Just Starting Out

Last week I ended up only eating one big meal for the day and I slept great that night so I did it on purpose the next night, then again a day after that. Just within those few days I noticed my sleep was more sound and my digestion (that I have had issues with forever) seemed to calm down. Then I went back to eating normally and everything went back to normal. It made me think and when I looked up eating only one meal a day I found that it was actually a thing people do and I decided it was what I needed for a variety of reasons. Better sleep, better digestion, actually managing a calorie deficit, drinking more water, and feeling satisfied when I eat.

I read a lot abut people saying it would be so difficult in the beginning and that I'd be battling this unreal hunger. The thing is, I haven't. I've only been at it a few days now, but the hunger I feel during the day is minimal and when I drink a little water that feeling goes away. Maybe it's just because I'm new to it and I'll hit a wall soon and face some difficulties. I'll deal with that when/if it happens though.

My main issues with food were portion-size and frequency. As soon as I ate in the morning it jump started my hunger for the day and I just never stopped eating. I was hitting at least 2200-2500 calories a day while I'm trying t eat between 1300-1400 to lose weight. It felt impossible. But now telling myself I will eat at around 6PM and that's it for the day had oddly worked so far and when I do eat I get to have that big and satisfying portion. I'm feeling really good about this and can see it working long-term. It will not only benefit my health, but my wallet as well since I'll only be eating about half the food I was eating.

I still have a lot to learn, hence joining this forum, and I'm going to need help figuring out my meals so that they are nutritionally balanced without being too massive. I'm aiming for about 1300-1400 calories, but the past two days have only managed just under 1200 (which I know isn't great), and Saturday I hit around 2000 because I "accidentally" (not really) ate an entire pint of ice cream while watching a movie.

A little about me and what I hope to achieve... I'm female, 37, about 5'6" and currently weigh in at 254 lbs. I'd like to lose at least 100 lbs and see how I feel when I get there. For now my mini-goal is to get down to 230. I haven't been that low in the last 10 years.

I'll leave it at that for now since I tend to ramble. I look forward to getting into the forums and learning all I can tomorrow. Usually I research things for weeks before jumping in, but this just feels right physically and mentally so I'm going with it.
 
Hi Agathist,

Guess what? I just joined too. I can already relate to many of the things you've mentioned. I definitely sleep better and digest my food better as well. Even as I type, I am feeling sleepy after my OMAD which included salad (homemade dressing like a spicy Catalina...aha yes that's what we'll call it). My salad was simple with only living lettuce, boiled eggs, cheese, and tomatoes, and carrots; baked chicken breast; white steamed and seasoned rice and I wasn't gonna eat one of my homemade rolls but I did with butter. I feel great. I had sliced an apple for dessert but I very satisfied and forgot to eat it. I've been sticking to 1500 calories on average but somedays I've eaten way more mainly due to high-calorie desserts and cheeses. I've been doing this nearly 3 weeks and decided to just eat without counting carbs, calories, etc. I did log my OMAD into a calorie app which is why I know on average how many calories I consumed but I had no set calorie goal.

Hunger has not been an issue for me at all even though my office mates are constantly snacking and we constantly converse about food but I am not even tempted due to the anticipation of my OMAD. Anything I wanted to eat, I ate it during those 2.5 weeks, I lost 7 lbs. Now, I'm gonna try to limit the carbs and sweets just to see how my body reacts. I'll keep you posted. I know for me as soon as my brain registers the carb limit, there's nothing more I want than some made with flour and sugar. If I do want it, I'll eat it though as I am ensuring this is sustainable and I am really focused on having a healthy relationship with food.

About 10 years ago, I worked at an office near a buffet-style restaurant. For three consecutive days during my first week there, I ate at the buffet style restaurant for lunch because I didn't know anyone in the office and felt comfy using my 1-hour lunch in this restaurant as there was no waiting in line or waiting for food prep. I remember by day 3 thinking that I was going to explode so I weighed myself and had lost 5 lbs. I was so shocked and certainly did not attribute the 5 lb loss to eating my OMAD during lunch. Because I was self-conscious about a routine buffet and plus 12.00 daily added up quickly, I stopped going as much. I wish I had looked into this back then but anyway...

Welcome and I wish you well in your WOE
 

Jimmy Swartz

Administrator
Staff member
Welcome agathist! We are happy you are here!

Omad is certainly something you can sustain for the long-term. It has changed my life for the better both physically and mentally. I know you can achieve your 100lb goal. You already are on the right track by setting mini goals for yourself. Keep things simple in the beginning of omad and try not to overcomplicate anything. The most important thing you want to establish in the beginning of your lifestyle change is structure and discipline. Once these are established, anything is possible.

P.S we don't mind rambling at all:) It only helps us help you and creates a learning environment for all of us;)
 
Thank you both for the kind words. I'm definitely trying to keep it simple to start, not fussing too much about balancing out my meals perfectly. I'm just trying to make sure I eat from different food groups and I need to get my calories up just a bit. It'll be a long process I'm sure, but I had my "moment" last week that I was just ready to make a change. I've always started all kinds of diets but there was always a mental block there. But now my head is clear and I know this is what will work for me. It hasn't even been a full week and the physical and mental results speak for themselves.

