One year into my Unsuccessful diet (food diary included)

[weightloss21]

I'm looking for advice on where to go next as I feel I have hit a brick wall and not sure what else to try.

I'll try and make this as short but informative as possible.

I have always struggled with my weight. From last January I decided to track my food more carefully and start intermittent fasting by not eating breakfast and having black coffee instead. Within this time I have done the strict keto diet but didn't lose any weight.

Instead of going over every diet I have tried etc I will just write down my food diary more recently. Snacks can be from 0-3 per day and / means or.

More recently:
Pre - 2nd lockdown - work full time 5 days a week, on my feet all day job.
Breakfast = black coffee
Lunch = nothing/apple/babybell
Dinner = soup/stew/jacket potato/salad/meat&veg
Weekends = roast/spag bol/pasta etc - higher carb food

2nd lockdown - wfh sitting down most of the day. Upped exercise to 2/3 days a week (at home) either exercise bike or HIIT.
Breakfast = black coffee
Lunch = Salad/omlette/soup
Dinner = meat & veg/ fish & veg/ salad/ soup
Snacks = fruit/cup of tea,coffee,hot choc/babybell/boiled egg

Since last Monday (25th Jan) - reduced eggs as was eating a lot before.
Breakfast = black coffee
Lunch = Protein shake
Dinner = meat,fish & veg/ salad/soup
Snacks = apple,orange/sugar free jelly/teaspoon of peanut butter/cup of tea,coffee

I have a cheat meal once a week which usually consists of something like = lasagne/cottage pie/pizza/pasta and bowl of ice cream and a choc bar eg twix, mars bar etc

Since last January I haven't lost any weight. The first lockdown I didn't have a cheat meal but it didn't seem to make a difference (or I was losing it and then putting it back on).

My current meal plan isn't working so I am not sure where to go from here. Please do you have any suggestions/share your food diaries as I am at my wits end!!

Hi OP, I similarly have found weight loss a struggle and calorie counting difficult. For the last 18 months or so I have been listening to the Feel Better Live More podcast which is hosted by Dr Rangan Chattejee. I have learnt so much from this podcast! Chatterjee is a medical Dr but he advocates a holistic lifestyle approach, empowering listeners to know how they can make small changes to their everyday life that a have big impact overall. They're really informative, non preachy, non judgemental conversations. Each week he has a different guest who a specialist in their field ie nutrution, movement, sleep, stress etc. They have really helped to change my mindset on a number of things. I also have a couple of his books and they are really great too. Really worth a listen if you haven't heard the podcast before!

Just a thought - do you count your drinks calories too? Are you having full fat coke/fizzy drinks/ fruit juices? All contain loads of calories.

I don't know how helpful this thread is for you op? There is a fundamental issue in that you are sure you are under-eating the recommended daily allowance for your height and weight. You have been dieting for a year but are staying the same weight.

You mentioned that you wonder if your body 'holds on' to calories. Lots of people have said you must be eating more than you think you are.

All of the detail in this thread is really just a distraction and something else to give you false hope that the answer isn't eating less.

I really hope you can manage to solve the puzzle but I think you would be better with therapy rather than plunging into insulin resistance, half a can of soup, eating too little or under active thyroid. Wishing you all the best

@weightloss21

Do you track your calories on an app? Can you share a screenshot of a typical day?

Wed:
Lunch = protein shake
Dinner = roast chicken with mixed veg
Snack = cup of coffee, peanut butter

Thurs:
Lunch = protein shake
Dinner = tuna and salad with a tablespoon of salad cream
Snack = cup of tea, apple

Fri:
Lunch = protein shake
Dinner = tomato soup
Snack = orange, peanut butter

I can't see how it would be possible for you not to be losing weight if this is your diet...

Do NOT do the fucking Grapefruit diet!! (linked on previous page) Do not do the 3 Day diet, the Military diet, the Avoiding Swamps diet or any other nonsense/starvation diet. I get the impression that my warning is too late and you've tried lots of fad diets in the past including Very Low Calories Diets, am I right?

I did the Grapefruit diet in my teens and it was the first of many stupid diets. I spent my 20s yo-yoing between 20 and 12 stone (I'm 5ft 3). All these extremely restrictive diets do is train your body how to survive in nutritionally dire and calorically barren circumstances. Now I'm mid 30s and two years ago I was where you were. Now I'm nearly 3 years trying to shift weight that won't budge!

