[bryan123]

Hello... I am 20 year old male. I weigh 168.5lbs. i wanna go down to at least 160lbs. What foods or diet should i go on?

I love to walk but not really on the running side..

Questions:

Is there a printable food diary that i can print out and keep like a weekly log of the foods i eat and like whats in them?

What else should i know? (Theres probably lots lol)

EDIT: I dont like the following foods:
Spinach
Mayo
Zucchini
Squash
Sweet potatoes
Yams

[CovLad98]

Hey Bryan, i know this isnt quite what you wanna hear but it's just a suggestion really, have you thought about packing on the muscle and replacing the fat? weight training can be very fun and exciting

Here is a List of food i like to enjoy while weight training/weightloss

Proteins:
Chicken (skinless breast)
Turkey
Lean beef cuts
eggs
Tuna
salmon
Greek yogurt (nonfat) is great as well
Veal (if it's your thing)

Carbs: - Anything green -
broccoli <-- the best in my opinion
iceberg lettuce <-- Believe it or not basic beginner lettuce, haha
cabbage
peppers

Etc, anything really that you can pluck out the ground.
You could also try

Quinoa
Nuts,seeds,
Bananas <-- really good for your exercise sessions

you also need to get a health amount of fats in your diet

Fats:
Fish,Nuts,oils*,Avocados are all healthy fats

Oils*
Olive Oil
Fish Oil
Coconut Oil
Flax seed Oil

All in all this is a very very messy list i've given you and there's plenty more you can enjoy while you're losing weight, the main thing about foods and losing weight is getting your micro nutrients but cutting back on the calorie intake if you do this you will lose weight.

[bryan123]

Okay guys i gotta admit something here first off...

I have no idea what calories are... Well i know what they are but i mean what do they mean with the dieting and stuff. I dont know what empty calories are or why burning calories is good... i dont even know how many calories i should be eating and anything like that... Lol its funny that i dont know this......

If someone can break it down easy for me... sorry........ By the way my mom doesnt eat seafood and she really does not like the smell of it if i cook it in the house. The only time i get to eat seafood basically is when we go out to eat.

[kelijpa]

You could check out myfitnesspal, they figure out for you how many calories you should take in to meet your goal based on some questions.

You can google printable food diary to get some ideas for what you'd like to use.

To answer a couple of your questions, basically to lose weight you need to expend more calories than you take in, if you take in more calories than you use you'll gain weight. The term empty calories usually refers to calories that add no nutritional value, like candy or alcohol.

Best of luck to you

[Becky Quilts]

Originally Posted by bryan123

Okay guys i gotta admit something here first off...

I have no idea what calories are... Well i know what they are but i mean what do they mean with the dieting and stuff. I dont know what empty calories are or why burning calories is good... i dont even know how many calories i should be eating and anything like that... Lol its funny that i dont know this......

If someone can break it down easy for me... sorry........ By the way my mom doesnt eat seafood and she really does not like the smell of it if i cook it in the house. The only time i get to eat seafood basically is when we go out to eat.

Honestly, when I was your age, I could just cut out the junk for a short time and lose the extra. What do I mean by junk? Chips, "full calorie" soda pop, stuff you already know is junk food. 8 pounds isn't a whole lot for a young guy to lose.

If you want to be more measured and serious, or if you want to build more muscle, there are certainly more structured approaches. Or, if you really want to cut more directly. But, IMO, if you don't have to sweat it too hard, then that is a better way to go.

If you want to just plain learn more, that is a good idea. Learning about the food pyramid will give you a good basic understanding of nutrition (what foods are considered protein or carbohydrate, that type of thing). The plate model is a good, low-sweat way to go: 1/4 of your plate protein, 1/4 carb, 1/2 veggies. My sister was prescribed this for her 100+ loss, but it's easy enough for anyone to follow.

[Munchy]

If you want a really basic understanding of what calories are and why they matter, check this link.

How Calories Work

I agree with the others that small changes will likely get you where you want to be, and that having a good understanding of food and nutrition is always a positive.