This was really important for me, so it bears repeating. I knew that 4 oz was a portion of chicken, but I didn't know how much 4 oz was! I was eyeballing, trying to guess, but really I had no clue at all. So I bought a food scale that someone here recommended (Biggest Loser scale at Bed, Bath and Beyond) for $20. And now I know how much 4 oz of chicken is--it's more than I thought! I also measure out cereal, and the milk that goes on it. I may not always have to do this but for now I do, until I learn what a cup of cheerios really looks like.

I use The Daily Plate for calorie counting. I log everything*; it's the only thing that keeps me on track. It's just too easy for me to forget that bite of chocolate or that glass of sugary iced tea otherwise, and those things all add up.

*I mentioned yesterday in a different thread that I didn't know how much a "pat" of butter was; turns out, it's just about a teaspoon. So now I'm measuring out even the butter on my toast and the sugar in my tea. Not estimating those at ALL like I was.

Good luck! You can do this; we can do this together. We are here for you!

What do you mean by healthy fat?

I added up what you put down and it came out to 1700 calories. You might want to check that.

Healthy fat is unsaturated or monosaturated fat. The body needs some fat in order to stay healthy. Avoid fried foods, saturated fats (which are most animal fats).

Jay

Examples of healthy fat:

Nuts, nut butters, olive oil, salmon, avocado

You need a little bit, every day. They are very very good for you!

Counting points isn't that hard, in fact, 1 weight watchers point is equal to about 60 calories. 23 points per day is about 1300 calories. 25 points per day is about 1500. Roughly.

Weight Watchers IS counting calories - they just assign a points value to everything and account for fiber/fat so you don't have to do so much math.

I agree with the measuring thing. That's a great thing that Weight Watchers taught me. Measure/weigh everything!

~Choirgirl~

You're way short on fruit and veg

Aaneri, if you have a particular website that you found that tells you how many calories you need per day, I would love if you would post a link. I would like to kind of work calories into my Weight Watchers plan, if possible. I have had very little success with WW and maybe calories would give me more freedom? I don't know, but I am willing to give it a shot for a week or so to see if there is a change.

Fatmad. It's funny how you said you could have written what I wrote about there being two of me and all that. Then, I read what you had to say, here, about your dad:

"I was there while my Dad was critically ill in hospital, I really fell off the map with food. I was near his bedside in a little quiet room, nearly 24 hours a day, I hardly left, and ate crap and didn't exercise except a bit of walking. Have got back down to my weight before this happened, but not back to fitness yet, haven't worked the exercise bit in much."

I'm so sorry. But, I could have written exactly that. My dad died of bone cancer and I was so busy racing back and fourth from home to the hospital, taking care of everyone else except myself. I ate crap. When he was diagnosed with bone cancer and the realization sunk in that he was going to die, I was near goal. I was 148 pounds. I went up as far as 171 and now am 161, but still really high. I was miserable and ate my way through my grief. Them, mom died 4 months and 6 days after dad and my world fell apart. Food was and is my comfort. It's so hard to stay on track. I know what I should be doing, but I lose control so easily. So, I am right here with you.

Aaneri, I looked over your food for the day. What are you making your cream of wheat with and are you having milk with that cereal? You need calcium. I don't see enough of that in that one day's diet. It's funny, midwife noted that there wasn't enough veggies and I saw that too, but the calcium is so important.

Maybe I'll type in a journal for tomorrow here, if my mood strikes. It will be good.
One thing I try to do at the beginning of the day is to plan dessert (so important for me) and dinner and then figure out how many WW points I'll have left to use in the day. I plan the rest of my meals and snacks accordingly.