Women Share Exactly What They Ate to Lose 50+ Pounds

If you just need someone who’s ‘been there, done that’ to show you the ropes of weight loss, you’ve come to the right place. And anyone who’s made major weight loss progress will tell you that nutrition is the key to shedding pounds quickly and feeling great. As the authors of a recent editorial in the British Journal of Sports Medicine wrote, “You cannot outrun a bad diet.”

To figure out exactly what to eat to drop those unwanted pounds, Women’s Health spoke to seven women who’ve each lost over 50 pounds and got the deets on their diets.

Keep reading to check out their plans!

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Jodi Friedman

Jodi, 44, had struggled with her weight due to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and insulin resistance. But after a nutritionist helped her devise a low-carb, high-protein eating plan, she lost 70 pounds and is now training for a half marathon. “It’s important to find a nutritionist who understands your health issues and supports your needs,” she says.

A typical day’s meals:

• Breakfast: a protein bar with 20 grams of protein or more, plus a banana on workout days
• Lunch: tuna salad with a side salad of mixed greens and tomatoes with aged balsamic vinegar
• Snack: cucumber slices with a tablespoon of hummus
• Dinner: salmon or slow cooker chicken with a side of spinach or avocado
• Dessert: kid-sized cup of frozen yogurt

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Jennifer Finney

Motivated by a warning from her husband’s doctor, Jennifer, 41, and her hubby overhauled their eating habits together. “We went from a diet of processed foods, fast food, and dining out two or three times a week to a whole-food, plant-based diet,” she says. “We went all-in from day one, and the weight started melting off.” To date, she’s lost 80 pounds and now works as an online health and fitness coach.

A typical day’s meals:

• Breakfast: rolled oats with almond milk, peanut butter and pure maple syrup
• Post-workout snack: green smoothie with spinach and frozen fruit
• Lunch: kale salad with hummus and rice vinegar, topped with fresh cucumbers, red peppers, and chickpeas or lentils 
• Afternoon snack: apples with peanut butter
• Dinner: a Pad-Thai inspired dish using spaghetti squash instead of pasta 
• After-dinner snack: a piece of fruit

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Petrina, 43, started the Atkins diet because her sister was interested in the plan. “She asked me to do it with her for support,” she says. Petrina eventually modified her diet for more balance, and has lost a total of 100 pounds. She says the key has been “taking it one day at a time. Too many people devote too much focus to the end game.”

A typical day’s meals:

• Breakfast: a healthy “cheese Danish”—made by mixing egg with cream cheese, liquid Splenda, and a dash of cinnamon—along with bacon or sausage
• Lunch: salad with full-fat blue cheese dressing, bacon bits, and diced chicken
• Dinner: steak with steamed broccoli and butter
• Snack: homemade sugar-free peanut butter cup (made with baking chocolate, butter, liquid Splenda, and peanut butter)

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The approach of a milestone birthday motivated Whitney, 29, to get serious about her eating habits. “I had been overweight my whole life, and I was determined not to go into my thirties fat!” she says. By following a low-carb, high-protein diet—with some extra carbs added in on workout days—she’s lost 65 pounds so far.

A typical day’s meals:

• Breakfast: fruit smoothie with some spinach or kale and a scoop of protein powder
• Snack: granola bar
• Lunch: jerk chicken with homemade cauliflower rice
• Dinner: baked chicken with broccoli and brown rice
• Snack: ¼ cup of peanuts or cashews

Want to see more amazing transformations? Check out the original article on Women’s Health.