Dappered Weight Loss Club Anyone?

[Jrbrownie00]

Been too relaxed on my food intake, . Was down to 180, back up to 184. Trying to get back to 170 like last summer.

[idvsego]

I have struggled with an extra 5-10lbs over my comfort weight (which is probably 5lbs over my target weight) ever since I got remarried. I am not fat but am thin and carry a little belly if I dont watch it. My struggle since getting married is that my wife and her boys have super unhealthy eating habits. A lot of red meat is preferred, and carbs on carbs. Very few green. Of course, this is mostly from the teenage boys but my wife isn't opposed enough to force better choices on them.

We just moved into a neighborhood with decent health activity options. Nice trails, a serviceable gym and even kayaks on a lake. Its hard for me to stay motivated for exercise when I am eating crap though. So the reason I am here...I need some good ways to get vegetables and other healthy side options into my diet without having to cook 2 meals. Luckily I like raw or lightly cooked veggies so right now my plan is to just find things that I can take out of the fridge and eat pretty quickly. Carrots, broccoli, peppers. I dropped in here to see if anyone else had any suggestions on ways to work around multiple requirements without maintain separate menus each night. Ans no, telling them to just eat better too isnt an option.

[JBarwick]

I have struggled with an extra 5-10lbs over my comfort weight (which is probably 5lbs over my target weight) ever since I got remarried. I am not fat but am thin and carry a little belly if I dont watch it. My struggle since getting married is that my wife and her boys have super unhealthy eating habits. A lot of red meat is preferred, and carbs on carbs. Very few green. Of course, this is mostly from the teenage boys but my wife isn't opposed enough to force better choices on them.

We just moved into a neighborhood with decent health activity options. Nice trails, a serviceable gym and even kayaks on a lake. Its hard for me to stay motivated for exercise when I am eating crap though. So the reason I am here...I need some good ways to get vegetables and other healthy side options into my diet without having to cook 2 meals. Luckily I like raw or lightly cooked veggies so right now my plan is to just find things that I can take out of the fridge and eat pretty quickly. Carrots, broccoli, peppers. I dropped in here to see if anyone else had any suggestions on ways to work around multiple requirements without maintain separate menus each night. Ans no, telling them to just eat better too isnt an option.

Raw broccoli is better for you than cooked so that is a good option. It doesn't always agree with me though. We also keep a ton of frozen veggies at home which are quick to throw on the stove and warm up. Our go to's with the boys are peas, carrots, and corn. Mixed veggies are good depending on brand...some are heavy on certain veggies probably due to cost. Trader Joe's has quite a few frozen options as well.

We also always seem to have cooked sweet potato on hand which is good by itself or mixed with black beans for a veggie taco.

The 2 meals thing is not ideal so hopefully the protein is pretty plain then the sides can vary by person. This tends to be our house.

[DocDave]

Raw broccoli is better for you than cooked so that is a good option.

Be careful with broccoli....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkPL5ctFTK4

[elpenguinoloco]

I dropped in here to see if anyone else had any suggestions on ways to work around multiple requirements without maintain separate menus each night. Ans no, telling them to just eat better too isnt an option.

This has come up in a slightly different form for me with my girlfriend. My lifting program and new eating habits have coincided with her strong interest in minimizing meat consumption for environmental reasons. I applaud her efforts and would otherwise be on board, but getting ~150g protein while staying under 1900 calories AND staying mostly vegetarian is tough. Even the best plant-based proteins (lentils, chickpeas, beans, tofu) have a much higher ratio of carbs/fat to protein than lean chicken breasts or tuna.

Apart from the boring answer (we compromise), eating differently throughout the day and *not* at dinner has been the easiest. It's not a huge deal for her if I pack different lunch (tuna instead of chickpeas) or snacks (protein shake instead of granola bar), because we're usually not eating together anyway. If I do that, then by the time the evening rolls around, I have room in my macros to have a meal that's relatively carb-heavy and protein-light. Eating the same meal for dinner is more time efficient (as you mention) and much more conducive to domestic tranquility.

For you, maybe that looks like packing green salads for lunch and keeping a bag of carrots and some hummus in your work fridge? You could also work more veggies in at breakfast in an egg scramble or savory oatmeal. Might then be a little easier to stomach all those steak-and-potato dinners!

[Ron]

I've been holding steady around 194 for the last month or so. I'd rather be 183-186, but that's always been a tough weight for me to sustain.

The main reason I'm posting is because I started seeing a personal trainer a few weeks ago. I'm pushing 60 and I've lost a lot of muscle mass over the last five years after dealing with three major health issues (back surgery and heart problems). I've keep up cardio shape my whole adult hood, even with the heart issues, but not with weight training over those years.

Okay--so, I stumbled on to a personal trainer I didn't know I needed. Just got lucky. Instead of focusing on having me throw weights around like I did in my younger days, he identified a number of imbalances in my muscle structure and has me working on exercises to correct those issues while adding strength. He spends tons of time warming up my muscles with massage and stretches, and then has me do maybe just a half a dozen exercises. But the exercises seem to work every muscle in my body without straining anything.

My back is feeling some slight improvements these last couple of weeks.

Glad to hear the back is improving. When my wife and I joined the gym about a year ago they included a session with a personal trainer. She had a great personality, motivating without pushing too hard. we never pursued the potion and just wound up doing our own thing.

