New. Thoughts on what I'm doing

[marv]

Hello there, I've been a "lurker" for a couple weeks now and finally got the courage to post and ask a few questions...a QUICK background on my situation. I am 5'5 about 135lbs...depending on the day. In the past I have been too skinny, too heavy, and now, pretty "normal" (bmi 22.5)..

In the past I was diagnosed with an eating disorder...so calorie restriction was my life...and running 10 miles a day 5 days a week was my workout...that kept me at a pretty low weight..but not happy...then I started to actually gain weight (also my ED kind of shifted to bulimia, so my calorie count was probably never completely on target) with this plan and pretty much steadily maintained my weight at 135 (but not happy with the way I look), while still doing cardio like a maniac and restricting calories...so, to say the least, I wasn't happy with my results and I was ready for a change.


So now I'm ready to do something new, I can't expect to do the same old things I've always done, and get different/better results.

sample day for me:

LIFTING Day: Stage one lifts, HIIT

3/4 c yogurt
3/4 c fiberone cereal
1 scoop whey protein

workout

1 scoop whey protein
yogurt

1/2 c cottage cheese
carrots

Salad: 5 oz turkey, lettuce, Fat free ceasar dressing
1/2 c cottage cheese
Apple

1/2 egg beaters
1 slice fat free cheese
2 fat free hot dogs (I know,that's kind of weird but I like them
1/2 cottage cheese
orange


to me that is a LOT of food...In the past I have maintained with about 1000 cals or less per day, but ate a lot on the weekends....so I'm kind of worried about adding calories right away...should i add them slowly?

I want to loose fat and look slimmer, I don't necessarily want to loose weight b/c I know that the number on the scale doesn't really say much. I am concerned about getting bigger (Im getting married this summer)

I am really determined and I work out hard..If someone told me to jump rope for 2 hours a day to get the results i want, I would do it (but if running 10 miles doesn't work, I would doubt jumping rope would).

My goal is to be toned, I want to LOOK like i work out as hard as I do...right now, if someone looked at me, I don't think they would think that I am a runner and that i work out as much as I do...

any suggestions/ comments are so appreciated!

Sorry for such a long post...I have so much floating around in my head and I just want to bounce if off on you guys and see what you think.

[missjane]

Welcome!

Where's your fat? If I were you, I'd put your food thru Fitday and see how your macros are lining up.

[Amblus]

I would absolutely trade fat-free processed foods for healthy-fat whole foods. Example:

fat-free cheese: a small portion of regular cheese, nuts, avocado, natural peanut butter, almond butter

fat-free hotdogs: salmon, tuna, chicken, tofu


Also, please add in some vegetables! (Lettuce doesn't count.) If that's what you're eating on a regular basis you are going to be seriously vitamin deficient.

[pinkgingham_19]

have you been treated for your eating disorders? How?

[realcdn]

I agree on less 'fat-free' processed items. Although as I say that I make my own fat-free salad dressings (cornstarch thickened water in place of oil), and I sometimes use reduced fat cheese (in a blend). I tend to favour more natural items lately. I can't do calorie counts off the top of my head so I can't even guess at what the protein/carb/fat ratio is. I think Jane's suggestion is a good one, find a calorie counting program (or a pen and paper/spreadsheet) and total them up to see where you are.

[marv]

yes I have been treated in the past...I was in an outpatient program..as well as some study related therapy....I still have body image issues, but I think that weight training could give me more confidence..especially if i start seeing results

I have such trouble with vegetables...I cannot find one that I like other than carrots. I have thought about maybe adding some mushrooms or peppers or something to my eggs, but I don't want to make it so that I don't enjoy the food that I eat...If i don't like it, then i tend to not want to eat it and either skip it, or eat something that I shouldn't eat. I wish that I like them more, but I have yet to find one that I look forward to eating...If there are any suggestions of veggies I might like or ways to prepare them in a way that I (a veggie hater) might enjoy, let me know!

I have tofu at my house, and it tastes ok..and I have chicken too, I can try something like that and see how i like it.
what does processed foods do to your body/weight?

[Amblus]

what does processed foods do to your body/weight?

The simplest way I can explain it is this: would you put bad gas in your car, knowing it wasn't going to run as well? Of course not. The same applies to fat-free hotdogs and the like. If you read the ingredients it's going to look something like this:

INGREDIENTS: Beef, water, modified food starch*, salt, hydrolyzed soy protein, spice, paprika, potassium chloride, natural flavorings, sodium erythorbate, sodium nitrite.

Do you know what sodium erythorbate is? What about sodium nitrite? Chances are nobody has ever said to you, "Make sure you're getting enough sodium nitrite in your diet!"

Additives aren't all bad, but in general they aren't good for you and aren't going to give you what food is supposed to give you: fuel, energy, vitamins, nutrients. The cleaner your diet, the more your food is working for you.

Not all "processed" food is bad - yogurt, milk and tofu are all processed, but the ingredient list is short and they haven't been chemically created or messed with too much.

