Is this too many carbs?

[purplerain37]

This is what I had yesterday! I am losing weight, lost about 10lbs so far, but it's slowing down a bit! What do I need to change please? I'm new to all this.

And LOVE carbs 😅

I'm doing couch to 5k too.

You already know! Reduced carbs and increase protein. Perhaps eggs for breakfast

Are you counting drinks such as tea/coffee?
I think milk is my downfall!
Are you weighing the pasta & potatoes?

The question isn't is it too much carbs

It's "should I reduce my intake more now that I have lost weight, or carry on at this slow and steady pace"

and perhaps "would k find it easier if I have a different balance of protein and carbs "

I do not count drinks as I only have water really, or no sugar squash. No hot drinks / milk.

Yes, weighing out everything.

I think maybe I would be too hungry if I did not have the potatoes and rice, but I probably should drop them for one of the meals. Just very hard to do!

I have never reduced carbs and I lost weight without any problems. If you are exercising a lot your body needs a good balance of carbs and protein. What really helps me is eating a lot of vegetables. Variety is key.

Protein is better than carbs for hunger - especially rice and white potatoes which is high GI. Replace with more complex carbs (like sweet potato, vegetables).
But 1200 cals for the day is fine - ultimately it's calories deficit.

It’s not that simple. GI of these foods depends on the preparation method. If you cook potatoes a day before, store them in the fridge and eat them cold, with skin, as a potato salad or in salade niçoise (my favourite 😊) they have lower GI and become a good source of resistant starches that our gut bacteria thrive on. Same with rice.

The photos suggest no exercise... very low step count, lower than what mine would be on an incredibly sedentary day.

Carbs don't really satisfy hunger as much a balance with more protein, fats and fibre. They only fill you up temporarily, not much good unless you're active and using them as fuel.

Beans are good in place of the pasta/potatoes/rice

That is a lot of carbs and large portions I'd say. Is the fusilli brown or white? Add your excise if you are doing couch to 5 K.

Ah, sorry, I'd missed the couch to 5 k bit. Presumably the screenshots are of a day the OP wasn't doing it! But a bit more movement than that on the non-running days might be a good idea?

I use nutracheck, that integrates seamlessly with my Apple Watch exercise estimate and seems quite accurate.
I've got my cals set to 1200 (lowest it allows) but do eat back some of the exercise cals.

I would never say these are large portions, unless we are on a competitive disordered eating forum. 150g of potatoes is one, medium size potato, the really large baking ones are usually close to 200g. 100g of cooked pasta is half of a medium plate, depending on the shape of pasta.

I’ve been weighing stuff and tracking my meals for 86 weeks (my app says so) so from my experience the majority of things are much heavier than we think, which is one of the reasons people don’t lose weight counting calories, because if they don’t weight everything, it’s very easy to underestimate.

OP move more, you can do yoga or some other form of active recovery on the days you are not running. I would look at the amount and the variety of vegetables you eat. You only have broccoli in your app which is not much for the whole day, try to eat several different green/leafy vegetables with every meal. If you like your potatoes, cook them a day before and eat them cold in a salad.

The highest amount of protein our body can effectively utilise is around 1.3 grams per kilogram of body weight. So unless you are a bodybuilder, you don’t really need a lot. But a healthy diet that is sustainable in the long run consists of many more plants. The standard recommendation is 5 a day which I think it’s bare minimum.

Look at it from a different angle.

Am I eating my 5 a day?
Have I had a sensible amount of protein?
Have I given my body the basic nutrients required to be healthy?

Then fill the gaps with carbs.

Nothing wrong with complex carbs. Try to cut the UPF, so instead of the ultra-processed chicken lunch with emulsifiers, have a grilled chicken breast, instead of a sachet for breakfast, have rolled oats, and bin the crisps and have a green pear.

@AnIntrovert thanks so much! Helpful!! I didn't realise the sachets of porridge were bad 😧

Undisrupted food structures are always to be preferred . If they are high fibre, even better. Your gut is full of receptors and the one everyone is raging about, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) better known as Ozempic, is increased in high fibre and intact food structure
Nothing new under the sun, but it just confirms what we all know. Whole food is better. Additives will modify receptors .