7 years, 2 months ago- Posts
Hi there —
I’m almost 49, and have just seen about 35-40 pounds creep up on me over the years, and as my husband and I are separating, I feel like it’s as good a time as any to start taking care of myself and get in shape!
I’m terrible at meal planning, so the more of a no-thought “plan” I have to go on, and prep work I can do (having all the right foods, knowing when to make them ahead of time to reduce my chances of cheating, etc…) the more likely I am to succeed.
So I’ve heard about this one week menu. I’ll try that. Is there more stuff like that, simple plans to follow?
Tried and true simple recipes?Also — I saw the coffee thread, but I’m unclear… is milk allowed? Only almond milk, right? I love the idea of a morning mocha smoothie.
Are sparkly drinks allowed? Is there any problem with having things like sparkling flavored water?
Lastly, I’ve never calorie counted and is there a particularly simple calorie tracker/template that anyone can recommend? I’ve never done that kind of thing before!
Thanks, and I look forward to us helping one another in this community!
I think the best part of a group is getting answers to questions quickly and learning what works for others. Then, because losing and keeping the weight off is about maintaining lifestyle changes you have to decide what you can live with. Tracking is an excellent way to understand that. The recipes section is great! It really helped me with meal planning and changing those foods that I love (e.g., potato soup) to lower calorie, healthier and still tasty alternatives (e.g., leek and cauliflower soup, or cloud bread).
As to tracking calories, I have always avoided that in the past. However, I am tracking what I eat this time. It has really helped me to control portion sizes (which have tended to creep up over time) and has been good for my self esteem! I can do this. I have a good kitchen scale, measuring cup and measuring spoons. I track my food on my Fitbit phone app. It (as do many other food tracker apps) has a great feature which captures the the UPC Codes thus the calories. I use the Fitbit app because I have used the scale and tracker for about 2 years. There are other apps and I can tell you from my experience, having the Fitbit scale and tracker has not been associated with reduced weight. I have walked between 2 and 5 miles per day/ 5 or 6 days a week for the last 2 years. My weight gain stabilized, but I didn’t loose weight. A personal trainer on our local CBC radio station said that reducing calories is the only way to reduce weight.
Re soft drinks: no calorie soft drinks apparently are just as bad for weight gain as sugary soft drink. As well, there is now some evidence that BPa– Bis-phenol in plastic water and soft drink bottles may change hormones and contribute to weight gain.
You will do well. You just have to stick with the program. The best part is the feeling better that comes within the first couple of weeks.
Sharon
The recipe tab has been fantastic for finding things to make, you can search by meal or snack and by which phase you’re on. It’s also got some good condiment recipes, like a “sour cream” or “whipped cream” from greek yogurt. You can also look on pinterest and search “PS1000” for more recipes–although make sure they actually use only approved ingredients.
As for sparkling water, I’ve continued drinking it. I drink from cans, but there are at-home seltzer makers that I’m considering buying. I think what Sharon was concerned about are things like diet sodas. The plan doesn’t specifically mention sparkling water, but sparkling water is really just water and carbonation, as long as you’re getting plain, and most flavored seltzer just uses natural flavoring. The carbonation itself should not be a problem unless you’re worried about a little short-term bloating. Be sure it’s not sweetened, but otherwise I have been drinking it and don’t see a problem with it. I drink a lot of ice water but sometimes you just want something fizzy!
If you don’t have a fitbit, the two most-used apps are MyFitnessPal and Lose It, both of which have really good reviews and lots of foods in their logs, and both of which let you scan barcodes. I prefer Lose It because I think the interface is prettier, but that’s just me.
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