Ask a Dietitian Forum Topic

Dietitian 08/17/15 replied to Ndnlady60
Hi Ndnlady60, given what you report here, you should be losing weight. The problem could be error somewhere in estimating calories intake or expended. The most common problem I see is not logging the right foods in the right amounts which causes an underestimation of calories intake. Also, settings that can inflate total calories expended.

The next step - allow me to look at your data and give you specific feedback. Or, read a couple of short articles and tweak how you are using the system.

Calories: http://www.mynetdiary.com/customizing-calorie-goals.html

Measuring & estimating portion size: http://www.mynetdiary.com/estimating-portions-for-food-diary.html

Logging food items: http://www.mynetdiary.com/more-tips-for-food-logging.html

If you would like me to view your data, login to the web program, go to Community tab, click my nickname Dietitian above this post, scroll down to Attitude and change Neutral to Friendly, then go to your own My Page, find the row with my nickname, then click all of the data boxes and save. Then tell me when you are ready to have me view.

Let me know how it goes!

Best,
Kathy Isacks, MPS, RD, CDE

Dietitian 08/17/15
From Taratruehitt Aug 14: Is 1700 calories a day OK to eat a day. I'm trying to at least lose 1 1/2 lbs a week and had leg surgery so can't walk right now. So wanting to eat less than my maintenance weight.

My reply: Hi Taratruehitt, 1700 kcal is fine to eat but given your sex, age, ht, and wt (which I can't see), you may or may not lose weight with that level. Your weight loss goal of 1.5 lbs per week is pretty aggressive if you can't be active - it requires creating a calories deficit of about 750 kcal. While you are healing, perhaps a goal like 1/2 lb/week is more manageable.

If you have a lot of weight to lose (e.g. 100 lb+) then 1700 kcal might be giving you that calories deficit even without exercise.

If you want me to look at your data and give you feedback, you can share it with just me by:
- Logging into the web program
- Community tab
- Forum link
- Click my nickname "Dietitian" at the top of this post
- Scroll down to the bottom of my Person Page
- Change your attitude from "neutral" to "friendly"
- Go to your "My Community Profile"
- Go to Information Sharing settings
- Find "Dietitian" row and checkmark all the data boxes. Save.
- Let me know when you want me to view your data.

Best,
Kathy Isacks, MPS, RDN, CDE

Leanna1016 08/26/15
I have a question...I am a very picky eater. I am currently weighing foods and counting calories. I started walking this week. But I have no energy and am consistently hungry. I don't want to end up binge eating so looking to find out healthier foods that I will actually eat. Thanks

Dietitian 08/26/15 replied to Leanna1016
Hi Leanna1016, if you are very hungry all of the time, then consider these things:
1. Are your meals high enough in protein? Aim for 20g protein/meal - 60 g per day or more.
2. Is your weight loss goal too aggressive? Losing 2 lbs/wk means creating a calories deficit of 1000 kcal/day - a tall order. If you set your weekly weight loss lower, then the calories deficit required will be less.
3. Is your average daily calories intake too low? We are all different in terms of what we tolerate. This is also related to #2.
4. Are you eating at least 3 meals/day? For weight loss, many find that healthy lower caloric snacks are helpful.

If you login to the web program, you can search Community for older posts on snacks. I wrote a blog post with a bunch of ideas a while back - here's the link: http://www.mynetdiary.com/snack-ideas-from-mynetdiary-members-for-the-past.html

5. Eat lots of non-starchy veggies to help fill up. 2-3 pieces fresh fruit over the course of the day for the sweet also helps. Personally, my go-to snack to satisfy hunger with few calories is low fat cottage cheese.

Let me know how those ideas work for you.

