HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

I would really really appreciate if someone can look at what I eat and tell me what Im doing wrong or how I can improve!! A little background.

Im 34 (in a week) have an 8 month old son. Before I got pregnant I quit smoking and gained about 15 lbs..then I got pregnant and gained 55 lbs. I have about 10 more lbs to drop to get to PRE-pregnancy weight. (I lost weight b/c of water retention and on mat leave I walked with the baby).Now nothing is coming off.
I was an athlete all thru HS and had a great figure.(size 6-8) Then b/c I stopped sports I slowly gained weight. When I got married I could have still lost about 15lbs but now I'd DIE to be back there!

If you look at me you would think all I do is eat junk food and greasy horrible things. I look at myself and want to cry. I just don't understand. With what I eat.. I feel I should not be this heavy.

Ok here is my daily food intake:

Breakfast:
Fruit salad with Cottage Cheese (from deli so it's not low fat im sure)
My bf has varried.. I used to eat special K or to limit carbs I did Tureky and Cheese roll ups. I keep chaning it to see if something changes.

Lunch:
Usually a Big Salad with grilled chicken. Dressing is ALWAY Balsamic Vinegar or Vinegrette (sp).
Or a Weight Watchers lunch if I don't feel like a salad
Or Homemade Tuna on whole Wheat
The worst I eat for lunch will be a Turkey and Swiss On Whole Wheat with mustartd or a little mayo.

Dinner: I cook pretty healthy"
Usually Chicken in the oven or grilled.. always a breast. A veggie and a starch.
I have limited my starch portion at dinner and upped my veggie portion.
We eat red meat once a week. (now more due to BBQs but not overdoing it).

Lean fish like Salmon or Talapia
turkey meatloaf.. things like that.

Snacks During the day:
Banana
Peach
Yogurt (dannon light and fit 98 cals and 0 fat)

Snack at night: One Weight Watchers snack.
I could def up my water intake, which Im working on.

Now Excersise:
With a baby it was hard to find time but for about 7 weeks I did the couch to 5k.
so i was doing 25-30 mins of cardio.. pushups and crunches.

In 7 WEEKS I ONLY LOST 1-2LBS!! And NO change in the fit of my clothing to speak of. I got sick with strep and gave up. Now I have to go back to it but change it to 5:00am due to baby's schedule change. But Im sooo unmotivated now!! I just don't know how to change my diet to be reasonable and help my drop weight!! I fee like I shouldn't be this heavy eating the way I do!!
Can someone Please help me Im desperate now!! I want to be a mom my son is proud of..not embarrassed of!!!

Thanks for anyone who has read all of this!!

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

I'm not the best eater so your daily menu looks good to me. Could your portions be too big? Even if it's only grilled chicken, or turkey meat, if you eat alot of it - it will add up.

I also think you need to start getting into a workout routine. Find something you love to do that way you want to do it. For me, this was Zumba. I'm actually mad when I don't get to go. Even if you only go three times a week it's still something.

Would you consider joining Weight Watchers. I have dieted of/on since having Jack, on my own....I didn't lose anything. Since joining Weight Watchers 3 months ago I've lost 18 pounds.

Good luck, once you find what's right for you I bet the lbs will be falling off

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

hey Lin!

okay I'm NO expert at all.... but I think you need to work on breakfast and lunch. It sounds like you've got a good thing going on for dinner!

You really want to try to stay away from frozen foods because they have SO much sodium!

If you're making tuna.... don't use mayo - or use just a drop. Use extra virgin olive oil instead, and pack it with veggies... chop some carrots, celery, hard boiled egg, etc. to make it nice and filling.

Salad with grilled chicken is awesome.

The turkey/cheese rollups could be good for lunch too.

If you make a sandwich... load it up with veggies! I do turkey, lettuce, tomato, avocado, red onion, cucumber, etc. It makes it so much more filling and you won't even miss the cheese or mayo.

For breakfast I always (during work) make a low-sugar oatmeal with some peanut butter and a sliced banana. It's SO filling!!!!! (I make it with silk light soymilk). I used to eat it at maybe 6:30 and was FULL until 9:30 or even 10:30 sometimes!

