Healthy eating kinda sucks....
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0somuchbetter0 wrote: »So eat the red meat, the salty snack things, and the bread...just take your multivitamin and keep your calories at a deficit. Life's too short to eat foods you hate.
EXACTLY. Which is what I try to do. What's the point of eating if you don't like most of what you have to eat?
I still don't understand where you are getting the advice that you have to eat things you don't like. From your profile, it looks like you've already been successful at losing some weight. Why not just keep doing what you were doing so far?
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Why not put some salt on some cucumbers or something? If you want salty, pretend cucumber slices with salt are chips? Not many of us love eating better, but we do it because we're determined. If you give it time, your mind will likely change and it'll become second nature.0
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There are lots of snacks that would work with what you like to eat. A small serving of salted nuts, beef jerky, cheeses, crackers, pretzels, etc. Just figure out what you like to eat and try preplanning days to see if you can hit your macronutrients with what you like to eat. Adjust accordingly.0
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One thing I noticed when I changed my diet, is the more I ate something, the more often I might crave it. So I wasn't big on apples before but now I find I crave that. So I think your tastes will change over time. But I have to admit this only happened to me with fruit, not with veggies.0
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With the amount of salt you are getting in your diet, you have lost the ability to taste natural salt in foods. That's OK.
Huh, didn't think about that. I asked my doctor why she thought I craved salt, and she said it was something my body needed and as long as my blood pressure remained as low as it was, she wasn't worried.Are you asking for permission to eat unhealthy? I'll allow it. Proceed.
Not really, but thank you anyways. ^_^0 -
I agree with you, I don't really like most healthy foods much. If you're having trouble eating "healthy", just eat "less". I pretty much eat whatever I want, but just make sure to keep my portions in check to keep myself under my goal. It might work for you, although some people will probably think its blasphemy.0
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No, it's more....hmm, how to put it. Whenever I see people asking for low calorie ideas for food and snacks, the majority of people respond with stuff like carrot sticks, fruit, yogurt, granola and the like. As if those kinds of foods will satisfy snack cravings. And they probably do for some, but those are not snacks to me. What I eat of those is more stuff I eat with a meal and I eat because I need to, not because I'm hungry or I want them. Does that make sense?
I understand completely where you are coming from. I eat a large amount and variety of vegetables and fruits and other "healthy" stuff, but given the choice, I wouldn't do it. When I was younger, I thought I hated most vegetables and fruits, but I've found out that I don't hate them if they are made well, I just don't love them.
I've found that eating 3 squares a day and no snacks makes it easier. Doing that means that I can eat more calories at one time and not have to worry about finding the lowest calorie option available. Instead of spending a couple hundred calories here or there for a snack, I use those calories to add flavor to my veggies and eat bigger, more filling meals. I like steamed broccoli, asparagus and even zucchini if I toss it in a sweet & spicy sauce like General Tso's or something. The other day I think I ate 3 cups of steamed veggies that way and actually enjoyed it! The sauce added 80 calories, but was so worth it.0 -
Tastes change with what you get used to. Ever seen the video about Irish people trying American snacks and hating them? It's all conditioning.0
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One thing I noticed when I changed my diet, is the more I ate something, the more often I might crave it. So I wasn't big on apples before but now I find I crave that. So I think your tastes will change over time.
Yeah, they never have for me. For example, when I moved in my now husband, we started cooking at home a lot and I mostly ate peas for my veggie. Been doing that many times a week for several years, and I don't crave them at all. We had a month or two of random eating out meals and other things while we moved, and I didn't miss them at all.NerdieMcChub wrote: »Why not put some salt on some cucumbers or something? If you want salty, pretend cucumber slices with salt are chips? Not many of us love eating better, but we do it because we're determined. If you give it time, your mind will likely change and it'll become second nature.
I eat cucumbers, but I can't pretend they're chips. The texture is WAY wrong for that! I do add salt to them, though, and that does help them taste better.0 -
I'Need2Exerc1se wrote: »There are so many vegetables with different tastes and textures, and so many cooking methods, that I always have a hard time believing that anyone could really not like any of them.
OP, what vegetables have you tried and how were they prepared? Do you typically eat them alone or in some type of prepared dish (casserole, soup, stew, pizza, lasanga, omelet, etc.)?
Lets see.....Cooked, I'm ok with peas, carrots and corn. Not fond of lima beans, but I'll eat them with enough salt. When I do a salad, I prefer raw spinach as part of the base. I despise green beans, mushrooms and broccoli. Most other veggies fall into the 'meh' category for me. If it's in something, I tend to eat around it to get to the meat, though I don't put a lot of effort into that unless it's one of the ones I despise. I don't like adding veggies to a recipe unless the recipe itself calls for that. It not only changes the flavor, but also the texture, which is another big reason why I don't like most veggies.
I wasn't really suggesting adding vegetables to recipes that don't call for them, rather if you liked dishes that contained vegetables. For example, tomato sauce is major component in traditional lasanga and is a very nutritious vegetable. Soups, stews, chili and pizza are just ways of preparing food and usually/often contain vegetables.
