Motivated

[Andy221lb]

I am not the same person I was a year ago. I was smoking 30 a day, and averaging 2000 steps. My weight was 16st. Thankfully I found the NHS Stoptober plan, and followed it to a successful quit, (just approaching my 1 year anniversary) I have walked the Yorkshire 3 peaks (26 miles) and my average daily steps is up to 15,000. Although I wear trousers a size less than I did, I'm still at 15st 11lbs. I feel healthier than I have felt since I was in my 20's, (I will be 49 next week). My BMI is 31.5, obese, so now it is time to try and get the weight off. I am hoping to be educated on what to eat and when, I have never had a good diet explained and I think I am guilty of eating whatever I feel like without considering what it comprises. Having used the calorie counter, I am ashamed to admit that my daily calories have been as high as 3,000 and more, but yesterday (day 1 of the plan) I ate 1850, and did not feel hungry at the end of the day, a first for a long time.

Dinner last night was Steak, Brown Rice, Onions, Green Beans and Sweet Pepper. It worked out at 750 calories, but should have been 375 Does anyone else struggle with portion control? Microwave rice is 2 servings, but how do you divide it if there is only 1? Anyway, I'm not complaining because it was delicious, and about 500 calories less than usual.

[moreless Administrator 7 stone]

Hi Andy, that dinner looks delicious!

Have you checked your personal calorie allowance on the BMI calculator, because it may be that you're allowed a lot more than 1850

Your calorie allowance will dictate your portion sizes, there's no problem having a meal of 750 calories, if that keeps you within your allowance

[kalahuchi]

Hi Andy221lb

I had a similar battle with portion control as you. The microwave rice dilemma is the easiest ever; I love it and empty out what I want from the pack into small bowl if I want it heated up (make sure it's covered in the microwave or it will go dry) and leave the rest, in the original pack, in the fridge. Sometimes I only want a garnish on a salad so mentally divide the pack into quarters and empty the appropriate portion onto my plate; the rest stays in the fridge. It's easy peasy and the same principle applies to big packs of most things. It is almost impossible to judge portion sizes when you have a distorted idea of what a suitable portion looks like. You won't like this, and neither did I, but the best and probably only way at first is to weigh everything. Just some cheap kitchen scales are fine. Reading all your food labels to get calorie content of shop bought foods can save you a bit of time and effort but I like to cook as much as possible myself. It is worth weighing because after a while you get a lot better at judging what 30 g cheese etc looks like but sometimes I still check if I'm unsure. Soon you will know what an appropriate sized portion of your favourite meals looks like and you will need to do a lot less weighing of ingredients. The best of luck to you x

[Caz28]

Hi, first of all, well done on quitting smoking, and also on your 15,000 per day steps average. I agree that you need to use a BMI calculator to find out what you calorie allowance should be in order to lose weight. Lots of people use their tracker app or my fitness pal to log their food intake, you of course need to measure and weigh everything to use this method. Others use portion control guides. Good luck!

[VickyDLM 2 stone]

Hi Andy, and welcome!

You didn't say if you're using the NHS 12-week plan, but I found that a good guide as well for healthy eating a portion control, even if you don't want to use it as is it has a lot of good information in there.

I also suggest investing in some tupperware type containers. I always cook an extra portion to save for lunch the next day, but you can also divide what you cook into handy meals in the freezer for those days you don't have much time. And the best part is that you only have to count once and you know how many calories are in each serving!

Good luck and Congratulations on quitting smoking. If you can do that, you can do this.

[IndigoBlue61]

Hello and welcome 😊 What a fantastic year you have had 😊 I have no doubt you will soon kick those extra pounds off 😊

Very best wishes