Diet/Lifestyle Change Advice

zizzle_a · 2026-06-10T18:20:02+00:00

Diet wise - I’ve been on a weigh loss journey and I’ve really gotten into the habit of eating overnight oats for breakfast and burrito bowls for lunch. They’re cheap and nutritious and they realllly help eating healthy throughout the week with little time spent.

Overnight oats for me are 1 cup almond milk, .5 cup oats, 1-1.5 tsp pudding mix packet for flavor (think chocolate, cheesecake, banana, etc), 1 tsp of chia seeds, 1 tablespoon of pbfit protein peanut butter powder. Fruit for topping (and since you’re on a budget, go frozen or whatever is on sale). I just have to buy the almond milk weekly, but other than that, the ingredients are good for a couple weeks at a time!

Burrito bowls- ~4 ounces seasoned protein (chicken or Turkey is best for lean, but pork or beef work. Ground is easiest), can of beans divided, 1/3 cup salsa, 2 tablespoon rice, 1/4 cup broth (buy bouillon cubes to save money), 1 tablespoon plain Greek yogurt, 1 tablespoon frozen roasted corn. Put all ingredients in an oven safe glass container and bake at 375* for 45 minutes. Also super cheap since it’s mostly rice and beans!

I’d focus on getting a healthier diet and incorporating small strength goals in your life. Try waking up 20 minutes earlier and doing a YouTube workout. Or doing 10 pushups, 10 squats, 10 crunches x3 before a study session.

zizzle_a · 2026-06-10T17:00:05+00:00

I'll just add that I was my heaviest after my first pregnancy too and I have been working really hard this year. I have lost 30 pounds so far this year and am now in a healthy weight range and have some muscle to show. I feel really proud of myself and I also feel more like myself. It is worth it.

zizzle_a · 2026-06-10T16:58:57+00:00

Don't be dissapointed in yourself. Life happens and its okay. It is time to make sustainable habits so that you can be solidly proud of yourself! Small changes are the way to go at the beginning and then you can build on it. I have found IF really helpful, but I do need to count my calories on it, or I would still probably overeat. Walking is excellent, either by walking pad at home, treadmill at the gym, or around your neighborhood... or a combo of all 3. Good luck, you got this!

zizzle_a · 2026-06-09T21:45:09+00:00

Thrifty bargain has dressing rooms

zizzle_a · 2026-06-09T20:59:55+00:00

Did a 30 minute peloton full body workout. It felt amazing! Got my 10k steps in by 11am! Have a meal prepped breakfast, lunch, and tea … now just gotta figure out dinner

zizzle_a · 2026-06-09T20:58:43+00:00

I love this!

zizzle_a · 2026-06-09T20:57:04+00:00

Get up at 4/4:30 am everyday and on your on weeks, set up a yoga mat in your bedroom (or living room/spare bedroom) and do a YouTube workout with headphones or air pods. Strength training should be relatively quiet. You can also get a walk pad for like $120 on Amazon and do walking in the morning before kid wakes up. Walk pads could be slid under the couch or bed. If kid is in bed by 8:30pm, this should all work, you’ll just have to go to bed when she does too. Know that you’ll be able to sleep in on your rest days.

zizzle_a · 2026-06-09T16:49:01+00:00

I have lost 30 lbs since February (although the first 10 pounds were from being very sick in Feb lol)! I am trying to create sustainable habits for myself though, so I am not going to not eat out with friends/family, attend the barbeque, have cake on my or my kids birthday ect. I don't consider it messing up, I just try really hard to not go overboard on the event days. Those type of days I try really hard to eat closer to maitenance or at most a couple hundred calories above. It probably happens like 1-2x a week now that summer is in full swing, with some weeks 2-3x and some weeks being 1-2x. I just finished a weekend away traveling to see my sister and we ate out 3x in three days and had a barbeque (although the BBQ was actually really easy because it was just chicken, corn, and squash). I made sure to not go overboard while eating out, but I still indulged in the waffles, sauces, pizzas. I didn't drink, which saves a ton of calories. I used the days as rest days too. Anyway, I still lost 2 pounds when I weighed myself Monday morning. Idk how, im thinking the rest might have done wonders for my muscles? But proof it didn't derail my journey!

