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Weight loss chat

A space to talk openly about weight loss journeys and challenges. Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.

If you're losing weight, what do you eat in a day?

22 replies

FU4444 · 29/04/2024 09:15

Just trying to pick up some ideas really.

I've had some success with intermittent fasting but that doesn't seem to have the same effect any more. I'm not a huge lover of Slimming World and I'm not organised enough for WW!

If you have successfully lost weight or are losing weight, what do you typically eat in a day. Thanks!

If it helps, I'd ideally like to lose about a stone and a half. I've just tipped into overweight BMI.

OP posts:
ladybranstonpickle · 29/04/2024 09:38

Ooh I love talking about menus, especially for weightloss. My personal target is 1600 calories per day with at least 100g protein. (I do a minimum of 10k steps and often get a weekly average of 12k per day and do 3-4 strength training workouts per week). I highly recommend getting your TDEE and figuring out what a 300-400 cal deficit would look like. No need to starve yourself on 1200 cals!

I follow mybalancedkitchen on instagram - she has great weightloss recipes and runs a regular 6 week fat loss program that's really motivating. Ive lost 4kg or so since January, with a few weeks off for a holiday and dealing with a family bereavement. Slow but steady!

Here's this week's meal plan - I do another one for the weekend, but breakfasts are usually very similar:

Monday
B: Greek yoghurt, muesli & berries
L: Tortilla pizza & salad, cup of tea, small piece of milk chocolate
D: Thai style mince beef & rice with mangetout and sweetcorn

Tuesday
B: Carrot cake overnight oats
L: Pret sandwich (New York Rye, or similar), mini cheddars, mini kitkat
D: Mango chutney chicken sausage traybake

Wednesday
B: Ruby red porridge (Leon)
L: Felafel box with salad, cup of tea, small piece of milk chocolate
D: Greek chicken gyros bowl with oven chips & cabbage salad

Thursday
B: Croissant & protein shake (treat day!)
L: Cold roast chicken & salad wrap, cup of tea, small piece of milk chocolate
D: Home made fish pie

Friday:
B: Porridge with fruit & seeds
L: Smoked turkey sandwich & salad, cup of tea, small piece of milk chocolate
D: Takeaway (probably Turkish)

Menora · 29/04/2024 09:56

I come in about 1400-1500 calories.
my calories have reduced as I have lost weight I did not start out on these calories, I was eating 1900 when I was 15st 6, then gradually moved down through 1800, 1700 etc as I lost weight. I am nearer my goal weight now. I’ve never eaten 1200 calories and I’ve lost 4st I am 5’5.

I eat:
Breakfast: Greek yoghurt and banana most days

lunches
chunky veg/chicken soup with wholemeal or sour dough bread or a poké style bowl with a protein and veg/salad

cheese, peppers and apples as snacks but my favourite is gerkins and a dairy Lea jumbo tubes snack pack 😍

evening meals I may have a small portion of potatoes with my meal but usually small portion of brown rice or grains with a protein like salmon or chicken and a ton of veg

I may also have one of my meals as scrambled eggs with turkey bacon, this can be any one of them that day and is one of my favourites. On a weekend I will add avocado on sour dough to it

the only thing I don’t eat is pasta

I avoid crisps, cakes most of the time but I do sometimes eat ginger biscuits (love these), frozen yoghurt and jelly

maxelly · 29/04/2024 09:57

How old are you out of interest - I've found unfortunately since meno losing weight is a really long hard slog, unlike in my 20s when by simply cutting junk I could easily drop half a stone in a couple of weeks now even eating what objectively is a pretty healthy and low-cal diet it's a very steady 0.5lb a week - so depending on how old and how active you are you may need to have patience with it. Also annoyingly it really doesn't take much to do a few lbs back on considering how hard it is to lose it, so you have to accept some ups and downs.

What works for me is pretty boring really, and it's being very sensible with food pretty much all the time (gone are the days when I could eat well in the week then have 'cheat' weekends and still lose weight overall, sadly). For me that means a modified form of intermittent fasting, careful portion sizes particularly carbs, drinking no more than 2 days per week and in moderation then (I love beer, wine and cider but sadly they do not love me so I try to go with gin or vodka and a diet mixer, or one pint or one glass of wine only), and sweet treats and junk only occasionally (I don't usually buy these things so it's only if someone gives me some as a present or when on holidays etc) and trying not to go OTT when I do, plus staying as active as I can manage. My modified form of IF (I used to do strict 5:2 and still do occasionally but it was hard to stick to long-term) is 16:8 all the time and 2 days a week one meal only a day (for me dinner), that one meal is probably a bit more than 500 cals but I don't sweat that. On high days and holidays I do just eat whatever I want (although try to stay mindful and not just binge on absolute crap I don't even enjoy like I used to), this does usually result in a bit of post-holiday weight gain which is depressing but better I think than eliminating all joy from my diet completely!