[LaraT]

Originally Posted by Amblus

The simplest way I can explain it is this: would you put bad gas in your car, knowing it wasn't going to run as well? Of course not. The same applies to fat-free hotdogs and the like. If you read the ingredients it's going to look something like this:

INGREDIENTS: Beef, water, modified food starch*, salt, hydrolyzed soy protein, spice, paprika, potassium chloride, natural flavorings, sodium erythorbate, sodium nitrite.

Do you know what sodium erythorbate is? What about sodium nitrite? Chances are nobody has ever said to you, "Make sure you're getting enough sodium nitrite in your diet!"

Additives aren't all bad, but in general they aren't good for you and aren't going to give you what food is supposed to give you: fuel, energy, vitamins, nutrients. The cleaner your diet, the more your food is working for you.

Not all "processed" food is bad - yogurt, milk and tofu are all processed, but the ingredient list is short and they haven't been chemically created or messed with too much.

Second everything she said Ideally you want to give your body the best quality food. All that processed food you are eating (egg beaters, hot dogs, fiber one, fat free cheese and dressing) contain tons of additives, preservatives, thickeners. You miss out on a lot of nutrients when you eat "fake" foods like this. They take out the good stuff and add in the junky stuff.

Your menu looks very diet-y. I think you will find real food to be much more satisfying and beneficial for reaching your goals. Your body needs the nutrients to repair itself after these tough workouts.

[nancysmithwp]

I can relate to the vegetables! A few years ago, I found myself in a position where I needed to eat more vegetables, and I didn't like any of them! But if you make an effort to cook at least one new vegetable dish a week, you will gradually find tons of vegetables that you like! I find that they're my favorite food now, and I have a nice collection of recipes.

[marv]

Is it better for me to get the right amount of cals/fat/carbs/protein...or to eat cleaner?? I know I should do both, but I think I gotta do one thing at a time...
I think i'll try to add a different veggie into my diet every week or so..it's hard for me to take out those things that I think make the food that I eat taste good to me...while adding in veggie at the same time...I want to WANT to eat the food I have planned...maybe I'll take out the hot dogs and sub chicken...

also, do you think it'll be ok for me to add calories into my diet right away? have i damaged my metabolism to much?

Im just so confused right now...I want this to work for me...but it's just a TOTAL change from the life i lived before.

[rixatrix]

Originally Posted by marv

Is it better for me to get the right amount of cals/fat/carbs/protein...or to eat cleaner?? I know I should do both, but I think I gotta do one thing at a time...
I think i'll try to add a different veggie into my diet every week or so..it's hard for me to take out those things that I think make the food that I eat taste good to me...while adding in veggie at the same time...I want to WANT to eat the food I have planned...maybe I'll take out the hot dogs and sub chicken...

also, do you think it'll be ok for me to add calories into my diet right away? have i damaged my metabolism to much?

Im just so confused right now...I want this to work for me...but it's just a TOTAL change from the life i lived before.

Eat clean. Count calories. Honestly, it's not hard. If you cut out the hot dogs from what you posted, you're pretty clean already. Replace the hot dogs with a turkey burger made from scratch - just pat lean ground turkey into patties, throw them on the George Foreman grill, and voila. Slap on a piece of lowfat cheese and you've got a cheeseburger. Leave the bun out of it.

On vegetables: You're just going to have to eat them. Don't be afraid to steam them and add a little butter or olive oil and salt. Don't be afraid to hide them in your food - like throwing some sauteed spinach into scrambled eggs, or mixing grated carrots into pretty much anything.

Calories: You'll probably find it easier to increase them over time. Add in 200 more calories a day this week. Then next week, add in another 100 - 200 calories a day. Repeat until you're at your maintenance.

And listen, you're going to gain weight on the scale when you increase your calories. You'll be holding onto water and glycogen like crazy. Very little of it should be fat if you're doing Alwyn's workouts. But given your history, wrap the scale up and hide it in the very back of the closet for the next month or two. It can be frustrating even for people who have a good handle on the mental part of their weight issues. Tuck the scale away. Eat more. Workout hard. You're going to be doing more good things for your body than you can see or measure right away.

Stop thinking about whether the program will "work" or not, because you're setting yourself up for failure. Focus on lifting more, week after week. Focus on eating healthy, whole foods. Focus on your increasing confidence in the weight room. Stop looking for things to go wrong.

Start thinking of your body as more than just some pretty thing to be displayed and get into the strength of how it feels to be a woman who's not afraid of using her muscles.

[Libellula]

I'm going to add some suggestions in bold in your quoted post below. I think you should focus on both things you asked about in your post, the macros and clean eating, IMO, with one, comes another.

Originally Posted by marv

LIFTING Day: Stage one lifts, HIIT

3/4 c yogurt
3/4 c fiberone cereal
1 scoop whey protein
is there a less processed cereal you could add? Fiberone is good, yes, but why not look into some homemade granola. If you did that, you could add nuts and seeds for healthy fats and proteins, and watch the overall sugar content. That doesn't look like enough breakfast, at least it wouldn't be for me! I would add some turkey bacon or sausage if that were me, just for added protein and calories

workout do you drink a pwo like the book recommends?

