What's new
Fantasy Football - Footballguys Forums

Welcome to Our Forums. Once you've registered and logged in, you're primed to talk football, among other topics, with the sharpest and most experienced fantasy players on the internet.

Let's lose some weight in 2021. Back to the grind... who else is in? (4 Viewers)

Navin Johnson said:
High for the year Aug 19, 249.2, low for the year Feb 1, 219.3.  Expected a small hiccup as we delayed our Thanksgiving to Sunday for family reasons.  Need to punch some recipes into MFA to track more accurately.  As noted above, cutting breakfast in half and having a couple protein bars (348 total calories and 50g protein) to get my macros in line.

  • Date       |    Weight      |    Fat%     |       +/-         |   Calories
  • Nov 24   |    237 lbs     |    34.6%   |       -----        |      ----
  • Nov 29   |   231.1 lbs   |   31.1%    |   (5.9 lbs)   |      ----
  • Dec 1     |    234 lbs      |   31.7%    |    (3lbs)      |      ----
Click to expand...
If you're trying to get your macros in line, 2 protein bars at 348 and 50g protein is pretty good. The key to a sustainable diet to me is one you enjoy so if you really like the protein bars then cool, but I like to find lots of similar options so I can have some variety from day to day.

4 cups of steamed broccoli and cauliflower with 8 oz chicken breast is 320 calories, 60g protein and 8g fiber. I like the chicken and vegetables a lot better personally but it takes more time and is a bit more expensive.

A smoothie with half cup blueberries, 10 raspberries and two scoops of chocolate Pure Protein powder is 337 calories, 15g fiber and 50g protein but has a lot more nutrients and antioxidants.  And you get to drink a ####ty milkshake. 

A can of tuna is 29g protein and 130 calories. A little mayo, some cheese and a slice of bread for a tuna melt gets you close to 50g and it's cheap and easy to share with small kids. 

Not saying don't eat protein bars, but there's a lot of ways to get protein that you can throw in the mix if you are looking for variety. 

 
bostonfred said:
If you're trying to get your macros in line, 2 protein bars at 348 and 50g protein is pretty good. The key to a sustainable diet to me is one you enjoy so if you really like the protein bars then cool, but I like to find lots of similar options so I can have some variety from day to day.

4 cups of steamed broccoli and cauliflower with 8 oz chicken breast is 320 calories, 60g protein and 8g fiber. I like the chicken and vegetables a lot better personally but it takes more time and is a bit more expensive.

A smoothie with half cup blueberries, 10 raspberries and two scoops of chocolate Pure Protein powder is 337 calories, 15g fiber and 50g protein but has a lot more nutrients and antioxidants.  And you get to drink a ####ty milkshake. 

A can of tuna is 29g protein and 130 calories. A little mayo, some cheese and a slice of bread for a tuna melt gets you close to 50g and it's cheap and easy to share with small kids. 

Not saying don't eat protein bars, but there's a lot of ways to get protein that you can throw in the mix if you are looking for variety. 
Click to expand...
Thanks.  I love the protein bars FWIW.  They don't taste half bad and economically, at $.99 a pop, it's hard to beat protein at .04/g.  

I've been adding 10-15 blueberries to my morning oatmeal to elevate  my antioxidants.

This morning switched it up to whole wheat toast with avocado, egg, and sriracha. Avos are getting soft, will probably do same tomorrow or do a snack of rice cakes with cottage cheese, tuna, avo, and sriracha.  Like the rice cakes with peanut butter and banana as well if I'm craving something sweeter.

Working out with my son again in the basement.  Yesterday did hang cleans, squats, bench, and shoulder press.

 
bostonfred said:
If you're trying to get your macros in line, 2 protein bars at 348 and 50g protein is pretty good. The key to a sustainable diet to me is one you enjoy so if you really like the protein bars then cool, but I like to find lots of similar options so I can have some variety from day to day.

4 cups of steamed broccoli and cauliflower with 8 oz chicken breast is 320 calories, 60g protein and 8g fiber. I like the chicken and vegetables a lot better personally but it takes more time and is a bit more expensive.

A smoothie with half cup blueberries, 10 raspberries and two scoops of chocolate Pure Protein powder is 337 calories, 15g fiber and 50g protein but has a lot more nutrients and antioxidants.  And you get to drink a ####ty milkshake. 

A can of tuna is 29g protein and 130 calories. A little mayo, some cheese and a slice of bread for a tuna melt gets you close to 50g and it's cheap and easy to share with small kids. 

Not saying don't eat protein bars, but there's a lot of ways to get protein that you can throw in the mix if you are looking for variety. 
Click to expand...
Not to mention, a lot of these protein bars are filled with junk/chemicals and not really that good for you.  I really only eat them on the road when I don't have access to my kitchen.  I've searched high and low, and you'd be hard pressed to find a better tasting bar with reasonable carbs/ingredients as you will with Oatmega.  The Mint Chocolate Chip and Blueberry are two of my favorites.  Not keto friendly but  200 cal/15g protein/5g sugar works for me and these things almost taste like Thin Mints:  

https://www.target.com/p/oatmega-omega-3-protein-bar-chocolate-mint/-/A-51217185?preselect=50049596#lnk=sametab

 
  • Date         |  Weight   |   Chg From Start  |   Calories
  • Nov 27         226.1                                           1210
  • Nov 28         223.3                 -2.8                   1400
  • Nov 29         221.7                 -4.4                   1450
  • Nov 30         221.5                 -4.6                   1450
  • Dec 1           221.5                 -4.6        
These are the days where it is discouraging, when you eat pretty well but stay flat (or even go up .2 or so).  But history tells me this is normal and hopefully tomorrow will reflect a larger drop of .4 or so.

 
Down a couple of pounds from yesterday. I made a salad for lunch yesterday and today that is pretty basic -- 50/50 spring mix and spinach, pecan pieces, almond slices, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, raspberry walnut vinaigrette and bleu cheese crumbs (I'd throw in a cut up apple or pear if I had some, but none in the house right now).  My wife got a burrito delivered from Moe's for lunch today and asked if I wanted anything, but I stuck with my homemade salad again.

Passed on the ice cream cake again last night. I made some "golden milk" (or turmeric milk) instead. I've been adding that to my rotation in the past week or so. Mostly because supposed to help with inflammation and cholesterol, but some say good for metabolism too (but I don't really know).

 
ex-ghost said:
Adrienne yoga is bad ### - perfect for all of us who have never done yoga or just don't do too much. She must be making a killing during covid.
Click to expand...
I believe the estimate is a couple million from youtube ad revenue alone, plus the find what feels good website subscriptions. I saw a video a while back and she said she's got a tiny staff I think a marketing person and a videographer and possibly a site administrator. 

 
Was hungry just now. Instead of grabbing the chips or more good thins, I had a half of a chicken breast. Then popped a mint into my mouth based on bostonfreds advice and it worked. Neat trick

 
Today's pretty boring. I'm in the groove now, even after having some wine the last couple nights. I had my coffee and egg sandwich for breakfast, yogurt with berries for lunch and a salad for snack, have about 450 left plus any exercise. I might make a little bigger dinner tonight and skip the booze. 

One thing that really helps me is knowing I have calories left. Sometimes I will save up 500 calories all day and then realize I don't even need them. But knowing that i had them is what kept me from over eating, because I was really looking forward to having something good later.  Running out of calories by 5 sucks. It's not the end of the world, and it usually only happens when I've had a huge cheat meal earlier, but those last couple hours I'm just like oh what's the point, maybe I'll just go to sleep. 

 
Last edited by a moderator:
bostonfred said:
Today's pretty boring. I'm in the groove now, even after having some wine the last couple nights. I had my coffee and egg sandwich for breakfast, yogurt with berries for lunch and a salad for snack, have about 450 left plus any exercise. I might make a little bigger dinner tonight and skip the booze. 

One thing that really helps me is knowing I have calories left. Sometimes I will save up 500 calories all day and then realize I don't even need them. But knowing that i had them is what kept me from over eating, because I was really looking forward to having something good later.  Running out of calories by 5 sucks. It's not the end of the world, and it usually only happens when I've had a huge cheat meal earlier, but those last couple hours I'm just like oh what's the point, maybe I'll just go to sleep. 
Click to expand...
I do almost the exact same thing......

 
Lost 0.6 lbs from yesterday. Was able to finish off any leftovers so hoping to start eating better from here on out. Also went for a long walk this morning, already have my 10K steps for the day. Going to try and hit that number every day, my step-count has been embarrassingly low lately (between 3-4K on average). Also was lurking around Otis' thread and the 100 Pushups plan seems to be pretty popular so started on Week 1, Day 1 of that today. So far, so good!

