Anyone else feel crushed by all the "No" foods?

spectralmoon

Just be careful of keeping a lot of high fructose corn syrup products in your house, and you're good.

happythermia

"And the old fall back of "everything in moderation"? Well according to a Harvard doctor in NYT article “The notion that it’s O.K. to eat everything in moderation is just an excuse to eat whatever you want.”

Damn right! Look, I'm not a robot and neither are you. While I try to pick the healthy option when I can, sometimes I want a freaking cookie. SO - a cookie I will have.

I wouldn't even say that's a correct statement. If I could eat whatever I wanted all the time, it would be sweets. ALL THE TIME lol
Want to know what my 'sweets' were today? 200g of strawberries, blackberries, blueberries & raspberries.

Try not to over think it, or you'll make yourself crazy! Hang in there :-)

Timshel_

I don't have any "no" foods. Everything is moderated. If not that day, then within the next few days. Or I add in a few extra reps and sets. Seriously...I like eat good food waaaaay too much.

Sarauk2sf

And the old fall back of "everything in moderation"? Well according to a Harvard doctor in NYT article “The notion that it’s O.K. to eat everything in moderation is just an excuse to eat whatever you want.”

Why shouldn't I eat whatever I want? I lost weight just fine doing just that. I enjoy food and I enjoy getting fit. One does not mean you can't have the other.

Avoidance of specific foods is extreme and unnecessary unless you have an allergy intolerance, or some other medical reason to do so.

Exactly. What is wrong with eating whatever you want? The issue is how much, not what.

Make sure your get a balanced diet of mainly nutrient dense food from a variety of sources and have some treats.

littlelady2b

There is no such thing as "no foods".
Unless it tastes bad.

Eat food you enjoy, count calories and maintain a deficit. That's it.

yes.

^ This.

I agree 110%

jofjltncb6

Just be careful of keeping a lot of high fructose corn syrup products in your house, and you're good.

Because HFCS is the debil, right?

Amirite?

I'm right, right?

sunshinestater

There's not much I can say here that hasn't been said already. I don't forbid myself from eating certain things. I just approach them responsibly. Am I willing to balance them with my other choices and work off the calories with exercise? If so, I go for it. I even have an occasional "over" day and don't beat myself up for it. i just don't let it get me off track. i don't want to face a life without my favorite foods, and there's no reason to. Just make them fit into an overall healthy lifestyle.

ndj1979

i saw ny times and harvard and stopped reading...

sparkle814

I agree with everyone else. Moderation is key. What has been working for me is to make the effort to include more of the good stuff (making an effort to have at least two veggies a day and several fruits, making sure I get a lot of protein from chicken, fish, cottage cheese, egg whites [I love eggs but prefer to cut out the cholesterol], Greek yogurt, and yes some red meat now and then) and then if I've satisfied all these requirements for myself I fill up the rest of my calories with "no" foods! lol! But really, since I've been making an effort to purposely eat more of the healthy stuff, I've been less hungry and haven't craved the junk as much. But I still eat a fair amount of junk and I'm losing weight. I try to keep a reasonably close eye on the amount of cholesterol, saturated fat, and sodium I eat because heart problems run in my family, but other than that I don't worry too much.

So go ahead, have a couple Oreos one day, have a cheeseburger, whatever, just count your calories and make sure you know for yourself that you are eating sensibly and getting lots of good stuff in there.

Also, unless you have Celiac disease, the gluten allergy, there's no reason to cut out wheat. Whole wheat and whole grain things are good for you (and tasty).

froeschli

how about focusing on the 'good' foods?

(OK, i eat whatever i want too. probably why i am not losing as much as i could be...)

just saying, when i tried low carb, first time around, i had a 'no-list' and got really frustrated. the second time i had a 'shopping-list' of all the good foods, and it totally changed my attitude towards it. i gave it up, because i was not prepared to stop eating chocolate and milk for the rest of my life - i'd rather start lifting and running more... :bigsmile:

scling83

And the old fall back of "everything in moderation"? Well according to a Harvard doctor in NYT article “The notion that it’s O.K. to eat everything in moderation is just an excuse to eat whatever you want.”

