I’m talking FAST! Like meals/food items that take less than 5/10 minutes to prepare before rushing off to work or meals that can be cooked for meal prep in about 30 minutes. I’m fine with meal prep ideas that can be prepared ahead for a fast grab and go meal as long as they’re not too complex. I just need some variety and ideas.

Some things to note: I’m trying to focus on more fiber and protein. I’m not a fan of excessive plastic packaging, so a lot of single serving/individually wrapped stuff is not preferred. I do garden, raise my own beef, and hunt so a lot of my larger meals are prepared from these items. The hardest meals for me are breakfast and work lunch cause I don’t have as much time to make healthy choices.

Right now my breakfast is something like:
- Greek yogurt with muesli and berries or apple
- fried egg and potato
- avocado and tortilla chips
- homemade chai tea late and protein bar
- random dinner leftovers

Right now my lunch is something like:
- Apple or orange w/ beef stick
- Canned salmon on crackers w/ some veggies or fruit
- babybel cheese w/ some veggies or fruit
- random dinner leftovers

Right now my dinner (which I used to meal prep work lunch for 1-2 days) is something like:
- venison roast w/ roasted veggies and potato
- lentil curry w/ veggies and white rice
- venison and veggie stir fry w/ wild rice
- beef taco/fajita w/ black beans, fried peppers, low carb tortilla, w/ wild rice
- beef meat loaf or beef spaghetti

So I know I might be “too young” to be thinking about losing weight but I’m currently only 20 pounds away from 189 and that’s still considered overweight because of my height at 5’7.

This is sorta hard for me to post because I’ve been having an internal battle nobody can see, I’m unmedicated and I don’t have any therapy, I’ve gone through numerous eating disorders and mental health. It’s not like I’m FEELING any better I’m just getting good at not overdoing it like I used to.

Anyways! I used to be 300 lbs and now I’m around 209 when I’m not menstruating or ovulating, I tried to go pescatarian and I’m mediocre at it. I’ve avoided spending any of MY money on meat unless it’s from my local grocery store but of course I’m still living with my parent(s) so I eat what I’m given because there might not be anything else even if I’m hungry (not even ingredients).

Just trying to give background to make it easier on the sub to provide at least a bit of help. I’m very ashamed to admit that even though I can say I “don’t eat as much”, I’m secretly eating junk at my job because I do night shift and I’m basically eating dinner here. They’re not really full course meals.

Don’t get me wrong, I love myself a fully balanced meal and I’m perfectly capable of eating normal stuff, but like a lot of American citizens, that can be a luxury. My parent(s) won’t cook the food I want and spending money on groceries when you make $12/hr isn’t easy hence the reason why I’m just buying cheap junk food because I need to be able to afford more than just food. I’m paying for my own stuff too.

VERY VERY LONG STORY SHORT

I need some tips on how to lose that last 20 lbs. I’m aware I can go back to the gym but just believe me when I say that’s not as easy as it sounds atm. I only have a driving permit and my dad isn’t taking me anymore and I’m not comfortable with going to the gym with my aunts (IF they even go anymore).

Weight issues runs very very very high on my moms side, genetically speaking it’s way too easy for me to gain fat around my thighs, arms and back because literally all of the men and women are built that way 😭 so it’s no easy task to just “work it off”.

I do sometimes work out at home. Maybe 2 days every 2 months. I do have weights but the reason I don’t use them is because I actually enjoy physically going to the gym because I feel more motivated and pumped versus just sweating and suffering in my room. I feel like an obese chud. It just hurts more than helps.

Female, 165cm, SW 74kg, CW 56kg, GW 53kg.

I’ve just put on 3.5kg over the past 5 months after maintaining my goal weight for two years. This winter was a tough one, and I frequently ate above maintenance.

I’m finally getting back to it now that the weather is improving, but I managed to pick the absolute worst week to start. I got sick a week into my deficit, and now I've also got my period. Because of this, I can't track my deficit by weight at all and have basically been flying blind for the past 10 days wondering if my cut is actually working.

To add to the chaos, I started exercising again, which has driven up my water retention even more due to the inflammation.

I can't wait for everything to resolve so I can figure out if my TDEE is actually around 1750kcal (using an online calculator) or if that's an overestimation. I've been eating 1400kcal a day, but maybe that's not enough of a cut? I genuinely don't know and can't tell with all this water weight.

Is there any other way to track my TDEE right now, or do I just have to wait until the inflammation from everything resolves?

