement. One serving
is 50c and is good for 150-200 kcal of protein.

At college they have enough protein for you if you eat wisely. Find a
calorie budget that has you losing 1-2lbs/week and you can eat
anything within it.

LOW FAT DIETING IS NOT THE ONLY ANSWER!!!!

I lost 50lbs in 6 months easy on a moderate diet plan, cutting useless
carbs and eating a balanced diet high in protein.

Heywood

44"/36"/33"

Cinnamn112 wrote:

Thanks Chris!!! I just remembered we DO have a deli line with fresh-cut, lean
meats & whole wheat bread!! Yippee!! That's good with a piece of fresh fruit.
We also have an omelet bar at Nelson Dining Hall, I just learned today
(surprise!).

Would it be okay to have a bagel w/ cream cheese? I'm still learning about
"refined carbs" and a good ratio.

I have a bagel with cream cheese nearly every morning. Here's what I
do: I eat HALF of a 100% whole wheat bagel (maximized for fiber content)
with HALF a tablespoon of low-fat cream cheese with two ounces of smoked
salmon on it. With two tablespoons of cream in my coffee that comes out
to a 300 calorie breakfast with fiber, healthy fats, balanced
macronutrients and is portable and yummy.

In the winter I'm likely to have oatmeal mixed with ground flaxseed and
protein powder or (my current fave) oatmeal mixed with peanutbutter,
raisins and chocolate protein powder. That comes in closer to 400
calories if I'm not super careful with the peanutbutter.

Dally

Cinnamn112 wrote:

Thanks Chris!!! I just remembered we DO have a deli line with fresh-cut, lean
meats & whole wheat bread!! Yippee!! That's good with a piece of fresh fruit.
We also have an omelet bar at Nelson Dining Hall, I just learned today
(surprise!).

Would it be okay to have a bagel w/ cream cheese? I'm still learning about
"refined carbs" and a good ratio.

I have a bagel with cream cheese nearly every morning. Here's what I
do: I eat HALF of a 100% whole wheat bagel (maximized for fiber content)
with HALF a tablespoon of low-fat cream cheese with two ounces of smoked
salmon on it. With two tablespoons of cream in my coffee that comes out
to a 300 calorie breakfast with fiber, healthy fats, balanced
macronutrients and is portable and yummy.

In the winter I'm likely to have oatmeal mixed with ground flaxseed and
protein powder or (my current fave) oatmeal mixed with peanutbutter,
raisins and chocolate protein powder. That comes in closer to 400
calories if I'm not super careful with the peanutbutter.

Dally