Snacks - I love the nature valley fruit & nut trail mix bars. They are realllllly yummy and they sell them at costco! I think you want to try not to eat TOO many fruits during the day because they have a lot of sugars.... that's what Mich told me. I usually have the granola bar as one snack... or have some almonds, extra slices of grilled chicken, a hardboiled egg.... etc.

Does that help at all?

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

I think its probably the fat in your meals...regular dressing(try those spray dressings for while or just plain vinegar)
the cheese roll ups try low fat cheeses

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

Message edited 7/30/2010 11:08:42 AM.

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

I don't think your diet is bad at all.

Just a few tweeks could help.

Lose the cottage cheese. You know it's full fat and it has high sodium. Replace with egg whites and whole wheat or rye. Add lots of veggies. Cereal is great but if you are like me you can fall into the eat more than a portion trap.

Steam veggies for lunch with a protein. You can get in trouble with salads..
eat low sugar fruits..strawberries, canteloupe. Drink two glasses of water with lunch

eat some almonds as a snack..it will help you not be hungry and feel deprived.

2 liters of water a day no fail. The best advice is to drink.

Lastly, portion out everything before you sit down to eat it. Start weighing and measuring your food. Keep a food log. You will actually see what you are really consuming.

Don't be so hard on yourself. You are making efforts to be healthier and leaner.

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

Your diet sounds fine.

Only suggestion is prepare foods at home...You have to be really careful when eating out. You have no idea how they are preparing their foods. They can make a grilled chicken salad have as many calories as pizza with all the oils/dressings they use.

Drinking A LOT of water with lemon (or strawberry or lime etc etc) has really helped me. I am talking 2-3L a day.

Message edited 7/30/2010 2:58:30 PM.

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

After DS I thought I was eating healthy too, but wasnt seeing any weight come off, so I dragged my butt back to weight watchers and it has really helped!! Maybe you can try that?? Your portions may be too big, or maybe you don't have enough fiber, or you may not be eating enough as well...

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

Hmmm, sounds like you're totally on the right track, but here's what I'd tweak:

1. Cut out the starch at dinner. Add more veggies instead if you're still hungry.

2. No bananas. Look for "jucier" fruits.

3. Switch to low fat cottage cheese from the grocery store.

4. For your red meats, if you have a choice, try to make them lean - i.e. steak rather than ground beef.

5. What are you drinking? Make sure you aren't inadvertantly sabotaging yourself by consuming liquid calories (juice, soda, beer...). Try to stick with water... some people swear by avoiding nutrasweet, so even staying away from diet sodas might help.

6. Try to cut out the snack after dinner.

7. Get back on the exercise wagon. Even if you can't do as much as you'd like, some is better than none.

Good luck! I'm at a plateau myself, so I know how frustrating it is

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

thanks for all of the advice. I really appreciate it. Just to add I ONLY drink water. Never any juice or soda.. oh and coffee in the morning.
Im going to try some of your suggestions.. thanks

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

Good luck! Just a few tweaks could make a big difference.

Also, I know that when I eat salads for lunch I'm a snackaholic the rest of the day. That's why I can't just do salads for a meal.

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

Lin Don't be so hard on yourself! You lost most of your pregnancy weight and that is great!

I think you need to eat small portions frequently. Also, play with seasonings and preparations of food to keep yourself interested.

And I think you need to get your thyroid checked after reading this post and the one you had on parenting saying you were tired.

Re: HELP! I need Advice/Suggestions.. I feel so Defeated!!(looooong)

I would take the cottage cheese out and have low fat or fat free yogurt instead with the fruit. Measure your cereal according to the serving size on the box. Most cereal bowls are more then one serving so you might be over doing it. When you have coffee are you using sugar and milk?

For lunch, salad with grilled chicken is good. Balsamic vinegar is awesome to go with it. I would pick up some low sodium turkey and low fat cheese for your roll ups.

It sounds like your diet is ok but can be a little better. Watch your sodium intake because some of the food you are having are high in sodium. I would also check your portion size. You might be eating more then you think.