[ChubbyMom75]

so, i have recently started taking phentermine and hired a trainer to teach me what i need to be doing at the gym. I have a couple of issues here. One is that the phentermine makes me not hungry at all and my trainer is hesitant to let me work out when he sees (on myfitnesspal) that i haven't really eaten anything that day. I want to be able to eat right so that i can get a good workout in without making myself sick. Second, i have spent quite a bit of time researching menus and meal plans, but what one website says is the right stuff, another website debunks and says not to eat that. I also have a hard time preparing a 'meal' that is easy and quick. i obviously can't afford a personal chef and the meal plans online are mostly unnecessarily complicated. I need a meal plan that i can keep up with being a single working mother (i do a lot of volunteer work, too so - yea, im busy). this whole weight loss thing is hard enough without the added stresss of planning an elaborate menu.

[Penny105]

First of all, congrats on starting to make a change!

As far as meal plans go, I also prefer simple (and do not have a personal chef, sadly). I calorie count, so I can eat whatever so long as I only eat so much of it. I do however focus on whole foods. But it does make things easier in that I can have any kind of food I want, basically. It takes a bit to get used to calorie counting, but eventually it's pretty easy (and I use an app).

A lot of websites contradict each other about healthy meal plans. They all have their own views and agendas, pretty much. Pick something that seems interesting, or that might work for you, and go with that for now. A lot of different methods work to lose weight. Avoid the complicated meals, trust me. Pick stuff that's tasty and simpler. Many regular recipes can be altered to be healthier, too (leaner meat, more veggies, low fat ingredients, etc.). For example, tonight for dinner I did rice stir fry with leftover rice (you can make batches and freeze the rice fine, btw), peas, egg, horseradish, and leftover chicken (from taco night). Easy - took 10 minutes start to finish.

If you want to do all whole foods and no shortcuts, that'll be harder. But basically everything is about the prep - shopping at the least, and then cutting/chopping, cooking, etc. There are a lot of good tips on this forum, too. Check out archives. And there are whole threads with recipes that members like. I know there are some in the calorie counter section.

Good luck!