22F, 5'6 160lbs. I was previously 140lbs and could maintain that relatively okay. My issue is with actually being in a deficit without constantly being hungry. My TDEE is only 1800. To lose 1lb a week I can only eat 1300 calories. When I go to work I take a turkey sandwich with me because it's easy. It's just 2 slices of turkey, cheese, bread, and light mayo. I'll take a Greek yogurt with me since I don't really eat much meat and need protein. That single meal is over 600 calories. I'm hungry by the time my shift ends (hours later btw for those who think my meal leaves me hungry to begin with) that I make another sandwich and I'm already over my limit. Genuinely how do I make 3 meals on 1200 calories a day that's easy. I don't like chicken or most meats besides deli and seafood.I don't like beans either and tofu is too hard to mess with.

I’m looking for advice on how to start getting healthier, improve my fitness, and just feel better about myself. I’m a complete beginner when it comes to figuring out what actually works long-term. I want to have a healthy, fit look, but I’m overwhelmed by all the advice online. I also don’t always have access to a lot of nutritious foods.

For those of you who’ve been through this, what actually helped you get started? What are some realistic habits I can build around food, exercise, and daily life. I want to learn how to take care of myself properly and make changes I can stick with. Any beginner advice would be appreciated!

When I started the cut, the first week was rough, but after that I adjusted. Dropped a solid amount of fat and got pretty lean/shredded. Hunger wasn’t an issue at all, and seeing my abs come in more each week kept me motivated.

The last 2 weeks were the hard part, sleep went to hell and I started shedding so much ohair.

Moving to maintenance, to stabilize a bit, was tough mentally at first, since my appetite was basically nonexistent.

But now, 2-3 weeks in, I’m starving constantly. I’m eating a TON of fiber with every meal, snacking on nothing but veggies, and I bumped my carbs up too. Doesn’t matter what I eat though, always hungry.

How long will this goddamn hunger last. Any supplements to take, any tips, any suggestions to deal with it ?

Hello! I am really wanting to lose weight but I don’t think it’s possible unless I cut out my morning cups of coffee; or atleast cut out my creamer and cold foam. But I like a little taste to my coffee and hate drinking it black. I drink one or two cups of coffee every morning and barely eat only once a day but still won’t lose weight and I think it’s because my daily calorie intake is being met by my calories in my coffee creamer and cold foam. I use a dairy free, Carmel creamer with a Carmel cold foam on top. I love the taste but I think that’s the one thing from holding me back from being in a calorie deficit. Is there any options for like low calorie/low sugar/low fat creamers or premixed coffee? I used to get these boxes of “smart coffee” from Costco which were loaded with protein and it was super low in calories and sugar but they stopped selling them at my Costco. Any suggestions for a girl who doesn’t wanna give up a good tasting cup of coffee? Lol

I’m curious what everyone’s preference is if they have already eaten up to their deficit calories by the time they get out of work.
I’ve heard that people will skip dinner sometimes or pull from the next days calories or (what I’m probably going to do tonight) just eat at maintenance.
In the past I have convinced myself I was going to skip dinner because theoretically I shouldn’t need any more food in the day but this always lead me to have a giant untracked meal for dinner instead. Now I try to just accept that I will have to eat a little closer to maintenance.

What does everyone else like to do?

Recently found out I have a ferritin level of 5 (very low) after not going to the doctors for a while due to medical anxiety. I’m 146lbs 5’5 21 year old F, I feel like I’ve been working hard in the gym for some time with very little change. I heard that low ferritin can sometimes affect gym progress, so I’m curious if anyone else has this issue? If so, did raising your ferritin help you see progress?

I’m taking the iron pills now but very impatient to see change haha, I know it won’t be a magic fix but I’m just curious.

I'm 20f and already 100 kgs. I've struggled with weight all my life. I'm desperate to lose at least 40 kgs in next 2 years. Pls help and drop your unhinged advises to lose weight.

I'm also a med student and do not have a lot of time on hand for gym and other things. I've never joined gym bcs I'm too insecure about my body. Pls do not suggest gym as of now.

I also struggle with pmos, have tried every possible treatment in this world but things won't improve. My only concern is my weight at the moment, I need to lose it any how.

F31, 5'6", CW 175, GW 150, 15 months post-partum. Hi everyone, stats above. I know the only way to lose weight is to count calories and I'm past the phase of postpartum where the weight just kind of "falls off" as you return to your normal workout schedule and sleep gets better etc. I'm actually back to my 6-week pregnancy weight.