I think this Harvard doctor needs a slap.

'In moderation' is just that. I do think we tend to get a little carried away from time to time (that's how I ended up on MFP in the first place) but seriously, eat WHATEVER you want to. Just weigh/portion everything to make sure moderate doesn't become indulgent; and... on days that you happen to go over your calorie allowance (from eating out, or big events, or even crappy hormonal days... :ohwell: ) just add in some extra exercise to cover it.

Enjoy your new lifestyle! And please, throw your 'no' list in the trash.

MyChocolateDiet

"No".








(probably because I don't have any "no" foods. nothing's off limits when you IIFYM it.)

pinkraynedropjacki

No foods?


I eat what I want, how much I want & I'm all good. I work off enough to be able to do it. I no longer have to worry about portion sizes either, my dinner would feed 4 people easily, yet it's under 600 cals for the whole thing. THAT is how good this is.

No foods?

Tell that to my daily dessert, chocolate & whatever takes my fancy...at the moment I'm about to make me a toasted cheese....4 of them in fact.

littlelady2b

Most of those articles are just fads. Depriving yourself of food or foods you like is just setting yourself up for failure. I remember when fat free was the big thing before I became properly educated in university I believed it. I ate so little fat I stopped menstruating properly I lost very little weight and I wasn't feeling well my tummy was a mess. I started years ago on weight watchers back in the day when it was a good program it was almost the same as this site. I lost 50 lbs and kept it off until I started having kids. I went back and they had changed the program and I hardly lost weight because they were in control of my weight loss through the points system etc. Once they changed from a program that believed in people getting healthy it didn't work for me besides the scale became a fear for me as well. Weighing and measuring your food and being accountable for everything you eat and drink mixed with aerobic exercise and toning is the healthiest and most successful way to lose weight and making it a lifestyle change. This way you are in control of your weight loss and then maintaining your weight not some fad diet program or media advice that might work temporarily causing you to eventually gain all the weight back and more. If you want to research whats healthy make sure that its an article you research that has been peer reviewed and has been studied, written and backed up by a doctor and scientific research otherwise its just media hype.

jofjltncb6

my dinner would feed 4 people easily, yet it's under 600 cals for the whole thing

Huh? Am I misreading this?

hungryhobbit1

I ate pie three days in a row this week and I've lost two pounds since Sunday.

It's all in how you manage your food. You can eat just about anything if you make a plan and you stick to it. As far as "bad" foods are concerned, too much beta carotene can give you cancer. Too much vitamin C can give you stomach cramps. Too much zinc can cause nausea and vomiting. Too much iron can be lethal. There is nothing that can't be bad for you in large enough quantities. Just calm down and shoot for well balanced nutrition.

ndj1979

OP you are right , eating healthy is b-o-r-i-n-g..I mean who wants to eat healthy food all the time when you can gorge on ice cream, fried chicken, mcdonald's, cinnamon buns, cupcakes, cookies, etc..and then you have to work out on top of all that boring food..please!..its time to just shut this thing down, turn off the lights, hit the kill switch, abandon hope, kill the program = no more MFP or calorie counting ...

toutmonpossible

Reading an article from the NY Times today almost had me in tears. It put on the list of food to try to eat infrequently: ...100% fruit juice.

I mentioned the recommendation about juice on this board earlier this year and was attacked.

And the old fall back of "everything in moderation"? Well according to a Harvard doctor in NYT article “The notion that it’s O.K. to eat everything in moderation is just an excuse to eat whatever you want.”

