I haven't eaten dinner yet and I feel like I have already had way too much food today... and I am still starving... my stomach is actually grumbling... any suggestions on my menu for the day to help alleviate this... am I following the SBD properly?... here is my day so far...

7 a.m. - 2 egg omelet with mushrooms and artichokes, tea with milk and sweetner

9:45 a.m. - 11:15 a.m. - 30 mins elliptical, 60 mins weights, 4 cups of water

11:30 a.m. - 1 cup plain yogurt, 2 slices peameal

1 p.m. - leaf lettuce with light feta cheese and greek dressing (no sugar)

1:45 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. - 45 minute bike ride with fiance

2:30 p.m. - 4 slices of over roast turkey breast from deli, 1 oz of cheese, 2 large glasses of crystal light with sparkling water

4:30 p.m. - 3 celery sticks with hummus, 2 slices of peameal, 2 cups of water

Thanks in advance for your help!

Holly Marie

Holly, check out www.fitday.com

According to your weight and activity level you need a specific number of calories. It doesn't look bad to me!

Holly, I'd say that you aren't eating nearly enough and you don't have enough vegetables. Your salad at lunch was way too tiny...the feta is fine in small quantities and has some protein, but nothing like lean meat or beans would. Check out the "best veggies" thread for info on how to pick more nutritional veggies. They not only will make you more healthy, but they will fill you up more. Your breakfast was good, and though they need more veggies, your snacks are fine, but you need a much more substantial lunch. For lunch today, I had homemade chicken tenders (a breast's worth) with blue cheese dip (leftovers from dinner last night) and 1 cup of broccoli. Tomorrow I'll have a leftover steak sandwich from tonight's dinner and a cup of coleslaw. If I need to, I supplement my lunch with vegetarian refried beans mixed with a little red-fat cheese and salsa.

You can do this hon...your body is trying to tell you that it needs more filling veggies and more food. Fitday can help verify this.

I read what you ate and thought: "that's too little!"

It was the lunch that caught my eye, yogurt and then a leafy salad. Like Laurie said add good quality food such as beans or tuna to the salad. Personally I love tuna and artichokes. I eat the whole can of tuna (a whopping 150 calories) and use canned artichokes that are NOT in oil.

I have to say that I am rarely hungry. Here was my menu today:

Breakfast:
open faced sandwich~two slices ham, one slice multigrain European bread, little smear of "Brummel and Brown" spread, 1/2 oz. edam cheese and cucumbers

Snack:
30 peanuts (that's the serving right?~it was in the 200 calorie range according to the bag. Not the best choice for everyday, but good sometimes)

Lunch:
eggplant lasagna
sugarfree pudding cup

Snack (3PM): cheese stick
Snack (5:30 PM): raspberries

Dinner: (eaten WAAAAY tooooooo late due to going to the gym)

4oz. salmon over like 4-5 cups of leafy spinach and a sprinkle of feta!!! OMG, it was soooo good!

I think I am okay. What do you all think?

Sandi

Thanks for the suggestions... I like eating salads but I was wondering... the suggested 2 tbsp. salad dressing serving... can that be eaten more than once a day... for example, can I use 2 tbsp. at lunch and 2 tbsp. at dinner? Also, how about cheese and nuts... I have noticed that some of you have mentioned that nuts seems to stall your weight loss and many of you have made mention of a "sprinkle" of cheese or using only 1/2 an ounce... should I use these foods very sparingly and rarely if at all?

Holly

With all your activites, you are not eating enough.
Just for a day or so keep track of what you are eating on fitday.com

Figure out how many calories you need to be eating at your height/weight and fitness leveal at this website:
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

I know that sbd is not about counting calories but sometimes it helps to have a general idea. And I'm not saying do it every day, just a day or two here and there.

I agree with everyone else. More protein. Those leaf salads won't hold you for very long. Beans, hard boiled eggs, a little turkey and little lf cheese.

Good luck,
sarah

Hey, I totally agree. If it was me, I'd be *starrrrving*. Get in way more protein and add some more substantial veggies, like from Laurie's infamous list. I've discovered soynuts as of Sunday, and am in love with them. Here's a for example day for me. Oh, and don't be afraid of cheese, just make sure it's lowfat. I'm coming off a diet where cheese was a nono, and went overboard on week one. At this point, I've found a nice balance. And, have discovered the joys of cottage cheese, becaue it has way less fat than even RF cheddar or mozzarella.

I'm on phase one, by the way, which I think you are, too.

Breakfast:
2 eggs
1/2 c. black beans
at least 1/2 c of veggies of choice: zuchinni, peppers, mushrooms, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, etc.
about 1/4 c. LF cottage cheese
and maybe a piece of Canadian bacon if I feel like it
(all scrambled together)

Snack:
1/4 c soynuts
1/2 of a red or green or yellow pepper

Lunch
Salmon or chicken breast
about 2-3 c. of salad greens (romaine, spinach, butter, etc.)
tomatoes, peppers, zuchinni, cucs, etc.
vinagrette dressing
Or, leftovers from the night before

Snack
LF cheese stick

Dinner:
Any one of the delicious recipes from the Phase one recipe section on this site. Can't comment on anything from the book except for my favorite dessert.
Examples:
Tarragon Chicken
Taco Bake
Chicken spaghetti sauce with spaghetti squash
BBQ pulled pork/very lean beef/venison in the crock pot
All entrees have lots of veggies added in, last night we had chicken stew that included lots of tomatoes, onions, green beans, and a whole bunch of bok choy. And I had mine with leftover creamed spinach with artichokes while DS and DH had rice with theirs.

Snack/Dessert
Chocolate Mocha Ricotta topped with Cool Whip free and about a tablespoon of crunched up cashews (yummm, yummmm)

The only time I get hungry is between afternoon snack and dinner, when I go too long......

By the way, what on earth is peameal?

I'm definitely leaning towards the 'you're eating too little' crowd. Your meals look like snacks - even for Phase 1. Especially since you are active, you need more calories. More meats and veggies.

If your meals don't have enough substance to them, you *will* break down and fall off the diet. You need to give your body the fuel it needs, or you'll get hungry and be more prone to eating junk.

mamaeli, peameal is the name Canadians use for Canadian Bacon - LOL!!

No way, that doesn't seem like too much at all...in fact, probably not enough! with all of that exercise, and also are you still in phase one? cause I know for me at least, I was much more hungry and still had those physical 'hunger' feelings for several weeks, but eventually they dissipate and it gets much easier, in fact, a lot of times I need to stop myself and go eat so I don't have a drop in my blood sugar or something later.


You're doing awesome girl, good job!

No way, that doesn't seem like too much at all...in fact, probably not enough! with all of that exercise, and also are you still in phase one? cause I know for me at least, I was much more hungry and still had those physical 'hunger' feelings for several weeks, but eventually they dissipate and it gets much easier, in fact, a lot of times I need to stop myself and go eat so I don't have a drop in my blood sugar or something later.

On the nuts, I have cut them out the last two weeks, mainly because I was having trouble sticking to my 'x' amount per day. and while it's 'good' fat, it's still fat...and for me, I would rather eat something else for that fat percentage than just those measely nuts,

You're doing awesome girl, good job!