I'm not naive though, I do know that I can, and possibly will hit a rough patch when my body realizes what I'm doing, but there is no turning back for me, that much I'm sure of.

I look forward to getting to know people here and to soak up as much information as I can, and maybe one day I'll even know enough about it to help someone else :)
 
Welcome! Been omading for 6 months and have lost over 50 pounds myself.
That's incredible! Great job! I'm working on figuring it all out. The only thing I'm having issues with now is getting my meals up to at least 1200 calories without filling in with too much processed food. I just made out a meal plan for the next week or so and it needs a little more work, but I feel better having it figured out in advance. Now I can shop tomorrow and not worry about needing to run out every other day to grab something because it's never just that one thing that comes home with me. I'm going to get smaller and my wallet will get bigger. Not a bad trade-off if you ask me :p
 

Jimmy Swartz

Administrator
Staff member
That's incredible! Great job! I'm working on figuring it all out. The only thing I'm having issues with now is getting my meals up to at least 1200 calories without filling in with too much processed food. I just made out a meal plan for the next week or so and it needs a little more work, but I feel better having it figured out in advance. Now I can shop tomorrow and not worry about needing to run out every other day to grab something because it's never just that one thing that comes home with me. I'm going to get smaller and my wallet will get bigger. Not a bad trade-off if you ask me :p

That's another great thing that Omad has taught me. When I used to eat 3 meals a day, I never thought about what I was eating. Therefore, I used to eat a lot of processed foods and snacks. Eating one meal a day gives you more time to think about what you are eating. Therefore, it was only natural over time that I started to eat healthier.
 
That's incredible! Great job! I'm working on figuring it all out. The only thing I'm having issues with now is getting my meals up to at least 1200 calories without filling in with too much processed food. I just made out a meal plan for the next week or so and it needs a little more work, but I feel better having it figured out in advance. Now I can shop tomorrow and not worry about needing to run out every other day to grab something because it's never just that one thing that comes home with me. I'm going to get smaller and my wallet will get bigger. Not a bad trade-off if you ask me :p
Hi Agathist,

How’s it going so far? I have been toying with the idea of meal prepping. I do meal plan and really enjoy putting thoughts behind my meals. Interesting thing yesterday, I realized I had quite a few leftovers so dinner was smooth sailing. I reheated everything in the oven and was great. So I definitely see the benefit in prepping. I’ve been having homemade sweet treats as dessert so and tend to use grass fed butter and ghee so I don’t normally have an issue hitting my calories. My first couple weeks I didn’t track anything and lost weight but I promised that I’d start...and haven’t
 
Hi Agathist,

How’s it going so far? I have been toying with the idea of meal prepping. I do meal plan and really enjoy putting thoughts behind my meals. Interesting thing yesterday, I realized I had quite a few leftovers so dinner was smooth sailing. I reheated everything in the oven and was great. So I definitely see the benefit in prepping. I’ve been having homemade sweet treats as dessert so and tend to use grass fed butter and ghee so I don’t normally have an issue hitting my calories. My first couple weeks I didn’t track anything and lost weight but I promised that I’d start...and haven’t
Hi Mariela,

Things are going good. Despite a moment of indulgence last night. I knew things were going too smooth so far and sort of expected something to happen. I don't know if I psyched myself up with that thought too much and let it happen, or if it's just part of the process of change. Either way I'm not letting it discourage me.

I'm not doing meal prep, just menu planning. That way I don't have to sit and figure out how to get in at least 1200 calories when it's time for my meal. I already have some meals planned and can decide what sounds good and just cook it. I'm finding that when I plan the meals they either start way over or way under my calorie goal. So since my main reason right now for doing this is weight-loss, I want to track to make sure I'm ending up at around 1200 calories a day. I still have some processed foods and even a little chocolate in there each day, but once I feel comfortable with omad I can start making more dietary changes.

I'm trying to keep a daily blog with my thoughts and stuff and I'm going to put meals up too, but I'm not really sharing it yet because I am terrible with following though on things like that. So I'm trying to stick with it along with omad.

Give meal planning a try, even prep if you find you eat a lot of the same things. I definitely use butter too, I'm not a fan of margarine. I try to use cage-free organic eggs and grass-ed beef too. Sometimes I buy "regular" ground beef, but there is only one store I get it from because it just tastes so much better than elsewhere. I'm still working on finishing my meals due to the volume of them, but I'm getting better.

Thanks for checking in :)
 

Jimmy Swartz

Administrator
Staff member
Glad to hear things are going well agathist. Don't ever let any moments discourage you in the long run. We are all prone to them. As mentioned, when I first started, I eventually failed. Things went smooth for me, then I fell off the wagon. It will get better over time and those moments will happen less often.
 
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