What to eat

spm2010

Im having a really hard time figuring what to eat. Theres always a new article or study about what you should and shouldnt eat to lose weight and I try not to read them but I do.. Are carbs bad? Will fruit make me fat? Should I cut out dairy? The list goes on and on. How many calories should I really be eating? I feel like I am losing my mind and dont know what to do..need any advice you have. Im 5'9..195 goal of 180 and I workout 3-5 days a week..weights..kettlebells and I push a stroller up and down hills for 5k min 4 times a week. Its the diet part that has me stumped.

cwolfman13

Weight management comes down to calories...not some particular food or cutting out some particular food.

This and other calculators will give you a calorie target estimation...then you just adjust from there per your actual results.

IMO, nutrition is pretty common sense...see all those whole foods...eat a lot of those...including carbs, fruit, etc...

janejellyroll

Carbohydrates aren't bad. Fruit will only make you fat if it causes you to consume more energy than your body needs. Unless you have an allergy or ethical objection to dairy, there is no need to cut it out of your diet.

You can lose weight eating literally anything, you just have to eat less than you burn. When it comes to meeting your nutritional needs, yeah, you'll want to pay attention to that. But it probably isn't as complicated as you think it is.

Just get a calorie goal from MFP, log your food, and make minor adjustments if you see you aren't getting enough of something. Eat a variety of foods, including high protein foods, vegetables, fruits (if you want them), and grains (again, if you want them).

Just start logging what you eat now and make changes from there. You may find that your current diet is pretty good at meeting your nutritional needs, you're just eating too much to be the weight you want to be. Stop reading studies if they make you feel anxious or confused.

jgnatca

For weight loss, you need a calorie deficit. Plug in your stats in to MFP and it will give you your daily allowance.

For nutrition, eat a variety of foods. I've been to dozens of diet management classes because of my former diabetes, so this has become second nature.

A government resource like this can help you sort this out.
https://www.choosemyplate.gov/

You are right to distrust the headlines, because invariably they are taken out of context.


Are carbs bad?
No, in fact carbs are pretty darn essential. The macro-nutrients are protein, carbohydrates and fat. All fruits and vegetables are also carbohydrates.

Will fruit make me fat?
No, in fact it's pretty hard to get fat on fruit. Unless you are eating a bushel daily. Are you eating a bushel daily?

Should I cut out dairy?
Why? Dairy is a handy all-around food. I would have a lot of trouble hitting my daily protein target without Greek Yogurt.

jgnatca

Here's how a few rounds through the media can turn a perfectly harmless substance (like fructose) in to something bad:

Researchers look for a cause of the obesity epidemic ---> a doctor (Mark Hyman) names a culprit; High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). Begins a concerted campaign to demonise said substance ---> people start looking for HFCS when reading their food labels ----> if HFCS is bad, so must be Fructose ---> World Health Organization (WHO) announces a new limit on free sugar consumption (ideal 25 g per day) ---> an apple contains about 10g of sugar ---> The sugar in fruits is mostly FRUCTOSE! Oh noes! ---> Fruits must be bad

EatingAndKnitting

I eat whatever I want. Except foods high in added sugar, because I'm diabetic. I eat some fruit, but very little.

I've lost 47 pounds so far. That's a third of my goal.

Don't pay attention to the articles saying that this or that is bad for you. They all have an agenda. If it's CNN/news outlets, they want viewers and clicks - the best way to get them is to sensationalize studies and press releases, can't trust them to be accurate. If it's Dr Oz (or any other "doctor"/activist with an online store or afflitate program), they want money. Again, can't trust them to be accurate.

If it's from the FDA/USDA/WHO/other actual health organization, there's not really an agenda, but you don't usually hear directly from them, you're more Lilley to hear from someone who had interpreted the study, and the person who does that has an agenda. if you do read the actual study, they tend to say "X raises the risk of Y by Z%", but that may disguise the fact that your individual risk of Y is .015% of a chance, so Z isn't a big deal at all. Or you have to eat 15 pounds a day of X over the course of twenty years. Our the study was done on rats, or a very small sample of people, and may not affect us at all.

Best to avoid them all in my opinion. I'm going to die of something anyway, so do the best I can.

In long, use common sense, most people know how they are supposed to eat, if you don't or need a refresher, Google the US food pyramid. It's not perfect, but it's a decent start.

