How does this sound for a meal plan?

[zachiphus]

6:00AM- Oatmeal or healthy cereal + fruit

9:00AM- Mixed veggies or fruit

12:00PM- Soup + sandwhich or noodles, something between 300-400 cals

3:00PM- A healthy snack(need ideas)

6:00PM- Michelinas frozen dinner or w/e I can come up with, also about 300-400 cals

 

Im wondering for fruits, are canned fruits ok? I know canned peaches have a lot of sugar, but maybe its just all the syrup that covers it.

 

What I am trying to accomplish is to get back down to 170 lbs(im 180 right now), mainly to look better and to help me on my fitnes tests. What are some other healthy alternatives for snacks that are easy to make/or not prepare at all. I only have access to a fridge and microwave not a stove or anything. I don't get many chances to actually cook.

 

I am doing lots of cardio also, 30-45 minute runs mon, wed, fri, and interval training tuesday and thursday.

 

Are protein shakes a healthy choice for me to go with right now? I dont plan on doing a whole lot of weight training, mainly just push ups for my fitness tests, the only thing I really do at the gym is work my abs, lats, and shoulders. I have been drinking protein shakes for a long time, and I can't really tell if they are helping me or not, Im thinking I should just stick with fruits and veggies as either my 2nd or 4th meal instead of the shakes?

 

All advice is appreciated.

[Censored]

Yup, looks fine. Add some protein to your diet either through sheakes replacing one of your meals, or add some good quality fat free Beef or Chicken to a meal.

 

Also, if you are lifting, make sure you work hard. You may actually maintain weight, but cut fat and tone up.

 

Good Luck.

[Pocket Rocket]

Im wondering for fruits, are canned fruits ok? I know canned peaches have a lot of sugar, but maybe its just all the syrup that covers it.

 

I'd avoid canned fruits, often they come with a very very unhealthy syrup that will work against you. If you do go for canned fruit, try find those that are conserved in their own juices (with nothing else added). I'd also be careful of consuming vast amounts of fruit. Although they are healthy, they do contain quite a bit of sugar (even if it's natural, too much is still bad for you).

 

When you try go for your '5 a day', eat more vegetables than you do fruit. Natural fruit juices only count for 1/2 a portion of fruit. Go for fruits that contain more water but with lower sugar content, like apples or watermelon. Avocado is one fruit that, although high in fat, it is fantastic. The fats are also easily digested by your body. Pomegranate is also another fruit to add to your list of superfoods.

 

I cannot emphasize how important vegetables are and how little regard people have for them. Try juice your vegetables however, it makes it easier to consume more of them. Watch out for potatoes and corn though, they digest like grains. Carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, etc also have a higher sugar content.

 

Have you thought of eating seeds during your snacks, or topping cereals with some seeds and nuts? But nuts I do not mean cashews or peanuts. Almonds are awesome, walnuts too and Brazil nuts (they contain a lot of selenium, very good but definitely not in excess). Seeds are a great snack food as they are super healthy and help tide you over for your next meal. Dried fruits are ok but I'd avoid eating too many of them - steer clear of dates though, unless you are absolutely sure they contain no sugar or syrup (which they usually do).

 

Often people make the mistake of going for foods labeled 'low fat' but what they don't realise is that a lot of these foods have their sugar content raised to make sure taste is not compromised - but excess glucose is also stored as fat as well as glycogen, so it too can work against you.

 

I know you can't really cook much where you live but try and eat as much natural food as you can, make as much as you can from scratch (make it in bulk if you have to, then freeze portions for later) and ALWAYS read the labels of pre-prepared foods you buy.Watch out for sodium, additives and sneaky things like "fructose syrup" (it's still sugar).

 

That's all the advice I can really give, hope it's of some use!

[byates5637]

Not enough protein, and dont eat frozen dinners. Get some chicken breast and brown rice, cook that up for dinner.