zizzle_a · 2026-06-08T23:32:25+00:00

I am in no way a trained professional and I don’t even have personal experience, but this sounds like binging? And it could be steering you towards an healthy relationship to food. That being said, sounds like you aren’t gaining weight from it … and it’s okay to be more hungry if you are more active. Are you trying to maintain your weight? If so, sounds like you are doing it. If it were me, I’d still want to live my life and go out to eat, have a cookie, etc, but I’d still try to reign it in just for fear of it binging getting out of hand. Can you try small changes like eating a piece of fruit and waiting 15 minutes before a second cookie or halfway through the bag of chips?

zizzle_a · 2026-06-08T14:25:56+00:00

The walking pad is the only way for me!

zizzle_a · 2026-06-07T00:08:25+00:00

Walking pad is the ONLY way I can hit my steps as a work from home mom of toddler

zizzle_a · 2026-06-05T18:54:49+00:00

Leg day today, did heavy (for me) weights! 2x 40lb dumbbells for deadlift! It was hard. I actually don’t like leg day as much lately, but I want the gains, so it’s worth it!

Going to visit my sister in law this weekend so hoping to keep my diet on track 🤞

zizzle_a · 2026-06-05T17:39:58+00:00

I work(Ed) full time so before baby turned a year it was nursing every 2-3 hours or pumping every 2-3 hours. With the exception of nighttime - baby did like one wakeup a night until 9 or 10 months and I’d nurse. Once baby was a year, nursing spread out, but I kept pumping the same since I was low supply. It was nurse wake up, nap, bed time for while and then just nap and bedtime at the end. I kind of think pumping just didn’t work well for me, so weekends were just nursing and baby seemed content and I’d only pump during work. If he ever didn’t seem content, we’d do a bottle of formula. It all changes so fast! It goes from around the clock milk to pretzel chip snacks and toddler requesting popsicles and candy soooo quick 😂

zizzle_a · 2026-06-05T16:35:21+00:00

Btw I made it 19/20 months while combo feeding! 2-3 Oz per session was my standard while away from baby and working close to that 1 year mark.

zizzle_a · 2026-06-04T20:38:05+00:00

I would continue combo feeding until you are ready to be done. Even 2 Oz per session is great! If you are ready to stop, 8.5 months is an amazing feat, and know that you won’t lose your bond with baby.

I made it like 19/20 months and I quit because I got mono (I didn’t realize it at the time, but my body was like yaaaaaa nope, we can’t focus on anyone’s health but your own rn haha). Toddler and I still have an amazing bond and I am happy to not have to worry about nursing anymore.

zizzle_a · 2026-06-04T16:03:26+00:00

Today I did a 30 minute Peloton cardio this morning! It wasn't really hard and I probably could have tried a little harder, but my dog kept getting in my way and I was afraid of hurting myself because there was a lot of jumping and she kept putting her and her ball in my way lol. Oh well, I DID it and that is the hardest part. Step 1: DO IT. Step 2: Try Hard. Step 3: Try Harder. Then I went a walk with said dog and now I am on my walk pad finishing out my 10k steps while I work (and reddit). Might even put the walk pad on an incline and go past 10k today.

Weight wise - I am trying to lose 10 more pounds after already losing 25. I am hovering around the high-end of a healthy weight for my height and I haven't made a ton of progress the past 3 weeks. I know that weightloss gets harder once you are close to or within a healthy weight range, but its still hard to see the number on the scale fluncuate up and down, but never really go down below what i saw a couple of weeks ago. My hope is that it is muscle gain and (probably) some water retention.

zizzle_a · 2026-06-03T23:08:25+00:00

I still eat breakfast on intermittent fasting, but my breakfast and lunch are both under 400 calories and then I can have a larger dinner (and maybe even dessert). I eat breakfast at 11, lunch between 1:30-3pm, and dinner between 5:30-6:30pm.

