@bones49 Not the original person you asked but I do espresso + oat milk + a pump of syrup in the mornings and it’s about 100cal - I don’t like a lot of milk with my coffee tho, I just add it bc black coffee and espresso on an empty stomach has started triggering acid reflux for me in recent years.
As long as you’re not adding a ton of sugar to the drink, it shouldn’t constitute a huge portion of your calories for the day. I could still reach my nutritional needs on ~1200-1300 calories with the coffee!
@tongdtbds4 thanks for your message! I just wish I could do TRUE IF but man plain tea or coffee is so depressing! I just like some milk or unsweetened soymilk in my coffee. Skipping breakfast does help me stay in my calorie limit tho as well even if it's not IF!
@slant I haven’t been keeping track in two weeks, gained like 5 pounds back. I should of been eating more intentionally instead of just enjoying stuff, but idk I wasn’t expecting this to last for two weeks lol I’m sure short breaks are fine but make sure not to drag em out or take them too too often
@slant i’ve found that making an educated guess at home cooked foods is better for my mental health than trying to count for every single ingredient,
divide by number of servings etc
@slant I feel you. In my case calorie counting contributed in eating disorder which symptoms come back to my life sometimes. What really helped me is intermittent fasting (to set a limit) and 80/20 approach. I feel safe and flexible this way. It may help you too. You can also tweak new recipes to make it kinda healthier without being too stressed. I am a big foodie so I understand how frustrating is to be limited by numbers.
@slant I took a break! From April to mid May I ate literally anything and everything I wanted. I went from 115 to 121 lbs while doing OMAD. By the end of mid May, I was sick of eating all the greasy and sugary foods, and was actually craving healthy and nutritious food. I’ve been back on my CICO since mid May, and I’ve gone from 121 to 114! I think the break was worth it.
@slant Always. You burn out if you don't. On breaks I tend to stay in maintenance, so it's neither +/- especially when I'm already at a average weight range.
Try one week breaks and eventually work up to being able to break for one month for things like seasonal parts of the year where you do too much to have yet one more thing to keep track of.
Trying out new recipes is a great use of this time because then you can determine which ones are worth the effort of tracking later.
@slant The perfect truly is the enemy of the good enough. I keep re-learning this in various contexts, and probably will for the rest of my life
I heard some great advice about logging imperfectly...if you make lasagna with ground beef, just go into your app and search for 'homemade lasagna ground beef.' You'll see a bunch of options- some v high calorie, some v low. Pick one in the middle and move on with your life.
Stopping tracking altogether is obviously one option but to me it's not super ideal to get out of the habit and then have to get back in it again.
@slant Stop calorie counting and start read the small font ingredient list.. anything you cant pronounce or is another name for a natural ingredient don’t eat! You will see a drastic change in your overall health and body. Download the Yuka app and start doing your own research.
@slant Yes! Calorie counting is about building knowledge and habit shifts. You know what’s high calorie (oils/fats/butters) and how to cook the way that fits to your goals. Sometimes I will cook a new recipe and just guesstimate. If my weight is responding in a way I don’t want, I’ll adjust or when I’m feeling up for it, measure out my recipe and calories.
Again at the end of the day this is about building sustainable habits for you! Watch portion sizes and cook how you like! I support mental breaks and I support finding things that work.
@slant It’s completely okay to take breaks, weightloss does not have a time line I always go on maintenance breaks, if you eat similar food each day you usually don’t even have to keep track to know you’re in maintenance I have also have been making it a goal to lift more weights because as a short women if we don’t have a lot of muscle our calories for a deficit can get so low so if I’m maintaining I make it a goal to move more and this has changed my mindset completely because now I like to workout to become stronger and grow muscle and now I barely look at the scale and most of the time I eat maintenance and maybe 3 days out of the week will eat in a deficit ( when you lift you usually have to eat maintenance or be in a slight deficit)
@slant It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. When I stopped in the past, first I went to just estimating calories versus weighing and measuring, and aiming for total daily calories within a 300 cal range, depending on my hunger and activity level for the day. That was effective for me.
@slant I maintained for about seven months without calories tracking before I got pregnant. I didn’t lose any but I didn’t really gain either. Now that I’m postpartum, I’ve also taken a more relaxed approach to counting that helps me greatly. Basically if it’s less than 50 calories, I don’t track it. I don’t write down spindrifts or diet sodas or mints. I loosely estimate, sometimes going higher sometimes lower. I weigh some food when I’m at home but don’t fuss when I’m out or at someone else’s house. I’m losing slowly but I feel like this level of tracking is much more sustainable.
@slant Definitely take a break! I lose 5lbs (usually one month) and then break for another month and then continue. It’s your life and there is no set journey! Make it one you enjoy! there is no timeline on these things unless you make one
@slant Yes. I quit completely and started listening to Maintenance Phase and it's the best. Also IMO raising your metabolism with muscle building is way better than CICO. You could also try the Four Hour Body by Tim Ferriss which promotes eating all you want whenever you want of certain ingredients.