1 scoop whey protein
yogurt why not change it up a little bit? have some cheese and an apple, or make a dip out of greek yogurt and some dill and have that with carrots and celery? I know you said you don't like a lot of veggies, is it because of texture? flavor? try them in different ways!

1/2 c cottage cheese
carrots

Salad: 5 oz turkey, lettuce, Fat free ceasar dressing try full-fat dressing. What else is in your salad. Have you considered trying adding sliced roasted tomatoes? baby romaine?
1/2 c cottage cheese what about eating some almonds here? or try taking some lunch meat and rolling it around cream cheese?
Apple

1/2 egg beaters now, I can't eat whole real eggs, but i honestly think egg beaters aren't the greatest choice. you can beat up some real eggs and egg whites a la cassandra in the book and make soemthing tasty, I'm sure. As for the fat-free cheese, why not try some full fat or 2% cheddar, mozzarella, gouda, havarti, brie? I could go on, I LOVE cheese!
1 slice fat free cheese
2 fat free hot dogs (I know,that's kind of weird but I like them instead of fat-free hotdogs, try turkey, salmon, chicken breast, beef, tuna, etc. You can prepare the meat of your choice to your liking and eat it with some tasty side dishes
1/2 cottage cheese would there be anything you could eat in place of cottage cheese here? I like eating roasted tomatoes with mozzarella, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar as a side with chicken. it's heavenly!
orange

those are my two cents. I'm sure others will have something to offer as well.

[PowerManDL]

Originally Posted by marv

Is it better for me to get the right amount of cals/fat/carbs/protein...or to eat cleaner?? I know I should do both, but I think I gotta do one thing at a time...

The macros and your total calorie intake will always be the priority.

Clean eating is an arbitrary and very poorly defined phrase. I don't like it.

Yes, sticking to whole and minimally processed food sources is for the best. You provide a lot of useful micronutrients that way which can be beneficial.

But "clean eating" is not going to affect your physiology in any meaningful way, assuming the macros are accounted for. It's hardly essential.

It can affect adherence and it might have some psychological effects, but from the standpoint of losing fat, no it doesn't matter at all.

I realize I've just opened a can of worms and somebody's going to start up with the LOL INSULIN STORES FAT!!!11 argument. But I'm ready. Oh yes, I'm ready.

also, do you think it'll be ok for me to add calories into my diet right away? have i damaged my metabolism to much?

Ah the specter of metabolic damage.

No, unless you've got thyroid disease you haven't damaged your metabolism at all.

What you've done if anything is lower your base metabolic rate by undereating and overexercising...which isn't uncommon among women

The trick is to *gradually* add calories to your diet. If you've been living on 1500 and suddenly jack it up to 2500, yeah, you're going to gain weight, and it's not magically going to be muscle tissue.

You want to slowly adjust it upwards, and match it to your activity level. The goal is to fuel strength workouts, not just arbitrarily eat more for the sake of it.

Take it step by step.

[Amblus]

Clean eating is an arbitrary and very poorly defined phrase. I don't like it.

Yes, sticking to whole and minimally processed food sources is for the best. You provide a lot of useful micronutrients that way which can be beneficial.

But "clean eating" is not going to affect your physiology in any meaningful way, assuming the macros are accounted for. It's hardly essential.

I get what you're saying but I think getting rid of some of the processed food she's eating and replacing it with real food will definitely help in that her food will be more satisfying. I mean, come on, would you rather have a fat-free hot dog with some fat free cheese or a nice piece of grilled chicken with some mashed sweet potatoes? Which is going to be more beneficial in the long run and is tastier right this second?

I think people who are used to eating processed foods and minimal vegetables should at least try real food and see if they can't change their palate a bit. I think that's really meaningful and certainly more important than just calorie count.

I can relate to the vegetables! A few years ago, I found myself in a position where I needed to eat more vegetables, and I didn't like any of them! But if you make an effort to cook at least one new vegetable dish a week, you will gradually find tons of vegetables that you like! I find that they're my favorite food now, and I have a nice collection of recipes.

Absolutely! I think a lot of folks who think they don't like vegetables actually don't like poorly prepared vegetables. marv, experiment a little! Try steaming some fresh veggies and add a little lemon juice or hell, go for a little butter or olive oil. You need some good fat in your diet, for sure. (And there isn't any fat in raisins! They're just sad grapes.)

[Bluefever]

Just wanted to add that I plugged all you food into a counter and (yes I am bored tonight) this what I came up with

1177 calories

Fat 11.2
Carbs 47.6%
Protein 41.12


Seems a bit low to me. I know that If I eat that little on a lifting day I am starving and binge eating by the evening.

[photochick]

Dropping below 1200 calories at any time is not good. 1200 is sort of a baseline of what your body needs ...a nd if you're working out a lot, then you need a lot more.

I'm 5'4", currently weigh 168 and I'm losing weight on 1700 cals a day doing the program here. But at 1700 cals, I'm getting lots of vitamins and protein, and able to eat healthy.

.