Best,
Kathy Isacks, MPS, RD, CDE

Jogym 09/12/15
Help Iam a carb junky! Any tips? Bmi 30.1 needs to be 25 for fertility! Going into my 3rd week at the gym and loving it! X

Dietician 09/14/15 replied to Jogym
Hi Jogym. I assume by carb junky you mean craving (or overeating) things like bread, cookies, crackers, chips, etc. Other than bread, those kind of refined carb foods tend to be low nutritional value and engineered to be very tasty, so it's hard to resist them. Another issue frequently is the rest of the diet is unbalanced, so you keep craving carbs to boost energy.
One good strategy is to be sure to include high quality protein foods at all meals and snacks in sufficient amounts so your appetite is suppressed. While that's easy to do for dinner, people tend to under-eat protein at breakfast, which is actually the most important time in terms of stifling your cravings. So I'd suggest first picking high protein breakfast foods, rounding the meal out with fresh fruit or vegetables or whole grain foods.
I'd also stay away from sweet/sugary tastes, even if the foods are artificially sweetened, like soft drinks or yogurts. Those just train your taste buds to crave sweets. Another thing I don't recommend is sweetened snack bars, even the ones claiming to be high protein. If you need protein at a snack, eat some cheese or nuts or tuna.
Finally, divide your food as evenly as possible throughout the day. Don't skimp and starve all day and reward yourself with a big dinner. That just sets you up to crave carbs (energy) the next day.
I hope that gives you some ideas. Let me know if you have other questions.
Donna Feldman MS RDN

Marksfaith 09/16/15
I am Pre diabetic and trying to lose weight. I have had great success in the past on a low carb diet, however I see the danger in going to low. 1st issue, I am getting frustrated with the system saying that I need to eat more to balance calories out.
2nd issue staying in the lower carb area Per my docs instruction, how can I reduce the cholesterol and sodium? Its always way over.
and lastly, fiber. What can I eat in the am to best get my day started with a good amount of fiber but keeping the carbs out.
Carbs do not give me energy, rather the opposite. If I have minimal carbs in the am it tanks my day.
Thank you

Dietitian 09/17/15 replied to Marksfaith
Hi Markstack, the default macronutrient goals at MyNetDiary are simply tools to help folks aim for something - they are not meant to be the one true value you have to reach every day. In truth, these goals would be better set up as ranges of intake, not individual goals. The range of intake for fat, carbs, and protein would be quite large as many styles of intake can support health and weight loss.

If you lower your carb intake, then more calories will be coming from fat and protein. If you want to keep a lid on your saturated/trans fat, cholesterol and sodium intake, you will want to be careful with your protein and fat choices and tracking is ideally suited for these dietary changes. You can simply ignore the default goals and customize your own. I find it easiest to do this customization by logging into the web program, going to PLAN tab, and doing it there.

Healthy protein ideas: http://www.mynetdiary.com/protein-foods-in-diet.html
Healthy fat ideas: http://www.mynetdiary.com/dietary-fats.html

FYI, research shows that the 2 strongest predictors of halting or slowing progression to Type 2 diabetes (once a person has prediabetes) is: 1. Losing weight (5-7% BW is a good first goal and shows significant risk reduction) and 2. Getting enough moderate intensity exercise most days of the week (aim for at least 150 min weekly but more would be even better).

I understand your doctor gave you a recommendation and you want to follow it. If you are curious, I recommend a carb controlled plan with an emphasis on Mediterranean-style eating (vs. a low carb plan). If you want to explore that a bit more, these articles will help:

Diabetes (this is a good article for those with prediabetes since it refers to carb controlled meals and snacks): http://www.mynetdiary.com/food-diary-for-diabetes.html

Mediterranean Diets
http://www.mynetdiary.com/mediterranean-diets-good-food-good-fats-and.html

Eating more Mediterranean Style: http://www.mynetdiary.com/eating-more-mediterranean-style.html

Best,
Kathy Isacks, MPS, RDN, CDE

Catrinsimonson 09/28/15
Hi I was wondering if you have any tips on how to track food if you are eating out at a restaurant and don't know what goes into every element of your meal?

Dietitian 09/28/15 replied to Catrinsimonson
Hi Catrinsimonson, dining out can be a challenge in terms of accurate logging. If it is a chain restaurant, then no problem since the nutrition information will be online on the restaurant's website or it could already be in MyNetDiary. But for all of the other restaurants, you have to do your best at estimating. I will sometimes search my dish with "Whole Foods" in the title since they have a large selection of items already in MyNetDiary. That way, at least I can log something that is accounting for enough oil, salt, etc in the cooked dish.

So, the answer to your question is - you do your best at picking the best food item in the database that best approximates what you ate at the restaurant.

Let me know if you need more specific tips.

Best,
Kathy Isacks, MPS, RDN, CDE

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