Yup - that helps :D

It is very difficult to keep the ratios accurate for every meal so it's ok if some are higher and some are lower, with time, as you figure things out it becomes easier but as long as at the end of the day the totals are close you will be good. It may be easier to go by grams of each rather than percentages, it ends up being the same but nutrient values are posted by grams. I'm not sure why everyone has trouble with cooking balanced meals quickly, it's so easy. I'll give a couple of examples of my meals for a day. This was today.

5:30 am my oatmeal recipie
prep/cook time about 5 min

8:00am 4 hd boiled eggs, 1 slice Ezekiel 12 grain bread, 1/2 banana
prep cook time as long as it takes to grab it from the fridge.

11:30 am protein shake (pre workout)
prep time about 2 min


2:30 pm Turkey,chicken high protein meatballs whole wheat pasta
prep time 3 min in the microwave (prepared in bulk a week ago)


5:00 pm chicken stir fry
prep and cook time about 20 min.


7:30 pm tossed salad with tuna
prep cook time about 5 min.

I always cook in bulk, because I don't have time either. My dinner I usually cook fresh as with my oatmeal breakfast. Days off I cook fresh but in bulk, let's say I am having roasted chicken breast, I don't cook one, the oven is on and it takes about 15-20 min to cook so I cook 6 of them, same time but now I have 5 ready for the week. I do this with most things I cook and prepare. Brown rice or whole wheat pasta, it takes the same time to cook 6 servings as one so I cook 6, now I have it for 5 other meals. Veggies go in a steamer bag, same thing a whole bag takes about 2-3 min and I have enough for 5 more meals. That's how you do it. Cook in bulk when you have time to cook. Never cook one thing, it takes the same amount of time.

There are so many choices, for example I often cook at night a chicken stirfry, chop a bunch of veggies and dice a few chicken breasts and sautee them , divide it up eat one now and freeze the remainder, another meal ready for the week.

As far as the protein bars, don't worry, choose the one you like. If it has more carbs than fits your needs, eat less on a different meal as long as the daily totals are close you're good.

As far as what to eat when keep it simple, complex starchy carbs early,complex fiberous carbs late. In other words, oatmeal, grains, breads early, veggies later in the day. Quite simple

That helps. Okay, I just copy/pasted that onto a doccument along with your oatmeal recipe. Maybe with enough repetition some of that will stick in my ADD brain. I was just looking at that cookbook & several recipes were all chop this & that cook chicken in a skillet (ie: stand over the stove for an hour), cook that in another skillet, etc. Just more than I wanted to do when I get home from work. As for vegies, here is the problem. I can learn to like a lot to things but steamed vegies is probably NEVER going to be one of them. I'm a country girl, My vegies either have to be fresh or cooked to death with some flavor in them. I rarely eat veggies at a resturant for that reason. I say they taste like they showed them to the steam & served them. YUCK! I'll get it eventually. It is just a struggle for me right now. So many beloved foods to give up. :(

I need to give everyone cooking lessons, lol. I don't usually follow recipies but I don't cook my food plain, spices are your friends. I don't think I've ever spent an hour cooking anything. Here's a thought post up a list of a few of the foods you like and lets see what I can come up with. Veggies can easily be made to taste good and are so fast to make and you can pretty much eat all you want.

Today's intake

7:00am-protein shake 190 cal 19g protein 16g carb 7g fat

10:00am-chobani yogurt 140 cal 14g protein 22g carb 3G fat

2:30pm-steak & asparagus leftovers 493 cal 12g carb 34g protein 34g fat

5:00 -frittata leftover 210 cal 5g carb 16g protein 14g fat
Side salad w/lite Italian drizzled:D 32 cal 1g protein 6g carb 1g fat

9:45-1 more piece of frittata

Total 1275 cal 100g protein 66g carb 103g fat

How do I calculate the %. I know the fats are high from the preparation,but otherwise how does it look?

Yeah, I know about using spices. I'm talking about foods I pretty much can never eat again either because of going gluten free or because they are unhealthy. Like Krispy Kreme doughnuts, Cookies, Ice cream, Pie, cake, green beans with country ham, Bacon, grits- country ham & redeye gravy with biscuits, ................some things there is just no substitute for. It is a grief process.

I don't know how to take even recipies that may be pretty healthy & easily cooked in bulk & decide how much I can eat. Like a big pot of vegetable soup, bean soup, a healthy chili, a pot roast with vegies, etc.