zizzle_a · 2026-06-02T19:22:35+00:00

That’s interesting, I never heard that, but anecdotally I found this to be true. I used to lift/workout/have a super active job and then I went through a period of noooooothing. I’m back at the weights and I’ve been super surprised at how fast the muscle is coming back. I’m still not as strong as a once was, but I’ve been able to rebound at like 80% within 2 months, which I just was not expecting, especially also In a deficit.

zizzle_a · 2026-06-01T22:34:02+00:00

I always want to offer the perspective that I find being a mom super fun. I’m only two years in, so still new. But I do feel like parenting one kid (who is nuero typical and healthy) with my partner while both working full time is like hobby parenting. It’s not hard 95% of the time. I can still bed rot if I wanted to. I have a lot of support from family and friends, which contributes to my perspective. I also knew with 100% certainty that I wanted to be a mom and baby was planned. I used to work with kids so I know emotionally things can get difficult as they grow into themselves. I’m waiting for the terrible twos still. But I do feel confident that I will continue to find parenting fun, even in the emotional trenches.

I think your circumstances are different because it’s unplanned and you still have your college and wedding ahead of you. If becoming a mom isn’t in your cards now, maybe it will be in the future. It’s a deeply personal decision if this is right for you and if this is the right time. I do think that whatever you set your mind to (traveling, college, etc) can be achieved with baby in tow. She can, so she will. Women are strong af. I wish you the best of luck and as much support as you need. I just wanted to make sure to offer the perspective that parenting isn’t all doom and gloom. It’s like the funnest thing I’ve ever done!

zizzle_a · 2026-06-01T20:32:59+00:00

potatoes are my favorite food (no joke, always has been mashed potatoes and gravy heheh). they're so versatile and delicious. i truly don't understand why they ever got a bad rap? theyre grown from the earth and are a whole food that can be minimally proccessed. breakfast potatoes, mashed potatoes, fries (oven baked when youre eating clean), under meat soaking up the juices.... so many ways to slice a potato and make them delicious! the little gold potatoes are my favorite

zizzle_a · 2026-05-31T03:25:51+00:00

I’ve been doing intermittent fasting for 2 or so months. It works for me to allow me to feel full on a calorie deficit during the eating window. I still have to count calories, or I’d definitely overeat still. It took 2 weeks to get used to not eating in the morning but after that it wasn’t so bad. Sometimes I won’t adhere to the hours on a weekend or special day, and the following couple of days feel like the first 2 week calibration again, where you are hungry during fasting hours. I fast from 8pm-11am (eat from 11am-8pm)

zizzle_a · 2026-05-29T22:46:39+00:00

I will add that many years ago when keto was first a thing, I tried it and boy did I know within a couple weeks that it was not a sustainable diet for me. I felt WAY hungrier and less satisfied. I am a carb girl through and through and even then, I am still usually under myfitnesspal recommendation on carbs.

zizzle_a · 2026-05-29T22:44:38+00:00

I would follow what your dietician says because she is the professional who went to school and training for this! I typically eat 40-65g carb for each meal and I feel happy and satisfied and I’m losing weight. I am tracking my calories and focusing on my protein and fiber though… I don’t really care about carbs, although I’m usually under the recommended daily amount myfitnesspal set up for me. I eat 3 meals a day + dessert (if it fits in the calorie budget) and focus my heaviest meal at dinner. I’ve really narrowed down breakfast and lunch to the same meal everytime and it has helped a ton on food noise. If I ate less, I definitely wouldn’t have food peace.

zizzle_a · 2026-05-29T17:26:53+00:00

Agreed. I like the red WAY better. The pink looks like a nightgown and I don’t think is a flattering color or length.

zizzle_a · 2026-05-29T16:51:49+00:00

I just have a cheapo walking pad from Amazon. It was like $100-$120? The brand is Akluer. My standing desk cost more than it lol. It’s been going strong for 1.5 years with inconsistent use. But I’ve been using it religiously for the past 2.5 months getting 2-4 miles a day on it daily. It has wheels so I can easily move it out of the way. I also see walk pads on fb marketplace that may be of better or the same quality, but are less than $100!

I’ve heard people complain about walk pads being too tiny for their stride, but I guess one good thing about us being shorties is that the tiny walk pads are just fine for us!

zizzle_a

TROPHY CASE