Doing it right?

[Soulifix]

2015, I was reported as to being 285. That's 15 pounds away from 300 and I didn't want to be there. So, I began to try and do something about that.

Throughout 2016, I subtracted a lot of foods from my normal routine. The crunchy snacks were gone, the fast food was gone, the soda was gone, the candy was gone (I'm having teeth problems anyway so they're a definite 'No') and I upped the increase in exercise.

I exchanged sodas for Coffee/Tea/Water, mostly Water and Coffee since they're both frequent drinks throughout the day with Coffee always in the morning and water for the rest. About 2 - 3 bottles of water sometimes.

I am not convinced that fat-free, low sugar, glucose-free are acceptable foods in my diet. I'm in a disciplined and a calorie-eccentric diet. 2,000 or lower is the cap.

My food intake is basically dollar tree foods and yes I'm going to get people saying that a lot of their food is junk and you'd be right. Frozen entrees like nuggets, pizza bagels .etc but I don't necessarily buy huge quantities of this stuff.

But, in doing all of this, I've noticed that I'm down to the 227 mark. Least my digital weight scale says so and I wish I had those medical scales in the house that read far more better but it's all I got.

Just looking for a bit of validation here. Yes I like to throw in the fruits, milks and vegetables at any given time because I love oranges, spinach and so on.

 

[Omega]

Welcome to the forum.
You have done really well in bringing your weight down to 227 from 285 pounds.

As you have noticed - you do not need to be eating healthily to lose weight - calorie total is the most important thing and a calorie deficit will give you weight loss.

I am from England and have never heard of Dollar Tree - so am going by the foods that you list.

You will definitely benefit in your health by altering your diet to switch in fruit, veg etc... It is like giving a car the kind of fuel it was designed to work best on... If you put something else in - it may go quite acceptably down the street - or it may shudder as it goes...

Fruit and vegetables do not just fill you up for less calories than a lot of naughty things... They bring all sorts of vitamins into your diet - or protect you from nasty illnesses...

Calcium in milks etc helps build our bones.

Protein like meat and fish helps build not only muscles, but skin, hair, nails, bones - it helps the body to repair itself.

When you love things like oranges and spinach you should embrace them into your diet...

If you try other veg you may find other ones that you love too...

I suspect that you may think that you are looking at greater effort than the frozen junk food - but I would say go for frozen or fresh already prepared vegetables if that is a major issue... If you get already diced meat and already prepared vegetables you can set up a slow cooker meal in about 2 minutes and it is cooked and ready to serve when you come in at night.

Similarly - with already prepared veg - a roast dinner just takes moments to put into the oven and the veg into a big pan...

It need be nothing like the time-consuming task that people can imagine...

Since as I said I know nothing about Dollar Tree - if finance is the issue - then staple food like fruit and vegetables need not be particularly expensive - although the unprepared tends to be cheaper than prepared. You can get protein for several meals from a chicken. We often have roast chicken, chicken curry or stir fry, chicken soup.