A typical days eating for me would look like on a non fast day:

-Skip breakfast (one of the big wins of IF for me is discovering I do very well with no breakfast, but if you need something in the morning I'd go with something minimally carby e.g. eggs, greek yoghurt, berries),
-Light lunch, avoid carbs and focus on getting as much veg in as I can take e.g. soup, salad, omelette, poached eggs and greens or if we have leftovers from the night before of a non carby nature e.g. spag bol sauce, chilli, stir fry or faijitas I'll have that poured over a pile of roast veg. I have experimented with cauli rice or courgetti and for me they're usually too much faff to make at lunch but can be worth investigating?
-'Normal' dinner but mindful of portion size especially of carbs. we tend to have a takeaway or eat out once a week and as that's more calorific I will sometimes fast all day beforehand (lot of water etc) and just eat that as my one meal of the day, or have a really light lunch beforehand. Some fruit and/or yoghurt for pudding if I want one
-No snacks at all, including in the evenings after dinner (big danger time for me, once I start I won't stop). If I feel really hungry later in the evening I'll go back for a second portion of dinner or have some cheese or a handful of nuts or similar.
-Lots and lots of water, tea and coffee during the day, really important not to get dehydrated (I allow a splash of milk which is not 'proper' IF but one of the ways I make it manageable). I do also enjoy the odd can of diet pop which I know lots of people think is evil/super unhealthy but again makes the whole thing for do-able for me.

mondaytosunday · 29/04/2024 10:05

I stick to 1400ish calories. I eat two meals a day, so in effect doing 16:8 IF.
I alternate the following:
Brunch 1: avocado on one slice toast, large egg, 50gr smoked salmon, handful cherry tomatoes, tea with milk.
Brunch 2: garlic stuffed mushrooms, large green salad, seeds, chopped chorizo.
Dinner: can be anything about 800 calories.
If I have some spare calories left for dessert I have either an apple or two caramel rice cakes or a coffee with cream.
No alcohol.
I weigh everything unless on packet. Track with My Fitness Pal app.
Currently no exercise other than walking at least 6000 steps.
Should lose about a kilo a week or 10lbs/month on that.

namechange1230 · 29/04/2024 23:36

I'm currently doing very low cal and low carb as nothing else was working. I've lost 10lb in the last 3 weeks. Would like to lose another 20.

Typical day is:

Overnight oats with Greek yoghurt and blueberries
Apple
Homemade soup or salad with chicken
Pear
Chilli with lots of salad (no rice), or chicken with salad and butternut squash chips.
Lots of water
Limiting myself to two coffees a day

I expect my weekly losses will slow down but losing the 10lb quickly has given me a boost and motivation to continue.

Magpie50 · 30/04/2024 00:19

Interesting to see how different everyone's approach is!
Mine would be,
B1-1 shredded wheat with prunes and plant milk.
B2-Oats,grated apple,raspberries,protein powder,plant milk.
L-1 Slice homemade bread with butter, homemade bean spread and salad bits. Banana.
D- huge tofu stir fry with sauce, put of roasted seaweed sheets.
Supper-blueberries,raspberries,soya yoghurt,granola.
Snack-small pkt crisps.

Sounds alot but I think I'm on a fairly small deficit, plus I'm really active and exercise alot.
Must be working though cos I've lost nearly 7sy during perimenopause!

GameOfJones · 30/04/2024 10:09

Mine is boring but it does work:

Breakfast is always greek yoghurt with fruit and some chopped nuts. I just mix things up by changing the type of fruit and nuts.

Lunch if I'm at work is either soup or salad. At home I do porridge or a bowl of shredded wheat. Plus a piece of fruit.

Dinner I've got a bit more flexibility over if I've stuck to my breakfast or lunch. I tend to focus on it being around 800 calories or fewer. Examples are frittata and veg, chicken with brown rice and broccoli, chilli, stir fries etc.