 

It looks like your current diet is only giving you about 1600 cal/day. If you are doing that much cardio, you should be eating at least 2200 cal/day

[zachiphus]

I understand protein builds more muscle, I was actually having 2 protein shakes a day, not including all the other meat/peanut butter etc... I was eating. I was probably taking in about 150g of protein a day.

 

I've heard a million different things about what Im supposed to do with my diet to reach the results I want. I've heard that if you want to become lean and put on more muscle take in as much protein in grams as much as you weigh in pounds to achive that. That just seems excessive....

 

Then I hear I should have 5 servings of vegetables a day, keep cheese out of my diet, etc...

 

So let me try to explain in as much detail as I can for what I want to do. I want to get down to 165-170lbs from what I am right now. Im not looking on to put on much more muscle at the moment, just trying to get slimmer, I realize that more muscle helps burn fat, but I have quite a bit of muscle especially in my legs. I don't think I need to have a significant amount of protein for every single meal.

 

My breakfast, lunch and dinner are all pretty easy to figure out. Breakfast will be oatmeal and a banana, or a good cereal with skim milk and a banana. Maybe ill do eggs instead of the fruit every once and awhile, but the cereal/oatmeal makes me feel fuller longer. Lunch will be either a PB&J or lean meat sandwhich(whole wheat, no mayo) and a soup or salad(no dressing), and dinner will be probably a pasta dish or whatever meat is available for the night, +veggies and a salad, maybe a dinner roll too. This is what is available to me from the dining facilities on base.

 

It's my meals in between that are my biggest issue. I'm just not sure what makes an easy quick meal that fits MY needs at the moment. Are protein bars a good choice? I've seen a bar that has like 30g protein and only like 3g sugar. I would absolutely love to just buy a bunch of differnet nuts, put them in a container and mix them all together and put them in a small container and save them for one of those meals. They usually run pretty pricy though from everywhere I've seen.

[now_better]

i think it looks great. the most important part of any diet plan (really, lifestyle change) is to be consistent and keep at it. that at the end of the day is what's going to make a real difference.

[ghost69]

You need protein in every meal. Muscle helps burn fat. What about tuna or white chicken? Egg whites?

 

where did you learn that?

 

 

frozen veggies are good. easy to heat up and tasty. your diet looks pretty good. i'd stay away from the michelinas though.

[NowandZen]

The thing to watch out for when eating out of the box, bag or can is the amount of sodium. You really don't need that much and your frozen dinners are full of it.

[zachiphus]

ok, so as far as veggies go, what are some that stay preserved in the fridge for quite a bit of time? I wanted to make a veggie mix with like, peppers, cucumbers, carrots, and what other veggies?

 

Frozen veggies are a good idea, i could easily get a hold of some broccoli or w/e and just microwave some for my meals.

 

Also, I've heard that protein shakes are fatty despite what they say on the label. Is this true? Unless I have one for breakfast I usually just mix 2 scoops standard whey with water which adds up to about 260 cals with 40 grams of protein. With breakfast, I use 1 scoop whey, skim milk and a banana(delicious.....)

[Pocket Rocket]

ok, so as far as veggies go, what are some that stay preserved in the fridge for quite a bit of time? I wanted to make a veggie mix with like, peppers, cucumbers, carrots, and what other veggies?

 

Root vegetables tend to keep quite well in the fridge - butternut squash (yum), sweet potatoes, parsnips, carrots, swede (I think it's called rutabaga in the US), beets, potatoes, turnips, etc

 

I'm not sure microwaving works but pulses (eg beans, chickpeas, lentils) are also great and keep for ages. Instead of microwaving them you could try and sprout them and eat them raw. They're great in salads but beware, some you can't eat raw (like red kidney beans). There are those who advocate the raw food diet where nothing needs to be cooked but it really doesn't work for some people. I guess you could try it, try and search a few recipes online, a lot of them incorporate veggies and other nutritious foods.

[Alezia]

Mmmmm.... raw chicken.

[Pocket Rocket]

Mmmmm.... raw chicken.

 

... really??

[ghost69]

Mmmmm.... raw chicken.

 

???

 

do you mean plain boiled or something? or are you trying to die?