Yes, there are people who's experience is 'I simply ate a bit less and all five pounds fell off me' so think it works that way for everyone. I'm willing to bet these people have no long history of yo-yo dieting, weight cycling, starvation diets etc.

I read Layne Nortons book Fat Loss Forever and calculated my TDEE (there are two calculators in the book). Now, it says if you can maintain your weight on 20% less than your estimated TDEE then you have pretty extreme metabolic adaptation. I was maintaining on 45% of it.

I don't know how helpful this thread is for you op?

The majority of the thread is extremely helpful. It is just frustrating to hear that I am not tracking my calories correctly or that I am not being honest with myself - as I wouldn't start a thread asking for advice if I was sneaking kit kats that I am not posting.

I'm definitely not eating too many calories even when I am not dieting I don't' go over 2000kcals - I could definitely be eating the wrong calories, or eating too few and then having too large cheat meals.

I get the impression that my warning is too late and you've tried lots of fad diets in the past including Very Low Calories Diets, am I right?

Yes I have tried every stupid fad diet you can think of! Including the boiled egg diet and the water diet where you literally can only have water and ice. I do think that going on these diets do mess up your body and make it more difficult to lose weight. But now its the worry of if I eat more normally I will put on loads more weight so I will be even more unhealthy.

Hi OP, I similarly have found weight loss a struggle and calorie counting difficult. For the last 18 months or so I have been listening to the Feel Better Live More podcast which is hosted by Dr Rangan Chattejee.

I have actually just downloaded this! I love audiobooks but now I am not driving to work as often I never know when to listen to them

A few posters have said about eating food that is good for your digestive system so I have started looking into these too. I have been trying to find a 'diet' that incorporates all of this healthy eating - but they all say completely different things!

What do people think of this kind of food plan:

Breakfast: coffee. Porridge with small amount of fruit like banana, blueberries, raspberries

Snack: yoghurt

Lunch: salad with meat or fish/omlette/soup

Snack: fruit like apple, pear, orange

Dinner: meat and veg

Does this sound healthy? Too many snacks/calories etc?

Caveat: I am not an expert

That diet seems sensible and healthy. I'd make it Greek yoghurt not sugary or low fat ones. And I'd perhaps swap fruit snack for some nuts or perhaps a carrot and some hummus.

I'm trying to keep sugar down, hence my perspective.

It all sounds like decent healthy quality food. Hopefully you'll start to see some results and feel perkier too

@weightloss21

What do people think of this kind of food plan:

Breakfast: coffee. Porridge with small amount of fruit like banana, blueberries, raspberries

Snack: yoghurt

Lunch: salad with meat or fish/omlette/soup

Snack: fruit like apple, pear, orange

Dinner: meat and veg

Does this sound healthy? Too many snacks/calories etc?

I think the issue is OP. And dot get frustrated here.

There is no way to know if this is healthy unless you track it properly.

How much porridge? Made with what milk? Anything added? How many grams of each fruit.

Which meat? What cut of it? How many grams? Which veg, any sauce?

Etc etc.

I can only talk from my experience.

But when I add milk to my tea/coffee I measure it to exactly 30 or 40mls.

I measure out my olive oil for cooking with a tsp measure. Weigh the ketchup/butter etc.

If I skip those steps I can promise you it wouldn't just be a few extra calories a day I was out by.

It could be a couple of hundred. And that can make the difference of losing weight or not.

That diet seems sensible and healthy. I'd make it Greek yoghurt not sugary or low fat ones. And I'd perhaps swap fruit snack for some nuts or perhaps a carrot and some hummus.

I'm trying to keep sugar down, hence my perspective.

Yes that is a really good idea as I would like to keep the sugar down too.

I think the issue is OP. And dot get frustrated here.

There is no way to know if this is healthy unless you track it properly.

Yes I see what you're saying. I was going to find out my TDEE properly and then find out my calorie allowance and then find recipes that are similar to the above but make sure I am measuring it out so it's exactly the same as the recipe.

Perfect.

And in between the recipes too. That's where the calories can creep in.

A "spoon" of sugar isn't a measurement (unless you have specific measuring spoons. A "dash " of milk isn't either.

It’s hard to know. You could be vastly over under eating or over eating depending on your portions and how things are cooked.