No snacking other than on a Saturday I'll have something sweet after dinner. Normally a tube of fruit pastilles as I'm a child and love them! But sometimes popcorn, or an ice lolly in summer etc.

Alcohol only two nights a week.

Thomasina79 · 30/04/2024 10:28

Breakfast Porridge made with water, fruit usually berries, yogurt and a skinny food company golden syrup sauce (zero calorie sauce) this really fills me up.
Lunch. weight watchers soup, roll no butter I use low fat cream cheese and filling
supper, what we are eating, but less. Last night it was child con carne, tonight it’s veggie sausage Linda McCartney are only 100 cals for two basically low fat meals jigged from meals I would usually cook
apple after swimming, banana
low calorie lolly some are just frozen fruit juice

ive lost over 6 and a half stone and want to lose another half. I am 5 ft. 6 and age 67. DH tells me I don’t need to lose any more. I go swimming four times a week with a view to flattening my horrible tummy!

BarrelOfOtters · 30/04/2024 10:32

I'm slowly and steadily losing weight.

I'm basically eating more veg, being conscious about protein and fewer carbs, and no white carbs.

I've stopped eating biscuits, crisps, and sweets. I've also pretty much stopped drinking in the week, unless there's a good reason for it. And also at weekend to be fair. So not having a Friday night couple of large glasses of wine, unless I'm actually in the pub with friends.

I'm eating more nuts, seeds, yoghurt and fruit.

I'm making soups to take into work for lunch so I don't buy a crappy meal deals. Make sure I have breakfast so I don't have a bacon sandwich.

Andtheworldwentwhite · 30/04/2024 10:33

I eat the same thing for breakfast and lunch normally. That way I don’t have to worry about calories. And I have some dietary restrictions so it helps.

breakfast is always a vegetable omelette. Which is made with swede carrot and four egg whites. I cannot have the yolk because of the fat but to be honest it doesn’t taste any different and is way less calories. I also have a banana.

lunch is either chicken and potato pack of crisps and a piece of fruit. It 300g of veggies with chicken. And some crisps and fruit.

Dinners are a mix of fish cakes, turkey burger. Mince stew

mine is different as I have a bad gallbladder so I have to keep my fat to under 3% so restraint is easy. But eating this has lead to me never being hungry as I fill up on veggies most of the time.

I started this in August last year at 13 stone one pound. And am currently 9 stone 10’pounds. Didn’t cheat once. Not even for Christmas I aim to eat 1100 a day. And I divide that equally most days. Though my breakfast is less. But it keeps me filled up till lunch time

FU4444 · 03/05/2024 09:28

Thanks all! This is really interesting reading.

To the PP, I've not long turned 40 so do wonder if age is starting to be at play.

I think fundamentally it's down to willpower, isn't it. I think I need to get back on a stricter intermittent fasting routine. I really like food to be enjoyed, so if that means a very lovely lunch then missing dinner, then perhaps so be it. I've tried soup or salad for lunch but I just don't enjoy it and it doesn't fill me up. So I'm just hungry and miserable, having had a crap lunch.

OP posts:
SublimeLemonHead · 03/05/2024 09:43

I'm on Slimming World so I'm staying within the HEXA and B and max 15 syns. Typical day though would be:

  • Two coffees (I never eat breakfast, don't get hungry till at least midday)
  • Lunch - four ryvita, a tin of sardines, massive pile of carrot, cucumber, pepper and celery sticks with some salad cream to dip. Packet of skips.
  • Mid afternoon - Two weetabix with banana and semi-skimmed. Apple. Another coffee.
  • Dinner - Spag bol/chilli with rice/casserole type meal. Made with no oil (I dry fry or use a tiny bit of water) and lean meat or 5% mince. Lots of added veg. Sometimes dessert of fat free greek yoghurt and fruit (frozen mixed berries).
  • Evening munchies - a curly wurly...sometimes two. Up to 5 tip tops on some nights where I really want something sweet after curly wurlys have gone!
SwordToFlamethrower · 03/05/2024 10:13

I've doubled my intake of proteins, do a 16 hour fast a couple of times a week. This has had a knock on effect of me not reaching for the sweets in the evenings.

Oh and going for the 30 plants a week and reducing UPFs.

So far so good

Fanchester · 03/05/2024 10:21

I’m interested in this as I feel I should be losing based on what I eat and exercise.

