Food...

[GreyhoundsRUs]

So DH and I seem to be the worst possible match for each other in terms of food...we both LOVE to eat "bad" food, he puts weight on fairly quickly, I (until recently) have not. We both look at food for comfort (him more than me) and as a social experience. I have not cooked a meal in our current place in weeks because it is being shown all the time and between leaving at 5 and getting home at 5, I don't feel like cooking and making the place spotless again...We are moving either May 1st (hopefully) or June 1st (not good at all), so I will resume preparing meals at that time.

My biggest concern is that I don't think i really know what is healthy and what's not - portion sizes, various food that are deceiving...plus there are things that I consider "staples" at the dinner table that probably shouldn't be (BREAD).

My question is: how do you eat healthy? How do you set limits or create alternatives to the unhealthy foods you love?

P.S. All of this has been motivated by the fact that, when I went to put my capris on for the first time this season, I couldn't button them

[spotty_dog]

Re: Food...

I was first inspired to make choices for good, nourishing, yummy, health-producing food when I read Dr. Andrew Weil's Eating Well for Optimal Health. The notion of glycemic index to help make carbohydrate choices, and of saturated vs. unsaturated fat to choose which fats you eat, as well as eating plenty of antioxidant foods, makes a lot of sense to me.

[poky]

Re: Food...

Portion size is a huge factor, especially when you're eating out a lot. I try to look for meals that will reheat well and take half home for lunch/dinner the next day. Better for you *and* for your wallet! Most restaurant dinners are *way* more food than I normally eat in a meal, but when you first start doing that, it's a matter of will; it won't seem like enough food. Just keep telling yourself it is, because it is. If you eat slowly and deliberately, too, you're more likely to feel full before you finish, because it gives the food time to actually get to your stomach and fill it up.

[houseelf]

Re: Food...

My question is: how do you eat healthy? How do you set limits or create alternatives to the unhealthy foods you love?

For the first time in my life, I'm having to contemplate my food intake a bit more...and I'm NOT a fan. I'll refrain from a tirade on this, but this slowing metabolism thing is not fun.

For me, I had to figure out what kind of foods don't really jazz me but found their way to my mouth anyway. It was so easy to eliminate fries, chips, and fried food altogehter. I ate that stuff but I never really *loved* it. Now when I run through McDonalds, I choose a burger and salad and it doesn't even phase me, I don't even feel like I'm sacrificing.

This leaves room for my beloved chocolate. I seriously have to have some everyday. I keep a secret emergency stash. I'm not kidding. Having individual wrapped portions helps instead of strapping the bag to my face like I've been known to do in the past. (Consumer reports will tell you that this is the most expensive way to buy food, but I don't care).

I think any diet which is too spartan will inevitably fail. I LOVE food and I just have to figure out how to balance it out a bit.

I also believe that dining out will kill your perspective on food. We eat at home almost all the time now that I don't work outside the home. I'm overwhelmed by portion sizes when we're out. Even the kids' meals are huge. At dine-in restaurants, I order one children's meal for the kids and either a dinner salad or appetizer for myself. At a place like Champs, you can feed an entire famiy with one of their dinner salads and the bread basket.

I don't think that there are any true secrets, it is just figuring out what works for you and tryign to eat a bit more conscientiously. It can be a real struggle.

Kelly

[Vishenka69]

Re: Food...

I try to include as much veggies as possible in our diet (living in the farm country really helps), I have also switched to whole wheat for all our bread consumption and brown rice. I try to do as much from scratch as possible and to use the least amount of packaged food (for things I'm too lazy to make on my own aka chicken stock, I get the organic low sodium one). We almost never have any kind of snacks or soda (unless DH rebels and gets some). I also try to oven bake stuff vs frying it on the stove and to use olive oil as much as possible.

When I was home and cooking most of our meals we both lost a size within weeks and our skin and hair was much better. As soon as I started working, we gained all the weight back and started breaking out. I can't wait to stop working and go back to cooking.

[DCJenn]

Re: Food...

There are a couple ways-

Learn what constitutes a portion- a serving of meat is typically the size of you palm (same thickness, too); an ounce of cheese is the size of your pinky.

Alcohol= 2 oz of spirits = 12 oz beer = 6 oz wine. Avoid mixed cocktails like maragaritas and pina colodas whenever possible.

If you don't have a food scale- buy one- they're inexpensive and very helpful to see how much stuff 'really' weighs.

and avoid fried stuff, fake sugars and refined flour and it makes a world of difference.

Jenn

[moonlight]

Re: Food...

For me the big turn around was buying two things: a good calorie counting book (with a complete restaurant section) and a good quality digital scale that measures in oz./lbs and grams. I couldn't believe how much I was eating before.

I'm still working on a good list of easy, simple, low cal, and yummy recipes. For me, cooking is such work. Losing the weight on the other hand is quite enjoyable! So there is my balance!

[locumtenenswife]

Re: Food...

My husband and I struggled with this through residency. The easiest way to start is to stop buying any processed food (including canned food and frozen food) that's in your pantry and fridge and the next time you shop, 50% of the items you purchase should be from the fresh vegetable and fresh fruit section, 25% should be whole grain sources and the remaining 25% should be lean protein. Each meal should be colorful (green, orange, yellow, red, purple, etc.) and taste good, too. You may also notice that your grocery bill will be less!

Think of portion sizes in proportion to a normal dinner plate. Now shrink down those portions to fit a salad plate, and there you have a "health-wise" serving. When you're preparing a plate for dinner, think of what your "normal" portion size would be and half it. For example, instead of thinking of one boneless chicken breast as one serving, it is actually two. So cut it in half, and fill in the rest of your plate with veggies and grains. If you're used to cooking all your food with butter, substitute it with half a tablespoon of olive oil instead.

When it comes to snacking, always have fresh fruit, vegetables or yogurt on hand. Make sure that you snack healthy by keeping junk food out of the house, and bringing a healthy snack with you to work or when you're out on the town. After a while of not eating processed food, you start to crave the healthy snacks and it makes it easier to stick to your goal of eating healthy.

Also, in general, stay away from food and beverages that contain "high fructose corn syrup", as these foods are mostly processed and are low in nutritional value but high in calories. Drink water or decaf tea instead of processed beverages. And forgive yourself if you slip up once in a while and cave into your cravings - It's all about moderation.