I’m starting to calorie count. Anyone want to join me?

[Bookaholic73]

I’m going to be starting calorie counting from tomorrow, with the aim of losing around 2st (28lbs).

Would anyone else like to join me and hold each other accountable here on this thread?

I’ve tried so many ways of losing weight (Keto, Vegan, Low Carb etc) and none of it works long term.
So I’m quitting the fad diets and starting something that I can stick to.

I’m 5,5 and 12st. My aim is 10st, and I’ll be eating 1600 cals a day.

Hope your little ones leg is better soon @WeirdPookah

love a fridge leftover soup @Summerscomin , I normally bung some chicken in the slow cooker so it goes all shredded and add that to my soups for more protein. Gotta love the protein for keeping you fuller for longer.

good day for me today, finished on 1450, couple of low days coming up now

I've had a good couple of days, hosted a garden party yesterday and set my Fitbit off a few times when I was setting up and tidying away. I also barely ate anything as I was so busy!

I've been for a 20min walk today and been to the gym - burned just shy of 500 Cal and my intake for the day is 1400 so I'm well under target.

B - fruit salad and coffee
L - Egg salad with balsamic vinegar
D - Tofu stir fry
Supper - rice cakes, nuts and a square of dark chocolate
Snacks - Apple, Diet Coke, lentil Chips, slice of malt loaf

MFP tells me I'm on track to hit my target

@LeefPeeper @Summerscomin thank you, off to the hospital later today, annoying it's an afternoon appointment as I am sure they will be running late!

I made minestrone last night, HUGE bowl of vegetables and beans, it was based on a Jamie Oliver recipe from (the jokingly called) 15 Minute Meals, but it's endlessly changeable for whatever is about. I used to make the salsa verde to go with it, but been just using pesto lately, should make the effort to make the salsa, it is good. Leftovers from it for lunch today.

B: Blackbean burrito
L: Minestrone and pesto
D: Broccoli and lentil bolognaise. (hopefully, at whatever time we leave hospital)

Been for a walk, the weather is close and uncomfy and I have a headache. Tired after holiday as well. But I did go out.

I’ve made a Jamie Oliver minestrone before and it was very nice, turned into a bit of what ever I have left in the fridge soup 😬

im having soup for tea tonight and 2mo. 2 red pepper and an onion, boiled up with some stock, with a cartoon of pasata, garlic, mixed herbs and Cajun spice added , blend it all up at the end and then add some slow cooked chicken. Delicious and less than 200 calories a portion. Sometimes add some pasta or rice in to my husbands portion as he is very slim and loves his carbs!

I love reading all the great homemade recipes on here. Such delicious sounding low calorie food!

Im very light on calories today, had 600 so far and off to the gym and an aerobics class now. Im hoping I'll have time for a good dinner later 😃

Been for a 3 mile walk this morning with my music and feel a little more human.

The hospital was an absolute waste of time, seen over an hour late, the Dr took one look and said they wouldn't do anything! FFS! So now it's up to me to waste bunches of money I guess trying all different plasters to see what she's not allergic too to carry on with the magnesium paste.

And breathe.

Today!
B: Pinto bean burrito
L: Eggs, asparagus, new potatoes with real butter
D: Vegetable curry
Protein ice coffee

I’m 4 days into my 40 day challenge and I’m feeling good although today I am exceptionally tired and can’t concentrate. I have had 2 nights where I just could not fall asleep, I think just feeling that weird buzzy energy from being low carb and also combined with pre menstrual insomnia as well. I am struggling to get through my day at work to be honest, I can’t focus my mind on any task and feel very distracted!

in the last 4 days I’ve not calorie counted at all. I’ve had 3 good meals, no processed food, no sugar and only snacked on fruit or veg. I feel very virtuous! I haven’t weighed myself but I am feeling it now, it’s so much a knee jerk reaction for me that weirdly I miss it. I promised I wouldn’t for 40 days so that will be a struggle probably!

my dinner tonight is going to be Mexican spiced pork with butter beans and sour cream.

hope everyone is doing well?

How annoying @WeirdPookah hope you've found a solution to the plaster problem, I'm.guessing gauze and micropore tape is a no-no?
Hello @thenewaveragebear1983 I read about your new venture on another thread, it certainly sounds like a challenge but I'm sure you'll see & feel fantastic results!
i can't say I'm back on it 100% but I have weighed my food portions today- pasta and cheese always surprise me. I'm also back to completely gluten free after trying to reintroduce it and suffering the consequences. No alcohol this weekend, I need a break. Next step is to cut the sugar again but one thing at a time..
Today:
L: tomato and basil soup, three cheese oatcakes, apple
D: chilli pasta bake
Naughties: some jalapeno and cheese crisps (WHY did I buy them!) and a milkybar.
I'm trying to run my freezer right down to make space for batch cooking, so need to have a check what's in there before I meal plan.

@Summerscomin honestly I haven't tried anything yet, it is still in there, and I am maybe wondering if it gets a bit angry the skin will break and I can get it out!

I weighed in after holiday and I am pleasantly surprised to have found myself only 4 pounds up!