On the face of it, three proper meals with two snacks sounds like it should be ok though. Are you going to follow a particular plan?

@weightloss21

What do people think of this kind of food plan:

Breakfast: coffee. Porridge with small amount of fruit like banana, blueberries, raspberries

Snack: yoghurt

Lunch: salad with meat or fish/omlette/soup

Snack: fruit like apple, pear, orange

Dinner: meat and veg

Does this sound healthy? Too many snacks/calories etc?

That's about what I eat. Agree with pp. Nice full fat yogurt. I am also massive fan of yeo valley kefir yogurt (14 live cultures!).

You know what's a lovely snack? Grated carrot and grated apple with bit of lemon juice and mixed😁

A few posters have said about eating food that is good for your digestive system so I have started looking into these too. I have been trying to find a 'diet' that incorporates all of this healthy eating - but they all say completely different things!

This is why I said "fuck that" to any diet telling me I shouldn't eat something. I eat anything and everything, but obviously aim to eat more healthy. There will be a point when you start naturaly turning to feel good healthy food.

I eat whatever makes my body happy and feel healthier which in turn makes my mind healthier. With the weekly crisps or pizza. You know... Balance and all that😂
I don't care what any book or website says. Couldn't even eat that ice if you combine all the "you can't eat x" advice 🤷🏻

@Fagey

Perfect.

And in between the recipes too. That's where the calories can creep in.

A "spoon" of sugar isn't a measurement (unless you have specific measuring spoons. A "dash " of milk isn't either.

Yeah. Measuring spoons are a god send tbh. I very grossly overestimated everything. It's funny how suddenly I realised I can used third of the dressing which I always mantained was about a tablespoon (bullshit, was like 3🤦) is actually perfectly fine and tasty!

I don’t know if anyone else has suggested this but Team RH are AMAZING. They do tell you as it is, they do tell you to cut the bullshit and crack on BUT it makes sense. They are better than anything else I have tried, no weird diets, no sins or points just basic calorie counting and macros and being active. Check them out on Facebook, I’ve been with them for 6 months now and I feel better than ever.

OP, I’ve read the whole post and I recognise some of myself in what you’ve written. I’ve struggled with my weight for most of my adult life and I’ve taken a long hard look at my relationship with food and I think I’m finally getting somewhere.

Please, please do not go on any more diets. Do not cut out any major food group. We need a bit of everything. I am just calorie counting, and trying to do something active every day.

I have worked out calories for everything I like eating so I know what’s going in. I measure everything, but I also eat something different for every meal. Breakfast might be an omelette, a smoothie (I buy frozen fruit and make up bags of mixed fruit and spinach for the freezer), weetabix, this morning I had banana and peanut butter on seeded bread.

Lunch is often home made soup (I have about 5 different ones I like, stored in takeaway pots in the freezer if there are leftovers), sometimes something like a burger, wrap or sweetcorn fritters.

Dinner is pretty much anything. Casserole, fajitas, shepherds pie, pasta, fish and chips, curry, home made pizza etc

Snacks are often nuts and seeds - high in calories, but really good for you, fruit or sometimes a packet of crisps if I fancy one, and I always have a rich tea biscuit with a cup of tea in the evening.

I manage all this on 1200 calories a day (I’m only 5ft, so my calorie allowance is quite low).

I try and eat a wide variety of healthy, normal food and avoid anything with added chemicals - fizzy drinks, low fat stuff because it usually has added sweetener and I wouldn’t ever have a protein shake.

For the first time in years, I feel what I eat is normal but I’m still loosing weight. I don’t feel I need a cheat day because I enjoy what I’m eating every day. I had cake for DS birthday last week and thoroughly enjoyed it, that would normally set me on a path of binge eating for a few weeks but I went straight back to my ‘new normal’.

I don’t beat myself up if I don’t do hard exercise every day like I used to. I just think if I do something, be it a walk or a stretch session or a HIIT session, anything is better than nothing and it’s sustainable.

I agree with all the posters telling you not to diet. Please have an honest think about your issues and put plans in place to help yourself. Whatever you decide on, make it something you can do for life, not a diet with an end date. You and your body deserve to be nourished and looked after properly.