You're supposed to figure out percentages, calories and grams BEFORE you eat it lol.

The fat content is outrageous

You gave a calorie count and then added one more piece of frittata, so that's more than what you listed. lol

Let's say your going to stick to around 1200 cals a day, 40% of 1200 is 480 so you should be eating 480 cals from, carbs and protien. 20% of 1200 is 240 so that should be your fat intake.

The conversion is 4 cals per gram of carb
4 cals per gram of protein
9 cals per gram fat

If you cut down the fat to 240 cals divided by 9 = 26 grams you have eaten almost 4 times the fat you should be, now if you cut the fat you can make up the difference with real food, you can eat almost twice as much food as long as it's not fat lol.

Other than the fat content all in all not too bad but you should eat a bit more.

Thanks for the review. I know I'm supposed to count before I eat, but leftovers are leftovers. Hate to let it go to waste especially when there are a lot worse choices I COULD make. It will get better.

You and bob mention Ezekial bread. What's up with that. I've seen it in the frozen section. One of my challenges are finding some quick to grab and eat things. I don't really care for raw almonds and I'm thinking smokehouse ones are probably not a good choice. Another question- would I have been better off making a protein shake this late at night instead of the frittata?

Thanks for your time :wub:

There are healthy substitutes for some of what you mentioned, not the dougnuts though lol.

I've got a bunch of very healthy recipies that will satisfy your sweet tooth but I don't post them because people tend to think you can eat them all day long but you can't lol. I will post a few up tomorrow.

Almost all healthy recipies tell you how many servings they make as well as the nutrient count, every one that I have posted does.

When it comes to soups etc. you add all the values for each ingtredient then divide by how many servings you dish out, so lets say all the ingredients together have 2000 cals, if you divide it up into 5 servings, each serving is then 400 cals.
For your grean beans and ham, I'm not sure what else goes in it but you can use Canadian Bacon. It is much lower in fat and is a lean protein that could be used in that as well as with eggs etc. It tastes very much like ham(not processed ham) not bacon

If you cook healthy, your leftovers are healthy;).

Ezekiel bread is a whole grain bread with no flower or preservetives(that's why it's frozen) It is made with whole sprouted grains and is a complete protein and is a very low glycemic food( it doesn't raise your insulin) so it's one of the best breads you can eat. They also have a couple that are gluten free.

You should try not to eat anything late night but carbs and fat are the worst so a protein shake would have been better. What are the ingredients of your protein shake?

I just do one scoop and 8oz of coconut milk. Same as the shake I make for after my workout. I do like them with ice in the blender from time to time. Have added frozen fruit or flavor extracts to change it up but more so in the summer

It's not hard at all once you get the hang of it. That's how I cook and I know what I'm eating lol

The coconut milk is good around your workout but not for late night, it's a simple carb and raises insulin quickly. I always add plenty of ice to my shakes, it makes them much thicker withought adding cals. As I mentioned, if you like cottage cheese (no/low fat) it's a good choice for a night time snack

You should see our spice rack in the pantry, it takes up half a wall.

My favorite chili recipe: Turkey Chili Taco Soup
Crockpot alternative: Crock Pot Chicken Taco (if youre going to put it over anything - put it over brown rice or quinoa)

Ezekiel bread is the SHIZ! It takes some getting used to, but I absolutely love it now.

Their english muffins are great too.

LOST 2 LBS!!!

Ok so maybe I shouldn't get too excited, but I'm happy
with that after a weeks efforts. 18 more to go, but
it's a start :D

Congrats. :D

Congrats Becky. Its a step in the right direction. Some is better than none.

Congrats Becky!

Okay on cottage cheese. On occasion I can tollerate it with a bit of salt & pepper, but usually I need some fruit with it, like pineapple or peaches (unsweetened packed in juice). But I suspect that defeats the purpose. It is just not something I can eat plain. Suggestions?

If you put anything in it peaches would be the best. They are one of the lowest calorie and carb fruits. Look in the nutrient falues list I posted, that's why it's there;)

That's not just OK, it's PERFECT. For long term goals and healthy weight loss, 1-2 lbs weekly is considered ideal. Usually, after cleaning up your diet and if you have a ways to go weight loss may be more at first, keep moving your diet in the right direction as you are and 1-2lbs weekly should be pretty consistant.