Everything in moderation, including moderation. it is not always the answer. Sometimes people need a simple, streamlined diet that they can stick too. Also, if they want to lose at a reasonable rate they may have to live with a certain level of discomfort for a while. Another NYT article on the myths of weight loss specifically said that it is a myth that losing slowly is always the best way.

I saw a PBS show with doctor who said that if you want to lose weight you simply cannot focus on what you're giving up. You have to turn your mind instead to the benefits. A lot of people pay lip service to the idea that they're making a lifestyle change but they don't really mean it. They keep thinking in the same way and when they stop go on maintenance they return to their old habits.

hakudoshi82

I've lost 33 pounds so far eating foods I love. I failed in three diets in the past and got really depressed thinking I'd always be fat (which lead to getting fatter) because I though I had to go "all or nothing."

MFP the whole point is track what you eat. Make reasonable choices in modoration. I eat good most days of the week. If I have a craving then I eat it and try to make up for it in other meal choices (like if I want salty fatty food I'll do a healthy salad for one meal). Once a week after I do my weekly weight in for the morning I have a cheat day where I have extra calories and eat one or two things that sound awesome.

Living like this feels good. Going crazy with "you can't eat that" will just do that. Everything in modoration, it applies to basically all of life.

TigerBite

The only "no" foods I have are soy (because of thyroid issues, it messes with medication absorption), maybe wheat (blood test pending), and by default processed foods since most have some derivitive of soy in them: Though, when I think about it I really don't want to put artificial, trans fat crape in my body so it works. If you want to have full fat dairy go ahead, or steak and wine go for it ... that's the good stuff, not highly processed junk. The thought of giving up fruit because of sugar would kill me .... and fat, sorry but I'll take my full fat yummy dairy over "lite" crape filled with artificial flavors and stabilizers.

brandyinatl

The more you tell yourself NO the more you will want it! The question is do you really want it and is it worth it in your overall calories for the day or not? If you want something have it and still stay on plan. Probably most of the time this just means a smaller portion of that item. Not sure about you, but for me being out of shape and overweight seems to have more NO's or barriers in life than not being able to have that second slice of whatever.

Good Luck and don't give up. Lighten up on yourself some - no one is perfect.

Brandy

StarChanger

There is no such thing as "no foods".
Unless it tastes bad.

Eat food you enjoy, count calories and maintain a deficit. That's it.

yes.

^ This.

I agree 110%

...but not TOO much of a deficit.

JeffseekingV

i polished off a COSTCO sized thick crinkle cut chips in 4-5 days. Fit my macros. Muahahahaha

hakudoshi82

Everything in moderation, including moderation. it is not always the answer.

NO this is will power. Everyone has will power. You just have to summon it. It is A LOT easier to have will power to no eat that bowl of ice cream when you can say "Hey on my cheat day I'll eat ice cream I'll stick to eating healthy today" then it is to will power up "I"ll never eat ice cream. If you tell yourself (or worse other people) that ONLY X diet works for you, you're doomed to put the weight back on. Learning modoration is the key to true weight loss in every single person I know who has lost weight and kept it off.

rosellasweet

I quit putting stock in what doctors were writing the moment I discovered they said smoking was good for you. People will say what they want to say.

Chocdip

Burn off whatever you eat!

violettatx

Just be careful of keeping a lot of high fructose corn syrup products in your house, and you're good.

Because HFCS is the debil, right?

Amirite?

I'm right, right?

No, ice cream is the devil. HFCS is a mere minion.

To the OP, like many others have said, moderation is key. And they will pry my fried chicken out of my cold, dead hands.

Junie2013

For me, the more restrictive the eating plan - the bigger the resulting backlash. I'm going the moderation route this time.

TigerBite

Forgot to add:
If you keep worrying, the stress will kill you before the food does!

PinkNinjaLaura

There are certain foods that I have made "no" foods just because I know I can't exercise moderation when it comes to them. But if you try to follow the advice of all the so-called experts it will make you crazy. Use the common sense rule.