How Many Calories Do You Eat? (Weight Loss)

[limewave]

I'm eating about 1600 calories a day--per my doctor. A BIA test revealed that during inactivity my body burns approx 1800 cals a day. My goal is to lose 30 lbs. Here is the diet she has me on:

2 servings of legumes
1 serving of Veg type 2 (carrots, potatos, corn)
5+ servings of Vegetables
2 servings of Fruit
3 servings of protein (no red meat or pork)
1 serving of whole grains (quinoa, brown rice, whole grain bread)
1 serving of Ultra Meal Shake or Bar

I was really worried I wouldn't have enough energy to sustain longer workouts, but the vegetables are really great for providing long burning carbohydrates. I feel so much better and have more energy than I've had in a long time. For long rides and runs longer than an hour, I use Endura sports drink to help keep me going.

I had my second BIA test last week. In 2.5 weeks I lost 8 lbs. Unfortunately it was mostly muscle and not fat. However, I had a MRSA infection which tends to attack muscle tissue. I'm going to step up my WT to promote building muscle and hopefully burn that fat!

For months and months I had been trying to lose weight. I saw several different nutritionists that said I needed to eat 2200 to 2500 calories a day to support my training but that I should still lose weight. They were having me eat about 3-5 servings of grains a day. I kept gaining weight. So I lowered my calories and still gained weight. This has been the first diet that has worked for me.

[Zen]

1 serving of Veg type 2 (carrots, potatos, corn)

what is a type 2 vegetable? Just those three things? they all appear to be high on the glycemic index

1 serving of Ultra Meal Shake or Bar

Is this Ultra Meal something from a medical source (hospital wellness center or the like) or is it commercially available?

[Starfish]

I noticed that freedieting.com link had links to Medifast, a plan where they sell you a packaged plan...like 4 weeks of food, etc.

Has anyone here used this? I am considering it for a very short term. I am a little out of control right now, and also seriously crunched for time, so I thought maybe just eating what I was sent, totally pre-packaged so as not to have to make portion choices, make time to shop/cook, etc, might help sort of snap me back to some healthier habits and help me get back on track.

[DarcyInOregon]

Has anyone here used this? I am considering it for a very short term. I am a little out of control right now, and also seriously crunched for time, so I thought maybe just eating what I was sent, totally pre-packaged so as not to have to make portion choices, make time to shop/cook, etc, might help sort of snap me back to some healthier habits and help me get back on track.

Starfish, don't do it. Those packaged foods are not healthy, not even for the short-term. If they were effective for weight loss, everyone would be standing on the roof tops shouting the news.

Regarding my IBS as mentioned in other posts, I have had IBS for a lot of years. Animal fat in my diet triggers it for me, so I've eaten low fat for more years than I can remember. What happened to me is I was without symptoms for so long, I truly forgot I have the disorder. Last autumn I went to Las Vegas for a long weekend and I indulged in meals at the fancy expensive chef restaurants. The portions are small, but there are more courses. After the trip, I got problems internally, without being graphic about it. And the symptoms lasted. It wasn't until June of this year that the light went off over my head and I thought oh my goodness, this is my IBS. Those tiny little portions at the fancy chef restaurants were high in cream and butter and who knows what type of animal fats, and that did it to me. By then I had been having intestinal and digestive problems ongoing for over six months. Once I realized what it was, I upped my fiber, and I took my animal fat down to almost nothing. The symptoms abated and disappeared, but I believe that because the problem lasted for so long, that the good stuff in the digestive system and intestines were all killed off. So I am taking that pill that starts with an A, eating the Dannon Activia every day, and this week sometime my order of Kylea will arrive in the mail and that will add more pro-biotics and enzymes into my system. I hope to have everything inside me back to normal by the end of the winter.

There is no need to PM. People should talk about IBS openly because a lot of people have it and don't know it. And it is difficult to lose weight with IBS because it changes the digestive system. If we discuss IBS openly on this forum, then others can learn, and maybe the knowledge will help others.

Other than messing up my weight loss, I am not really afffected, not like others who suffer seriously. I control my IBS through diet, or at least I did until the Las Vegas weekend. No more fancy chef restaurants for me.

Darcy

[kelownagirl]

IBS - yeah, doesn't bother me talking about it, just wasn't sure if it was ok with you. Anyway, sounds like you and I are pretty much alike. Animal fat's a bugger. My biggest saving grace was taking a glass of metamucil immediately before I eat dinner (then later 5 capsules and big glass of water). Almost always saved me from the terrible cramping and subsequent, well, you know... Anyway, after several years of doing that, eating more fiber, fruit, veg, etc, and really decreasing my stress levels (divorce) - I think I've almost got it beat. I rarely get any symptoms now and when I do, I always know what has caused it...

[limewave]

what is a type 2 vegetable? Just those three things? they all appear to be high on the glycemic index
Is this Ultra Meal something from a medical source (hospital wellness center or the like) or is it commercially available?

Type 2 Veggies are all the ones that rank higher on the glycemic index, those three were just examples.

You can get UltraMeal online: http://www.thenaturalonline.com
I haven't found it at any of the local health stores yet.