Typical day-

150g plain yogurt, chopped berries

Large mixed salad with half an avocado and 100g protein (eg salmon or prawns) , 1 tsp olive oil

Snack eg a banana or carrots with 1 tbs hummus, or an apple with a tsp of peanut butter

Dinner usually eg a few tbs brown rice with veggie chilli

Half hour run 4x a week. Strength class 4x a week.

I am 14 stone and it won’t budge. Eating 1200-1400 Cals by my calculations. I am really trying to do it sustainably as I’ve yo-yoed for years but nothing seems to be happening. 😭

maxelly · 03/05/2024 23:59

Fanchester · 03/05/2024 10:21

I’m interested in this as I feel I should be losing based on what I eat and exercise.

Typical day-

150g plain yogurt, chopped berries

Large mixed salad with half an avocado and 100g protein (eg salmon or prawns) , 1 tsp olive oil

Snack eg a banana or carrots with 1 tbs hummus, or an apple with a tsp of peanut butter

Dinner usually eg a few tbs brown rice with veggie chilli

Half hour run 4x a week. Strength class 4x a week.

I am 14 stone and it won’t budge. Eating 1200-1400 Cals by my calculations. I am really trying to do it sustainably as I’ve yo-yoed for years but nothing seems to be happening. 😭

How long have you been at it? If 4 -6 weeks or less I'd say it's just a question of giving it time. The body is weird with weight loss and can hold onto weight for a good few weeks in a calorie deficit then you suddenly lose a few pounds in a big whoosh. If longer than that (and you've honestly been really consistent with your calories, portions etc, no cheating even at weekends) and you've really lost nothing, not even a lb, then it's possible something's a bit off - how old are you? Could menopausal symptoms be an issue?

Also sorry for TMI but is everything working as it should toilet wise, constipation can be an issue if you suddenly change your diet and that can cause bloating and not seeing the loss on the scales even though you are actually losing fat. And are you drinking enough, dehydration can be an issue if you suddenly reduce food intake. Do you always weigh consistently at the same time of day?

Nettleskeins · 04/05/2024 00:16

I think if you are stressed it sometimes causes the body to hang on to weight.
So I aim to make dieting very unstressful!
I try to eat something very delicious, moderately low carb (ie brown rice,cwholemeal bread, brown pasta, lentils, beans, chickpeas in small amounts) enough to leave table full but no second helpings.
I don't stint on fat but I wouldn't eat anything like chips or batter.
Absolutely no sugar in any form and tiny amounts of fruit like blueberries, raspberries, but essentially nothing to trigger sugar high sugar low.

So it could be a small portion of normal fish pie with loads of green vegetables
Or chicken or fish or lamb or mince with heaped tablespoon of carbs and rest of plate piled high with veg, gravy/ Dollop of mayo, or creme fraiche.
Or a big bowl of chunky full fat soup with one slice of wholemeal toast for a meal.

No snacks of any kind. Only three meals a day.

No alcohol, no soft drinks, no sweetenrrs.

I have no cravings past first four days.

Penguinsa · 04/05/2024 00:18

Always been normal BMI until cancer treatment (aged 48-50) when after it I gained 14kgs which pushed me into overweight category and so have been losing that and am 11kgs down since start October with 3kgs to go which should be gone at some point in June. I have done 1200 calories a day plus eating any calories from exercise and 5 hours exercise a week, mostly swimming but also walking around gardens.

Diet wise its almost no alcohol but never really drank much so not much change there, lower sugar so no tea in sugar and a lot less cake and dessert and no coffee or hot chocolate other than very occasional. Never really ate breakfast anyway. Lunch normally something like toasted brie sandwich and grapes, or beans and cheese on toast or boiled eggs and bread and butter or chicken, avocado and sweetcorn jacket or salad or yoghurt, museli and blueberries. Drink tea with milk no sugar and lime juice with sparkling water all day. Dinner varies yesterday was homemade cottage pie, today after swimming 100 lengths was a chicken bigmac, salmon, new potatoes and broccolli is another one, fajitas another one. I do have a shortbread biscuit with my tea once or twice a day. I will probably keep going after the 3kgs as I feel so much better and am getting back to how I used to look.

Nettleskeins · 04/05/2024 00:19

I don't think you are eating enough actually. Too low in fat.
I may be wrong.

