Need diet help

[Chompsuey]

What are the best foods to intake and the ones to absolutely stay away from? I'm starting a 1400 cal/day diet and it seems my options are extremely limited if I want to eat 5 times a day. I do 30-45 min cardio and 30 minutes of weights 6 days a week. I''m using shakeology for my dinner meal replacement after working out and my water consumption is plenty. My goal is to lose the 40 lbs ive gained the last 3 years.

[LeafUF]

Hey Chomp, just a couple of questions before I get into any suggestions.

Why 1400 cal/day?

Why 5 meals a day?

Would you prefer to eat a meal instead of having a shake for dinner?

Also, if you dont mind what are your stats and goals, I mean besides wanting to lose 40 pounds. How long do you expect it to take you to lose that weight with your current plan?

Hope some of us can help here. I am sure we can just need to need a little more to give better info. One of my favorite fitness writers recently said "In all my research there is only one food that will make you fat: Too much" so you may not need to think about what is best and what needs to be avoided. Just what fits into your plan.

[Chompsuey]

I downloaded myfitnesspal and at 1400 a day i would lose roughly 5 lbs a week. Everyone says to eat 5 times a day so thats where that came from. I like the shake but I am up for any suggestions. Ideally it would take me 3 months as I think I will be very strict. Stat wise I am 31 years old. Im 5' 11" and weigh around 235. Im broad and stocky but do have a gut now.

[LeafUF]

OK, cool. Well, I have some good news for you. 5 lbs a week would actually have you down 40 pounds in 2 months. So that is probably a bit lower than needed. Could aim for something like 3 lbs a week and get to eat a little more and still be close to that 40 pound goal in 3 months. Might even make it given you are being extremely active.

Now, as far as 5 times a day, there is really no added benefit to eating this way unless you like to do so and it helps you adhere to your diet. However, with so few calories in your daily plan it would be a lot easier on you to eat say 2 times a day, 3 max.

I like shakes but not for dinner, they just dont fill me up enough at night. Better imo to eat a real meal. Save the shake for during the day when its harder or just less convenient to prepare a meal.

Best thing you can do is make sure you stick to your planned calories as much as possible. To do that I would recommend measuring and weighing out your food for at least a few weeks until you get a good idea of what you are eating. Knowing you have x amount of calories everyday to work with you can pick and choose food accordingly simply by looking at the calories and making sure they fit and fill you up.

Worry about diet first, exercise second. Its just an added bonus but its the diet that is going to get you the results.

If you have any other questions just shoot. I know others will chime in sooner or later.

[Chompsuey]

My recent plan before vacation was:
2 egg whites and turkey sausage or cereal with non fat milk for breakfast at 6:00
banana, or almonds, or another fruit for snack at 9:00
small chicken breast or 7 oz tuna with either brown rice or some steamers vegetables at 12:00
craisins or fruit or nuts at 4:00
Shake with a tablespoon of peanut butter or almonds and possibly a banana at 7:30
I eat pickles also throughout the day

[Chompsuey]

When I'm counting calories do I need to worry about calories from fat, sodium, or anything else? I have a buddy that says stay away from chips and flour tortillas no matter what. Also I hear if you only eat 2 times a day it slows your metabolism. 2 times a day is actually my preference.

[LeafUF]

The metabolism thing has been proven to be bogus so dont worry about that, if you prefer 2 times a day then do that.

For sodium unless you have high BP that is caused by some sort of salt sensitivity then you probably dont need to cut it out. You need to lose real weight, not just water weight that you might be holding onto because of your sodium. I dont look at it at all.

I personally do not consider anything off limits so the occasional chips or tortillas wont kill you. The problem with them is that an ounce of chips will run you anywhere from 130 to 160 calories or more. Its not a lot of food and its not filling at all. Not that easy to justify their inclusion just based on the numbers alone. I imagine tortillas will give you a similar issue. Hard to just eat a serving so probably not worth it.

Number one most important thing is hitting your calorie number that gives you the deficit you are looking for. Fat has a lot of calories so you wont be able to eat a lot of fatty foods, but other than that its not something you need to avoid altogether. I try to stick to high protein from lean meats, lots of veggies with moderate carbs and moderate fat.

[Itssaul]

Originally Posted by LeafUF

The metabolism thing has been proven to be bogus so dont worry about that, if you prefer 2 times a day then do that.