Vegetables are part of many delcious dishes. How do you make Asian, Mexican or Italian dishes without vegetables, instance?
But my real question was about how many vegetables you have tried. I guess a better question might have been, what do you like to eat. What are a few of your favorite meals?0 -
You don't need to eat anything you don't like. If you don't want to snack on fruit and vegetables, you don't have to. You can eat bread and chips, but they're really calorie dense, so you can't eat much of them (or you have to exercise a lot to "burn" them). Also, eating carbs creates a craving for more carbs. If you stopped eating bread/crackers/etc, it would be hard for a few days and then you'd barely miss it most of the time. Veggies as snacks have the advantage that they control hunger for very few calories.
Air popped popcorn (or microwave popcorn) is salty and you can eat a lot for few calories. Homemade soup/stew is also a great way to add veggies into a yummy/salty/brothy/meaty mix.
There are three issues to "healthy" eating:
1) controlling your calories (to lose the last 10 lbs). You can eat whatever you want to achieve this goal
2) getting enough nutrients. You need calcium, fiber, healthy fats, vitamins, protein, minerals. You can do this through food or supplements.
3) avoiding excessive amounts of unhealthy things. Not everyone agrees on what those are. I personally prefer to avoid transfats and heavy metals (e.g. mercury, arsenic). Others think salt, sugar, saturated fats, carbs, artificial sweeteners, pesticides, food dyes, etc are "unhealthy". We each have to pick our own priorities, I think.
You need to find something you're happy with, or you won't sustain it.
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Who said you HAD to eat fruits and veggies as snacks? Just get some when you can/want to, eat your salty stuff, eat at a deficit. The end. I'm a BIG salt person too. Chips and salsa, pickles, sushi, buffalo sauce on grilled chicken, cajun fish, etc. None of these things keep me from my goal. Honestly being a salt craver is probably better than being a sweet food craver.
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No, it's more....hmm, how to put it. Whenever I see people asking for low calorie ideas for food and snacks, the majority of people respond with stuff like carrot sticks, fruit, yogurt, granola and the like. As if those kinds of foods will satisfy snack cravings. And they probably do for some, but those are not snacks to me. What I eat of those is more stuff I eat with a meal and I eat because I need to, not because I'm hungry or I want them. Does that make sense?
Ooooh yep, that makes sense. Veggies as a snack to me means I'm eating veggies because I'm so hungry I feel like I could puke so I need to tide myself over until I can get to real food (Mmm meat!). You might be thinking snack as a tasty treat that is more happiness than hunger satisfaction, in which case veggies might not cut it for you.
There are tricks though sometimes. Like cutting up cucumbers and dipping them in salsa like chips. That's a bit better than plain cucumbers or a whole bag of nachos. But in the end... some times you just have to have a few actual nachos!0 -
I didn't think I liked healthy foods either, but after experimenting for a few years I actually prefer them.
I hide veggies in chicken soup, I eat salads with veggies I like on them (and hide raw kale and spinach underneath romaine lettuce), I experimented with making delicious smoothies and add veggies to them. I prefer cashew butter to peanut butter, it's very salty you might like it.
Variety is key...if you're eating chicken breast and broccoli every day you will hate eating healthy. Pinterest has some great recipes.
But when it comes down to it, losing the last 10 pounds is all about cutting the calories, so maybe give yourself 8 weeks of misery to do it, and in the meantime hopefully you'll learn to enjoy some of it.0 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »
But my real question was about how many vegetables you have tried. I guess a better question might have been, what do you like to eat. What are a few of your favorite meals?
How many vegetables have I tried? Um, go down the frozen section of the grocery store and I've tried just about all of them at one time or another. My dad would plant a garden every year when I was growing up, and he always planted several things so I grew up eating them fresh, too. Still despise green beans!
Favorite meals......well, we're doing Chicken Adobo tonight, the recipe from Cooks Illustrated. I love steak, I make a killer meatloaf, love my husband's pot roast....not fond of Mexican or Tex-Mex because it's too spicy. Not a fan of Indian spices, not the heat, just the taste of them. Like some Asian foods, but again, have to make sure it's not spicy.0 -
I am betting that texture is big for you, too. I think you will need to experiment more widely to understand what you like. There's some crispy peas at Costco, salty, with a neat texture.
http://harvestsnaps.com/0 -
JeffseekingV wrote: »
blend the damn things. it works0 -
I am betting that texture is big for you, too. I think you will need to experiment more widely to understand what you like. There's some crispy peas at Costco, salty, with a neat texture.
http://harvestsnaps.com/
You know, I've seen those before and wondered if they're any good. Next time I go to the store, I'll get a small bag and see. Better to find out if I do or don't like them before getting them at Costco! XD0 -
I don't care for most veggies - but it's a texture thing for me. I can't do cooked anything pretty much. I gag. So I just do fresh carrots, cucumbers, and cherry tomatoes with dinner and sometimes as a snack.
You're not alone, I just don't really sweat it though.0
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