Nettleskeins · 04/05/2024 00:23

Sorry, that was to @Fanchester

mathanxiety · 04/05/2024 00:31

Breakfast that includes fruit and cheese/Greek yogurt and whole grain carbs, bigger lunch with a good deal of protein (omelette, quiche, tuna salad sandwich, etc) small dinner, usually a home made soup or a large salad (lentil soup, spinach salad).

Snacks - hummus, carrots, nuts, apples, blueberries, pineapple, popcorn.
Fizzy water and still water - up to 64 ozs daily.

Only eat homemade sugary items - nothing convenient to mindlessly munch through. I make it difficult to indulge.

No alcohol.

CortieTat · 04/05/2024 09:39

I’m trying to eat a varied diet so apologies for a long post.

For breakfast I always have overnight oats but I keep changing the recipe. Today I have them without oats 😅 and have instead chia seeds, poppyseeds, sunflower seeds, flaxseeds and dried mulberries with 100 ml Oatly and 50 ml of kefir. Sometimes I swap kefir with yogurt (not Greek, normal liquid plain yogurt), onaka or a-fil. It’s usually some seeds, rolled oats, dried cranberries, mulberries or berberis and always 100 ml oatly and 50ml of some fermented milk drink.

I don’t eat gluten and poultry (for ethical reasons) so for lunch I usually have gluten-free knäckebröd (crispbread) with avocado, poached egg and fermented vegetables. Or a homemade soup with rice or bean noodles, prawns, fennel and egg. Or stir fried vegetables, usually fennel, cavolo nero, cabbage with some fish and a side of fermented vegetables.

For dinner we usually have beef and lamb because that’s what local farmers sell. We only eat meat three times a week. We buy 1/6 of a cow, cut and packaged so we have to be really creative because the prime beef is only about 10% of the total (just like on a real cow). We eat roast, steak tartare, homemade burgers, ossobuco, stir fries and roasted lamb, homemade saag lamb and lamb burgers.
I source vegetarian dinners from The Doctor’s Kitchen and other vegetarian cookbooks. We usually make a huge batch that we freeze or keep in the fridge. I don’t have time to cook elaborate meals every day so I usually make more stuff, like ossobuco for at least two dinners and lunch. We usually cook together with DH and bake with kids so it goes faster.

For snacks I have coffee with oatly, sometimes a banana, collagen powder and kefir shake after a long run, and bone broth which I make in advance and freeze in small cups.

We have treats every Saturday, usually it’s a healthy version of flapjack (homemade), very rarely a glass of wine with dinner, or a small pack of winegums. If I bake I always swap sugar with date sugar or syrup.

I love good food and I’m very concerned about the environmental impact of what we eat hence trying to get as much as possible from local farmers and always choosing seasonal vegetables. We are lucky to have at least seven different organic farms basically within 30 minute drive so it’s easy. Buying a 30 kg box of meat is also much cheaper in the long run.

Keeping my gut flora happy is a bit of a goal for me so we eat a lot of fermented foods. It’s also easy because I make a huge jar that lasts a week or longer. Right now I have fermented sprout beans with chilli flakes and kimchi. I also eat resistant starches several times a week, usually in homemade sushi (whole family love to roll them), salad nicoise, potato salad or just a slice of something with lunch.

I eat around 1700-1800 kcal a day, if I eat less I lose weight, but I run, train martial arts and do resistance trainings weekly.
I was on paleo diet for two years before we started cutting down the amount of meat we eat.

Tisfortired · 04/05/2024 09:57

I’m 5’5 and have lost 18 lbs since August. I gave up for a bit at the end of last year (birthday and Christmas…) then picked it up more seriously in Jan this year when we booked our wedding for June. I started at 11.8 and a 14 and am now 10.4 and a 12.

I aim for 1350 calories a day with 1 or 2 days off a week depending on our plans. I try to plan my days backwards, so I like to have a normal dinner with the family and have what everyone else is having. Eg today is chicken goujon and salad wraps with homemade chips which will come in at 650 cals which leaves me with 700 for the rest of the day.

B - 2 medium boiled eggs, 2 slices of wholemeal toast and 15g butter on toast (400)
L - half a carton of Covent Garden chicken soup and a couple of breadsticks (180)
D - chicken goujon and salad wraps w/ homemade chips (650)

S - sweet and salty popcorn and mini crunchie (120)

I don’t normally have any snacks or chocolate on my diet days but we’re having a family movie night so I’ve factored in a mini crunchie and some popcorn!

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