Rose it seems like a reasonable lunch, though i think you should improve the quality of your salad dressing. Usually low fat anything means added sugar. If you can make your own dressing it will be far more tasty and much better nutritionally. My suggestion is invest in a bottle of extra virgin olive oil and a bottle of balsamic vinegar. Start by using 1tsp of each. Add an extra tsp of each if required. it will not upset your diet in anyway and its good food you.

You can also add crushed garlic if you like it. black pepper, other fresh herbs. Sometimes its nice to vary the balsamic with juice of half a lime or a good squeeze of fresh lemon juice. I've also found it nice to add a tbsp of finely chopped onion into my salads though not all the time.

And if not using tuna, try crumbling some strong flavoured cheese into your salads. I love using good quality fetta at the moment i'm using goats fetta. Not much. It really packs a taste punch.

I can see you salad getting you through about 4 hours maximum.

I agree a good kitchen scale is useful. Especially if you are using my fitness pal.

but i don't use a scale very often. Instead i use a measuring cup and spoons. You have to go with "level" if the numbers coming out of your data are to be at all accurate though. No heaped table spoons of anything.

You're right, I don't really *know* how much I'm eating; I'm just trying to make what seem to me like healthy choices until I can get to the gym/get the book from the library and get filled in. I was in Weight Watchers as a teen, but that was a long time ago and the standards have probably changed.

Pattience, as long as your sugar theories make sense to you then I'll leave it at that.

Eyeballing and guessing on calories is a tricky game. I calorie counted for years and can still fool myself easily on how much a portion is if I were eyeballing it. MFP is an app you can download on your smartphone and it helps you calculate calories. Nobody really uses books to figure out calorie counts anymore, since the internet and phones make it so easy and more accurate.

You have what seems to be some outdated ideas about diet and exercise. I hope you stick around and figure things out and find a method that suits your wants as well as your needs. It does not have to be an unpleasant process and exercise can be fun as well as beneficial.

Lots of good suggestions!

I think the Raisin Bran is OK as long as you are not adding sugar to it. It gives you fiber, which is important. But it is not enough to hold you until lunch. If time is an issue, either add an egg scrambled in the microwave, or a hard boiled egg you can make ahead. Anytime a protein and/or fat is eaten with carbs, the carbs are absorbed more slowly. A protein snack mid morning is also a good idea.

I have added a lot of veggies to my diet to stave off hunger. Try having a tossed salad before your dinner. That will help you to eat less. If you want a snack in the evening, cut some calories from your meals so you have some leeway, instead of just adding more calories. Make sure you're drinking plenty of water.

Good luck to you.

Left to my own devices, I would not drink water at all. Since beginning my weight loss journey 15 mo ago, I've had to be sure to get the water in. Without it, my body just feels out of whack, and I tend to have less control over my appetite.

Here are a few things that help me to get it in: 1. Knowing that it helps weight loss, no matter what plan you follow. Some reasons I've read is that it keeps food moving more quickly through the intestines and out of your body. It enables your kidneys to efficiently flush the byproducts of fat-burning. I've also read somewhere that it actually helps raise your metabolic rate. Good for your complexion too.

2. I cary a pint bottle and refill it. It's easier to tote than the quart and I can actually down a pint at a time if need be. Plan for restroom stops!

3. I get in my first liter early in the am. Initially it was just get it out of the way, but now it feels normal. If you are not an early riser, this might not work, but I still would aim for as much as you can early in the day.

4. I use flavor enhancers. Normally I avoid artificial coloring and sweeteners as much as possible. Mio (peach mango my fave) has helped me enormously. Other alternatives are lemon or cucumber slices or mint leaves, or hot or cold herbal tea.

5. Weight loss is a lot about NOT doing things, i.e., eating. Drinking water is about doing something, which feels a little easier than abstaining from something.

roseandholly I googled "food serving size visuals" lots of great images came up that should help you, some show using your hands as reference, some show using household items like a dice for a tablespoon, etc there's even one called portion distortion that shows a normal portion served and what it should be, no surprise that we have trouble estimating what's serving size looks like.

I did WW years ago, too, that's when I started measuring.

I still use measuring cups and spoons and occasionally the food scale, especially when I first try something, I read the serving size on the food label and then measure it, I almost always measure my salad dressing because I love it too much, if you can find it Bolthouse. Farms makes some good yogurt based dressings that are only 35-40 calories for 2 tablespoons. A friend suggested adding extra vinegar, she actually only uses vinegar on her salad, I can't do that, but I do add a tbsp of balsamic vinegar to mine and really enjoy it. There are lots of different vinegars as well you could try.

Best of luck to you, keep at it, you'll get the hang of it :sunny:

Kelijpa next time tell your friend that a salad without healthy fat in it makes it very difficult for your body to absorb the nutrients. Unless she has some avocados or nuts or egg yolk in her salad you're way better off with your dressing.

OP - I second using My Fitness Pal to keep track of calories eaten. It is just too hard to guesstimate. And, even very healthy food can be high in calories.

wannabeskinny thanks for that, makes me feel so much better about my dressing :) personally, I usually have an avocado or smoked oysters or w/the oil or salmon in my salad, so I'm good. It's what I love for lunch for now. thanks again

I was just pointing it out because people feel guilty using dressing on their salad. Fat has been demonized for a long time, and i wanted to make sure that your friend's bad habit of not using oil doesn't make her a saint. Nobody should feel guilty because they want their food to taste good!