What can I do to lose weight, with limited time and energy?

Stop drinking soda, flavored waters and juices.

Stop adding sugar or salt to any of your food or drink.

Drink water by a small mug between meals so you have to fill it more often than drinking from a larger bottle. It’ll feel like you’re doing really good at drinking water, you can count cups and you really will end up drinking more.

Eat breakfast
Eat lunch
Skip dinner and eat a snack instead.
One day a week let yourself eat or drink whatever you like but the rest of the days eat only half the amount you’d like of your foods.

(1) Eat more often, and when you’re not hungry. Weight gain is caused at times by overeating. Three meals a day means, in general, you’re hungry when you have the meal, and are therefore already too late. If you eat at least five small meals, your metabolism is constantly at work. As soon as you’re hungry, you both crave and go into starvation mode.

(2) As above, drink water as opposed to anything else.

(3) Make simple meals at home to store and bring with you throughout the week. Ordering food means you have no idea of the content.

(4) If you must have a large meal, it should be breakfast.

(5) Walk everywhere – never take the elevator.

For drinks, I exclusively have water, milk and juice (and yes, 100% juice, not just those 5% “cocktail” drinks or anything). I really don’t like soda, energy drinks, nor alcohol.

@Neizvestnaya I’m not sure I’d trick myself into thinking I’m better at drinking, but I suppose I’ll have to burn that many more calories in the walk to the kitchen, and that must be worth something. So that’s a change I can certainly make.
How can I skip dinner without feeling too hungry to function?

I always have a breakfast (Just cereal, like shredded wheat or Honey Bunches of Oats) and generally at least have a sandwich for lunch, but my biggest issue is that I have 6-hour periods some nights where I can’t escape to make anything good, and I end up making something huge and fast as soon as I get home (At the very least, it’s still not fast food hamburgers or fried chicken).

@iamthemob What kind of healthful meals can I make that won’t go bad after a day or two in the fridge?

I don’t know what the weather is like where you are- other than cold- but I also work full time and often take classes part-time. One thing I did was park a couple of miles from school and ride my bike in. Didn’t have to pay for a parking permit and got me a half hour of exercise every day.

Skip the processed, sweetened cereals for breakfast. Eat something healthier than that- I usually have a muffin that is made with whole grains, lots of ground veggies and fruits, and very little oil.

Make a bunch of healthy meals that you can microwave later and store them in the freezer. If you don’t have the unhealthy stuff in the house, you can’t eat it- so don’t buy it. I spend about three hours once every three weeks to make all my breakfasts and lunches for the three-week period. It’s cheap, it’s easy, and it’s healthy.

I’ve lost over 60 pounds in the last year and a few months, and these are some things that really helped.

@Eldri

“What kind of healthful meals can I make that won’t go bad after a day or two in the fridge?”

I make lots of dishes based on whole grains or whole-grain pastas plus lots of veggies and a little protein. I use a lot of spices and flavorings. For example, this month I have Greek bowties with green beans, peppers, lemon juice and oregano, curried rotelli with roasted veggies, mixed pasta with mixed greens (kale, chard and the like), vegetable moo shu with whole-wheat wrappers, and oven-baked veggie taquitos. All of these store beautifully in the freezer. I make them in big batches and put them into microwaveable paper trays.

@Eldri: For dinner then fix a plate with a bunch of nibbles on it, a little taste of everything you think you want from the frigie or whatever and then eat them as slowly as possible. Follow up with hot tea or coffee, something with caffiend!

@crisw I live about 4 miles from school, I don’t think I have ridden a bike since I was 12 or so. I think I would worry way too much about the bike being stolen to be able to concentrate in school, I am a pretty worrisome person.
Do you make those muffins, or are those things that you find hidden somewhere in a grocery store?
How long did it take you to actually figure out how to cool all of these things? Out of that list, I think I could make pasta, and that’s about it.

@Neizvestnaya I was always under the impression that caffeine at night was a bad choice, isn’t it?

Forget limited time and limited energy. Be more realistic.

@Eldri

“Do you make those muffins, or are those things that you find hidden somewhere in a grocery store?”

I make them, in batches of 2 dozen or so at a time. I grind up a bunch of fruits and veggies- carrots, zucchini, cucumbers, fennel, pears- whatever I have around, I make them without a recipe since I bake so much, but you can use a recipe like this one as a base.

I have been cooking for almost 40 years, so it’s second-nature. But if you know how to cook pasta- there you go. Cook it a bit underdone, drain it, add lightly-steamed or sauteed veggies, your seasonings of choice, package and freeze. Voilå- you have quick meals.

And four miles is a great bike ride, unless it’s straight uphill. Perfect. Get yourself a good lock or bring the bike into the classroom. Or chain it up next to the campus police. :>)

The first step in making this work is getting over the “I can’ts” and “I don’t know hows.”

Caffiene helps with the withdrawels from sugar and salt. Sleep will come if you’re tired enough but pick your poison. Caffiene also helps to quell the munchies.

@Neizvestnaya

Do you have any research to back that up, or is it just your personal opinion?

@crisw: It’s just my own personal experience when I was giving up sugar and salt which included my favorite Cheez Its and Payday bar munchies.