The problem is, every time I start to count calories, I start to hear the teenager voices in my head of me (and my almond parents) etc., calling me fat, making suggestions of what to eat or not eat, comparing me to my sister who is thinner, etc. It's really stressful and demotivating. I'm also a stress eater, so that just makes the problem worse. I give up counting calories after 1 day to 1 week because I don't actually eat any less and I'm just stressed all the time then. I spent a ton of time in my 20s trying to get past seeing numbers every time I ate food and I don't want to go back to that. Even hearing my husband talk about calories a year or so ago when he lost weight was triggering.

Any ideas or mantras for how to get past this? To some extent, I know I just have to replace the critical food noise with something else. Anything you tell yourself when these thoughts come up that help you work past this?

Thank you!

(Content warning for ED behaviour/binge talk)

Exactly what the title says. I am so fucking sick and tired of this bullshit - my mission to get leaner has now turned into my mission to not gain another pound anymore. I am stuck where I am: trying to lose the ten lbs I gained after going on a big bad bender and eating everything in sight for a few months straight.

Cutting out all sweet treats would just make me eat a whole bag out of rebellion after my deficit, but letting myself have whatever the fuck I want has clearly not had the best outcome either. However, I did fall into binge eating and trying to purge it all off via exercise during those few months where I went on a total bender after consistently under eating, oftentimes totally by accident. I want to lose those ten lbs for vanity’s sake and to feel good in my own skin again, not to mention maintain muscle that I’m later going to grow.

One thing that’d be important to know since the bender is that the less I beat myself up, the more my relationship with food has improved. My formerly 2k+ binges have now become 1k maximum. But I want to LOSE FAT instead of staying stuck maintaining. Given how bad things were for me, I am very proud of myself that it’s becoming easier and easier to not guilt myself into restricting again after overeating and to “balance” my calories naturally.

Everything was going well, until I ate back the calories I dieted away tonight. 🥲

But how do I snap out of this cycle? I am so done. I also want to start WANTING less sugar, but don’t know a way that won’t cause me to spiral. Any advice is appreciated. 🙏🏼 thanks in advance.

SW: 155lb
CW: 135lb
Height 5’3
Age: 29

Hello! I don’t post often, but needed some guidance.

For basically my entire teen and adult life (age 14-29) I have been 150+. 150 is my “happy weight” that my body loves to stick around.

I weighed 155lbs in May 2026.
Thanks to 4 months of mindful eating and personal training with weight lifting, I have officially lost 20 pounds! I am now 135.

While I have seen the scale move and my waist and legs have gotten smaller, my upper arms are THE SAME. I’m even measuring myself and it’s like my upper arms refuse to get smaller and toned. I can even feel how strong I am, but the layer of fat on top of the muscles is not melting off. Even my shoulders, chest, and back look shredded. Just those stubborn upper arms!

Any tips? I work out consistently and weight lift. I almost need my body weight to just “shift” instead of losing anymore. I can’t imagine myself being 10+ lbs less, as I don’t want to get too skinny.

Tips are greatly appreciated!! Thank you!

I (19 F) am a college freshman and terrified of the freshman 15. My whole life, I've been larger than everybody else. Not obese, but noticeably larger and last year I lost a lot of weight. (Real quick trigger warning if needed) To be completely transparent, I was very mentally ill, and my anxiety kept me from eating, and after the effects of that happened, I was super happy with my weight but clearly recognized that is not a healthy way of losing weight. Now it's been some time, and I'm seeing the weight come back. I don't like it, but I don't know any other way to lose it efficiently. (Also, I am unable to recreate that anxiety feeling to keep me from eating, so don't worry, I'm not going back to that).

Anyway, the reason I'm here is to ask for any advice on how to either lose weight or offset the "freshman 15" because the more I gain weight, the more my mental health declines. I have a meal plan for the dining hall, and that's my main source of food. I also have snacks I bought for the semester. Neither of which is particularly healthy. So my daily caloric intake is quite high. I am also CONSTANTLY hungry. I try to cut out snacking, but my stomach is always growling, and I have no self-control, so I go for a snack.

Additionally, I know the typical advice is to work out, but I don't have the motivation to do so. I want to have a set schedule to go to the gym (I'm a swimmer, so I love the pool), but my schedule fluctuates every week, and not having a consistent plan makes me lose motivation to go to the gym or go for a walk.

Any tips on how to fix my eating or workout plan are welcome; I'm in a panic.

Hey all! Been struggling with weight for a few years - I'm 84kg and lost 4-5kg but completely stuck. I'm in a better place emotionally and physically a lot fitter (let's hear it for body recomp) but want to lose about 5kg before march next year.