Thank you for all of your advice. I am definitely going to try and steer clear of fad diets and ones telling me to cut out whole food groups/yo not eat certain foods. The only one I worry about is carbohydrates - I looked at WW or SW world that said that these are free foods so you can eat at many as you want but I know you can't so that is confusing and I worry that here is where I will lose control of portion size. I definitely have a cycle of not eating arbs but then having them on my cheat day and feeling guilty about it all week. But if I measure everything out properly then it should be easier as I have noticed many recipes that say a spoon full etc.

That's about what I eat. Agree with pp. Nice full fat yogurt. I am also massive fan of yeo valley kefir yogurt (14 live cultures!).

I went to Lidl yesterday and couldn't find any yogurt that wasn't low fat which I used to like but now I realise that's where half the problem lies because people think they're healthy. I'm going to look out for that yoghurt especially if it has live cultures in it too.

On the face of it, three proper meals with two snacks sounds like it should be ok though. Are you going to follow a particular plan?

I have been looking for a plan to follow but I can't find any as one will say reduce carbs and one will say have as many as you can eat.

I don’t know if anyone else has suggested this but Team RH are AMAZING.

I've never heard of these but just had a quick look and it said how it educates people on how fad diets don't work - which is definitely something I need!

Dinner is pretty much anything. Casserole, fajitas, shepherds pie, pasta, fish and chips, curry, home made pizza etc

I would love to eat any of these for dinner! Do you follow a particular recipe for them?

I collect recipes from anywhere.

Pinch of Nom butter chicken is 205 calories. I’m not a huge fan of rice so have Bombay potatoes. 500g diced potatoes, par boiled then fried in 1tbsp of oil. Add lots of spices which are very low calories (and turmeric for eg is good for your joints) and huge handful of spinach. Make 4 portions, less than 200cals per portion.

Tonight is enchiladas. For 4 people cook 4 sliced chicken breasts in mix of ground cumin, ground coriander, oregano, garlic, paprika and chilli flakes. Make a separate tomato sauce from tin of toms, garlic, oregano and black pepper (I use this sauce for pizza base and pasta too). Cook to reduce down. Mix chicken in half of sauce and fill mini tortilla wraps. Roll wraps, put in oven dish. Top with rest of tomato sauce and scatter 100g full fat cheese and bake. Each wrap is 273 cals. Couple of wraps and leafy salad is a decent meal.

I spent a few hours adding all of my recipes into MyFitnessPal and I meal plan so I know what I’m eating for the week. Remember to add all the ingredients. Even flour, spices and stock cubes etc have calories but you’d be surprised at how low calories some meals are. I don’t make many things that take more than 30 minutes and everything I make is eaten by all the family, including teen DC’s.

If you want any other specific recipes, I’m happy to help, just let me know.

I have been looking for a plan to follow but I can't find any as one will say reduce carbs and one will say have as many as you can eat

There are many MANY threads on LCHF Bootcamp here on MN. With recipes, food lists, spreadsheets , loads of resources and moral support.

I have not read all the replies but I spotted some outdated information about dieting.
I would like to recommend watching Abbey Sharpe on YouTube, she is a dietician advocating for gentle nutrition and being kind to yourself while eating healthy. It's a long run approach and way of living and not a diet. She also speaks about diet culture and the poor diet advice that is everywhere on the internet.

What information do you think is outdated @BabyPigeon?

@PurpleDaisies I would say everything that refers to fasting to avoid eating (when to eat and when not to eat) or to greatly reducing or giving up food groups ( carbs in this case) or foods ( snacks, sweets). Yes they work on short term but not sustainable for most people.
Fasting is not bad but it should not be necessary for weightloss. It could lead to binging and heavier meals in the eating window so it could be counterproductive.
Restricting too much and constantly denying food can lead to binging on the stuff we really want to eat.
Basically if whatever approach we choose is not something we are happy to do for the rest of our lives, then it's not sustainable and it's not good for us.

Fasting is not bad but it should not be necessary for weightloss. It could lead to binging and heavier meals in the eating window so it could be counterproductive

That’s interesting @BabyPigeon. Coudl you link to the scientific research on this please ?

@DE8ORAH I don't think there are yet extensive studies about the effects of long term intermittent fasting on a large number of people, but following this fasting "diet" is not necessary for weight loss because it all comes down to the number of calories in the end.
I am linking below a short video where doctor explains the possible benefits and drawbacks: