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Can u all please tell me what i need to look at on food lables
im 246lbs and i want to lose this weight right now im pretty much chicken all day everyday im on my 8th day with that i feel like thats all i can eat im not much of a veggi person although i need to be i need help looking at food lables im not sure how please help me
Also, something else I forget to add was another way of getting more vegetables into your diet. When you make yourself a sandwich don't just have the meat, cheese and mayo or mustard. Put veggies on your sandwich too. It makes it bulkier and healthier too. And of course my favorite way of getting a ton of vegetables in is by making stir fry! Every vegetable tastes good in a stirfry. The nice thing is that you can buy stirfry blends of mixed vegetables right in the freezer section so you don't have to worry about shopping around for different vegetables. I usually use a bag of some kind of vegetable blend and then throw in any fresh vegetables i may have on hand like sugar snap peas or broccoli. Just sautee it with a little bit of nonstick spray, some sesame oil for flavor (I usually use 2 tsp because it's pretty potent) and some light soy sauce. Black and red pepper flakes are good too if you like the spice. You can add shrimp or chicken or whatever you like also, but usually I just have it vegetarian style. Serve with brown rice and you're done. Easy, healthy and very tasty.
You need variety in your diet. Eating just chicken is not only boring, but you will not be getting nearly enough nutrition in your diet. I gave you a lot of suggestions in the PM I sent you. I'm not sure if you read it yet, but if you havent you might get some ideas from that..
I can't say it enough that you NEED to eat more healthy WHOLE foods. Typically you shouldnt be buying a ton of processed food with artificial ingredients, high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils. When you read food labels, pay attention to everything from the serving size, to the calories, fat, sodium etc to the igredient list. Stay away from foods that have trans fats (hydrogenated oils will be in ingredient list) Swing by a Trader Joe's or the natural/organic section of your supermarket and compare their ingredients to regular commercial brands and you'll see the difference in the quality of the ingredients. Generally speaking, you should be doing most of your grocery shopping around the perimeter of the store and try to keep the stuff you buy from the middle aisles to a minimum. That means focusing on the produce department and the refrigerated meat/dairy sections as much as possible.
When you buy breads, look for whole wheat varieties. Some brands try to pass their products off as being wheat, but if you read the labels you'll see they're actually made with enriched flour (which is nutritionally vacant for the most part) and has lots of added artificial stuff like high fructose corn syrup and even dyes. And don't be fooled by "multi grain" products either because I've recently learned that multigrain usually means the product is made up of multiple incomplete grains rather than the entire grain. So just stick with products that use words like whole wheat or whole grain and you'll be good. Same thing goes with cereal. Most are loaded with sugar and artificial ingredients. Stick with natural brands like Kashi, Barbara's, Natural Valley or any other type of natural/organic brand.
As far as meat goes, white meat chicken is a good start, but you need others too. Try lean ground turkey, pork tenderloin, fish and yes, even red meat. Just buy leaner cuts with little marbling. Beef is a great source of iron and is good for you, as long as you don't overdo it.
Fruits and vegetables are a very important part of your diet so you need to find a way to work them into your diet. Buy frozen fruit(no sugar added..just plain frozen fruit) and make smoothies in the morning with some nonfat yogurt. Instead of buying instant flavored oatmeal packets, buy plain natural quick cooking steel cut oats and add your own fresh fruit and honey. Buy lots of frozen vegetables too. They last forever in the freezer and have virtually the same nutrients as fresh produce. Buy bagged prewashed salad mixes and have a salad with lunch or dinner every day. You can add canned beans, tomatoes, nuts, orange slices or whatever you like to it to make it more interesting. Another good way of getting vegetables into your diet is to "hide" them in your food. If you make burgers with lean ground beef or turkey, add minced onions, carrots, zucchini or spinach to the meat. Make omlettes with egg whites or egg substitute and add bell peppers or asparagus or spinach to the eggs. Get creative with your food. There's about a million ways you can incorporate fruits and vegetables into just about every meal of the day. Try all different kinds too. I didnt realize how many fruits and vegetables there were that I really liked until I tried them. You don't *have* to eat the ones you really don't like. As long as you're getting a good variety you'll be in good shape.
I can't say it enough that you NEED to eat more healthy WHOLE foods. Typically you shouldnt be buying a ton of processed food with artificial ingredients, high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils. When you read food labels, pay attention to everything from the serving size, to the calories, fat, sodium etc to the igredient list. Stay away from foods that have trans fats (hydrogenated oils will be in ingredient list) Swing by a Trader Joe's or the natural/organic section of your supermarket and compare their ingredients to regular commercial brands and you'll see the difference in the quality of the ingredients. Generally speaking, you should be doing most of your grocery shopping around the perimeter of the store and try to keep the stuff you buy from the middle aisles to a minimum. That means focusing on the produce department and the refrigerated meat/dairy sections as much as possible.
When you buy breads, look for whole wheat varieties. Some brands try to pass their products off as being wheat, but if you read the labels you'll see they're actually made with enriched flour (which is nutritionally vacant for the most part) and has lots of added artificial stuff like high fructose corn syrup and even dyes. And don't be fooled by "multi grain" products either because I've recently learned that multigrain usually means the product is made up of multiple incomplete grains rather than the entire grain. So just stick with products that use words like whole wheat or whole grain and you'll be good. Same thing goes with cereal. Most are loaded with sugar and artificial ingredients. Stick with natural brands like Kashi, Barbara's, Natural Valley or any other type of natural/organic brand.
As far as meat goes, white meat chicken is a good start, but you need others too. Try lean ground turkey, pork tenderloin, fish and yes, even red meat. Just buy leaner cuts with little marbling. Beef is a great source of iron and is good for you, as long as you don't overdo it.
Fruits and vegetables are a very important part of your diet so you need to find a way to work them into your diet. Buy frozen fruit(no sugar added..just plain frozen fruit) and make smoothies in the morning with some nonfat yogurt. Instead of buying instant flavored oatmeal packets, buy plain natural quick cooking steel cut oats and add your own fresh fruit and honey. Buy lots of frozen vegetables too. They last forever in the freezer and have virtually the same nutrients as fresh produce. Buy bagged prewashed salad mixes and have a salad with lunch or dinner every day. You can add canned beans, tomatoes, nuts, orange slices or whatever you like to it to make it more interesting. Another good way of getting vegetables into your diet is to "hide" them in your food. If you make burgers with lean ground beef or turkey, add minced onions, carrots, zucchini or spinach to the meat. Make omlettes with egg whites or egg substitute and add bell peppers or asparagus or spinach to the eggs. Get creative with your food. There's about a million ways you can incorporate fruits and vegetables into just about every meal of the day. Try all different kinds too. I didnt realize how many fruits and vegetables there were that I really liked until I tried them. You don't *have* to eat the ones you really don't like. As long as you're getting a good variety you'll be in good shape.
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The closer you stay to fresh, the better. Check out the produce section and see what you can find - there's bound to be some things that you would like. Or check out the freezer section as frozen is about the same as fresh. You can also eat fruit and whole grains, dairy (low fat) - yogurt, skim milk, low fat cheeses, etc, as well as other types of lean meat. You are a better person than I am if you can eat chicken every day, even though I like chicken. How about fish? You can also eat lean cuts of beef and pork - just watch your portion sizes and broil or grill them rather than frying. Turkey is good also. Oatmeal and cereals have fiber, which is necessary.
It's important that you get a balance of all the different food groups as your body needs all of them. The key is watching your portion sizes - it might be helpful to use a salad plate rather than a dinner plate, then you get a "plateful", but won't be eating as much food. Eat several small meals throughout the day to keep your blood sugar steady, which will help cut cravings. Protein and fiber fill you up faster and since they take longer to digest, they keep you feeling fuller longer.
And don't forget to implement a healthy exercise program. Walking is always good or there are a lot of other exercises you can try.
Just make small changes at first - like exchanging one soda each day with a glass of water. Also set small goals as they don't seem so impossible to achieve (rather than say "I'm going to lose 50 lbs", say "I'm going to lose 5 pounds" and when that 5 pounds is lost, set the next goal of 5 pounds or whatever you choose).
I'm sure some of the others will chime in here with some other tips also. Good luck.
It's important that you get a balance of all the different food groups as your body needs all of them. The key is watching your portion sizes - it might be helpful to use a salad plate rather than a dinner plate, then you get a "plateful", but won't be eating as much food. Eat several small meals throughout the day to keep your blood sugar steady, which will help cut cravings. Protein and fiber fill you up faster and since they take longer to digest, they keep you feeling fuller longer.
And don't forget to implement a healthy exercise program. Walking is always good or there are a lot of other exercises you can try.
Just make small changes at first - like exchanging one soda each day with a glass of water. Also set small goals as they don't seem so impossible to achieve (rather than say "I'm going to lose 50 lbs", say "I'm going to lose 5 pounds" and when that 5 pounds is lost, set the next goal of 5 pounds or whatever you choose).
I'm sure some of the others will chime in here with some other tips also. Good luck.
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