Help! I'm a bit confused and a little discouraged
I just started CC last week. My starting weight is 215 and my goal weight is 150. I am 27 years old and a junior high teacher. I understand how to log my food. However I'm a little confused on the activity log. It says "Burn Meter total estimate 2070" then as i add activities that number goes up. I'm probably not reading the fine print somewhere but I am a bit confused as to how that works. I have considered not logging in any activity on that meter and just making my own work out log at home (though logging things into the computer will help keep me motivated because i can see my progress).
Also, I am finding it hard to cook for myself and/or pack lunch for school. I am not a morning person. I have a hard enough time getting myself out the door. Does anyone have any quick "grabbable" (made that up) snack/lunch/breakfast ideas???? I am not a big fruit person, but I do enjoy most veggies and other than that I'm not a picky eater. I welcome any advice because my normal routine has been to starve until I get home at 3pm and then gorge myself.
Thank you,
d~
The burn meter estimates the number of calories you burn per day by just being awake (known as your basal metabolism rate) as well as adding the number of calories in depending on what you stated your activity level as. When you log an activity, it adds on the amount of calories you burn doing that activity.
I would suggest setting your activity level as sedentary if you feel more comfortable logging you activity for the day, or just estimate your activity level and don't log individual activities, or you may be over estimating the amount of calories you burn per day. I hope that makes sense!
Have you tried making your lunch the night before? That's what I find is best for me since I, too, HATE getting up a second earlier than I have to.
You should try grabbing a big bag of baby carrots at the market, some of those mini rice cake snacks, and a few of those 100 calorie pack of the snacks you love and make sure you have plenty of things to keep your tummy busy during the time between lunch and going home.
I've found the Cambell's microwavable soups to be GREAT for lunch, especially the healthy request chicken noodle, which is about 240 calories for the whole big cup of it, also the mexican tortilla soup is great also.
At night before you go to bed, boil an egg or two and set out a LUNA bar (or another bar like that... careful though, some are FULL of sugar so check those labels!) so that you can have a good protein filled breakfast to keep you going until lunch.
Eating those little bits throughout the day will help you stay satisfied and will aslo keep your metabolism up.
Hope that helped!
Welcome Dmgarner:-) many people are confused with the meters at first I'll let you know how I do it , lost 14lbs since April 22nd, I set myself as sedentary which makes be burn about 2450 calories a day to just live. I log any extra excercise I do so lets say 40 min of Arobics at 300 calories . that makes my total calories burned for the day around 2750. No any amount I eat under that will result in a weight loss. any amount over will result in a weight gain. I never log normal daily activities only exercise or yard work requireing more than normal effort.
Base calories burned 2450
+
Excersize &nb sp; 300
&nb sp; &nb sp; ___________
Total calories burned &nb sp; &nb sp; 2750
Minus calories eaten for day 1750
&nb sp; &nb sp; &nb sp; &nb sp; _____________
Deficit 1000
Now if you keep a 1000 Calorie deficit each day you will lose about 2lb a week
but be careful depending on your weight it may not be safe to be at that deficit
you should really try and eat at least 1200 calories a day no mater what the deficit is. Hope that helped you out
Ok. The burn meter has two numbers. The above number is the total number of calories you will burn by the end of the day (12am) based on the activities you have logged+your basic burn which depends on the type of lifestyle you're leading. That's why the number changes when you log in more activities. The lower number is the calories you *have burned* thus far. It's updated every few seconds/minutes.
I find logging activities immensely motivating. (:
Anyway, cereal and energy bars are pretty easy to pack. Bananas and apples too. (: If you're looking for something more filling, the easiest thing to do (in my opinion anyway) is to pack a wholemeal sandwich with ham and cheese. (these things come prepacked and sliced, so it takes less than 5 minutes to pack!)
dbl post
Thank you gennysaurus, adarnley, and doedoebird! I think i get the activity log now. And thank you adarnley... i liked your 1000 deficit plan. I plan to strive for that this week and see how it works for me. I also liked the fact that you only log exercise or heavy work into your activity log. I have been beating myself up trying to log how long I showered, how long I folded clothes, how long I stood..... It was making me nuts!!! so i'm going to do it your way. It makes much more sense and is a lot less stressful. And gennysaurus you made me remember the "famous campbell soup bowls. I had completely forgot about those... those helped me a lot back when i was on weight watchers.
thank you, thank you for the quick replies! Also how do you add friends on here? I'm friendless over here 
!
d~
I'm the same, have to have stuff to grab and go. For breakfast I usually make a smoothie - 1/2 cup frozen mixed berries, 2 tbls ground flax seed, orange crystal light - it takes about 2 minutes to make and I can drink it in the car on my way to meetings and it will keep me full for a while (and less than 200 calories). Also, 100 calorie packs of almonds are awesome! Just be careful that they're nutruitional food you actually want to eat, otherwise they won't keep you full at all! (100 calories of oreos is still oreos!) Snap peas are good too, I always have that or carrots in my purse to much on and apples.
Sybil878,
i hear the term flax seed quite often. what is it exactly? what are it's benefits? what do you eat it with? where do you purchase it?
Flax is GREAT. I have a cool little recipe for flax bars if you find that you enjoy it.
Flax is very low in Cholesterol and Sodium, and is a good source of Magnesium, Phosphorus and Copper, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Thiamin and Manganese. Its high content of alpha linolenic acids (more universally known as omega 3 fatty acid, similar to those found in fish such as salmon) has made it sort of a modern miracle food.
