Hello,

I am new and I am desparately looking for some help/guidance. I am 31, female, 167lbs and I need an easy non stressful plan to live healthier. I really want to be back in 130's. I feel so unhealthy right now. I have two girls. Ages 4 & 6. I am married, I am a full-time office manager. We have a family racing operation that frequents traveling, we like to go places, we have kids events and family events, plus holidays... Lets just say I'm super busy. No day is the same, very spontaneous...

I have tried to change my eating habits but I continuously revert to fast food. It's so hard to plan anything. When I try to plan for a meal plan, i get frustrated at the fact that something else takes priority. I loose focus and don't fight to figure it out I guess? Then at work (office) I hardly eat. I'm so busy there, that I'll go all day with nothing to drink! I don't eat a lot.. I just may not choose right and or in take enough water. I am looking for guidance on solving this issue and manage my weight properly.

I welcome the good/bad/ugly.. Just give it to me. I need the slap in the face and direction. I do cardio 2-3 times a week.

I've been to the dr, there isn't any medical issues. I have urticaria (skin rash from sweat but I have meds that takes care of that). Oh and my weight tends to be all in my mid section.

Thank you in advance to those who will take time to reply.

I understand feeling that you're so busy that weight just ends up taking a back seat. I just went through a particularly stressful time and I was just almost outta control. Having all that stress definitely doesn't help things, but that's all the more reason to become more self-disciplined. Quit using your busy schedule as an excuse.
Can't you bring a water bottle of some sort? I don't know what all your job entails, but there's really no reason to go without water for long periods of time. Water really helps with weight loss because often times you're thirsty instead of hungry and you don't notice. Plus y'know, you need it.
Try to start getting away from fast food. One step at a time. Bring whatever food's just lying around at home, or rather, buy stuff that you can take. For me, I take Greek yogurt and string cheese, but there's tons of other things to bring too, like fruits, cheese and crackers, peanut butter and crackers, sandwiches on whole-wheat bread, and so on. Don't worry about planning anything, just start eating better stuff. No white grains, more fruits and veggies, lean meats, all the good stuff.
Since you mentioned there's lots of travel involved, I can see restaurants being a common thing. Try to eat on the healthier side of the menus, or try not to eat so much, or both.
Try to maybe relax more. Find time to sit and literally do nothing. If you have time to exercise a bit every week, surely you can find ten to fifteen minutes or more to meditate or cool off or whatever. The exercise is good by the way. Keep that up.

And overall, don't give up. As long as you keep trying, there's no way you can't make it.

The only way I've found success is by taking the time that I do have, cooking, and freezing into portions. My freezer is full of small containers, baggies, jars, etc of healthy foods that I can grab, warm up, and go. I'm a single mom to a five year old, I have a demanding job, she has dance and girl scouts, and we are always on the go. If I didn't prep our meals ahead of time, we would be eating on the fly almost all the time.

Link to some ideas of how to plan ahead and make time work for you instead of against you.

Thank you both for replying!!! Much appreciated.

I second the idea of cooking ahead as much as possible. I spend time on weekends making an egg casserole for my breakfasts for the week, so I can grab, nuke, and eat in the morning while I'm feeding cats and getting out the door.

I also use my slow cooker a lot to cook big roasts, or a whole chicken, and then portion them up for future meals. Easy enough to heat up a portion or two, season as I like, add some veg from the freezer, and have a nice meal.

I also often bake up a tray of chicken legs or chicken thighs (they're often on deep sale). They're good cold, or easy to reheat. The meat is easy to strip from the bones to add to soups or pasta or salads. Very flexible.

We also keep meat in the freezer that's easy to cook. Bubba Burgers, turkey burgers, tilapia fillets, Boca (vegetarian) burgers... having those on hand have cut down on eating out.

It can be crazy-busy to deal with work and family and errands and life... but you CAN do it. You deserve to take the time to make sure you fuel yourself for all you have to do.

I have three young kids and a full-time job, so I know what it's like! Like the others, I spend some time each weekend prepping for the week. For example, I cook up a pound of chicken breasts many weekends. Then I can make them into a sandwich or throw them on top of a salad all week. I also wash a bunch of grapes, dry them, remove the stems, and separate them into bags. So easy to grab on the way out of the house! Or I'll boil a bunch of eggs and peel them, a great snack or part of a meal any time.

I also buy frozen meals for lunch on sale. Not always the healthiest but often a better (and cheaper) option than fast food.

I have a huge insulated lunch bag. I carry my lunch, huge jug of water, and snacks in it each day. Then when work is over, I know I have the chicken or whatever waiting for me. I've decided not to make a big deal out of dinner. There's rarely any time for a big sit-down dinner with the family during the week, so we have whatever is easy. The kids are often happy with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a side of baby carrots. Maybe not the best option but also not the worst.

