If you are at your ideal size...

[Anonymous]

What does your day /week look like in terms of eating and fitness habits? I am trying to lose about 20 lbs and looking to start a program that is realistic and something I can do "for life." Foods to avoid, etc. TIA

[Anonymous]

Be prepared to do something radical but also be prepared to feel healthy, sexy, confident!!! I've lost baby weight plus some extra in last 15 months (55lbs!!) by cutting out red meat, all white carbs (except potato) and trying to eat lean, clean and green! sounds corny but really the vegetarian based diet with some lean meats and seafood is the most healthy. I follow a veggie, middle eastern type diet and work out 5 days a week for at least an hour. It's a commitment but once you drop the first few lbs, you'll be inspired. Make sure to cut out processed foods as well=diet sodas, fat free cheeses, are worse for your body and hard to metabolize. You are better off with real chocolate or ice cream here and there.

Typical day:
high fiber cereal with fruit in whole milk, coffee
am snack-fruit or veggie
lunch, large salad with nuts, tofu, or tuna, cheese-make your own dressing-olive oil base with either lemon or balsamic vin
pm snack, nuts, or veggie, fruit, handful of tortilla chips
dinner, seafood, lots of veggies-asparagus, broccoli, baked potato with salsa
dessert-few bite size pieces of milk chocolate

drink TONS of water and remember you can eat unlimited veggies-a bag of baby peeled carrots cost $1.29 at giant and only have 150 calories-thats 16 oz of food to munch on with no fat and tons of good nutrients-get used to snacking on lots of fruits and veggies so you never feel hungry at all. keep apples in the car, purse, etc-

best of luck-you can do it!

[Anonymous]

no soda (diet or otherwise) or fruit juice (only drink water and coffee/tea). cook at home. limit refined carbs and processed food. small portions. lots of fruit and veggies. eat nuts and small portions of meat. walk everywhere. make sleep a priority (7 hours). give yourself a treat every once in a while!

read: fast food nation, michael pollan's books, mark bittman's food blog

[Anonymous]

What she said.

1. Whole not processed foods to avoid hidden fats, salt and sugar.

2. Lean protein (nuts, white fish, skinless poultry, eggs, tofu), many different vegetables and fruits, whole grains (brown rice, brown pasta, brown bread, whole flour).

3. Small portions of fatty, salty, sugary foods cut down to infrequent indulgences (such as soda/ice cream/chips/buttered muffins once a week or less)

4. Lots of water.

5. Small frequent meal portions five to six times a day to avoid the starving-then-gorging cycle.

6. Cardiac training such as running or cycling every two days to increase your metabolic rate and burn calories faster. And your heart will thank you later.

7. If you are really motivated, keep a journal to count your calories and jot down recipes. There are calorie calculators on the web based on your activity level, weight etc.

8. See "The Eat Clean Diet" by Tosca Reno.

[Anonymous]

Everything said above, but also Weight Watchers. It is not a diet - it is a way to teach healthy habits that you keep for life. It is about mindful eating, portion control and exercise. Once you've done, you can take those good habits and tricks and use them on your own.

[Anonymous]

I think the trick is to accept that diets don't work - you will be making a lifestyle change. Once you wrap your mind around that and do it for 6 weeks (the time it takes for something to become a habit) I think you're 90% of the way there.

I concur with everything said above. I would also add that eating healthy food as described above will also have the added benefit of keeping your cholesterol low, your risk of heart attack/ stroke/ diabetes lower, and your ability to enjoy your later years (being ambulatory, alert, etc) instead of being a large couch potato.

Also, when you are getting your workouts in, building muscle is also very helpful at increasing your metabolism as it takes more calories to feed muscle than fat.

Lastly, I still drink 1-2 cans of diet Pepsi every day and 2 cups of coffee. I cannot give them up - - wondering if anyone has an explanation WHY diet soda is allegedly a hindrance to a healthy diet?

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the tips! I need to make working out a priority and up the fruits/veggies. We also go out to dinner at least 3 times a week, so I'm sure if I cut that out it will make a huge diffeence. I'm at a size where I think I look ok-kinda-but I would like to be a few sizes smaller and, more importantly, I would like to feel healthier and stronger. Thanks again!

[Anonymous]

Diet soda has ingredients in it that actually make you hungrier sooner. It also plays with your blood sugar levels that can make you eat more and slow your metabolism. Water is the best ingredient that allows food to go through the system faster and process foods faster, which result in less weight gain.

[Anonymous]

diet sodas are full of chemicals that are bad for your body. a hematologist i knew once referred to diet coke as "poison."