Great to lower your LDL and raise your HDL!
There are SO many more benefits to flax that it really would be paragraphs and paragraphs to type them all here.
You can buy them in any grocery store in the produce or nut/seed section. They are about $1 for a giant bag if you catch them on sale.
gennysaurus,
i'm assuming the flax seed comes in "seed" form. I've heard of people who put flax in smoothies and on their cerel. Do you need to grind it up into a powder form? Or do you just eat it as you would any seed in salad, alone, in granola? How much would you recommend to eat a day for a beginner? Thank you your advice is extremely helpful.
d~
gennysaurus,
i'm assuming the flax seed comes in "seed" form. I've heard of people who put flax in smoothies and on their cerel. Do you need to grind it up into a powder form? Or do you just eat it as you would any seed in salad, alone, in granola? How much would you recommend to eat a day for a beginner? Thank you your advice is extremely helpful.
d~
Flax IMO is a miracle food - it's solved so many digestive issues I've had. It's high in fiber (meaning keeps you full) and is full of omega 3's and other good stuff. It's a seed and you can buy it at most grocery stores and for sure health food stores. (when ground it's also called flaxmeal) It's best if you buy the seeds whole and grind them as you need them (a standard coffee grinder works and is only about $10) because as soon as they are ground they start degrading and loosing some of their health benefits. It's of no benefit to eat them whole though since our body won't breakdown the seed shell and they'll just pass right through undigested! I bought one of those miracle blenders that have a single serving sized cup for the blender and I just grind the flax first, then add the berries and juice.
Hope that helps!
Oh, and I'd start with just 1 tbls a day and work your way up to 2 - 4. Be sure to drink all your water though, it is high in fiber 
One of the tricks I use if I find I'm starving and have just a light meal left is to grind 2 tbls flax and mix it in orange crystal light or OJ and drink it 20 minutes before eating - it's a great filler!
mega helpful thanks I'm gonna go to Winco after work and pick some up. I have a coffee grinder at home. Next paycheck I'm gonna need to go out and get me a nice blender. I'll blend it up. sounds de-lish..........
Thanks,
d~
I've never found that it is something that needs to be worked up to... That's sort of like saying... OHHH you want to try sesame seeds? Make sure to only eat a tablespoon the first time!
Blended or unblended you WILL get benefits from them, unless you plan on swallowing them entirely whole. Chewing them is enough to release the oils and other nutrients.
It wont matter how much you have. You could put it in smoothies or in your oatmeal or make bars out of it, just know that if you add it to something without grinding the seeds, they have an odd texture, sort of like sesames except less easily chewable, and blended or unblended, you will be able to taste them in whatever you put them in, so make sure you like the flavor before you potentially ruin your favorite smoothie!
Hi DM;
I pack my lunch and snacks everyday, but even though I am a morning person I get up at 3am and that's too early to plan. So the last thing I do every night is make a sandwich, low cal. bun, 98% FF ham or turkey, I then put it in the fridg with a yogurt, carrots, celery or other veggies. I also cut up a cup of strawberries and put it in a 3 cup bowl with a lid. In the morning I pour my 3/4 cup of bran flakes and 1/4c of fiber one in with my strawberries and I'm ready to pour in my milk. I usually put my 1/2 cup milk in a small cup with lid and can take it with me if I don't feel like eating yet. So I then grab a cup of coffee and banana and I'm ready to go. I also usually take a 1/4c of fiber one to stir in my yogurt. Keeps me full longer and good fiber.
Today I did a whole wheat tortilla wrap with ham and lettuce and just a drizzle of FF ranch dressing.
Hope you can use some of these ideas.
Leslie
thank you leslie. I think you have the right idea 
I'm going to have to start getting a bit more organized the night before. I'm definitely going to start using the fiber too. I think it will help with the midday/midmorning hunger.
d~
But, any sort of fruit works. I'm like you, I don't love fruit to eat it all the time, but it somehow works for me in the morning and definitely fills me up.
At the risk of sounding supremely OCD here... I'm a slow mover in the morning, and I often don't feel like being in the kitchen all night to prepare for the next day, so I prepare a ton of food on Sunday afternoon. After I get home from the grocery store, I split things up into single servings so I have a stash of little plastic containers in the fridge that I can grab and throw into a bag in the morning. This also gives me time to look up calories if needed. Granted, if you're sharing your fridge with roommates or family, this may not go over well with them!
I don't know what your "personal space" situation is at work, but I also keep a box of the Kashi hot cereal packets at my desk - I can mix one up in my coffee cup whenever I have 10 minutes to spare and they have enough fiber and protein to keep you going for a little while.
HI!! You seem to have given some good advice and I am in the same position - a bit confused with the burn meter however what you say makes sense but just to make sure could you check my calculations are correct please?
So my daily burn is 1870 which over a week should be 13090. I have set myself a goal of 3 times a week at the gym for half an hour which I did last night and burned just over 250 calories. So with the two together over the week I should have burned 13840 calories. I have also set myself an absolute maximum of 1500 calories per day (although the suggested is 1200-1300 I am trying to be realistic!) so over a week that would be 10500 making a deficit of 3340. Is that how I should be working it out and do you feel that the deficit is enough to start making a difference?
Thanks so much!!
I live alone and i actually like that idea best. sunday is my shopping day and that will also give me a nice quiet day to count out all of the calories in the portions i make. It also sounds like i need to get a nice blender.
