Why eat healthy/nutritious food?

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  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,695 Member
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    Hopefully the take away here isn't that you can't have a candy bar, or that all people that lose weight on candy bars are only eating candy bars.
    There's a happy medium that can be reached for just about anyone when it comes to eating for weight loss. Myself, I'm an 80/20 eater where 80% of my intake is mostly whole foods and nutrient dense and 20% anything I want that fits into my calorie limit.

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  • ClosetBayesian
    ClosetBayesian Posts: 836 Member
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    elaineamj wrote: »
    Starting my journey so have been reading the forums and learning a lot about calories in, calories out. Basically my understanding is that a 100 calorie candy bar is equivalent to a 100 calorie apple in terms of weight loss.

    So what are the reasons to choose food that is less processed/lower in sodium/whole foods/veggies/etc?

    In tandem with my calorie counting, I have been doing more cooking from scratch/lowering sodium intake/lowering fat intake and so on. From what I am learning, the positive aspects of doing this are:

    - nutritious food often leaves me feeling fuller between meals (eg a bowl of chickpeas vs a donut)
    - less sodium is better for my heart
    - nutrients matter for my body's overall health.

    Yes.

    However.

    Many people get caught up in the mindset of candy-or-other-not-particularly-nutritious-stuff = bad. This sets up / continues negative emotions being associated with food (i.e., "bad" food), which can eventually lead to people judging themselves negatively based on eating something that is high-cal/low-nutrient (i.e., I was/am bad because I ate a Snickers instead of an apple).

    In terms of weight loss, sure, 100cal candy bar = 100cal apple. In terms of nutrition, apple > candy bar. In terms of sustainability.... Man, some days, I just want a freaking Snickers. I could not care less about the nutritional comparison. An apple =/= chocolate. If I want chocolate, and I try to appease myself with an apple, eventually I will eat that chocolate in addition to the apple.

    Sometimes a Snickers bar isn't worth it, in terms of calories, nutrition, etc. But if you're at a point where your sanity depends on chocolate (it happens; I won't judge if you won't), eat the damn candy and enjoy it.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    elaineamj wrote: »
    Starting my journey so have been reading the forums and learning a lot about calories in, calories out. Basically my understanding is that a 100 calorie candy bar is equivalent to a 100 calorie apple in terms of weight loss.

    So what are the reasons to choose food that is less processed/lower in sodium/whole foods/veggies/etc?

    In tandem with my calorie counting, I have been doing more cooking from scratch/lowering sodium intake/lowering fat intake and so on. From what I am learning, the positive aspects of doing this are:

    - nutritious food often leaves me feeling fuller between meals (eg a bowl of chickpeas vs a donut)
    - less sodium is better for my heart
    - nutrients matter for my body's overall health.

    Yeah, like you said: health and satiety.

    But the most significant thing you can do for your health if you have a lot to lose is lose weight, so if eating a less healthy diet helps you do that, it might be a good idea for someone.

    For me focusing on eating a super healthy diet (tons of veg, high estimate of protein) helped, but it would not for everyone.

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    HappyCampr1 wrote: »
    It's a never ending learning process. Right now, I'm working on incorporating more legumes in my diet, as I tend to stick with garbanzos and black beans. Trying new dishes and incorporating my favorites into my diet will give me more flexibility of choice and still help me meet my goals.

    I love both and also do some tasty white bean options, but lentils are my go to, as they are really the easiest legume, as they are so fast cooking. So highly recommended!
  • QueenofHearts023
    QueenofHearts023 Posts: 421 Member
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    It's better for you nutritionally. I eat "healthy" because I enjoy the taste of most foods considered to be in that category.

    My advice, if you don't enjoy the food, don't eat it just for the sake of it being healthy. Remember we're building lifelong habits here. You'll never keep the weight off if you force yourself to eat stuff you don't enjoy. :)
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    That's funny -- I don't perceive lentils as hippy at all. But then, I grew up in a meat and potatoes and veg kind of household (not hippy at all!). My parents still find the idea of a main meal without meat confusing.
  • angelamichelle_xo
    angelamichelle_xo Posts: 646 Member
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    elaineamj wrote: »
    - nutritious food often leaves me feeling fuller between meals (eg a bowl of chickpeas vs a donut)
    - less sodium is better for my heart
    - nutrients matter for my body's overall health.

  • GreenPharmD
    GreenPharmD Posts: 30 Member
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    I lost a lot of weight initially on my journey by eating "diet" foods - Lean Cuisine, Diet Coke, splenda in my coffee instead of sugar, non-fat milk, sugar free this, sugar free that. So yes part of the "calories in vs calories out" statement holds true, to lose weight,

    For health, the quality of the calories count. 100 calories of candy vs 100 calories of fruit - both have a bunch of sugar right? What about vitmains, minerals, fiber? I've been on a Paleo type regimen for about a year and a half now and it's changed the way I look at what I eat. When you eat that candy bar, your body recognizes the sugar - physiologically our bodies expect there to be nutirents to go along with that sugar because historically we didn't all walk around chewing on straight sugar cane - our bodies learned that naturally ocurring sugar comes from whole foods like fruit. When you chomp on an apple, your body gets the nutrients and fiber it's expecting, thus yes, you feel fuller longer and don't get that feeling of heading towards a downward spiral of neverending empty carbohydrate consumption. Eat the candy bar, you brain is like awesome, we're getting sugar! We run on sugar, okay... wait where's the other good stuff we need to live? Oh, I didn't get it, better eat something else.... and so it goes.

    Calories in vs Calories out, is scientifically true - but the quality of the calories matter. I'm more afraid of drinking a diet soda now than I would be a real Coke despite the high fructose corn syrup. Ban the artificial crap. Shop the perimeter of the grocery store. To quote Michael Pollan, "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." - Food is anything that grows. Everything else is food like subsbtances.

    This has to be a lifestyle to be successful, and a lifestyle of consumption of foodlikesubsbtances will not lead you to healthy outcomes. Trust me, I'm a pharmacist, studying nutritionist, and alternative medicine enthusiast.

    That all being said - I agree still with those about the 80/20 rule.... do I never eat hershey kisses? muffins? cupcakes? hell no, I love that stuff! Just only here and there :)

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