Veggie Diet

Since I quit smoking 2yrs ago I have gained about 15-20lbs that I just can't seem to get rid of! I am considering an all veggie diet and thought I would ask if anyone has any advice or experience? I plan on allowing myself to eat all the veggies I want all day (minus the starchy veggies like corn and potatoes ,etc.) And I will have one boiled chicken breast along with my veggies each day so that I still get some protein. I know that 10-15lbs may not seem like a lot but I went from a size 5 to an 11. I just want to fit my clothes again! In addition, I plan on cutting out all soda since that is really all I drink and I know I need to switch to water. I feel tired and wore out all the time and I know it is in part due to my schedule but also because my diet is very poor. Please give me your thoughts!

Congratulations on quitting smoking.
That is a very hard thing to do.
You need to pat yourself on the back.

It took a while to put the weight on, it takes time to take it off.
When you quit smoking, you just QUIT.
You cannot lose weight by just quitting eating.
You still have to eat.
You will find that your energy will go up as you lose weight slowly. Your plan sounds just fine. It is better to lose 5 pounds permanently, than to lose 10 pounds and gain it back. Once you get to your ideal weight, it is important to maintain.

For me, I gained 20 pounds in a month when I tore my anterior cruciate ligament playing hockey about 6 years ago. I wasn't moving and exercising like I used to, and I was eating the same amount.
It was very hard to get the weight off.
As my knee healed, I could be more active, and the weight came off a little easier. My basic rules were:
No eating anything three hours before bed.
Moving, walking, or something physical everyday...for half an hour.
As many veggies as I wanted.
No wheat, no bread.

It took a long time.
I have to get back to my routine of walking and I have to rejoin a new gym. My middle daughter is in college for....Confectionary Arts. (Bread, Pies, Cakes, Pastry). AAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHH!

xoxox

i lost 55 pounds over the course of one year. gradual is the way to go! i did eat grains, but stuck to whole grains. i also used more veggies in place of carbs, but i did eat carbs. i used (still use) healthy oils - cold-pressed olive oil, macadamia nut oil. flaxseed oil (tastes great on toast). i cut out simple sugars. no more sugar in coffee, etc. in a few weeks, i didn't miss it at all, and if i ate something somewhat sugary, it actually no longer tasted good. i'm not a soda drinker, so that wasn't an issue. but your idea to cut it is a good one. even the consumption of no-cal soda is linked to weight gain, in study after study. you can flavor water to make it more appealing. best of luck - you can do it!!

Maybe something more substantial for breaky ? My sister lives on veggies , and chicken and fish, and rice cakes instead of bread and she has one of the best bodies for a 53 yr old that I know. But she always makes sure it's oats or an egg, or low fat yoghurt for breaky.
Me on the other hand, too many chips, crackers and cheese.
Just a thought

Good luck and congrats for quitting

Thanks guys! I am feeling super motivated...I really had no choice to quit smoking since they found I had oral cancer, which I was lucky it was very small and was successfully removed off of my gums. It was really an eye opener though and I quit immediately. Now I just really want to start making better decisions with my diet. My entire family has always had health issues with cancer, diabetes, thyroid and obesity. I don't want to go down that path and I feel like if I break the chain my kids will also learn to live and eat and be healthy as well! I am also trying to get the hubby on board with a better diet since heart problems run heavy in his family. His health eval for life insurance was not that great...I am trying to just get my whole family fit. Thanks for everyone's thoughts and experiences. And congrats on your progress Lisa and JJJJJ, it really is encouraging!

P.S. day 2 without pop and coffee is a special kind of hell!

Omg , the coffee too? Well done.

Wow, congrats on catching the cancer quitting smoking, both are significant accomplishments!

No one diet works for everyone. I was vegan for 4 years and vegetarian for nearly 13. What I found works best for me is a diet that includes protein from grass-fed animals, zero grains, and lots of veggies and a little bit of fruit now and then. With the change in my diet to get rid of grains, I also got rid of all the inflammation in my back that was taking me on a road towards surgery and disc replacement. The change in food has literally changed my life.

It's worth experimenting to find out what makes you look, feel and perform at your best. Again, No one diet works for everyone. Also, I found that unless you really like something like boiled chicken, to put that constraint on yourself is a one-way ticket to fall off the wagon. Make your food interesting and diverse enough that you want to stick to it, your diet can be both tasty and healthy.

I really love Mark's Daily Apple for motivation, recipes, and good resources about nutrition:
http://www.marksdailyapple.com

I also like Sarah Fragoso's Blog and Podcast and many of her recipes:
http://everydaypaleo.com/

I also visit this blog for recipes now and then, but I have to stay away from the "fake" desserts, they're often just as calorie dense as the ones with grains:
http://paleomg.com/

What she said ^^^

Meat is not the devil.. The chips,pop, food that comes in a box, processed foods, fast foods .. Those are the devil.

I like to snack.. so what i did was replaced my chips with veggies and fruit. My snacking requires things to crunch, where others want salt.. So hard crunchy veggies were the way to go. And exercise..It doesn't have to be going to the gym everyday.. but something more than what you do now.

