HELP ME EAT!!!

Okay, so I've been working on this for a while, and I'm ready to transfer it here to a blog. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. I *KNOW* how you feel and how frustrating finding the RIGHT things to eat can be. So, what I did was went back and analyzed my stats at the beginning of my journey. I input the totals for a 5'2" tall female weighing 162 lbs. Additionally, I didn't put in any workout program, said I wanted to lose a lot of weight (50 lbs is a little less than 1/3 of my weight at that time), and that basically, I was sedentary (haven't done any form of exercise) Voila! The magic machine spews out a magic number...1300 calories (low carb). So, what does this mean?

Initially, I thought counting calories (similar to points on Weight Watchers) would be the way to go. I logged my food into www.myfitnesspal.com (a free site) and plugged in my foods. I was thrilled to see that I was losing weight, but I was surprised that I wasn't losing much (a little here & a little there). It wasn't until I began doing P90X and looked through the nutrition guide that it began to click. So, if you are one of my customers, and need to know how many calories you should be consuming. Let me know what workout or exercise you're doing, your age, weight, and height, and I can crunch your numbers. If you're not a customer of mine, you can join here for free: http://teambeachbody.com/signup?referringRepId=17347

Here's the lowdown on a 1300 calorie meal plan. Since I would be looking to lose a lot of weight, I'm going to use the lower carb plan. With this, I will be eating 50% protein, 30% carbs, 20% fat (now, I eat closer to 40/40/20). I divide the number in 4 to account for all meals (snacks included). My goal would be 325 calories for my main meals and 160 calories for my snacks. The next step is choosing options. In order to make it as easy as possible, I'm making a list for you. Pick and choose options to meet your needs (item amounts will be listed as calories/fat/carbs/protein):

Breakfast
Shakeology - 150/1/17/18 **balanced carb/protein**
Egg (large whole) - 70/5/0/6
All Whites (liquid egg whites 1/4 c) - 30/0/1/6
Thomas Whole Wheat English Muffin - 120/1/23/6 **higher carb**
Smart Balance Natural Creamy Peanut Butter (2 Tbs) - 190/16/6/7 **high in fat / balanced c/p**
small banana (6") - 90/0/23/1
Jimmy Dean Turkey Sausage Patties (2) - 120/7/1/13 **higher sodium**
2 Egg/Sausage/Cheese (my recipe) - 360/18/6/40 **higher fat, sodium, protein**
Chocolate Strawberry Oatmeal Protein Pancake (my recipe) - 245/4/21/26

Snacks
Shakeology (see above)
Turkey Sausage Patties (see above)
Chocolate Strawberry Oatmeal Protein Pancake (see above)
Breakstones 2% Cottage Cheese Single Serving Cup - 90/3/6/11
blueberries (1 c) - 83/0/21/1 **higher carb**
fruit in general (higher carb)
Ostrim Ostrich Jerky Teriyaki flavor (found it at GNC - the pepper flavor is higher in protein) - 60/2/3/10 **higher sodium**
Carb Conscious Peanut Butter Crunch 43 g/smaller protein bar (can now get at Walmart or GNC) - 190/9/13/15
Kentucky Legend Oven Roasted Turkey 2 oz (2 slices - I usually eat more...more protein) - 60/1/2/10
Quaker Lightly Salted Rice Cake - 35/0/7/1 (usually I have 2 of these with the peanut butter below)
Smart Balance Natural Peanut Butter (2 Tbs) - 190/16/6/7 **higher fat**
Activia 4 oz Fat Free Strawberry - 70/0/13/4
Blue Diamond Almonds - All Natural (24 with no salt) - 160/14/6/6 **higher fat**
Frigo Cheese Heads Light Cheese Stick - 50/3/1/8
Hard Boiled Egg - 80/5/1/6

Lunch
Fresh Express Spring Mix (3 c) - 20/0/3/2 add veggies and a lean protein (turkey, tuna, egg)
**I personally like to add blueberries/raspberries/blackberries (adds carbs), crumbled feta/blue cheese (adds fat/protein), and other veggies (broccoli/carrots), so if you add, you will also be increasing calories. Write down what you want to eat and check the totals before you do. I use dressing, but I dip my fork in it instead of pouring it onto my salad.
Bumble Bee Solid White Albacore Tuna in water (1 can) - 120/2/0/26
Kentucky Legend Turkey (see snacks)
4 oz Wild Salmon Filet (cooked from frozen at Walmart) - 100/3/0/19
Joseph's Pita bread - 60/2/8/6
Pepperoni Pita Pizza (my recipe) - 235/6/16/35
Leftovers from dinner (prepared and put into containers)

Dinner - These are my own personal recipes...some have been posted...others WILL be posted, so stay tuned and FOLLOW my page!!
Lowfat Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas - 300/9/21/32
Shrimp & Broccoli with garlic lemon sauce on spinach linguine - 440/13/24/64
Buffalo Steak, brown rice, parmesan spinach - 505/13/39/62
Chicken Parmesan with spinach linguine - 380/4/40/52
Lowfat Beef Stroganoff with no yolk noodles (normally I eat 1/2 c. but 1 c. is a serving) - 450/6/56/41 (using 1/2 cup will lower carbs)
Turkey Chili with brown rice - 350/2/51/44
Lowfat Spaghetti & Meatballs - 340/8/33/33
Chicken & Broccoli Treat with brown rice - 335/4/38/41
Bison steak, mashed potatoes, broccoli - 350/8/25/43

These are just a few of the things I do, but it takes time. I honestly have plugged the info into My Fitness Pal to determine the amounts, so I am sure they are accurate (I usually check a few to make sure the info is correct). If you have any questions, ask away!