clean eating or small portions

Francl27

I could never have stuck long term to just smaller portions, as I was eating calorie dense/not necessarily filling food.

I don't buy the 'clean eating' crap though, but I try to eat at least 80% of my calories in nutrient-dense, filling foods.

lemurcat12

I really don't see "clean eating" or "small portions" as the only two alternatives. Not "clean eating" (which means nothing anyway) doesn't mean you eat only high cal foods. I will eat ice cream if I have calories, but I devote about half my meals to low calorie foods like vegetables, and my meal volume is pretty large. My serving of ice cream might be small by some standards (not IMO reasonable ones, as I normally eat a half cup serving). I think one issue is just that people have some portion distortion, but beyond that it doesn't need to be all or nothing. I reduced calories in lots of meals I ate (which were reasonably healthy already) just by reducing things like cheese or oil or measuring pasta servings and adding more of the lower calorie elements of the dishes (vegetables, lean meat). It wasn't that much of a cut, if any, from a volume POV. (A bigger thing for me was not eating when I am not hungry and specifically not eating between meals. Grazing works for some, but it's never satisfying for me and not connected to actual hunger most of the time.)

selina884

clean eating makes me *feel* good
Portion control is what makes me lose weight successfuly

lemurcat12

Eating a healthful diet makes me feel good.

People feel good eating lots of different ways, though.