I'm a 21 year-old girl and I'm overweight (weight around 200 pounds). I just have a really huge problem with food in general. I feel really limited in the food I eat, the food that I like. I'm extremely difficult when it comes to eating, I just don't eat everything at all. I find that I'm always eating the same thing, there are not a lot of food that I like and I think I'd be able to count them on my fingers. I just can't seem to have a complete meal. and my taste are really weird.
Here's what my meals in a typical journey consists of:
morning: sometimes skipped, when I do eat it's either pancakes (3 big greasy pancakes) or sugary cereals...most of the time i do not eat
dinner: mashed potatoes only (or with peas) or fries or brocoli alone, pastas ( i am a extremly huge fan of pasta..i eat them white and a whole plate of them) + a dessert
between dinner and supper: i eat a whole lot of sugary snacks, empty calories: ex. a chocolate bar, popsicles, sugary drinks
supper : one of the things i wrote at dinner.. + a dessert (pudding)
before going to bed: popcorn, sugary cereal
I, maybe once every two weeks eat either chicken or fish but I never never eat red meat. im just pretty much always hungry and never full.
It's crazy, I just do not know what to do. I dont know anything about diet either but i just dont want to keep gaining weight. i just cant afford it.
please any help you could offer me would be appreciated.
Hi Kaytlin!
I had similar eating habits until about three years ago. I hated all veggies (seriously- ALL veggies) and never ate breakfast. I totally changed by experimenting with different dishes that gradually got healthier and healthier as I developed a taste for raw foods. I don't know if this is the kind of thing that works for everyone, or just me, but even though I have a huge problem with portion control, at least I'm overeating healthy stuff now!
But the reason you're always hungry seems very obvious to me... there is NO protein in your diet! I'm a vegitarian too (you almost are if you only eat meat every two weeks) so it's important for us to look for other sources of protein.
Beans, nuts, whole grains... try to get more nutrients into your body, even if you have to start out taking vitamin supplements. Remember that a HEALTHY diet is the most important part of losing wieght- plus, even if it's hard at first, you're gonna feel GREAT!!!
I hope my rambling helps, if not then just ignore me. I wish you the best of luck!!!
Hmmmm. Most of the things you're eating are the very things every diet or healthy way of eating eliminates or reduces severely. And those white starchy foods and sugars trigger hunger. I'm not seeing any daily protein, whole grains, LF/NF dairy or much in the way of vegetables and fruit. You may want to consider an eating plan that discusses a balanced serving of different kinds of foods. The ones that come to my mind are Weight Watchers, which has Guidelines for Healthy Living, and South Beach. I'm sure others do as well. You could take a look at the Forums for those here to get an idea of how these work, but you would want to get the materials for WW or read the book for SB to really understand how they work. Look around the forums also for healthy recipes. To make permanent change, you need to find something that works for you.
In the meantime - you want to start adding in vegetables - anything you add will be an improvement, lean protein (beans, chicken, fish, lean cuts of beef - not fried, limited amounts of nuts), oatmeal (instead of sugary cereal), 100% whole grain bread, low-fat, fat free milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, hard cheese, fruits. Maybe start with changing one thing. If you're limited in what you like to eat, try one new thing and see if you can like it. Replace those sugary drinks with water if you can. All that white starch and sugar will make you fat, ruin your health and eventually kill you.
You're on the right path by coming here and asking. Obviously you've signed up for the fact that you need to make changes. Welcome. You can change this.
I notice there is a good amount of sugar in your diet too, which can make you feel hungry a short time after you eat it and/or make you want to pig out on more stuff. I'm weak when it comes to sugar but I do notice that once I start eating sugar it's an uphill battle all day. It also makes you feel tired. Moony is so right about the protein too, just a little beans or dairy or something at meals might help the situation out.
I agree with the others. By looking at your diet, it looks as though your diet is 90% simple carbohydrates. This is not only unhealthy, but it also is a way of life that is going to leave you CONSTANTLY hungry...no matter how much you eat.
There are three main things in food, that the calories are made up of: protein, carbohydrates, and fat. Your body needs a balance of all three of these things.
Since you explained that you don't know much about dieting, I will break down some things for you in simple terms.
Protein mainly comes from meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and soy.
Fat comes from either fat that is naturally present in meats, from nuts, or from oils.
Carbohydrates are the energy sources that come from grains (oatmeal, breads, pastas), sugars, fruits, and veggies.
Some foods are a balance of more than one thing-liek nuts are a balance of protein/fat, and dairy products have good amounts of both carbs/protein.
Each does different things-protein feeds your muscles. It also takes longer to digest, so it keeps you satisfied longer. Your organs need fat, and so does your skin, hair, etc. Carbohydrates provide energy.
Now for the other stuff:
There are GOOD (complex) carbohydrates...and there are bad (simple/refined) carbohydrates. Your diet consists mainly of bad carbohydrates. Good carbs take longer to digest, and are much more nutritious: fruit, vegetables, brown rice, whole grain bread, whole grain pasta, oatmeal, etc. Simple/refined carbs have little nutrition...and have too much sugar in them: white flour, white pasta, white rice, donuts/cakes/pastries/candy/popsicles/kiddie cereals etc. Simple/refined carbs also digest much faster...leaving you hugry sooner. This is going to be double if you aren't eating much protein at all.
Your diet, at this point, is a downward spiral. You are eating in a way that is not feeding your muscles, keeping you satisfied, and in a way that is actually making you hungrier.
My recommendations:
~Cut out the sugary and refined things-the popsicles, drinks, pancakes, etc. If you choose to eat cereal in the morning, and this is RECOMMENDED rather than eating nothing-choose cereals with less sugar, and that are whole grain. Cheerios, Bran Flakes, Kashi, Frosted Mini-Wheats, a lot of them come to mind.
~Instead of eating chicken or fish once every two weeks, you need to eat a protein source DAILY. Have a small amount of chicken or fish with lunch and dinner, or some other protein source. (Nuts, eggs, soymilk, yogurt, SOMETHING.)
~Switch to whole grains. You mentioned that you like pasta...I highly recommend Barilla Plus pasta. It is made from whole grains, and legume powder (instead of semolina powder) and has a lot more protein. It tastes like regular pasta-but is much healthier. When I started using it, my family didn't even notice.
~Get more fruit and vegetables in your diet. Not only because they are complex/good carbs...but because they provide all of the vitamins and health benefits. Some fruits and veggies protect against premature aging, some reduce risks of cancers, they do SO much for your body. Try a new fruit every week, you will be surprised at what you like.
One of the reasons that you are so hungry all of the time, is because even though you are eating a lot of food, and a lot of calories-your body is starving. It is getting very little nutrition-usable nutrients that it needs. You are not getting the vitamins, minerals, and vitamins in your diet.
huge problem with food