 
Canacuna said:
Lost 0.6 lbs from yesterday. Was able to finish off any leftovers so hoping to start eating better from here on out. Also went for a long walk this morning, already have my 10K steps for the day. Going to try and hit that number every day, my step-count has been embarrassingly low lately (between 3-4K on average). Also was lurking around Otis' thread and the 100 Pushups plan seems to be pretty popular so started on Week 1, Day 1 of that today. So far, so good!
Click to expand...
https://hundredpushups.com/

For anyone else who might be interested this program got me from doing a handful of poor form pushups and collapsing in a sweaty mess to doing sets of 50 or 60. I followed the program to the end and never got to successfully finish the set of 100 but to be fair I'm old and fat. I might make another run at it soon. Would be cool to say I did it. 

 
Home Chef has been amazing for us as well.

Great choices, we do 2 meals a week.  We skip the steak options because we prefer the prime options at our neighborhood grocer.

We spend 30-45 minutes on those 2 days cooking together, and the food is great.

 
Coffee 224 

Egg sandwich 325

Yogurt with raspberries 220

Small packaged salad 210

8 oz boneless skinless chicken breast, 4 cups broccoli, sesame shoyu sauce - 360

Yoga 30 min minus 128

Wine (2 glasses) 250

Total 1471, 110g protein 37g fiber

Not a lot of exercise today but still a decent day.  Lots of calories wasted on wine and coffee, and that daily breakfast sandwich isn't exactly chock full of nutritients, but my macros were solid and I'm under calories. 

If I keep having days like this, I'll lose 2 lbs per week without drinking kale smoothies. Kale isn't that bad in a smoothie anyways. But it's better not to have to find out. 

 
bostonfred said:
Today's pretty boring. I'm in the groove now, even after having some wine the last couple nights. I had my coffee and egg sandwich for breakfast, yogurt with berries for lunch and a salad for snack, have about 450 left plus any exercise. I might make a little bigger dinner tonight and skip the booze. 

One thing that really helps me is knowing I have calories left. Sometimes I will save up 500 calories all day and then realize I don't even need them. But knowing that i had them is what kept me from over eating, because I was really looking forward to having something good later.  Running out of calories by 5 sucks. It's not the end of the world, and it usually only happens when I've had a huge cheat meal earlier, but those last couple hours I'm just like oh what's the point, maybe I'll just go to sleep. 
Click to expand...
What is your caloric goal per day (before exercise)?

ETA:  Well I know see in the prior post you are looking at 1471 net, so that gives me an idea. 

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Corporation said:
What is your caloric goal per day (before exercise)?
Click to expand...
About 1500 , which according to myfitnesspal, will cause me to lose 2 lbs per week, which is the most that is generally considered safe.

In other words, my TDEE is about 2500 (my total daily energy expenditure) so if I eat 1500 per day and burn 2500 I will lose 7000 calories per week. 1 lb is 3500 calories. So 1500 per day, with no extra exercise, is the best i can/should do.

 
bostonfred said:
About 1500 , which according to myfitnesspal, will cause me to lose 2 lbs per week, which is the most that is generally considered safe.

In other words, my TDEE is about 2500 (my total daily energy expenditure) so if I eat 1500 per day and burn 2500 I will lose 7000 calories per week. 1 lb is 3500 calories. So 1500 per day, with no extra exercise, is the best i can/should do.
Click to expand...
I think I read that before and is how I landed on 1500ish as my target.  I'm just not sure that I trust the "rode the bike for 30 min, lost X calories".  I think my Apple Watch estimates it better since it has my heart rate and knows how long I pushed it.

 
What I've never had a good grasp on is what my macros should be.  Any good targets for protein, fiber, fat, etc?  I'm 6 feet 221 lbs.

 
Corporation said:
What is your caloric goal per day (before exercise)?

ETA:  Well I know see in the prior post you are looking at 1471 net, so that gives me an idea.  What I've never had a good grasp on is what my macros should be.  Any good targets for protein, fiber, fat, etc?  I'm 6 feet 221 lbs.
Click to expand...
As a general rule you are either cutting, bulking, maintaining or gaining weight. This is my layman's understanding but I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice.