I am pretty pleased with that after eating amazing fish and chips, a delicious all day breakfast, welsh cakes, bara brith and a fantastic wedding meal (and cheesecake I should have got a calorie refund for as it wasn't great).

Today
B: Pinto bean burrito
L: Eggs, asparagus, new potatoes, real butter
D: Roast vegetables and veggie sausage.
iced protein coffee and fresh apricots

Weigh day for me in the morning, feeling alright about it, I’ll be happy with a pound off. My calories are averaging about 1100 over the week when you take my lower days in to account.

an eaty day for me 2mo, meeting a friend for lunch and will be going for fish and chips at the beach with husband tomorrow night as the weather is meant to be glorious. Will be straight back on it for Saturday, as I have no weekend plans.

4lb isn't so bad if you enjoyed it @WeirdPookah I totally know what you mean about the calorie refund! Nothing worse than indulging and it not even being worth it!
How did you get on @LeefPeeper? I stayed the same, which is fine. It's my time of the month and I haven't exactly been great.
The crisps are gone 😳 and I've done a lovely healthy food shop so maybe a small loss next week to get me a bit lower in my "range".
I'm planning to do a batch cook of chilli, favourite freezer meal, and I'll try another new recipe- I made jambalaya last night and it was amazing!

Not very hungry today so I've had a cracker and slice of beef. Probably won't bother now til dinner, which is last night's leftovers.

Did anyone see the thread on weight loss chat about just being sick of food? Thinking, shopping, cooking etc. It really resonated, I feel like food is all I think about!

@Summerscomin i love jambalaya, I also love crisps too! 😂

I lost 1.7lbs this week, which I’m very happy with 😀

@WeirdPookah 4lbs for a weeks holiday is great, you’ll lose that in a week as it will mostly be water!

@Summerscomin could you link to that thread please, I can’t find it?

@LeefPeeper great going!

Thanks @thenewaveragebear1983 I hope so, eating better again and feeling better too!

Today:
B: Soy yogurt and pineapple
L: oat pancake and mandarins
D: greens, lemon lentils, veggie sausage
iced protein coffee and apricots for snacks

I'm finding the current discussions on Ultra Processed Foods (UPF's) very depressing. Even the way we eat, 10 serving of veg a day, 40+ plant foods a week, still has UPF's like the tortilla wraps we've been eating for breakfast for years, the soy yogurt, and of course the veggie sausage etc
It's just everywhere.

It's only a short one @thenewaveragebear1983 but here it is: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/4660575-bored-of-food
I could easily buy 7 ready meals and a pint of milk for the week and be done with it if it was just me 😂
@LeefPeeper that's great! Good job 👍 crisps are absolutely my weakness, I could eat them all day everyday.. I try to buy DD's favourite - don't eat out of guilt- or flavours I'm not so fussed about..
@WeirdPookah I hear you on the UPF front. I think we do pretty well to be honest, not perfect but there can't be many that stick to it 100% and keep it up. They just shout the loudest!
GF alternatives are terribly, terribly processed. I don't have them often, homemade just doesn't work for me, and sometimes I just want a sandwich!

I think it’s about having a balance, and by that I don’t mean that ‘everything in moderation’ thing because I don’t think we should eat everything. I do think it’s possible to read labels and make choices and choose better and make more things ourselves, and I think the UPF thing is causing such a stir because this isn’t about fat, poor, lazy, greedy people eating junk food and takeaways- this is about every single one of us using convenient, expensive, nutritionally substandard short cuts that have been marketed to us as food since the 1980s. And I think that’s why people are getting so het up about it. Look at the whole protein health revolution of the last few years- everything has bloody protein added, but it’s isolated whey protein, a waste product added to food and branded healthy and costs more and do we really need it?

In reality, no one really eats 100% no ultra processed foods. But we do know that the more of them we eat, the worse we feel, and if it helps us to realise that actually that product may contain X additive that this product doesn’t, it may help us to make small improvements that add up to big impacts and could actually support our weight loss efforts. it may make us cook from scratch with real ingredients, eat more plants, use less convenience food and eat less sugar.

@WeirdPookah if you are already eating 40 plant based foods a week and 10 F&V a day then you are doing incredibly well and I wouldn’t take it too much to heart except to glean from it further information about how you could further support your health.

when I did paleo/whole 30 I was wholeheartedly scorned for cutting out processed foods and I am a bit surprised by the sudden support for it but don’t forget, mumsnet is a microcosm, and I imagine this very fashionable new buzz will appeal to the mumsnet audience- but actually doing it? I doubt many actually will. I did 6 months and it was expensive and incredibly socially limiting, and eventually I just wanted a slimline tonic, a dairy milk and a ready meal occasionally.

Thanks everyone 😀

fish and chips at the beach last night was amazing! Back on it today, coffee with yogurt, frozen berries and chia seeds for breakfast this morning. I had 20g of protein powder left which was raspberry flavour and wouldn’t mix well with the other flavour I have open, so stuck it in with the yogurt. It was actually really nice! Not sure what I’ll have for lunch, but we are having enchiladas for tea tonight. I bought the wraps the other day and every day my husband asks hopefully “is it enchilada night tonight?” So he will very pleased 😂

Not a great weekend.

