Weight loss plan

I'm pretty much following this food pyramid now

Ironically, I didn't know this pyramid existed before finding it on youtube, a little after Christmas 
2025, about 6 months after I started my new diet regimen.   But it summarizes the changes I made nicely.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ks0hHmkXXuo

click on the image below to expand it for better viewing,  

 

Switched to eating way more beans and lentils 

Most fast food revolves around Salt, Sugar and Fat.    This diet focuses on Fiber, Flavor, and Feeling Good.     It will take time to adjust, but over time you WILL crave food that makes you feel good.  It's weird. 

eating mostly bean and lentil based dishes seems to have made my appetite manageable (finally!).   More fiber helps me feel full longer.       I wrote how to cook beans/lentils in your Instant Pot,  click here.   

I've cut way back on rice, pasta, refined flour and manufactured processed food.    First, it was healthy, home made rolled oats based cookies to replace store bought, and then eventually fruit instead of cookies.   Give yourself time.

Anyway, I highly recommend the following recipes, most are from https://www.rainbowplantlife.com   

• hummus (skip the drizzle part)
• shepherd's pie (brown lentils)
• lentil bolognese  italian
• for the following curries/soups, I use a slotted spoon to save a few scoops of textured pieces, and then I just puree the rest.  I prefer creamy soups

• red lentil curry (mix with roasted vegetables)
• butternut squash lentil curry (I roast the butternut squash, onion and garlic )
• mexican lentil soup  
• spicy honey vinaigrette  for salad stuff

• fried tofu 

• tastes good with this Chili Sesame Peanut Sauce  (add at the last 30 seconds so it doesn't burn, or after plating) .   Sometimes I have tofu with Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce too.  Tasty!
• black bean patty recipe ,  with this Southwest sauce   I've found a grid style potato masher helps if you mash about half the beans and mix again before forming the patties.
• indian sweet potato black bean burger recipe 

Dessert Options

• Sometimes I make these Baked Beans for dessert, Recipe here  I usually have a 1/2 cup portion for dessert.   Lasts me and Jacqui a week quite often.   dessert after lunch and dinner too.
• Healthy, Filling Peanut flavored Ice Cream recipe  click here.   It actually has a lot of navy beans in it.      
• Cold Oatmeal premixed with tasty Protein Powder, click here 
• Almond Flour Based Protein Bars recipe 

Instead of soda... 

I make a liter of plain seltzer water via our SodaStream, and then add 1-1.5 ounces of the sour mix below.   I typically drink about 4 liters per day.   Drinking 4 liters is still half the sugar in a 12 ounce can of coke.

Whiskey Sour Mix recipe:   using a 4 cup pyrex measuring pitcher,  pour 1 cup of boiling water over 1/2 cup of sugar and mix until dissolved, then add 1 cup of lime juice and 1 cup of lemon juice.  Mix again and store in fridge.   A batch of mix usually lasts me a week and a half .   I use the big bottles of Real Lemon and Real Lime from BJ's.

Limit Ultra Processed Food, even Bread 

Last but not least, I make two loaves of home made 50% whole wheat sourdough bread weekly.   Rounds out any amino acid deficits from eating mostly bean/lentils, and the sourdough yeast improves digestion.    I have a half/full slice 2-3 times a day, usually with BJ's wellsley brand natural peanut butter.   https://amybakesbread.com/half-whole-wheat-sourdough-artisan-bread/

Snacks

• dark chocolate covered almonds from BJ's (wellsley branded)
• roasted, unsalted peanuts in the shell (the shell will slow you down, but a handful is still 160 calories!)
• wasabi coated almonds (the salt/spices will slow you down)
• a peeled and cored apple, grapefruit, peach, etc 
• home made, sharp cheddar cheese crisps
• search online for recipe, i pat with paper towel to help get rid of the oil after baking 
• a slice of 100% sourdough rye I make with a thin schmear of Nutella and a couple pecans on top 
• VERY much like a cookie, but way more fiber   
• click here for rye recipe 
• 1 inch squares (~50cal) of this Almond Flour Based Protein Bars recipe  
• Dates (not for general snacking)
• super calorie dense, but I use them to avoid bonking
• they pack well when doing outdoors stuff (hiking, biking, jogs...) 