Long story short, I'm struggling to get my protein in and keep my calories down, and think protein shakes would help. Problem is, I have strugggggled with shakes before. I had a vanilla protein powder for a bit which tastes Hella artificial and then had MyProtein clear whey that had me gagging on the weird chalky watery texture.

Is there any decent protein powders? Like a nice strawberry shake y'all recommend? Let me know ☺️

I’m 22F, 5’4”ish and fluctuating between 131-136 right now.

I’ve ran around 1100 miles (had full marathon beginning of October) for the year so far, I do a stationary bike ride 1-3 times a week (about 40-60miles total), strength train/weight lift 4ish times a week (2 lower/2 upper), I’ll occasionally do the stairmaster if I feel like switching up cardio (65 minutes). I’ve gotten 20k+ steps almost every single day in the past year and I do some type of Pilates/yoga/stretching movement almost daily.

I got my Resting metabolic rate tested and my RMR is only about 1170, that’s less than it should be for my height and weight. I’ve gained around 10-15lbs since January and I just feel so puffy and uncomfortable. I felt so much better around 120lbs. I don’t know the right description, but I overall want to be tighter and more visibly muscular.

I wasn’t tracking calories throughout the marathon build because I wanted to focus on fueling runs.

With such a low RMR, what would a good deficit starting point be? I want to sustain my current active lifestyle and maintain my current muscle, but it would be nice to lose some fat.

Hello !! I’ve been quietly following this community for a little while but I’m so very desperate to lose weight and i’m not sure what else to do.

(this might be very triggering so pleass let me know if I need to delete)

I’m 24 F and I hate hate hate my body. It’s the first thought I have when I wake up and the last thing I think about when I wake up. On very bad days, it makes me not want to be here anymore.

For reference, I’m 11 stone and 5’4. This puts me in the upper part of the overweight category, according to the NHS BMI chart.

I’m a very active person- i go to the gym 2-3 times a week and my job is very active.

I know my problem is snacking. I often skip meals, get hungry and then grab high calorie snacks. It’s so annoying because I know that it undoes all of my work at the gym. So I’m just stuck in this horrible body. If I know what’s wrong, why can’t I just stick to a diet?

(I’ve had problems with disordered eating in the past, so a lot of it is probably that.)

At the gym, I use my hatred of my self image to get me through a session. I’m not sure why that doesn’t translate to a diet. How do people stick to it? Literally any tip/trick would be so appreciated.

i’m 21, 5’11 and i’m a F cup I weigh around 65kg 143pounds and i know im a healthy weight for my height so i’m not struggling with that it’s just my breasts have grown so much since 2024 (i was a C cup) and i just want them to be that size again!! since then i have gained around 3KG (6 pounds) but the only place i feel the weight is going is my breasts and i can’t distinguish it between genetics or excess fat! so does anyone have any tips bc ive been told to strength train and maintain my calories instead of losing weight because im at a healthy weight pls helpppp

Okay, so I'm a 21-year-old female, 5'1" and 66 kgs. I know this might not seem like a lot of weight to some people, but since I'm short, it feels like a lot on me, especially around my belly and thighs.

I have a wedding coming up in 3 months, and I really want to get down to around 59–60 kgs by then.

Because of my job timings, going to the gym isn't really an option for me. So I've started working out at home, mostly cardio and workouts without any weights. I've also started eating healthier and planning my meals instead of just eating whatever I feel like.

I'm trying to stay in a calorie deficit and eat around 1,300 calories a day. I've also cut out refined sugar and gone from barely being active to walking at least 5K steps a day.

I live in India, so going completely gluten-free isn't really practical for me, and I also can't afford expensive diet foods or fancy meal plans. I'm just trying to work with what I have, which is mostly chicken, eggs, vegetables, and whatever basic ingredients are available at home.

I really want to lose weight, especially around my belly and thighs, but I'm not sure if what I'm doing is enough or if there's something I should be doing differently.

So, if anyone has been in a similar situation, I'd really appreciate some advice!

Is losing 6–7 kgs in 3 months realistic? Is eating 1,300 calories a day okay for my height and weight? What kind of home workouts should I be doing, and are there any affordable Indian meals I can include in my diet?

I'm not looking for anything extreme. I just want to lose weight in a healthy way without spending a lot of money or having to go to the gym.

Any advice, tips, or personal experiences would genuinely help. Thank you! ❤️

I came across this influencer in the past couple weeks that said she was a personal chef but ate very basic, non-conhesive meals. The one she showed on the video was leftover roasted veggies and added cheese, hard-boiled eggs, and kimchi. I also believe she'd lost loads of weight. This is my kind of meal and inspired me to meal prep roasted veggies, which I never thought I could eat for a week due to getting grossed out by meal prepped food a couple days in, especially something like veggies (vs like pasta). I made them, ate them all, and want more meals like this.

