Weight loss/maintenance/healthy living support chat

Small is my motto. I believe in having a treat when I really want one, but I try to keep the portions low. The first three bites are always the best anyway!

I keep changing my mind about that. But I joined the half size community and she insist on nightly treat and I found it made it harder for me. I find it's ok as long as I have treat outside the house once or twice weekly but nightly just makes me crave more sugary foods.
 
@HappyGrape great to see you in a more positive mood, keep it up :)

right, I'm back with my low fat homemade chili recipe

500g lean ground / mince beef
1 large field mushroom
1 small red onion
1 cup tinned red kidney beans
1 tin chopped tomatoes
2 table spoons Franks Red Hot Sauce
1 table spoon Heinz tomato ketchup (or any tomato ketchup)
2 table spoons red wine
1/2 cup 0% Fat Natural Yogurt

1 boil in the bag white rice

Method
  1. Put the meat in a hot saucepan with no added oil and cook. Just keep stirring until the meat is cooked, it should not burn.
  2. Leave the meat in the pot and take it off the hot ring.
  3. Leave the field mushroom whole and cook on a George Forman grill, with no added oil
  4. Remove when cooked and chop up and add to the meat
  5. Peel the onion and cut into chunks.
  6. Cook the onion chunks on the George Forman grill, with no added oil
  7. When the onion is cooked, chop it up and add it to the meat
  8. Add in the kidney beans
  9. Cook the rice
  10. Put the meat pot back on the ring and heat it up
  11. When the meat starts sizzling again, add in the red wine and stir
  12. Add in the chopped tomatoes, Franks Red Hot Sauce and tomato ketchup
  13. Cook for approx 10 minutes
  14. Add in the natural yogurt and cook for 5 minutes
  15. Serve with plain boiled rice

This recipe made enough for 4 dinners, todays dinner and tomorrows dinner and I'm going to freeze 2 portions in individual portions. I probably should have used 2 field mushrooms but I only got 3 in the packet and I want 2 for my scrambled egg. Also its a bit watery, so maybe next time I might thicken it with cornflour.
 


Hi everyone. I just found this thread and thought I'd chime in. I'm retired and I've been on Weight Watchers for 22 months now. I'm down 102 pounds plus the 30 I lost before joining WW. I have 23 pounds to go to reach my goal and then the hard work of maintaining starts. I generally start the day by sauteing leeks, mushrooms, shaved brussels sprouts, campari tomatoes and fresh spinach. I add some Mediterranean sea salt and olive mix, some Mediterranean herb mix (has oregano rosemary, thyme, savory, etc.), tumeric, red pepper flakes and black pepper. The salt and herb mixes are from Especias del Sol and I got them both at Home Goods. Once the veggies cook down a bit I stir in one egg scrambled and a little Kraft fat free shredded cheddar. I have this with a clementine and a piece of light rye or other light bread. I usually have a banana when I get up at 6:30 and eat breakfast around 9.

Edited to add: I saute the veggies in about a teaspoon of olive oil.
 
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As for snacks during the day, I am constantly fighting the urge. At least once a day, I feel a need to have some sort of chocolate. I try not to give in more than once a week. My mainstays for snacking are walnuts, almonds,(both raw), cheese, and if I feel like I need chips I like the baked lays small bags. I am having trouble keeping up with my motivation to walk.

When I am lacking motivation, sometimes I will get on my exercise bike at home and do a Disney treadmill video. Those things are awesome.
 
As for snacks during the day, I am constantly fighting the urge. At least once a day, I feel a need to have some sort of chocolate. I try not to give in more than once a week. My mainstays for snacking are walnuts, almonds,(both raw), cheese, and if I feel like I need chips I like the baked lays small bags. I am having trouble keeping up with my motivation to walk.

When I am lacking motivation, sometimes I will get on my exercise bike at home and do a Disney treadmill video. Those things are awesome.

For my low fat diet I cant have any of those :( I have had to switch my snacks to low fat

homemade popcorn with no butter
marshmallows
haribo starmix
jellybeans
fresh melon
fresh mango
blueberries
 


For my low fat diet I cant have any of those :( I have had to switch my snacks to low fat

homemade popcorn with no butter
marshmallows
haribo starmix
jellybeans
fresh melon
fresh mango
blueberries

:hug: Low-ft is challenging. (My DH is supposed to really watch his as well.)

Everything on your list definitely looks yummy to me, but only the popcorn would really hold me very long - sugar just doesn't seem to last for me.

Are you allowed edamame? Around here you can get it dried, for a crunchy snack:
515212
and that would give you something with protein to have on your list.
 
:hug: Low-ft is challenging. (My DH is supposed to really watch his as well.)

Everything on your list definitely looks yummy to me, but only the popcorn would really hold me very long - sugar just doesn't seem to last for me.