Exercise 

Zone 2 workouts in the morning  (easy biking, brisk walking)  for 1 hour while fasted or before eating carbs/fat.   Zone 2 means you can still talk, but you don't want to talk too long or you'll get out of breath.   Depending on age, that's like 120-135 bpm on your heart rate monitor.   

Limiting your effort to zone 2 also means your body can convert your fat stores to glucose via gluconeogenesis fast enough to keep your muscles fed and happy.   You'll keep more of your muscle mass as you lose weight, which is important for keeping your BMR, basal metabolic rate, high as possible.   

Side note: I've never been a morning person.   I could only make these changes because I'm retired and don't have kids.   I often workout around 9a.m. now after just having a soy milk protein smoothie.   So....yeah.    Sorry if my advice isn't helpful at all.  I understand.   It wouldn't have worked for me when I was doing the 8-5, Monday-Friday grind. 

Do the 1hour zone 2 workouts, 6 days per week and take 1 rest day per week.   Try to workout while low on carbs.     Did I mention being unhelpful?  It's a lot of time I know.    Watching TV while walking the treadmill counts though. 

Find indoor exercise options for bad weather days (no excuses when it's too hot, too cold, too wet, too sunny, too windy, etc)    

As your weight nears your goal, that's a good time to add intense exercise occasionally, but make sure you eat about 100-200 calories of carbs per hour when you do it.     Glucose fuels your heart and muscles, take care of them!   Your body can't convert fat to glucose fast enough at zone 3 or higher.   Also, do NOT risk injuring yourself.   Go slow.    Build muscle.    Train!       Injury can cause HUGE setbacks to losing weight.

Check your weight and BP daily

Daily weight checks keep me on track.    When I stop weighing myself, I find it super hard to step on the scale again.   It's like a dread that slowly builds whenever I stop weighing myself.   I get fat and happy over Winter, and eventually work up the nerve to do my annual Spring weigh-in/freakout.    Denial is a helluva drug.   So for me, falling out of the daily habit causes more anxiety than just checking every morning.     Do whatever keeps you healthy and less stressed IMHO.    

I think what also helps is having a weight goal that's realistic.   My plan is a new max weight of 220lbs(100kg), while really shooting for mid to lower 210's.   That will give me a comfortable "enjoy your life" buffer.    BMI says my max weight should be 190.   Not going to happen.... let me just add a firm, NO!    Also, I'm getting older, so having an extra 10-20 lbs is good for when I inevitably get sick or have an age-related health issue.  So I think the, "Don't weigh yourself daily!!!" advice you see online is more for folks trying to get to a weight that's much, much harder to achieve and maintain. 

My last advice is to make weighing yourself convenient.   My scale is in the kitchen where I can't ignore it.   I weigh myself while still wearing my sleep clothes first thing in the morning.   I'll occasionally do a differential (el bucko vs clothed), so I can do the math in my head to know the "real weight".     Usually when my sleep outfit changes, Winter vs Summer, etc.    

I record it all in this  Google Spreadsheet 

[from the future!!!]  nearly a year later I check my BP about once a week now that it's always below 120/80.   I've gone from 145/95 to almost always below 110/70 when I check it now.     Still doing daily weight checks.     

Side Note:   Tracking weight helped me to eventually figure out that after super long, hard rides (>2 hours),  I'd retain nearly 2lbs of water for a couple days no matter how healthy I ate.   My body was retaining water to help with muscle recovery.     Who knew?    Also raises my BP a little too.  Makes sense

Like this example below.  I was super annoyed to weigh in a pound heavier the day after doing a super hard bike ride chasing my friend on his new ebike on my regular fat bike.    I went to bed hungry.   I ate a healthy hummus wrap instead of giving in to a beer and pizza craving after the ride, but STILL woke up a pound heavier the next day.   Then about 2 days later, that weight disappeared, and I ended up weighing a half pound less. 

 

I blather on more here too  weight loss strategies