[shorty21]

I have just started counting my calories. I usually eat a serving of special k for breakfast with some kind of fruit. For a snack I have a yogurt. For lunch I eat a Lean Cuisine. Then I have a piece of fruit before dinner. And another Lean Cuisine for dinner. I drink nothing but water. I also exercise at least every other day. I try to burn at least 200-500 calories exercising. Is this a good plan. I've been doing it for 2 weeks today and have taken off 10lbs. I track what I eat at Fitday and I hardly get to 1000calories most of the time.

[Yogini]

You'll see all over this board that it is suggested to not eat under 1200 calories a day. It's good that you are eating fruit and grains...have you thought of trying to add in more fresh foods like salads and steamed veggies or soups? Eating from boxes can be more convinient (especially for portion control) but it's expensive and not as nutritious as fresh food oftentimes...You seem really dedicated! Keep reading the posts here and you'll do great!

[ambabs]

Your off to a great start but I think your program needs a little tweaking. Yep agreeing with pp about a minimum of 1200 cals a day, unless under doctors ok. I'm not saying you always have to eat that much because there are many occasions that I don't but I try to stay at least above 1200.

Box meals are a great resource when you don't have alot of time and you don't want to mess with figuring out the nutritional info for a meal but if you want the change to be permanent you need to learn to do for yourself instead of buying a frozen dinner. You need to learn its still ok to eat real food otherwise even if you lose weight your gonna either pack it back on when you go off the boxes or you'll be eating frozen dinners the rest of your life. I'm not saying I don't eat frozen dinners because I do on occasion but I save those for nights when dh and the kids are eating something that I don't want to have to figure out the nutritional info or if they are eating something that would seriously put me over on my calorie budget.

Good luck I'm sure you'll learn and you'll do real well around here.

[GonnaLooseitagain]

I agree also your off to a good start, but you should be getting at least 1200 cals/day. I do the boxed meals often also because they are easy and quick, but you should be adding a salad or something else "fresh". Even if it is just breakfast time getting more fresh foods.

Welcome to the calorie counters, post away we're happy you're here.

[shorty21]

Thanks for the replies. I am going to start adding a fresh salad or other fresh foods in with my diet, so hopefully I should start getting up to 1200 calories a day.

[Betty925]

That is exactly what I have been doing but some days I get more calories than I should. They say it is not good to go below 1200 calories but I do sometimes. I also do not get enough exercise as I should. I have lost 22 pounds so far. I have found that I can eat anything I want as long as I count calories. Sometimes I choose a high calorie and "not good for me" food over the better ones but at least I don't feel deprived.

[Heather]

I agree that you should try to get in more whole foods and less convenience, but I think you should be eating even more than 1200/day -- possibly quite a bit more.

If it's true that no one should eat less than 1200/day, then that rule will apply most to the thinnest people (who need fewer calories to just exist). The more you weigh, the more calories you need. At over 200 pounds you should be able to lose at WELL OVER 1200. What's more, you may be doing yourself a disservice by eating so little for several reasons.

1) Are you doing this for life? Can you eat that few calories day in and day out and be satisfied?
2) if you're already at the "bottom" what will you do after you have lost and your weight loss stalls? You'll have nowhere to go.

Is the point to lose weight as quickly as possible? Or is the point to build good habits so that you are HEALTHY and KEEP the weight after you lose it?

If you want to be healthy, I would recommend you start writing down EVERYTHING you eat (fitday or nutridiary are good options, or even paper to start) and see how many calories YOU need to lose at a reasonable clip (a couple pounds a week is usually recommended). It might take several weeks to figure this out, but it may be the best thing you can do for yourself.

Metabolism is a big issue here -- if yours is slow, you will not be able to eat as much without gaining. (and if I understand the literature, eating too little may also help slow your metabolism, which just makes things worse (but don't quote me on that). Exercise is supposed to help increase metabolism (especially weight training). So, if you're like many people who weigh over 200 pounds, you can probably lose weight eating something closer to 2000 calories/day than to 1500 if you exercise -- and be healthier to boot.

Of course everyone is different, so you need to find what works for you. And I know that what I said may contradict what others think; I'm basing this on what I've read -- a lot of it here at 3fc.

[NowOrNever!]

I totally agree with Wyllen's advice--you need to up those calories! I think you are going to plateau rather quickly at the calorie limit you've set for yourself...OR you're going to find yourself slumped over your favorite piece of exercise equipment because you keep running out of gas and can't figure out what's happening.

With the great commitment you've shown so far, a little more knowledge will probably get you WAY down the road