Are you allowed edamame? Around here you can get it dried, for a crunchy snack:
View attachment 515212
and that would give you something with protein to have on your list.

thanks, I might check them out. I'm eating more meat and eggs than I used to, to make sure I get good protein. The sugar is not filling me either, but it gives me something to snack on. Healthy I can do, smaller portions I can do, eating less junk I can do, but low fat is defiantly challenging, sigh, when so many good fats have to go as well as a cooking method and brands have to be changed. The only thing keeping me motivated right now is the memory of that stomach pain and the reality that I could end up in ICU if I get another flareup. I am lucky, my condition was caught in the early stages but there was another lady in the ward with the same condition, it was her second time being in hospital, the first time she was in ICU.
 
The walnuts and almonds are both filling for me and they're good for my heart, which is important for me. I love bananas, I don't know if they are high in fat(maybe) but I have trouble with RLS and bananas really help with that.
 
I listened to audiobook recently and did interesting exercise. The author is not dietitian at all, she is British behavioural change specialist dealing with addiction. The book is last diet and is entierelly head stuff/exercise she uses in her practise.

One of them is making 2 lists - what's my bag. Not my bag in terms of exercise. She has a chapter to come up to help you come up with your own list but I found it very interesting

For example in not my bag I came up with
Plans that require me to weight in and discuss my weight in group - slimming world or weight watcher. I tried several time each
Plans that are inflexible and I can't eat out or same food with my family
Plans that come with very stricts food lists and are you are either in our out
Exercises that are hard on joints
Plans that dramatically restrict food groups
Intuitive eating (I find they are the worse in dismissing things that work for others)
lunges
overcomplicated rules
plans that promote or encourage regular intake of protein shakes or artificial sugars.
plans that insist you have to have treat daily

My bag
eating regularly through out the day - every 3/4 hours
eating a lot of vegetables and fruit
focusing on whole foods
limiting sugary foods
counting calories
flexible plans with respect to hunger and fullness

and so on.

I thought it's interesting to go through past dieting history and compile with my bag and not my bag list
 
I listened to audiobook recently and did interesting exercise. The author is not dietitian at all, she is British behavioural change specialist dealing with addiction. The book is last diet and is entierelly head stuff/exercise she uses in her practise.

One of them is making 2 lists - what's my bag. Not my bag in terms of exercise. She has a chapter to come up to help you come up with your own list but I found it very interesting

For example in not my bag I came up with
Plans that require me to weight in and discuss my weight in group - slimming world or weight watcher. I tried several time each
Plans that are inflexible and I can't eat out or same food with my family
Plans that come with very stricts food lists and are you are either in our out
Exercises that are hard on joints
Plans that dramatically restrict food groups
Intuitive eating (I find they are the worse in dismissing things that work for others)
lunges
overcomplicated rules
plans that promote or encourage regular intake of protein shakes or artificial sugars.
plans that insist you have to have treat daily

My bag
eating regularly through out the day - every 3/4 hours
eating a lot of vegetables and fruit
focusing on whole foods
limiting sugary foods
counting calories
flexible plans with respect to hunger and fullness

and so on.

I thought it's interesting to go through past dieting history and compile with my bag and not my bag list

This I totally agree with and its what I have been basically been doing for the past year on my own. I don't even weigh myself, haven't used a scales since I was a child. At the doctors / hospital I get weighed but I don't look / don't ask.

To actually loose weight and maintain that loss, it has to be a sustainable lifestyle change. Things like drink / shake meal substitutes or removal of certain food groups just don't work, as the weight will return as soon as the diet time ends.

And the same with exercise, you have to find something that works for your body.

Unless like me at the moment, you have been put on a specific diet for medical reasons, smaller portions, less processed food, less takeaways and drink lots of water will really make a difference.

I dropped a clothes size in a year while still having pizza, chips, chocolate, Burger King, pringles, Hagen Daz, full fat milk , cheese and yogurt and real butter. I just ate them less, once a month instead of weekly, while decreasing the ready meals from Tesco and M&S and increasing fresh fruit, fresh vegatables and homemade food.
 
Todays lunch, forgot to take a photo

Low Carb, Low Fat Scrambled Eggs
2 large field mushrooms
2 eggs
1 tablespoon low fat milk
1/4 tomato , chopped
Fresh spinach leaves
Ground black pepper
Cayenne pepper

Method
  1. Leave the field mushrooms whole and cook on George Foreman grill, no added oil, just as they are.
  2. Crack the eggs into a microwave bowl, whisk
  3. Add in milk and seasonings
  4. Cook eggs in microwave, time depends on machine. Mine took 1 and half minutes, I put it on for 30 seconds at a time and stirred after each 30 seconds.
To Assemble
  1. Put the field mushrooms on a plate
  2. Cover with fresh spinach leaves
  3. Top with scrambled egg
  4. Garnish with a sprinkle of cayenne pepper
 
Hi everyone. I just found this thread and thought I'd chime in. I'm retired and I've been on Weight Watchers for 22 months now. I'm down 102 pounds plus the 30 I lost before joining WW. I have 23 pounds to go to reach my goal and then the hard work of maintaining starts. I generally start the day by sauteing leeks, mushrooms, shaved brussels sprouts, campari tomatoes and fresh spinach. I add some Mediterranean sea salt and olive mix, some Mediterranean herb mix (has oregano rosemary, thyme, savory, etc.), tumeric, red pepper flakes and black pepper. The salt and herb mixes are from Especias del Sol and I got them both at Home Goods. Once the veggies cook down a bit I stir in one egg scrambled and a little Kraft fat free shredded cheddar. I have this with a clementine and a piece of light rye or other light bread. I usually have a banana when I get up at 6:30 and eat breakfast around 9.