[Anonymous]

I count calories, and try to limit intake to around 1500 a day during the week (more on weekends). I got a small book that listed calories for all foods, but after 6 months or so I was able to get a general idea, and now I just keep a rough count in my head. I don't really count fat/carbs, just the total overall calories. When I started, it was basically an overhaul of my eating habits --like Weight Watchers.

[Anonymous]

My mom is following a "diet" by a naturapath designed to avoid cancer (she's in remission). It's very healthy, and she has dropped a lot of weight without trying and then just ended up at a good weight for her. She eats a lean protein the size of the palm of her hand at every meal, and then fills the rest of the plate with fruits and/or veggies. No (or very limited (think of them as a rare treat) white carbs like white potatoes and white rice)). She can eat sweet potatoes and brown rice and whole wheat pasta to her heart's content.

[Anonymous]

The thing you can do to help yourself the most is to spend just a few minutes planning the day before. I can't emphasize that enough. I used to spend too much time planning though, but I finally found a breakout that makes it easier.

I at least walk 15-30 minutes a day (have a dog). I try to jog 2-3 times a week and do a pilates video 2/week. I can't eat much less than what i've shown below so jogging a few times a week is very important.

I've made a plan that has finally worked for me. Here are some examples, but you can make up any food combo that works. i always try to find the largest amount of food I can have for the calories. I search recipes that show the calorie count to spice things up. Here's what I'm eating today.:

300 calories for breakfast (say whole wheat bagel, with eggs whites, lowfat (naturally) cheese, slice of tomato and a plum).

150 calorie snack around 1030am (2/3 cup raspberries, 2/3 cup blueberries, 1/2 cup strawberries with two large spoonfuls of peach yogurt on top)

400 calories for lunch (ww toast, 2 slices of bacon, lettuce, tomato, banana, glass of milk)

150 cal snack at around 2:30-3 (15 baby carrots, a couple of crackers with whipped cream cheese)

500 cals for dinner (baked tilapia, small sweet potato with a tiny bit of butter, a huge portion of broccoli with lemon)

150 cals for dessert homemade muffin or something like that.

[Anonymous]

I agree with the green diet and eliminating most white food (sugar, bread, rice, etc)

I bring lunch and breakfast to work with me most days to be sure that I am controlling portions and don't give in to temptation while at work. It also allows me to dedicate my lunch hour 4 days out of five to exercise.

I walk almost everywhere, and run 5 days a week. My weekend run is 8 miles, my weekday runs are 4 miles. I also do some light weighlifting two days a week.

[Anonymous]

Typical eating day for me is:

-high fiber cereal, or oatmeal with a little natural peanut butter, or greek fat free yogurt (very high in protein) with blueberries and one plain whole grain waffle
-snack: fruit and raw almonds or other nut (unsalted)
-lunch is usually a sandwich - whole wheat bread with turkey or egg salad from home (with lite mayo), once a week a salad from Cosi (signature with no cheese, but regular dressing that I tell them to go easy on) and usually a grand skim chai latte from Starbucks.
-snack in the afternoon - usually fruit if I have it, and either a balance bar or fiber one bar
-dinner is usually some sort of vegetable or salad, and we do lots of grilled chicken, or real simple burritos with ground turkey and veggies, or something simple like stir fry, etc.
-I eat dessert every night - try to keep it within about 200 calories but usually go over that on the weekends (don't go crazy, just may have a bigger bowl of ice cream or a big cookie or something)

Activity: this is really simple. I truly think that most people's downfall is that they feel like they need to carve out an hour to do crazy sweaty stuff and then shower, etc., and it's just not true. I was way more active before baby, but she is over a year now and I have really pared it down but have been able to maintain my weight where I want it.

-strength train 2-3 times a week -I do 1-2 sessions during lunch (I work 4 days a week) and don't shower because I only break a light sweat. I warm up with walking for about 10 minutes, and do a 20 minute circuit - I use a gym but mostly what I do only requires light weights and not machines, just simple moves like squats or lunges, push ups or presses, etc. and some core work

Then I try to walk as much as I can - at lunch, on the weekends with my toddler in the stroller.

[Anonymous]

As for exercise, I do a pretty intense cardio workout 4 times a week. I start on the stair climber, doing 2 minutes light intensity, then one minute of maximum intensity. I repeat this cycle over 20 minutes. Then I switch to the elliptical, and change the intervals to 30 seconds of maximum intensity with one minute recovery, for another 20 minutes. I find this work out to be much more efficient than working for a longer time at moderate intensity. I do strength training 4 days a week. On days I don't do the intense cardio work out, I walk or do a light run.

As for diet, I just follow the principles of phase 2-3 of the South Beach diet. I avoid all "white" carbs, and eat mostly lean protein, veggies, and whole grain carbs. I don't count calories, and I drink a lot of water- about 3 liters a day.

I think what is important with exercise is to get out of your comfort zone. That is how I see results.