Counting Calories

[sprout22]

Hope all are having a great day today. I am counting calories because my doctor put me on a 1500 calorie diet with lots fruit and veggies. Right now I have been living with chronic pain in my back for months an MRI showed degenerative disc disease and some bulging disks. Have a hard time right now with exercise and walking. I am getting some better but can't over do it. Hopefuly soon the pain will be where I can tolerate walking to lose more weight. Before this happen I use to walk in mornings for 60mins a day 6 days a week. I loved it in the morning with just me and nature. And most of the time I have my fur baby with me. For my food this morning.

I had a bowl of rasin brand with fat free almond milk with 1 pk splenda and a cup of coffee with fat free cream. I will come back with lunch and dinner.

This picture is the Oregon coast where we walk a lot its beautiful.

[Hidden]

I ruptured two discs in my back four years ago and had terrible pain and sciatica. Once it was diagnosed by MRI scan, I saw a very good physiotherapist for four months and religiously did the exercises she set for me, which helped the healing in my back greatly. Since then I have done Pilates with a trained teacher to keep my back strong. I still have some degeneration of the spine due to age, but this keeps pain at bay, plus the fact that I lost two stone.

I would recommend you ditch the fat free foods though. Healthy fats are vital for good health and they help keep you feeling full, so you don’t end up hungry and snacking. By all means count calories, that’s how I lost weight, but don’t cut out any food groups, and don’t eat any processed foods. Eat fresh home cooked food for good health. And enjoy walking your dog! I certainly do 🐕, although I walk in wet windy Yorkshire. Oregon looks beautiful.

[sprout22 in reply to Hidden]

I am really on a plant base diet with some meat fish. Idon't eat processed foods anymore. I only like the riasin brand I eat it once and while.

[IndigoBlue61]

Hello sprout22 and nice to meet you 😊. I hope you’ve had chance to read all the information BridgeGirl gave you the other day

If you want more help with meal planning and a few suggestions, or just wish to share you plans, pLease pop over to the Daily Diary (in Events on the forum Homepage healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh... )

[TheAwfulToad Visitor]

Back pain is horrible. I had a similar issue a few years ago, and a combination of a good physio and targeted exercise sorted it out.

Do make a concerted effort to lose that weight so you can get back to physical activity. Unfortunately, a "1500 calorie diet" is likely to make you fatter in the long term, especially if you're avoiding dietary fat. The reason is that your body now believes you're starving, and your body's #1 priority is to keep you alive. It will therefore hoard bodyfat, because that's your best bet for making it through a "famine". Evolution, I'm afraid, never had to factor in the existence of doctors handing out fad-diet advice.

In fact you're probably 80% on the right track. Lots of veg with some meat/fish, and no processed foods is an excellent start. Low-fat foods, though, are processed, often horribly so (filled up with chemicals and sugar to make them taste the way they're supposed to). Avoid them along with the other rubbish on the supermarket shelves.

Just drop the stodge and the sugar: breakfast cereals are a prime culprit, but you also need to think in terms of losing bread, rice, pasta and suchlike and adding more veg/meat/eggs/dairy (in whatever combination you enjoy). Don't eat foods that have been doctored to "make them healthier". If something comes with fat in it (or on it), eat it as nature intended. And never, ever eat less than your appetite demands. I know that sounds odd, but your body isn't going to discard its best hope of survival unless it feels food-secure.

[sprout22 in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Thanks for the advice. My doctor has been my doctor for 8 years she amazing and right now not moving enough to lose so a 1500-1600 calories works great for me. I am never hungery and most of what I eat is plant base and fresh food.

[TheAwfulToad Visitor in reply to sprout22]

She may well be amazing at many things, but that doesn't mean she's amazing at everything. We all get stuff wrong sometimes, especially if it's outside our area of expertise. Her diet advice is unlikely to work long-term. The usual outcome is (a) a modest amount of weight loss for a couple of weeks, and then nothing more; (b) terrible cravings for more food and/or more fat. This is predictable from known biochemistry.

If you're losing weight and you feel happy, then I'm not going to tell you to stop doing what you're doing. But if it stops working (which I suspect it will fairly soon), I've given you some options to try. Please don't crank down your calories in desperation ... which is what most people do when they find "eat less and move more" doesn't work in practice. We usually get one post a week along the lines of "I've reduced my calories to 1000-1200kCal a day but I'm still not losing weight. What am I doing wrong?"

[sprout22 in reply to TheAwfulToad]

This is working out for me so far I am not hungery and I love the food i am eating. I get 3 meals a day plus 3 snacks. And if i get hungery I can snack on fruits and veggies. I think if it isn't broken don't fix it. Plus everybody's metabolism is different so if it works for you and your happy good for you stay with it. Thanks for your advice

[Peachy40 Maintainer 2 stone]

Hi, I'm also counting calories and I'm almost there with my weight loss.

Naturally, you'll get used to foods that are high and hence have less of it, however with lots of veggies you are on the right track.

Join in the Daily Dairies to post your daily menu. You'll also get inspiration for meals. It's also a great place to cheer each other on.

Hope to see you around.

[Greendream123]

Morning, that's a lovely photo! Hopefully you can enjoy more walks as it's stunning. Good luck with your healthy eating and carlorie counting, hopefully it will work for you... I did lose weight on a similar plan but it wasn't sustainable for me as I didn't address my relationship with food at the same time. I eat plant based so looking forward to reading your DDs for inspiration!

[sprout22 in reply to Greendream123]

I was on a plant base diet 2 years ago but my B12 went way down so I added some fish and turkey once in a while to my diet.

[Greendream123 in reply to sprout22]

Sounds like a good idea - important to eat what's right for you.