I am busy and I buy pre made salads from the grocery store. That way I don't go to the fast food restaurants. Others have suggested what I do, too. Also,make one change at a time. Easier to stick to. Good luck

The freezer and the crock pot can be your two best friends! There are lots of good ideas out there for meals that you can prepare in advance (ie, chop veggies etc) Toss it all in a freezer bag and freeze. Then the night before pull it out to thaw and before you leave for work, dump it all in the crock pot. Throw together a salad and viola! Dinner is served.

Here is a page with lots of freezer meals to try

http://www.everythingmom.com/diet/ma...l-recipes.html

ETA - Pre made snack bags have been awesome for me. I hit up the bulk barn and get Almonds, walnuts, dried cranberries and pumpkin seeds and prep as many 200 cal snack bags as I can and keep them in the freezer. Its a perfect grab and go snack. I keep some in my mini fridge at work and one in my purse in case I get a bad case of the munchies when I am out and about. Way better than the chips and pop I would normally reach for.

First of all, you got this...

I am also 31, married, and work full time. My daughter is 2.5, my husband is a recovering addict and is always at AA meetings in the evenings, so I'm on duty full time.

Three things:

1. Buy a case of water. Put it under your desk. Take water to all of your meetings.
2. Food is fuel. Your life is a marathon. In order to have the energy to do it all (which you do beautifully, by the way). Every bite needs to be jam packed with vitamins, proteins, effective carbs, and so on. Believe me, once you make the switch, you'll notice the difference.
3. Make the most of each minute. When I'm chopping veggies for dinner, I'm also chopping extra for my lunch. When dinner cooks, I'm doing bath. And so on. Make mutitasking your jam.

Hooray for busy, rich lives!

I am new too but I found that it is possible to plan meals with a little help. Saving Dinner with Leanne (a web site) can help with meal planning. It can take a month but it is possible to plan meals and left overs. Flylady (another web site) might help with bits and pieces too for such a busy mom. Don't give up, you can do it!

Sounds like we have a lot in common! I'm 27, have two kids, one who is in very time consuming sports, and I work 7:30am-6pm 5-6 days a week. I also suffer chronic urticaria. I can't take any meds because I am still breast feeding the baby. I, too, carry all my weight in my middle.

I just count calories. It's what works best for my busy lifestyle right now. I can work in fast food on days I feel I have no choice (Taco Bell fresco stuff, Subway, or a happy meal from a burger place).

The biggest change I made was to stop drinking my calories. No soda, no sweet tea, just water and my morning coffee.

I have been doing exercise DVDs at night after the kids are in bed, but I am joining a gym Monday and starting The New Rules of Lifting for Women. It's only 3 days a week, and a 24 hour gym, so I feel I can fit it in with little excuse. One big huge perk of the gym for me is the tanning bed - twice a week tanning keeps my urticaria patches dry and not itchy.

I wasn't able to start everything at once, it was just too overwhelming. First I cut out liquid calories. Then, I started doing a 6 week exercise DVD program. Then after I started seeing results from that I jumped into calorie counting. I just an app on my phone, so that makes it convenient.

I stopped eating lunch. I now eat 3 high protein snacks between 11am-4pm. This was a fantastic thing for me, because it keeps me away from fast food at lunch and keeps me from eating before, or too much during, dinner. I never feel deprived. My snacks, as examples, are an apple, a Cliff bar and 1/4 bag of cashews today.

Find a small starting point, and go from there. Read about the different approaches and think about which with fit into your current lifestyle the best. You CAN do this! It doesn't have to be all at once, just baby steps in the right direction. You have to do it in a way that makes sense for your life or it will be impossible to maintain if you do reach your goal.

You need to make yourself and your health the priority.

Also, what percentage of child care/laundry/housekeeping/carpooling/cooking/etc does your husband do?

^ Yes, make time for yourself!

I'm a late 30's single Mom that also works full-time. I totally get it. My BF lives with me so I go to the gym at night after working all day. Like Nike, I just do it. Before I would come home, moan how dead I was from work and plant my @ss on the couch. That wasn't going to work. I try to go to the gym minimum 5 days a week...or I jog outside.

If you must eat out go to Subway, otherwise like someone else mentioned the premade salads at the grocery store. Some of them are very low calorie. I get a great one at Dominick's that's only about 500 cals.

I skip breakfast and don't drink enough water also but still lost. It's all about calories. You could eat once a day and blow it, lord knows I have done that many times.

Good luck! Don't give up!

Even if you find yourself eating out a lot, that doesn't mean it has to be a burger and fries. There's things with reasonable calories even at McDonalds, (grilled chicken wrap, apples, etc.)

Here are some healthy casserole recipes that you can make on the weekends.

http://www.diabeticlivingonline.com/...erole-recipes/