Need specific diet advice for a very specific person!

[angelhair0]

Hello! I have a sort of specific body type, and a specific diet. I am posting this on both the diet forum and the exercise forum because I really need advice in both areas.

I am a 6' 2" male. 23 years old. I weighed myself today at 190 lbs. I am fairly slim in most areas except for my tummy. It's not huge, but in a relaxed, standing stand, it measures 39" while my waist and chest area are both only 36". That may not seem like a huge difference to you, but in relaxed standing position, it definitely does stick out irregularly. I should be able to wear shirts in medium or small (all my arm, torso length, etc. measurements look good with small and medium) but I wear large because of how it sticks out.

I don't eat meat besides seafood. I don't eat horribly unhealthy, but I don't eat wonderful either. I do love vegetables, but I also love carbs. I drink coffee regularly, and I have anywhere between 1 to 5 beers a week (but it's scattered, mostly with dinner. I don't drink a lot, I don't get drunk). I am a cheese lover and probably eat more cheese than I should. I am not really picky about food. Besides not eating meat, I don't really dislike sweet potatoes and stuffing. I'll eat almost anything else.

My family is going through a rough time with their self-owned business and they have been for years. Therefore, grocery trips are not often. Therefore, I'm stuck going out to eat a little more than I'd like. Sometimes when scrounging for meals in the house, I don't always come up with the best, most healthy meals.

I don't eat a lot of junk food. My teeth are sensitive to candy, so I hardly eat it. Not huuuge on chocolate either.

I work a desk job and I work at least 8 hours a day. I don't get out as often as I'd like because of this. I have a habit of eating before I go to bed but I've been trying my BEST to break that habit. In the past two weeks, I've been walking about 40 minutes a day, going from fast walking to average speed on the treadmill. Haven't noticed much difference, especially in weight.

Hopefully that gives you a good idea of what I do and who I am.

What I am looking for is the most specific and elaborate help as far as exercise and and diet as possible. I realize this forum only covers one of those things, so feel free to comment however you see fit. Like I said, I am posting this in two forums since I'm posting about diet and fitness together.

Thanks so much!!!

[angelhair0]

Come on guys... no help at all?!

[peekawho]

My bias is simply towards eating in as healthy a way as you can.  Lean meats, a minimum of 5 fruits or vegetables a day, 2 tsps of healthy oils a day, and at least 2 servings of fat free or low fat dairy a day.  Stick with whole grains as much as possible, at least twice a day.  
Don't eat until you are full.  Try to learn to stop just before that point.  Tricky to learn just what that point is.   You can have beer--in the amounts you described, that's certainly not excessive.

Busy or not, eating in a healthy way should be a priority.  It is not hard.  Even when I'm working nights and am totally exhausted, I make it my priority to follow this plan.  It just takes a bit of thinking and planning ahead.  So far, I've lost a lot of weight and haven't suffered a bit.  I'm eating better than I ever have in my life.  

You are not really overweight, though.  And you sound like you really have a fitness program ironed out.   I'm hardly a fitness buff, so I can't help you there.  

Why do you say you have to eat out a lot?  Not sure I get that part.  It certainly is hard to control what goes into food that you don't prepare yourself.  

Good luck, and I hope others have better ideas for you.  

[angelhair0]

Thanks for your response! I don't eat meat, though, which is a big factor in my diet.

I don't HAVE to eat out a lot, but grocery store trips are so sparing in this house, and it's always so much easier to grab a meal somewhere than it is to spend hundreds at the store. I know it's way less expensive, but I live in a house 5 other people, so organizing shopping trips when everyone is working so often is very difficult. That is another thing to be considered when thinking about my diet.

[peekawho]

If you don't eat meat, then for sure your diet (now or in the future) takes a lot more planning to get proper nutrients in.

From what sources do you get your protein now?  

[888mom]

It sounds like you need to exercise to get your stomach muscle tone in better shape.  My husband is 6'5" and weighs 210 with a 36 inch waist.  When he focused more on the weight loss (he did weight watchers many years ago and dropped over 50 pounds after being really overweight), he got down to 190 and his arms and legs were skin and bone with no muscles and his waist was 38 inches.  He gained more weight back and started walking.  For some reason the walking helped his waist muscles too.  Not sure why.  But he got more in to proportion and his waist slimmed down even when he added a little bit of weight back on which made his waist slimmer and his arms and legs a little more padded.  Also what you eat might influence your muscles.  Are you getting enough protein for your muscles?  Maybe your stomach muscles need you to have more protein?  

Now if I could only lose that 50 pounds that my husband lost, I'd be in better shape.

[Barb925]

If you eat out alot and are a vegetarian, then eat a health salad. That should help the eating out situation. I know money is sparce. I am also a night muncher. They have those 100calorie snacks at Wal-Mart. They have ones that are like cookies. I also have to conserve money, however I treat myself when needed. Where I live they under 2.00.

Also walking is a great exercise.

Good Luck and God Bless

[angelhair0]

Thanks for your help, everyone.

As far as protein, being an herbivore, I do eat beans and eggs. The thing is, I really like eggs, and I probably eat them too much to the point where I'm overdoing it on cholesterol. It's such a pain to have a balanced diet and still eat what I like!

[Barb925]

Eggs are a very source of proteing, and yes good on a salad. Yes you can overdose on eggs. Try having them only 3 days a week (hard I know  but a good sacrifice. You can do it. Have some faith in yourself. You are worth it. There are alot of things that you can eat on a vegetarian diet. I usually sit down once a week and make some type of diet plan and try to stick to it as best as possible. Another thing you can do is get a journal and write down every day what you eat and see how many calories you are takin in every day. A dr would most likely say between 1500-1800 calories a day. Also there are alot of places that you can check your BMI. You may not have to lose as much as you say you do.  Good Luck and keep us posted. Things will work out.

Barb