For sodium unless you have high BP that is caused by some sort of salt sensitivity then you probably dont need to cut it out. You need to lose real weight, not just water weight that you might be holding onto because of your sodium. I dont look at it at all.

I personally do not consider anything off limits so the occasional chips or tortillas wont kill you. The problem with them is that an ounce of chips will run you anywhere from 130 to 160 calories or more. Its not a lot of food and its not filling at all. Not that easy to justify their inclusion just based on the numbers alone. I imagine tortillas will give you a similar issue. Hard to just eat a serving so probably not worth it.

Number one most important thing is hitting your calorie number that gives you the deficit you are looking for. Fat has a lot of calories so you wont be able to eat a lot of fatty foods, but other than that its not something you need to avoid altogether. I try to stick to high protein from lean meats, lots of veggies with moderate carbs and moderate fat.

It's not bogus. Just wildly misunderstood. Well no bogus, but eating more times a day still has value.

This of your body like a sink. The drain is closed when you are sleeping or loafing at the house. Opened when doing things like walking, chores, workouts.

Now every time you eat you pour water into the sink. If you eat big meals, you might not get all the water out at the end of the day.

Pouring water in as you drain it is the best way to control the levels.

Good luck!

[Chompsuey]

I sure appreciate your help!

[ATL_Gator]

Just my opinions here.

First... think of things in terms of a week. NOT a day. This will give you some leeway in order to budget things accordingly.

1400 calories a day is 9800 calories a week. This is what I did (the strategy, not the numbers). This way, when I would inevitably cave on a particular day, it wasn't blown. In fact, in this last 25 lb that I lost recently, I had days where I went absolutely nuts (pizza, buffet, pizza buffet, etc). Budget that out over a couple of days, still lost weight when I weighed in the following week.

Just my thoughts, I am an engineer, not a nutritionist/personal trainer.

Dropping 5 lb a week on average over the whole 40 lbs is un-reasonable. In my experience (with both myself and my wife), the first 10 lb will fall off at about that rate (2 weeks)... the remaining 30 will come off at roughly 1-2 lb per week.

Eating 5 times a day or 1, or any other number. Doesn't matter. What ever makes you comfortable. I also do not buy that there is any metabolism hit. Let's just say, if there is, I would be in a world of hurt.

As Leaf said: How much is more important than what in terms of eating. There is no strategy out there that will make up for eating too many calories. Even if eating 1 meal a day over the course of an hour.

Personally, I am not a fan of meal replacement stuff. Inevitably, you are going to stop doing the meal replacement thing and go back to eating a meal instead... then what? IMO, change your eating habits and learn to eat meals that will fit within your needs.

[LeafUF]

Originally Posted by Itssaul

It's not bogus. Just wildly misunderstood. Well no bogus, but eating more times a day still has value.

This of your body like a sink. The drain is closed when you are sleeping or loafing at the house. Opened when doing things like walking, chores, workouts.

Now every time you eat you pour water into the sink. If you eat big meals, you might not get all the water out at the end of the day.

Pouring water in as you drain it is the best way to control the levels.

Good luck!

The human body is not like a sink. Eating more does not change metabolism and your metabolism never just shuts off. Its energy balance that matters not how or what you eat. One giant meal that is less energy than you used is the same as 5 small meals less that are less energy than you used.

[Dreamliner]

The frequent meal thing is a sham. The French eat 2.5 times a day and they're a hell of a lot slimmer and healthier than we are.

In 1980 Americans were eating 3.8 times a day. By 2010 that had increased to 5 times a day. How did that work out for us ?

[Chompsuey]

Would yall recommend I take and supplements like fish oil?

[StrangeGator]

I was doing five meals a day for the first eight to ten months. As far as I can tell, all it did was help me manage my appetite. I was only able to do it because I worked from home. Eating that many meals is not convenient when you're away from your home most of the day.

I never tried to go as low as 1400, but kept it between 1600 and 1700. Was till able to knock off 35 pounds in a little over six months. Haven't counted calories since and have maintained my weight for over two years.

Allow yourself a binge day every week. It's fun and it helps you stay sane for the rest of the week.

If you're a frequent snacker, replace your chips with nuts and fruit. Pretzels are better than chips, but you still have to watch your intake.