Edited to add: I saute the veggies in about a teaspoon of olive oil.
Hi! I’ve been reading this thread too. It’s very motivating! I’m on WW too. On and off for years, but recommitted in November 2019 and am down 15 pounds. Sooo slow, but I’m not giving up up. I have 15 pounds to go.
 
This is the meal planner I have come up with for my low fat diet. Its based on the diet sheet of foods I can and cannot have from the hospital and I have adapted and changed recipes and items I used to eat.
I only eat the items and foods listed, toast and bread have no butter or spread, mince is cooked with no added oil, chicken and beef grilled grilled on a George Foreman grill with no added oil. No alcohol either.

I also drink 2 litres of water every day, 1 coffee in the morning and no soda

Low Fat Meal Planner.jpg
 
Hi everyone. I hope I can join in here.

I'm not trying to lose weight, but I am trying to maintain a long-term healthy lifestyle. I also am hoping to compete again in the future - years ago, I was a physique competitor, and I want to return to the stage at least once. That is a little while off, though. Right now the focus is just taking care of myself. I unfortunately have many bad diseases in my genetics (my dad had heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, and colon cancer) so I am trying to reduce my risk for those things by eating well and staying active.

On food:
I'm currently on a 30/40/30 protein/carb/fat split (in percentage of diet). I was never much of a carb person (I don't like bread, I don't like potatoes, I don't like pasta). But I find if I go too low in carbs, my performance in the gym suffers. 40% seems to be a happy zone.

I switched out soda for seltzer water years ago and have never looked back. I initially only did this for money reasons, as I found I was spending an outrageous amount on soda and only drinking 2-3 sips out of a can. After I made the switch, though, I found soda wasn't as satiating as I thought it was.

My layout for meals is:
-Protein (whole eggs, chicken breast, beef sirloin, wild caught salmon, sea bass, tempeh)
-Complex carb (oatmeal, rice, sweet potato) - first half of meals of the day
-At least one cup green vegetables (broccoli, zucchini, brussel sprouts, green beans, artichoke) - for half of the day's meals, this should be dark leafy greens (spinach, kale, dandelion greens, beet greens)
-At least one cup colorful vegetables (all other vegetables - mushrooms, squash, bell peppers, tomatoes, carrots, eggplant, olives, radishes)
-A quarter cup of fruit, first half of meals of the day, try for each to be a different color (an example day: half a peach with breakfast, blueberries with lunch, and cherries with a snack)
-A small portion of healthy fat (this often coincides with another group - whole eggs, salmon, and olives, for example, all provide healthy fats on their own; I also have a little bit of nut butter with my post-workout snack, and lightly dress dark leafy greens with EVOO)

It probably looks complicated, but it really isn't. It's actually simplified meal planning for me, and helps me get a wide variety of nutrients.

I really like Pinterest for recipes. I have a lot of good snack recipes; some of my personal favorites:
Apple & nut butter "sandwiches" - apple slices with a layer of nut butter, sandwiched. Probably my favorite snack, because it has protein and healthy fat from the nut butter, carbs from the apple, and the light sweetness and saltiness combo kills any craving I might have. Also super easy, no cooking, little clean up, so it's great when I don't feel like making anything.
Boiled egg with raw veggies
Sliced meat with fruit

I also have a ton of sheet pan recipes for actual meals, because I love how simple they are. I'm not sure if links are allowed here, but if they are, I'd be happy to share some of my collected recipes.
 
Sooo I love sheet pan dinners because they're very easy. Everything on one pan. Some of my favorites:

Chicken Bruschetta: https://www.loulougirls.com/2019/09/chicken-bruschetta-sheet-pan-dinner.html
Honey Mustard Salmon: https://www.cookingclassy.com/sheet-pan-honey-mustard-salmon-rainbow-veggies/
Lemon Chicken Thighs: https://prepdish.com/recipes/lemony-sheet-pan-chicken-thighs-w-roasted-vegetables/ (this one is nice and simple, and mixes up the protein by using chicken thighs - I don't make a habit of chicken thighs, but they're nice to mix it up sometimes)

Also some quick and easy snack ideas I use:
https://gatheringdreams.com/lunch-box-ideas-for-adults/https://www.familyfreshmeals.com/2019/02/weight-watchers-zero-point-lunchbox.html
And an easy breakfast that can be prepped in bulk for several days:
https://www.withpeanutbutterontop.com/egg-muffin-breakfast-meal-prep/
 
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