If you're bulking (adding muscle) you want as much as 1g protein per lb of weight. This is not consistently agreed upon, and some people suggest 50 to 80 percent of that number. 

If you're cutting weight it's very difficult to add muscle. You may be able to get newb gains if you're basically starting from scratch, but chances are that you will be fighting atrophy, not building muscle. Atrophy happens naturally any time you lose weight or get old or sick... but when you're losing weight it's important not to just lose muscle. You need protein to avoid that. Exercise helps, bu5 if you're working your arms and legs and not your heart then that could go badly.  So... don't listen to me on this . But about 80g protein is my floor and 120g or so is my goal. 

Protein is its own thing. Fiber is also important. Generally recommended daily minimum is 20 or 25g.  I would like to hit 35 plus. When you first start trying to add fiber you will fart a lot. And then fart some more. And poop a lot. Once you get used to it it will be weird not to get enough fiber. 

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Corporation said:
I think I read that before and is how I landed on 1500ish as my target.  I'm just not sure that I trust the "rode the bike for 30 min, lost X calories".  I think my Apple Watch estimates it better since it has my heart rate and knows how long I pushed it.
Click to expand...
Most devices overestimate calories burned. 

Myfitnesspal has been really good for me with this. 

My fitbit says I burn a zillion calories, and myfitnesspal says I burned 500. Personally I have found that 500 is a more reliable estimate but I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice. 

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Corporation said:
What I've never had a good grasp on is what my macros should be.  Any good targets for protein, fiber, fat, etc?  I'm 6 feet 221 lbs.
Click to expand...
Some diets suggest hitting specific ratios. 40/40/20 (protein/carbs/fat) is popular right now. There are other options too. 

Fat used to be the bad guy but some doctors seem to think that fat is important because it fills you up, burns slowly and keeps your carb cravings down. 

I can't tell you what you should do but based on what I have read, fiber is not negotiable and protein needs to be high enough to avoid atrophy and maybe add some muscle.

So... my goals are about 100g protein and 30g fiber.  And I basically ignore fat.  But that's not necessarily right. I'm still learning too. 

 
Last edited by a moderator:
High for the year Aug 19, 249.2, low for the year Feb 1, 219.3.  Expecting a small hiccup as we delayed our Thanksgiving to today for family reasons.  Need to punch some recipes into MFA to track more accurately.  As noted above, cutting breakfast in half and having a couple protein bars (348 total calories and 50g protein) to get my macros in line.

  • Date       |    Weight      |    Fat%     |       +/-         |   Calories
  • Nov 24   |    237 lbs     |    34.6%   |       -----        |      ----
  • Nov 29   |   231.1 lbs   |   31.1%    |   (5.9 lbs)   |      ----
  • Nov 30   |   234 lbs      |   31.7%   |     (3 lbs)      |
  • Dec 1     |  232.7 lbs     |   32.4%    |   (4.3 lbs)   |    2275

 
Chicken / Broccoli with Cajun seasoning for lunch - 0 points

Chicken sausage with sautéed spinach and onions for dinner - 12 points

Fruits and a few pieces of cheese for snack - 3 points

Walk 30 minutes, run 20 minutes

weight - 239 (down 2.6 since 11/30)

 
brun said:
Weighed in this morning at 265.

Good luck all.
Click to expand...
FWIW

While my official start was 265 on Monday. I thought I'd mention that on the weekend I weighed 269. This morning I weighed 259.

Sunday night I had chills and shivering for a little less than an hour. Have a little bit of a sore throat too, but no significant temp increase yesterday or today (just bought a thermometer yesterday). Was able to get tested last night (due to the symptoms, a requirement before I can return to work). Results should be available in 2-3 days. However, my son (same household) was feeling a little unwell too and got tested yesterday too. He works for a hospital and used their facilities and has already heard back that he tested positive for covid-19. I'm now guessing that my results will be the same. If I am positive and my symptoms continue as is, I will consider myself one of the extremely fortunate.

 
bostonfred said:
Most devices overestimate calories burned. 

Myfitnesspal has been really good for me with this. 

My fitbit says I burn a zillion calories, and myfitnesspal says I burned 500. Personally I have found that 500 is a more reliable estimate but I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice. 
Click to expand...
Yeah, I take those numbers with a grain of salt.  I just do the sweat test.  If I'm not working up a good sweat during cardio,  I'm not burning enough calories.  

 
brun said:
FWIW

While my official start was 265 on Monday. I thought I'd mention that on the weekend I weighed 269. This morning I weighed 259.

