My Eating Habits and Food Choices for Weight Loss

I’ll be the first to say, eating smaller portions and eating clean, especially when you’ve had a fat-girl mindset your entire life, or close to it, can feel exhausting, overwhelming, and just plain old boring! You’re so used to grabbing a bagel on the way to school or work, going out to eat for lunch every day, having a big feast for dinner, and eating dessert every night. With, of course, snacks in between. God forbid your blood sugar drops a bit and someone calls you a “hangry bitch.”

No, because we sure as hell don’t want you to actually experience the feeling of hunger! You haven’t been hungry in years, maybe even decades. Can you believe that? You’ve barely given your digestion a break in all that time?!

I literally just described my fat-girl life.

So, what did I actually eat when I decided to change my eating habits and lose weight? Here’s what I did.

Changing My Daily Eating Habits

For those who have done the work and are truly ready to change their daily eating habits, figure out the dress or jeans size you want to be, and eat like you’re already there.

I go grocery shopping one to two times a week: once on the weekend and once during the week. If I buy everything at once during my shopping trip, food might go bad from not being used because I’m learning to eat less and less, but still an adequate amount to sustain life and stay healthy.

I do sometimes get everything in one shopping trip if I know I’m going to be extra busy that week, and I’ll prep and eat food that won’t go bad so fast. I also learned about food combining and juicing my fruits and veg, which has drastically improved my digestion and has saved me time during the week.

I’ve also cut back on caffeine, I’m not so macro-crazed anymore, and I no longer count calories. After understanding food portions, I can eat without counting calories and I am still losing weight.

Using a Helper Doesn’t Replace Portion Control

Quick side note: if you are using weight loss medication as a “helper” or tool to lose weight but are still in a calorie surplus, you’re not going to lose weight. And trust me, there have been times when I have taken my helper that morning, was counting my calories, and realized I ate way more than I knew I should have that day.

So, it is possible to be in a calorie surplus while you are on a helper. Sometimes, not always. That’s why understanding food portions is extremely beneficial and important.

My Diet Before Food Combining

Before I learned about food combining, this is pretty much what my typical day of eating looked like. I was focused on eating in a calorie deficit and getting in plenty of protein, so my meals were pretty structured.

BREAKFAST: Espresso + electrolyte salt in my protein shake + one of the following:

• 1 egg + 1 egg white + olives + pickles + cheese
• Greek yogurt + fruit + honey
• 2 slices of keto bread + 1/2 avocado + 1 egg
• Oatmeal + cinnamon + berries or banana
• Mini shredded wheat cereal + milk + banana
• 2 over-easy eggs + 2 slices of keto bread

SNACK: Protein shake + protein bar

LUNCH: Whatever I didn’t have for breakfast, I’d have for lunch.

SNACK: Protein shake + protein bar

DINNER: One of the following:

• 2 slices of keto bread + peanut butter or sunflower butter
• 1/2 cup rice + green beans + chicken breast
• Apple + peanut butter + Built Bar
• Olives + cheese + crackers + pickles + rice cakes

As you may have noticed, my biggest meal was in the morning, and my lightest meal was at dinner. I was eating in a calorie deficit, so I was losing weight, but I was super focused on getting in a ton of protein, even if that meant feeling bloated and heavy.

Learning About Food Combining

I learned about food combining and juicing in summer 2025. In a nutshell, food combining is about combining foods that use similar enzymes to break down food in the stomach, with the goal of smoother digestion, less bloating, and feeling lighter.

Juicing has been a game changer for my morning routine. I quit caffeine and drink my juice instead, and I feel great.

Eating with Food Combining in Mind

At the time I wrote this post, these were some of the foods I was eating while trying to keep food combining and juicing in mind. I don’t claim to be perfect, and I didn’t always follow all the food combining or juicing rules, but here are some examples:

• Watermelon juice, or other fruits and vegetables that juice well and are in season (carrot, beet, apple)
• Green juice (spinach + cucumber + apple + celery)
• A Larabar or RX Bar (not protein bars, just clean, minimal-ingredient snacks)
• A handful of mini shredded wheats by themselves (about 10 pieces)
• Keto bread with either peanut butter, an over-easy egg, or avocado
• Air-fried broccoli + baked chicken
• Mini beef kabobs + cucumber + olives

I didn’t eat all of this every single day, and I only ate when I was hungry. If I had taken my Phen pill, I would sometimes look at the clock to see if it was time to eat.

However, if I looked at the clock and it wasn’t time to eat but I was really hungry (stomach growling, tired), I would eat. I was learning to pay more attention to my body’s hunger signals rather than letting the clock tell me whether I should eat.

Eating Out While Losing Weight

I still eat out, but I do my best to keep food combining in mind, as well as the fact that I still want to lose more weight. Eating out shouldn’t be a free-for-all, and I try to choose with focus and intent.

When I go out to eat, sometimes I will use tools to help me, like my Phen pill or wearing my corset, or both. If I can’t or don’t want to grocery shop or cook my food, I’ll buy my meals from places, but with intent and still in a calorie deficit.

I did this early on in my weight loss journey, and it was very helpful to go from overeating all the fast food, to choosing lighter versions of fast food, to eating fast food less often.

Here are some examples of what I go for when I go out to eat:

Panera Bread: Half a sandwich and a bowl of soup, with an apple as my side (save that and cut it up with peanut butter later for a snack)

Panda Express: Bowl (rather than a plate!) of mixed greens + orange chicken or Beijing beef (if the greens look horrible, I’ll do half mixed greens and half chow mein—yes, you can do half-and-half in a bowl, too!)

Chick-fil-A: Spicy filet (just the filet) and a small fry, with one CFA sauce

In-N-Out: Lettuce wrap hamburger with pickles and whole grilled onions + regular fry

Raising Cane’s: Kids two-piece tender meal

Indian, Thai: Lamb Tikka Masala, vegetable samosa, garlic naan, but I will only eat about 3-4 pieces of the lamb, half of one garlic naan, and usually my whole samosa

Eat With Intention

At the end of the day, you’re the only person who can make the changes necessary for weight loss. You can read a bunch of weight loss blog posts and listen to hours of weight loss videos. But nothing will happen until you actually decide to do something differently. Change your mindset. Eat less. Lose weight.

♡, S