A week ago I started my workout with a personal trainer at LA Fitness. My goal is to drop 50 pounds or more. What kind of food should I eat? I don’t want to be stuck eating just salads; I want variety in my diet but I need examples of how to make healthy choices. Please, advise. – Rosana
There are many things that you can include while still losing weight! Most items people regularly eat have a healthy version or lighter calorie alternative. It might just mean switching to whole grain or sprouted bread, skipping the sauces or trading in smoothies for flavored water. Here is an example of a lower calorie alternative for tacos: Higher calorie option – ground beef tacos in fried shells; Lower calorie option – grilled chicken soft tacos. Though watching your calorie intake is important, if you do eat something energy-rich, aka high in calories, just scale down the portion size and balance your intake the rest of the day. – Debbie J., MS, RD
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Yes, there is no need to eat just salads and greens, basis of a diet should be plenty of lean protein food like chicken breast, white fish, egg whites etc.
Plus for carbs you can make a tasty basmati rice or baked sweet potatoes with side cottage cheese, you just have to be creative and eating healthy can be very very tasty!
Try looking at Pinterest boards!!! They have so many healthy options, you’ll have so much variety for healthy eating!
Eating salads caused me to lose no weight because I was always hungry. Good comments above. I increased my chicken, whole grains, and exercise – restricted myself to 1800 calories a day (net) and lost 20 pounds in six months. I would lose the taco shells all together and just eat the filling. Even the soft shells are high in calories and it is hard to find whole grain.
I suggest going totally plant based. Skip all meat and dairy and minimize your grains to whole grains. Find out what your triggers are that cause you to over eat. Is it grains? Then eliminate them altogether. Eat 1 to 2 oz of nuts & seeds every day. Lots of greens such as spinach, kale, chard, romaine lettuce. You can be healthy and not eat animal protein. The weight will fall off with little exercise. You can’t get fat eating plants. The goal is 1lb cooked and 1lb raw vegetables a day. Check out dr. fuhrman on line. You won’t be sorry!
Great input from these 4 above. Some drastic changes are easier to make short-term, while other eating habits that you can adjust will stay with you throughout your progress. Be careful of restaurant’s ‘vegetarian’ menu items as they could be loaded with cheese/cream/butter. Get full on produce and you won’t go wrong.
Are there rules for resting in between weight sets (I’m using the machines)? I need to lose 50 pounds and to tone up.