The key to anything is moderation. It's ok to have a few chips.. but not the whole bag (i'd eat the whole bag.. the big bags :/ )
Steak is ok.. just not for every meal
Veggies are good, but not ONLY veggies..

If if feels like you are all of the sudden cheating yourself out of eating good food, you'll never stick to it and for sure the rest of the family won't. it leads to binge junk food sessions.

Healthier alternatives to things you already eat (that taste good) and portion control is a HUGE one.. Check what the actual serving sizes are for the things you eat vs how much is put on a plate.. It's kind of shocking if you've never paid attention

the first huge diet change you made was losing soda and drinking more waters and tea. the benefits is that it keeps you hydrated. your body will store food and water when it feels threatened by the low intake. it goes into survival mode. drinking more water means less water weight.

red meat is not evil BUT it is harder to digest so it is not optimized as a primary protein source. beans, nuts, chicken, fish in small portions. eggs in the morning will do you wonders. if your most active during the early

I had a heart attack a few years back and had to lose weight fast as I was 3 LBS shy of 400 LBS. I broke all the rules to do it.

when I got out of the hospital the first thing I did was join a gym. I spent 4-8 hours a day working out or exercising. I would eat one big meal a day and it was done at the all you can eat salad bar at sizzler. I would eat a chicken breast on sundays as a treat.

now here is what happened during the first 4 months....I dropped 150 LBS.
I was able to add a bit more into my caloric intake as I was spending all the calories each morning in work out. my muscle mass increased. my energy increased. I actually would feel sick if I missed a work out.

the key here is find what works for you. do not worry about how much you weigh as that will break your heart. rather start measuring your inches. muscle weighs way more then fat. so you will gain weight but lose inches if your working out hard. I would never suggest anyone do what I did as it demands a commitment for life and if you do not give it then you will suffer later.

I am rooting for you my friend!
good luck !

it's true! after i lost my weight, i actually needed to increase my caloric intake again. my metabolism was re-tooled, and i was able to eat more of the good diet and not gain the weight back. it IS what you eat.

I am vegan and have been vegetarian since the age of 12. You can eat very healthy meals plus meals that you used to love but instead of having the dairy and meats in the meals you will have vegan alternatives. There are tons of easy recipies online. Google healthy vegan meals. I have felt great since turning vegan, and I don't plan on going back, have even vegan for almost 10 years. Good luck.

The one thing I'd like to point out is that meat IS NOT harder to break down or digest. That is a myth that I think was encouraged by makers of products that "cleanse" you. Meat is actually easier to break down than vegetation or grains. Man (homosapian) is naturally and instinctively a carnivore.... then, as nature may have dictated and man so desired, crops and vegetation were added to our regular diet - but that has only been in the last 10,000 years. I have done a great deal of extensive reading and research on this whole matter because I am someone who is plagued - every single day - with digestive problems. After it perforated, I had a good portion of my colon removed and post surgery I had to wear an ileostomy bag for almost a year.

I never feel better, especially digestive-wise, when I am on a high protein/very low carbs regimen. The problem is, we are so conditioned to enjoy food and all it has to offer us and satisfy all our senses, that we become too bored with a high protein /low carb menu. And when this happens, we immediately want to revert back to eating that which really ignites our senses. Then, any success that was achieved is negated by a return to our regular American diet. This is pretty much true for all diets.

I don't fit neatly into a nutritionist's "formula" for successful weight loss or maintenance. I can't digest fruits, veggies or grains without suffering. I have been at wit's end for so long. Gastric surgery is not an option.

BUTT (Miss Ronnie's got a big ol' butt) I have finally seen a shimmering light at the end of a very dark and depressing tunnel. I am finally in physical therapy for my knee that was botched and destroyed in a routine surgery in 2008. The orthopedic doctor who performed the surgery denied me continuing physical therapy (citing that I could do it on my own - lol!!!) Hence, I not only had a horrible limp, but I got really fat and then aggravated heel spurs on the bottom of the world's flattest feet(Google flat feet and my name is probably top of the list - lol).

I don't know how I managed to become a face painter in the midst of all that.... I guess necessity? Surely, God's grace has been upon me to survive two near death experiences in the last 7 years.

So, physical therapy has significantly strengthened my knee in only 2 weeks of work - YAY! ANd I just got a cortisone shot in my heel the other day (the last one had no effect on the beyond belief excruciating pain) and this time it helped tremendously!!!!! It still hurts, but nowhere near as intensely.

So, I have seen the light. And I just asked my doctor to put me on Phentermine and although I didn't like the idea of taking it, it is starting to make a noticeable difference (I've only been on it since Tuesday)

All I have to say is, trimming your weight is very important to prevent other related health problems.... and I don't mean just high blood pressure or diabetes or heart problems. I have none of those, which is a miracle in itself, but every other health problem that I have is all affected by carrying around an extra 100 pounds.

My advice to anyone is to get so tough with your inner self... my inner self wants to b*tch slap me a lot, but I can take it....

Wishing everyone success in their endeavors!

Love,
Miss Ronnie