It's not shaping up for a great week, it's my daughters birthday, we had scones as my parents came round with presents yesterday, she had a friends party Saturday and I (stressfully, hate soft play) ate some chips and a sandwich at it. Had arepa's for dinner with no cheese, so balanced a bit.
Then scones Sunday and I gave up and just served spanakopita for dinner, too hot and too stressed.
Today should be ok.
Tomorrow is birthday and promised pizza and carrot cake, then Friday I have to go to another town in rush hour, over dinner time, to see my older child perform in a choir event, might be able to get a Subway if I leave early and manage to park, going on my own as smaller child is home with my husband. Then worried about walking across the town just us two at 9.30 at night to the multi-story as the event location has no car park! I'm actually having nightmares about this.
Sunday is in-laws coming for another party! Super-Tato cake to make.

Been shopping this morning, who knew it was so hard to find plain toffees anymore. Going to brave the heat now and get a walk to Sainsbury's hoping they have them, to make marshmallow (found vegetarian mallows that work like real ones!) crispy cakes for party.

B: Kidney bean burrito
L: boiled eggs, padron peppers, salad
D: Veggie burger in sandwich thin, salad, pickles

Sounds like a tricky time for you re food @WeirdPookah but it sounds like you're thinking about it and making decisions where you can!
Hope DD has a lovely birthday 🥳
It's been a mixed bag for me too, some great meals, some not so great. I'm still within range (had actually dropped 2lbs at last weigh in but that was after a few good days!).
I'm trying to work a little bit on accepting myself- it's rare and difficult for me to get much lower than this weight and I've noticed that I feel fat in varying degrees regardless of the number on the scales so the issue is most likely in my head.. It's quite depressing really!

I've had a good day today, been to the gym, did an exercise class and managed a 20min walk.

B - banana and coffee
L - soup and oatcakes
T - porridge with fresh fruit, dried goji berries, pumpkin and Chia Seeds and sunflower hearts
Snacks: boiled egg, malt loaf, lentil chips, nuts and raisins, square of dark chocolate.

I finished on 1,300 calories and have burnt over 2,400. I'm very happy with that. I use a Fitbit and MFP so I'm fairly confident it's accurate.

Does anyone have any good vegan, low cal recipes?

You did well for exercise considering the heat @CrispyTofu! I've also had a couple of good days, feeling much brighter for it too. I've cooked more than I have for ages 😳
I'm not completely au fait with vegan food- I understand the principles obviously but it's tricky to think of really filling things! If I were cooking/eating vegan I'd go for things like a bean chilli (thinking about my dinner!) or maybe a lentil dahl with coconut milk and flatbread. I'd eat lots of roasted vegetables with white & wild rice, maybe a fruity cous cous salad. Sweet potato wedges with lots of Cajun spices with pulled BBQ jackfruit and lots of Chinese-inspired dishes like sweet and sour with tofu or tempeh and noodles. Is any of that helpful?
Of course there's always thing like beans on toast, jacket potatoes, vegetable curries too.

Today I had some leftover Thai curry with cauliflower rice- tasty and it's sitting much lighter in my tummy than the sandwich I was going to have.
I put a chilli in the slow cooker this morning so I don't need to think about dinner, or turn the kitchen into a furnace later on. I might have it with a small baked potato and salad.

Yesterday was my little one's birthday, pizza and a really rather good carrot cake I made was fantastic. I feel better when I actually enjoy the things rather than eating for the sake of it, or stress etc. I froze the other half of the cake as she's getting a chocolate sponge Super-Tato cake at the weekend as well!

Today has been a good day. I went for a walk, not my full distance as it's horribly hot, but decent and food has been really good.
B: kidney bean burrito
L: asian flavours inspired salad with crunchy seaweed
D: Mango chickpea korma, cucumber
ice protein coffee and 2 peaches for snack

Tomorrow should be ok, planned out, Friday is wild card after not knowing how long it will take me to get to the choir event. Not looking forward to driving and parking on my own. Hoping to have time to get something to eat or maybe I should just take something in case...

I'm down 1lb this week, with eating scones with cream, pizza and carrot cake I am absolutely calling it a win! 3lbs more to be same as before holiday. But this weekend is more party! And I had a migraine yesterday so didn't move.

Choir event today, inadvertently and unexpectedly lost some weight by a far far shorted haircut than required!

Supertato cake was pretty good, it wasn't a big cake so last couple bits for my children tonight and it's gone. Little bit of the vegetarian mallow crispy cake each left then it's done.

Did a new work out today I'd seen mentioned somewhere here, Jenny Ford Walking Across America, it was ok as her "american-ness" enthusiasm was sincere not fake, so not grating!

Had a good talk with my husband last night about keeping up with the eating better for us both, he wants to lose a bit more too.

B: black bean burrito
L: Aldi plant based scampi bites and asian flavoured dressed salad
D: Broccoli, veggie meatballs and homemade all vegetable sauce
ice coffee and piccota cherries and bit of crispy cake.