I'm in the same stage of my life too as far as age and losing muscle mass in the wrong spots so your post got me thinking that perhaps a personal trainer might be worth pursuing. Thanks.

[Ron]

I have struggled with an extra 5-10lbs over my comfort weight (which is probably 5lbs over my target weight) ever since I got remarried. I am not fat but am thin and carry a little belly if I dont watch it. My struggle since getting married is that my wife and her boys have super unhealthy eating habits. A lot of red meat is preferred, and carbs on carbs. Very few green. Of course, this is mostly from the teenage boys but my wife isn't opposed enough to force better choices on them.

We just moved into a neighborhood with decent health activity options. Nice trails, a serviceable gym and even kayaks on a lake. Its hard for me to stay motivated for exercise when I am eating crap though. So the reason I am here...I need some good ways to get vegetables and other healthy side options into my diet without having to cook 2 meals. Luckily I like raw or lightly cooked veggies so right now my plan is to just find things that I can take out of the fridge and eat pretty quickly. Carrots, broccoli, peppers. I dropped in here to see if anyone else had any suggestions on ways to work around multiple requirements without maintain separate menus each night. Ans no, telling them to just eat better too isnt an option.

As a vegetarian I face this issue every day. Before it was a bigger issue when both my daughters lived home. One was a vegetarian the other a carnivore with my wife in the middle. Frequently I wound up cooking two main dishes.

Now that it is mostly my wife and I it is easier. Breakfast and lunch we only eat together on the weekends so we can go our own way.
At dinner it is easy for me to substitute a non meant protein in most dishes. I tend to eat a lot of vegetables for lunch and snacks so if dinner is more protein and carbs, it isn't a big deal balancing for the day.

Salads are easy vegetarian as you can add chicken or fish as a meat protein or hummus, chickpeas, tofu, beans or a meat substitute as a protein and basically be cooking just the one meal. Same with pasta, rice, potatoes etc.

[Ron]

Bad week diet wise. Back up a pound to 170.6

I'll do better this week. Hope I don't struggle too much with the holidays this weekend.

[mebejoseph]

Glad to hear the back is improving. When my wife and I joined the gym about a year ago they included a session with a personal trainer. She had a great personality, motivating without pushing too hard. we never pursued the potion and just wound up doing our own thing.

I'm in the same stage of my life too as far as age and losing muscle mass in the wrong spots so your post got me thinking that perhaps a personal trainer might be worth pursuing. Thanks.

Thanks. Yeah, I wasn't sure about a personal trainer either and never needed one before. But I wasn't motivated to lift weights anymore. And since I started working at home a few months ago, I was worried about my lack of desire to leave the house. So, I thought a personal trainer was a good thing to try.

What impresses me about this guy is how much attention he gives to evaluating exactly what my unique needs are and creating balance and keeping good form. I've known personal trainers in the past and even dated one for a while, and this guy is different. I wouldn't know how to describe how to find someone like him in whatever area you're in, but I'll send you his website if you PM me. He might have some referrals.

[idvsego]

Some good tips in here, thanks. I work from home so you would think this would be easier but honestly, I rarely get a break so I usually end up with left overs or cold cuts. I going to start asking lunch more about me though. I think that's a good compromise.


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[DocDave]

Bad week diet wise. Back up a pound to 170.6

I'll do better this week. Hope I don't struggle too much with the holidays this weekend.

Hang in there Ron. We all have bad weeks. Hopefully this weekend went alright for you.

[Ron]

Hang in there Ron. We all have bad weeks. Hopefully this weekend went alright for you.

I appreciate the encouragement Dave. Thank you.

Wednesday is usually my weigh in day so we will see. After yesterday I will be happy if I'm the same as last week, lol.

Seriously though, I realize it's a long journey and it doesn't end once the weight is achieved although that will be an encouraging milestone for sure.

[elpenguinoloco]

I weighed in Friday and was at 176 -- no change from 2 weeks prior. There were a good number of huge surplus/indulgence days in there, but I had hoped to go down a pound or two based on the deficit I maintained the other days. This weekend did NOT help. I don't feel particularly guilty though, as holidays and enjoying food socially with people you care about is important.

I have resolved to be a little more rigid about tracking, increase cardio a little, and maybe lower my calories further. Determined to get to 20lb overall, hopefully in the next week or two!

[Ron]

I weighed in Friday and was at 176 -- no change from 2 weeks prior. There were a good number of huge surplus/indulgence days in there, but I had hoped to go down a pound or two based on the deficit I maintained the other days. This weekend did NOT help. I don't feel particularly guilty though, as holidays and enjoying food socially with people you care about is important.

I have resolved to be a little more rigid about tracking, increase cardio a little, and maybe lower my calories further. Determined to get to 20lb overall, hopefully in the next week or two!

I agree too weeks with indulgences and zero weight gain is actually a positive thing especially when it is due to indulgences with family and friends.

20 lbs is a big deal. You'll get there.

After see myself in photos I have determined to devote a lot more effort to my abs. It would the cheapest thing I can do to look better although one of the hardest.

[DocDave]

After a weekend of Easter bunny chocolates, more chocolate Easter eggs than I can count, multiple glasses of beer, not to mention eating and eating some more, I'm WAY up on my weight. 183.8 LBS this morning. So not good.