Sunday night I had chills and shivering for a little less than an hour. Have a little bit of a sore throat too, but no significant temp increase yesterday or today (just bought a thermometer yesterday). Was able to get tested last night (due to the symptoms, a requirement before I can return to work). Results should be available in 2-3 days. However, my son (same household) was feeling a little unwell too and got tested yesterday too. He works for a hospital and used their facilities and has already heard back that he tested positive for covid-19. I'm now guessing that my results will be the same. If I am positive and my symptoms continue as is, I will consider myself one of the extremely fortunate.
Click to expand...
Good luck man. 

 
The Flying Turtle said:
Chicken / Broccoli with Cajun seasoning for lunch - 0 points

Chicken sausage with sautéed spinach and onions for dinner - 12 points

Fruits and a few pieces of cheese for snack - 3 points

Walk 30 minutes, run 20 minutes

weight - 239 (down 2.6 since 11/30)
Click to expand...
This just doesn't make any sense to me but I'm glad it works for people. 12 points for chicken sausage and vegetables but no points for chicken and vegetables?  I don’t understand where the numbers come from at all.  Do you have the list of point values with you when you geocery shop/make a list?  Or do you have it memorized pretty well by now for foods you eat often?  For calorie counting i can just read the labels - is there any way you can figure that out at the store if you see something new that you want to try?

 
No breakfast sandwich today. Saving up for a fun lunch with my kid. 

Breakfast was one packet of high fiber instant oatmeal with a single serving of raspberries - 195 calories, 20g fiber.  Getting that out of the way early and with a relatively low calorie option leaves me a lot more flexibility for later. 

Lunch is chicken tenders and waffle fries. 5 frozen tenders from wegmans is 375 and 32g protein and they're pretty good. A serving of alexa waffle fries is 160, the trick is not to make the whole bag. Ketchup at 20 calories a serving, barbecue sauce is a little more. Not super healthy but my kid likes it when we eat the same thing together sometimes. 

Will do a little yoga later and watch some of the covid bowl on the treadmill/rower. Should have plenty left over for dinner. 

 
bostonfred said:
This just doesn't make any sense to me but I'm glad it works for people. 12 points for chicken sausage and vegetables but no points for chicken and vegetables?  I don’t understand where the numbers come from at all.  Do you have the list of point values with you when you geocery shop/make a list?  Or do you have it memorized pretty well by now for foods you eat often?  For calorie counting i can just read the labels - is there any way you can figure that out at the store if you see something new that you want to try?
Click to expand...
I dont know if Turtle is doing weight watchers or not, but I am. You are assigned a number of points that you can eat per day. For me, its 23. You also get 35 bonus points a week. You can use them all in one day, spread them out or not use them at all. 

Each food is assigned a point value based on calories, fat and fiber. There are 3 different ww plans. The one I am on has hundreds of zero point foods. They include chicken breast, fruits, fish and vegetables. I could have a 12 oz salmon and broccoli for dinner and it would be 0 points. 

On average, I lost 2 pounds a week while doing it. I started at 203 and got down to 152 to earn lifetime membership. I was around 157 at New Years last year and when covid hit. I was good all through the summer and even into the Fall until about a month ago. In that month I gained 12-15 pounds. Its one of those things where Im off the rails and figure, Im off the rails who cares. Back at it now and jumped on the scale today. Saw my first decrease from when I started and it was around 2.4 pounds. Just need to stay with it. Slow and steady 

 
  • Date         |  Weight   |   Chg From Start  |   Calories
  • Nov 27         226.1                                           1210
  • Nov 28         223.3                 -2.8                   1400
  • Nov 29         221.7                 -4.4                   1450
  • Nov 30         221.5                 -4.6                   1450
  • Dec 1           221.5                 -4.6                    1410
  • Dec 2           220.4                 -5.7
Hey!  I'm back from being obese to just overweight on the BMI!  Long way to go :)

 
AcerFC said:
I dont know if Turtle is doing weight watchers or not, but I am. You are assigned a number of points that you can eat per day. For me, its 23. You also get 35 bonus points a week. You can use them all in one day, spread them out or not use them at all. 