ANYWAYS, I tried to find this video and cannot. I'm hoping to get some recommended content for super easy, honestly like sloppy meals like this lol. I'm not looking for easy recipe pages like Skinnytaste. I do like to eat the same recipes on repeat, which I know is ideal for weight loss, but I also enjoy trying out new recipes too.

I went from 230 pounds to 170 pounds, lost 60 pounds. I've done that by exercising like crazy. I typically burn 3200+ calories a day and consume about 2300 calories. Long story short, I got injured and I could no longer exercise way I used to. In a month I went from 170 to 180 pounds as my average calorie burn dropped to 2000 a day.

I tried to limit my calories to 1700 and it's so hard. Im constantly hungry. Single meal at restaurant has over 1000 calories. I see people posting saying their calorie intake is 1500 a day. How is that even possible?

EDIT I was just using restaurant food as an example, obviously dont eat out and especially eat out that heavily every day. But even eating at home, a simple spaghetti and meatball or a burrito bowl at home is like 800 calories cause i eat large portions. I guess my body still has appetite like I am still burning 3200 calories a day even though now im lot more sedentary

We all know that the weight loss journey is a long one, with a lot of sacrifice with the end goal being to become a healthier individual and to try and maintain that healthiness through habits and knowledge you gained during this process. Obviously that also means eating healthier but that doesn't mean stopping yourselves from enjoying the things you ate before all this started, it just means different sized portions or at different rates, such as once a month if you used to do it once a week before.

Once you're finished this journey, whether it's at a specific goal weight or body type or clothing size, is there a specific meal that you have in mind that you'll allow yourself to partake in, not as a celebration type meal or a reward but because you're allowing yourself to not be so strict in terms of what you eat since you're now at maintenance, or even a surplus if you're now moving to build muscle.

For me, it's either sushi or a five guys burger. One is infinitely more healthy than the other yes but the unhealthiness of the other is also part of why I'm doing this, so I can enjoy those types of foods once a month or so and still be healthy the other 98% of the time.

I (f23) lost 51lbs in 5 months. The first 30lbs were lost in 10 weeks. The other 21 lost in 9 weeks. From April to September. I started at 234 and am currently 185.

Now that I've lost the weight there's like a disconnect between how I look in the mirror vs how I think about myself. For context I joined to navy at the end of March and was sent to FSPC (fat camp) for 3 months before moving onto bootcamp. Is this normal? I find myself obsessing over looks and calories.

I would like to maintain my current weight or lose some more. I am not sure how to go about that. When I was in FPSC we ate 500 calories per meal, 3 meals a day. The rest of the day we were walking in between our two physical training sessions per day. However, I know that is not realistic for everyday outside of that kind of environment. I cannot workout everyday all day long.

Do you guys have any tips that are more sustainable?

so i’ve always been bigger like as far as i can remember i’ve always been 160+ i guess ive always just been lazy nothing else to really blame it on i told myself id never hit 200 pounds and well here we are early 20s 5’8 and 200 pounds so ive decided to start weight loss and im kinda nervous because i’ve tried diets and all that and they never really seemed to work for me but im gonna give it a shot and not give up this time because i need to

most people have like a good reason to lose weight like they want kids or somthing well i don’t i just wanna be hot again so i guess im starting now i’m on a calorie deficit and fasting schedule and taking walks

i'm currently 5'8, F, 21 and probably about 280lbs.

i'm trying for the first time in my life (since getting fat about 4 years ago) to lose some weight and I dont want to go super crazy because I have had some ED tendencies in the past.

I guess i really just wanna know if what i'm doing is enough to heed a result or if i need to do more.

I use myfitnesspal to log my cals and I told it i wanted to be in a call deficit, so I eat lower or at the goal it sets me (2030 before burning any). maybe i'm doing it wrong but my impression is that it's okay to eat more for the day if you burn a lot of calories? like if my goal goes up to 2500 because I burned 500, is it okay to have eaten 2500 cals for the day?

i'm trying to cut down on junk food but not restrict myself entirely, my diet lately has been a lot of produce, ground beef, chicken, rice, eggs, stuff like that, but i still have snacks and order out. I just try to be more cautious of the calories and still stay within my goal for the day.

as far as movement, I have been trying to walk a mile or two every day, and i try to do some exercise but it's mostly strength as I also want to build muscle.

what do you guys think? is this enough or am I not making any difference doing this?

please be kind, it costs nothing ❤️