Eat small portions of calorie dense foods, but don't restrict yourself unless you have ethical, religious, or medical reasons to do so. Eat larger portions, within your calorie budget, of lower calorie foods. Eat a small amount of healthy fats. Eat your vegetables, and watch the fatty meats because they are high in calories. Get your calories under control first, then start watching the percentage of macros (fat, carbs, protein) that MFP gives you.

There's a lot to learn, even if you know how you're supposed to eat! Start slow. Make a couple changes at a time, because if you jump in with both feet and change everything at once you'll probably get overwhelmed and have problems.

Good luck!

Goober1142

For what it's worth...I eat lots of protein, chicken chicken and more chicken. Protein powder spinach kale blueberry smoothies. Cottage cheese, eggs, two servings of fruit and as many veggies as I can stand. Oatmeal, brown rice. One portioned snack daily or a low calorie frozen fudge pop....its all about the calories.

spm2010

Thanks you guys. I get so caught up in these new fads and stupid articles that I start questioning everything I eat. I wish I can delete all that garbage from my brain. So basically I can eat anything I want (healthy foods..not all junk) and will lose weight as long as I eat at a deficit. Carbs..fruit..all that isnt bad for me. Now just have to figure out calories needed to lose weight.

Heather4448

jesslla wrote: »

I eat whatever I want. Except foods high in added sugar, because I'm diabetic. I eat some fruit, but very little.

I've lost 47 pounds so far. That's a third of my goal.

Don't pay attention to the articles saying that this or that is bad for you. They all have an agenda. If it's CNN/news outlets, they want viewers and clicks - the best way to get them is to sensationalize studies and press releases, can't trust them to be accurate. If it's Dr Oz (or any other "doctor"/activist with an online store or afflitate program), they want money. Again, can't trust them to be accurate.

If it's from the FDA/USDA/WHO/other actual health organization, there's not really an agenda, but you don't usually hear directly from them, you're more Lilley to hear from someone who had interpreted the study, and the person who does that has an agenda. if you do read the actual study, they tend to say "X raises the risk of Y by Z%", but that may disguise the fact that your individual risk of Y is .015% of a chance, so Z isn't a big deal at all. Or you have to eat 15 pounds a day of X over the course of twenty years. Our the study was done on rats, or a very small sample of people, and may not affect us at all.

Best to avoid them all in my opinion. I'm going to die of something anyway, so do the best I can.

In long, use common sense, most people know how they are supposed to eat, if you don't or need a refresher, Google the US food pyramid. It's not perfect, but it's a decent start.

Eat small portions of calorie dense foods, but don't restrict yourself unless you have ethical, religious, or medical reasons to do so. Eat larger portions, within your calorie budget, of lower calorie foods. Eat a small amount of healthy fats. Eat your vegetables, and watch the fatty meats because they are high in calories. Get your calories under control first, then start watching the percentage of macros (fat, carbs, protein) that MFP gives you.

There's a lot to learn, even if you know how you're supposed to eat! Start slow. Make a couple changes at a time, because if you jump in with both feet and change everything at once you'll probably get overwhelmed and have problems.

Good luck!

Yep, I’m quoting the whole thing. Because it’s 100% correct. Read it again a few times.
Weight loss is simple; those who make it complicated are selling you something.

goldthistime

I found it helpful for adherence to make sure I got adequate protein, and adequate and fruits and veggies too. I started off tracking fibre but as long as I'm eating my fruits and veggies I get enough fibre. Switching from cereal in the morning to an egg or two helped a lot too.

leggup

You will lose weight in a calorie deficit, whether it's all twinkies or all vegetables or all meat. Calorie deficit = weight loss.

Heath is different. For health you do need a variety of vitamins and minerals, most of which will come from a varied diet rich in vegetables, fruit, and whole grains. If you do exclude a food group (like meat- I don't eat meat), keep an eye on nutrients in your diet that may be missing (I eat B-vitamin fortified foods).

I like reading news articles about certain foods being good or bad.. but I always click the link to the original research and read what it has to say. What started as, "Charred meat correlated with elevated Hormone Blah and indicator Blah levels in diabetic mice" turns into, "Meat causes cancer!" when it hits headlines. In general, avoid anything with a clickbait headline. "You won't believe.." "This one trick.." "When you find out.." "Doctors hate.." "Here are 4 simple.."