Started a Diet Yesterday, Some Questions

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Dave4086

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Hey folks, I'm a 20 Yr. old male right now. 6'2" about 220lbs. I have fluctuated between 190 and 220 for about 3 years now, mainly due to high school sports. Now that I'm in college and not playing any, I've put on a little weight. I think my goal is to be around 180, I am a large framed guy and any less would probably look weird on me.

Anyway, I started yesterday with a "diet" plan which i threw together from various sources and light research. I'm going to eat 6 light meals a day, as it fits my schedule pretty well as it is. Here is what I'm shooting for most every day.

Breakfast -1 Bowl of Total and some V8 fruit juice ~ 200 calories for all
Snack - A banana
Lunch - Chick Fil-A 8 Pc. Nuggets (Have to eat on campus) about 300 calories
Workout roughly 3 hours later for about an hour (Cardio 25 minutes, weights 35ish)
Snack- EAS lite bar (190 calories, 15g protein)
Supper - This is the hard part for me... all I have at home is Hot Pockets, Lean Cuisine and Hot Dogs. I usually opt for the Lean Cuisine because of the low calories, but I feel like they aren't that healthy at all.
Snack- A bowl of Reeses Puffs cereal (about 200 cals)


Now I know this is a rough diet, and highly unprofessional... but with my schedule It is hard to eat healthy. I've been working out for about a month with no real diet in place, and I have already felt better and tightened up my stomach and arms. I've been drinking a lot of water also.

Sorry if this is a little long winded, but I am basically needing suggestions/tips on whether or not I need more calories or should change something.
 
Is that all you eat? Seems like incredibly low calories to me, assuming your estimates are correct. How may calories are in the Lean Cusines? I'm going to take a rough guess and say it's like 400 calories. Might be even less, who knows. If that's true then your total daily intake is around the 1500-1600 cal mark... which is way too low for someone of your height and current weight. Hell, those are the calories I'm eating right now and I'm a 5'5" girl (I'm also very hungry becuse these are dieting numbers :( ).

You want to lose weight, but you still have to provide your body with enough energy to keep it out of a starvation state. If I multiply your current body weight by 12, it looks like this: 12 x 220 = 2640. A general rule for fat loss is taking your current weight and multiplying it by 12-13 to estimate a caloric intake that will make you lose fat. If you have sufficiant fat to lose you could even use 10-11. So let's do the very low end of that:

10 x 220 = 2200 So even at this point you're still eating too little.


Are these foods all that you have access to on your campus? Your diet is missing fruits and vegetables, and higher quality sources of protein and healthy fats. It looks very processed at the moment, not what we want to fuel our bodies with. Does your campus have any salad bars or healthier alternatives you can grab some food?

Also, are you living in a dorm? What are the restrictions you have in regards to cooking tools?

Hope I've helped you a bit. I'm a noob to this forum :)
 
Ok I've decided it would be pointless to try this while still eating garbage that I used to, so I'm going to go to the grocery store and pick up several different types of lean meat... I can grill some fish and chicken for supper. Also I will pick up some brown rice as I know it is a lot better for me than white. As for vegetables... I really can only stomach lettuce and spinach. Tomatoes literally make me gag unless they are diced up and in some sort of mixture.

I'm going to change my breakfast to be a little larger... adding an egg and a banana to go along with my cereal. I can up my protein intake at lunch if I get 12 piece nuggets instead of 8. And my snacks will be staying the same. After it is all said and done I should be pulling in about 2000 calories a day.

Oh, and a question about sodium. Is a high sodium intake jeopardizing to weight loss? I hear if you take in more sodium you retain more fluids, but I don't even remember who said that.
Any info would be greatly appreciated.
 
The nuggets you are eating have over 1000 mg of sodium and thats just for 8 of them. :(

Read that grocery list i posted to get ideas and if you dont like many veggies, how about fruit??? Apples, oranges, peaches, plums, grapes etc.
 
Unfortunately the chicken nuggets are pretty much the only thing I can eat for that meal as I have fifteen minutes to not only eat but also get to my next class. If I watch my sodium closely the rest of the day will it be ok? Also I'm eating a banana at breakfast, and apple for a snack and then some mixed nuts( unsalted) and cheese for a later snack . Thanks for the help so far, hopefully I can fine tune this a little more .
 
Can you pack a lunch and bring it with you? A whole wheat wrap with tuna or grilled chicken, stuffed with spinach and other veggies, and maybe some hummus spead on it. Wouldn't take long to scarf down in between classes. Are you allowed to eat during class? I'm always snacking on something during lectures.
 
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I was actually thinking about packing a lunch... That would make it a lot easier to stick to a healthy plan.

Some of my classes I can eat in, but I have one in a computer lab where no food or drink is allowed (I always sneak water in though). It still shouldn't be a problem to start eating during class.

Also, i feel like I am eating too many carbs... Even though they are good carbs from fruit and such. How many carbs compared to grams of protein should I be watching for? I read somewhere try to keep protein 2:1 but that isn't the easiest thing to do.
 
Well, the general rule of thumb is to get in around 1gram of protein per pound of bodyweight. Some people will want to eat more then this, closer to 1.1-1.2 g/lb if trying to gain muscle. I actually eat a bit less at 0.8g/lb. Basically, you make sure you're getting in enough protein, and then you decide what mix of carbs and fats works best for you to make up the rest of your caloric intake. Remember that protein and carbs contain 4 cals per gram, and fat provides 9 cal per gram.

Carbs are not evil. They also won't make you fat. If they're from a good, whole grain or fruit/veggie source and are full of fiber I see no problem with them. They're a macronutrient, just like protein and fat. Your body needs all three. I personally eat higher on the carb end and lower on the fat end, simply because I find the fiber keeps me fuller and more satisfied. There are others who will feel the opposite: fats keep them feeling full and satisfied. As long as your're getting in all 3 nutrients, the ratios don't matter a whole lot as long as protein is accounted for, IMO.


And packing a lunch and snacks is the way to go. Healthier AND cheaper than buying on campus. Us students have to save money where we can, right? :D
 
When you say V8 fruit juice... Is it that V8 fusion? I don't know how much sodium it contains, but I just double checked a 12oz can of regular V8 in my Fridge, and it contains 690mg of sodium in one can! My dad drinks the stuff, honestly I've never tried it and the high sodium is one reason I plan not to right now. But- I've also got to watch my sodium intake, when I saw my cardiologist last year he told me to cut back on salts to help lower my BP as it was a tad higher than it should've been. And since I have to see him at the end of this month, I'm really watching my sodium intake right now.

What veggies do you know you can't stomach down? I've done my best to swap my snacks with things like apples/bananas, baby carrots, snap peas, etc. It's better than snacking on cookies, fast food, chips, etc like my friends do :jumping:
If you haven't tried out that calorie calc. do it! I'm 21, 5'3 and about 128 lb, after plugging all that into the calc. I found out I need to be taking in a hair over 2200 calories a day!

I'm new here too, and am still breaking my habits of eating unhealthy snacks, but as time goes on it becomes much easier! Good luck with your weight loss!
 
Doing well

I think your doing well. If your feeling better, then things are getting better. Just try and avoid the junk food as much as possible. Search the web on tips for increasing your metabolism as well.
 
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