Rice?

EquestrianLark135

I've recently discovered that white rice is WAY more high calorie than I was expecting. My boyfriend is Asian and we happen to eat rice with just about everything, but goodness it takes a chunk out of my calories to even have a cup of steamed white rice. I did a little research and found it can actually be fattening...maybe that's total bull...but that's why I'm asking you guys.
Is rice good/bad/ok? And why is it so high calorie??
Also, I know brown rice or quinoa is a healthier alternative, and I have yet to try either. I found that they're both equally as high calorie, though. Again...why?

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glevinso

Every single thing that you put in your mouth that has calories is technically "fattening".

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ljashley1952

The calories in a cup of plain, white, med grain rice is 242. Calories in a cup of Trader Joe's Jasmine rice is 180 per cup. I prefer the Jasmine and will limit myself to 1/2 to 3/4 cup and just add extra vegetables.

Quinoa is great and it has a nice taste, but to me is isn't a substitute for rice all the time. I do use it sometimes, though.

Brown rice is different tasting and I like it well enough, but it has a firmer texture that feels like it just isn't 'done'. You just have to get used to the firmer texture.

No clue why it's so high calorie. It's a grain. I'm pretty annoyed that good bread is extremely high in calorie, but that's just the way it is.

Lasmartchika

BFDeal wrote: »

Is rice good/bad/ok?

Rice is a food. It has no moral value associated with it. It simply exists.

^^This.^^

I eat rice several times a week, if not every day of the week. I'm still losing weight. All you have to do is make it fit into your calories.

And mind you, I'm not eating steamed rice either.

TeaBea

My vote goes to.....total bull. Rice is calorie dense....not the same thing as fattening.

Rice is a huge staple in many countries.....yet it's Americans with the biggest weight problem....not the Chinese or Japanese.

Brown rice is less processed.....it has more fiber & nutrients....but the same calories. I love rice, but I have to manage portions.

It comes down to lifestyle changes....I won't be giving up rice forever. So it's still part of my weight loss program.

EquestrianLark135

I guess I am just trying to stick w/ lower calorie foods so I can have more food throughout the day and wasn't sure of its nutritional value. That's what I meant by good/bad. I understand what you guys are saying, though. It will probably just be an occasional thing for when I can fit it into my calories.

EquestrianLark135

[/quote]
And mind you, I'm not eating steamed rice either.
[/quote]
Ok...do your best to not judge me here...how else can you eat rice? I've only ever had it steamed. I honestly had no idea there was any other way.

Also, I'm newish here so apparently I did the quoting wrong.

Juvenica

Rice is a great option to other foods in my opinion , so I also vote on total bull. It's not fattening , I ate rice thrice a week for years not even faltering a pound, and since it has so many calories , you will actually feel full and you won't need to eat other things u would have to , if you did without .

LolBroScience

EquestrianLark135 wrote: »

And mind you, I'm not eating steamed rice either.

Ok...do your best to not judge me here...how else can you eat rice? I've only ever had it steamed. I honestly had no idea there was any other way.

Also, I'm newish here so apparently I did the quoting wrong.

You need to remove the "/" from the first "[/quote]"

mustgetmuscles1

Ninjas eat rice....'nuff said.

Seriously though nothing makes you fat unless you eat to much. Try to fit it in if you enjoy it. Brown rice is fine if you like it but it is not significantly different in calories and the extra nutrients are negligible after digestion.

Tuala42

Most "frequent" food on my food diary--white rice. My husband is asian too. I do eat less than I used to--maybe 1/2 cup or 1 cup with a meal instead of 2-3 or whatever I used to eat before I started logging everything. And I try to eat more veggies with my meals. But there's no way I could do without it, and my husband would never agree to brown rice or quinoa. I've still managed to maintain my loss of 45 lbs for about 2 years now despite eating rice all the time.

lorib642

Maybe cut the portion size of rice so you don't get so many calories?