Each food is assigned a point value based on calories, fat and fiber. There are 3 different ww plans. The one I am on has hundreds of zero point foods. They include chicken breast, fruits, fish and vegetables. I could have a 12 oz salmon and broccoli for dinner and it would be 0 points. 

On average, I lost 2 pounds a week while doing it. I started at 203 and got down to 152 to earn lifetime membership. I was around 157 at New Years last year and when covid hit. I was good all through the summer and even into the Fall until about a month ago. In that month I gained 12-15 pounds. Its one of those things where Im off the rails and figure, Im off the rails who cares. Back at it now and jumped on the scale today. Saw my first decrease from when I started and it was around 2.4 pounds. Just need to stay with it. Slow and steady 
Click to expand...
Yeah I understand how you use the points (I think tft uses itrackbites which is the free app knockoff of weight watchers but it's the same thing). 

What's hard to understand is why one dinner of chicken sausage is 12 points and ten huge chicken breasts would be 0. I guess you're saying it's the fat, but how do you use that when you're shopping?  Do you know the magic formula?  Keep a points chart with you?  Just kind of wing it?  

 
bostonfred said:
As a general rule you are either cutting, bulking, maintaining or gaining weight. This is my layman's understanding but I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice.

If you're bulking (adding muscle) you want as much as 1g protein per lb of weight. This is not consistently agreed upon, and some people suggest 50 to 80 percent of that number. 

If you're cutting weight it's very difficult to add muscle. You may be able to get newb gains if you're basically starting from scratch, but chances are that you will be fighting atrophy, not building muscle. Atrophy happens naturally any time you lose weight or get old or sick... but when you're losing weight it's important not to just lose muscle. You need protein to avoid that. Exercise helps, bu5 if you're working your arms and legs and not your heart then that could go badly.  So... don't listen to me on this . But about 80g protein is my floor and 120g or so is my goal. 

Protein is its own thing. Fiber is also important. Generally recommended daily minimum is 20 or 25g.  I would like to hit 35 plus. When you first start trying to add fiber you will fart a lot. And then fart some more. And poop a lot. Once you get used to it it will be weird not to get enough fiber. 
Click to expand...
Good info, thanks.  I'm just looking to lose weight (hopefully mostly fat) right now.  I looked up a couple of protein calculators, and the ADA recommended between 100 and 160 for me.  Another one just gave a target of 155.  Right now, it looks like my Chickpotle Diet plus the protein drink in the morning barely gets me over 100.  May look to increase this some.

 
bostonfred said:
Yeah I understand how you use the points (I think tft uses itrackbites which is the free app knockoff of weight watchers but it's the same thing). 

What's hard to understand is why one dinner of chicken sausage is 12 points and ten huge chicken breasts would be 0. I guess you're saying it's the fat, but how do you use that when you're shopping?  Do you know the magic formula?  Keep a points chart with you?  Just kind of wing it?  
Click to expand...
Before smart phones were a thing, WW had an actual tracker. It was like a slide up and down kind of thing and it told you the points when you input the info

Now, just like in my fitness app, you can use a barcode scanner and the app will tell you how many points the food is. You can also just type it into a search within the app and it usually comes up as well

 
Checking in. Kidney stone is still a punk. Made some delicious Thai coconut soup last night with jasmine rice. It's weird not doing a "workout" in the past week as I have done a minimum of four every seven days since the new year. I feel off. :kicksrock:

 
AcerFC said:
Before smart phones were a thing, WW had an actual tracker. It was like a slide up and down kind of thing and it told you the points when you input the info

Now, just like in my fitness app, you can use a barcode scanner and the app will tell you how many points the food is. You can also just type it into a search within the app and it usually comes up as well
Click to expand...
Yes I am using the weight watchers program, but tracking in ITRACKBITES because it is free.  As others have said, you can type in a food name or just scan the barcode and get the points.  Chicken, turkey, fish, fruits vegetables are all zero points (you can search zero point foods for the complete list).  There is a "secret" formula that takes all of the factors (fat, fiber, calories, etc.) to arrive at the point total.

For me it makes it obvious how bad some supposedly good foods really are for you and this is an easy way for me to understand the quality of food I am eating.  

As an example, today I ate 5 oz of grilled chicken and 8 oz of black beans for lunch.  That is zero points and 350 calories and good for both of our methods.  However, I could have had a 2 oz Snickers Bar instead which is only 280 calories but it would cost me 13 points. If I were only counting calories I could say the Snickers was the better choice.

Naysayers (which used to be me) will say if you eat 10 pounds of chicken and 38 bananas every day you won't lose weight and that is probably true.  I think realistically though, you couldn't eat that much and even if you could it is better than 4 bags of potato chips and a gallon of ice cream.

 
The Flying Turtle said:
Yes I am using the weight watchers program, but tracking in ITRACKBITES because it is free.  As others have said, you can type in a food name or just scan the barcode and get the points.  Chicken, turkey, fish, fruits vegetables are all zero points (you can search zero point foods for the complete list).  There is a "secret" formula that takes all of the factors (fat, fiber, calories, etc.) to arrive at the point total.

For me it makes it obvious how bad some supposedly good foods really are for you and this is an easy way for me to understand the quality of food I am eating.  

As an example, today I ate 5 oz of grilled chicken and 8 oz of black beans for lunch.  That is zero points and 350 calories and good for both of our methods.  However, I could have had a 2 oz Snickers Bar instead which is only 280 calories but it would cost me 13 points. If I were only counting calories I could say the Snickers was the better choice.

Naysayers (which used to be me) will say if you eat 10 pounds of chicken and 38 bananas every day you won't lose weight and that is probably true.  I think realistically though, you couldn't eat that much and even if you could it is better than 4 bags of potato chips and a gallon of ice cream.
Click to expand...
I'm not a naysayer, it seems to really work for people. I understood the theory a little but I really liked the part you just said about food quality. I am still learning about all of this myself. 

When I first started using myfitnesspal I would eat whatever I wanted as long as I stayed under calories for the day.

Then I started tracking fiber and realized how little I was having. Then protein. I'm still ambivalent to sugar and fat - I don't go out of my way to track them but I have noticed i generally stay in the 40/40/20 range just by getting my fiber and protein numbers in line, and I don't avoid sugar but when I have sugary foods, it limits my other meals so much that I kind of naturally limit it when I'm dieting. 

Interesting stuff to think about. Thanks. 

 
My new staple is both cheap and fairly healthy.  I'll switch up chicken and pork depending on what was on sale.  Will also throw in left over sausage or beef depending on what I make for my kids.   Coffee with cream before noon, bag of salad around 12:30,  stew below for late lunch/dinner.

Box of Zataran's Red Beans and Rice (765 calories, 18g Fiber, 33g Protein) $2

Bag of frozen soup veggies (200 calories, 8g Fiber, 8g Protein) $1

Shredded Chicken from crock pot (8 oz, 250 calories, 50g Protein) $1-2

Hot sauce to taste

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Down a pound, for a total of 1.6 so far.

Got my 10K steps in this morning. Brought some dumbbells that were collecting dust into my home office and using them a bit when there's some lulls in my day.

Still have room for improvement in my diet, but baby steps. For now just focusing on portion control.

 
bostonfred said:
I find that if I give up alcohol I can lose about 2lbs per week but if I don't i can lose about 1.  I did not give up alcohol this week... still losing some water weight but should be doing better. 
Click to expand...
No doubt I would lose faster without alcohol, but the fact is alcohol has become a primary factor in letting go of stress for me.  It used to be basketball.  

I have let myself go so far this year, however, that I can likely drop 10-15 in a blink of an eye with minimal effort.  Just doing  anything  will be a vast improvement.

 
Chicken and black beans for lunch - 0 points

Tuna Poke Bowl for dinner (avocado, dressing, sauce)- 6 points

Fruits and a few pieces of cheese for snack - 3 points

Left over nachos from daughters dinner - 10 points (probably estimating on the high side)

Walk 30 minutes, run 30 minutes

weight - 240 (up 1.0 since yesterday, but still down 1.6 since 11/30).  This daily fluctuation is why I usually only weigh in once a week.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Corporation
From Fat to Fit 2024 - New Year New Goals!
21 22 23
Replies
1K
Views
29K
skol asylum
skol asylum
Yo Mama
2023-2024 NBA Salary Cap Draft - SECOND Annual Battle for the Wikkid Cup - Preseason Rankings are In!
36 37 38
Replies
2K
Views
33K
Kev4029
Kev4029
bostonfred
Do you weigh between 210 and 250 lbs and want to lose weight this year?
Replies
44
Views
1K
Otis
Otis

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 5 (members: 0, guests: 5)
Top