Lasmartchika

Um, my regular recipe:
1 cup of Jasmine rice
1/2 tomato
1/4 onion
1/4 green bell pepper
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp chicken bullion
2 cups water

I sautee the veggies first in the oil, then I add the rice to toast it a little, then I add the water. Let it boil uncovered, once the water has evaporated, I cover it and lower the fire to low for 10 minutes. And it's ready to eat. Makes about 4 servings. My version of fried rice.

fivethreeone

Nothing wrong with rice! A food's value to you depends on your personal calorie and macro goals. For people with higher calorie and carb goals it is a godsend.

For me, with lower calorie and carb goals, I don't eat much rice. For you, I'd just eat less and make a balanced meal with a lot of veggies and meat, etc. Make sure you measure it dry, in grams.

Also, no food will make you fat or skinny. Eating more than your TDEE (having an energy surplus) will cause weight gain. Eating less will cause weight loss. It's just math.

fitfabforties

I rarely eat rice anymore....but if I do, it's wild rice/brown rice mix....I don't eat white rice, pasta, very little bread and not a lot of quinoa either....rarely eat white potatoes either....to me it isn't worth the calories

zyxst

Be sure you're measuring it correctly according to package directions. The basmati rice I eat is 150 calories per 45 grams, dry. I can certainly eat way more rice than that, but it's enough for one meal once cooked.

maria0elisa

EquestrianLark135 wrote: »

I've recently discovered that white rice is WAY more high calorie than I was expecting. My boyfriend is Asian and we happen to eat rice with just about everything, but goodness it takes a chunk out of my calories to even have a cup of steamed white rice. I did a little research and found it can actually be fattening...maybe that's total bull...but that's why I'm asking you guys.
Is rice good/bad/ok? And why is it so high calorie??
Also, I know brown rice or quinoa is a healthier alternative, and I have yet to try either. I found that they're both equally as high calorie, though. Again...why?

Hey, I would recommend just having a slightly smaller portion of rice.

Should be about a palmful dry to create a fistful-sized portion once cooked, ie. 1/4 of your plate. (The other 1/4 being protein, with 1/2 veggies)

If you have a kitchen scales, a portion of grains (rice/quinoa/whatever) is 50g pp.

maria0elisa

EquestrianLark135 wrote: »

I've recently discovered that white rice is WAY more high calorie than I was expecting. My boyfriend is Asian and we happen to eat rice with just about everything, but goodness it takes a chunk out of my calories to even have a cup of steamed white rice. I did a little research and found it can actually be fattening...maybe that's total bull...but that's why I'm asking you guys.
Is rice good/bad/ok? And why is it so high calorie??
Also, I know brown rice or quinoa is a healthier alternative, and I have yet to try either. I found that they're both equally as high calorie, though. Again...why?

Hey, I would recommend just having a slightly smaller portion of rice.

Should be about a palmful dry to create a fistful-sized portion once cooked, ie. 1/4 of your plate. (The other 1/4 being protein, with 1/2 veggies)

If you have a kitchen scales, a portion of grains (rice/quinoa/whatever) is 50g pp.

libbydoodle11

I spend about 300 calories a day on 90 grams of rice per day. Sometimes I change it out for pasta, or quinoa or couscous. It is worth the expenditure to me. I mix it with a ton of veggies and garlic. I find it very filling. Other times I will add legumes, onion, avo, cilantro and sriracha and make my own burrito bowl. Again, it is well worth it and I won't be giving it up anytime soon.

stuffinmuffin

I love rice and make sure I can fit a good portion into my calories! However I think where you've heard it's fattening is that white rice is quite high on the glycemic index which can peak your blood sugar levels. Whilst typically Asian continents are generally slimmer than their Western neighbours, there are high levels of diabetes (plus they're now emulating our processed diets and are catching us up on the bad health front anyway).

However, global food woes aside....if you enjoy it, just fit it into your calorie allowance - you will still lose weight. Also I'm a little bit jealous that you must be able to eat a lot of authentic Asian food!

J72FIT

stuffinmuffin wrote: »

However I think where you've heard it's fattening is that white rice is quite high on the glycemic index which can peak your blood sugar levels.

In the context of a meal the glycemic index of white rice (or any food for that matter) is a moot point. It can only be fattening if you eat too much of it...