What's the deal with pasta?

maddduo

Ok. So, I know regular pasta is supposed to be a no go....but, I plugged in two of my pasta recipes and the serving size still fit into my counts, including trying to be around 1200 calories. So, is it ok to eat pasta if everything else aligns for the day? Thanks, Lynne

cmriverside

Of course! I eat pasta a couple times per week.

It's

About

Calories.

cmriverside

I tend to bulk up my pasta recipes with lots of vegetables and I usually use 40 grams instead of 56 grams of pasta.

SuzySunshine99

Regular pasta is not a "no go" unless you have a gluten allergy or a medical reason to limit your carb intake.

Weight loss is about calories, and ONLY calories. If pasta fits into your day, there is no reason you shouldn't enjoy it. I eat pasta all the time, so do many people here who have successfully lost weight.

janejellyroll

I would be skeptical about anyone telling me that pasta is a "no go." It's just a grain-based food.

Yeah, the calories will add up fast if you're eating big portions. But there are lots of people here (including me) who ate pasta while they were losing weight and did just fine. Just make sure it fits in your calorie goals (like you would with any food, not just pasta).

Go_Deskercise

I really wish people would stop needlessly eliminating "bad" food from their diets.....
Losing weight is already hard enough ..... EAT. THE. FOODS. YOU LIKE.

Onedaywriter

We switched to whole grain pasta and are used to it so it tastes great to us!! You get a lot more fiber this way and it also slows the blood sugar hits from regular pasta. I typically eat three servings so I get about 9-12 extra grams of fiber and about 6 grams extra protein- both things I’m focused on.
As with everything, portion size is key.

wilson10102018

Pasta is fine. Once a week for me. I usually get by with 56g but push it to 83 when I don't have a lot of lobster to go in the dish. If its just red sauce, skip the olive oil and it has about no calories. If its shrimp or crab I just double or triple up on it. Its pretty hard to eat 150 calories of shrimp in a pasta dish. Each jumbo shrimp weighs about 4 grams and has about 4 calories

sardelsa

Pasta, a no-go?? I'm going to speak to everyone in Italy right away and let them know

If it satisfies you, doesn't make you extra hungry, and you can fit it into your day, it's absolutely ok!

chocolate_owl

Isn't there some diet plan that brags about you getting to eat plates of pasta on it?

To be clear, I agree with everyone above that weight loss is about calories, and between Atkins, keto, etc. I think carbs have been very unfairly demonized. That said, I think there's a reason why pasta, bread, and other starches tend to be very limited while you're eating in a calorie deficit. To break it down:

You need a certain amount of protein to support your muscle. It's going to vary based on your stats, but 100g/400 calories of protein per day is a good ballpark for the average woman. You need a certain amount of fat to keep all your body processes functioning correctly, so let's once again estimate 40g/360 calories. On a 1200 calorie diet, that leaves you 440 calories for carbs. If you're eating a varied diet with enough fruit and veg to get your micronutrients in, you might only have ~200 calories left over for other carbs, which is about one serving of pasta or 2 slices of lower-cal bread. How have you felt the rest of your day? Is pasta the best thing for you to eat, or do you need higher-fiber grains or more veg so you don't feel hungry?

It's not that pasta is bad, it's just that 1200 calories is not a lot, and many people find they need to choose foods that are more nutrient-dense and satiating. Also diet plans gain traction if they have a "magic bullet," and eliminating starches is a popular magic bullet. But if you have the calories for it and you feel full enough to not overeat later, go for it and enjoy.

wilson10102018

How do you get to 1200 calories? Is it 600 calories of olive oil + pasta?

sijomial

Just like you don't need to eat special foods to gain weight you also don't need to eat special diet foods or exclude foods you enjoy to lose weight.

Learning to eat food you enjoy in the appropriate quantities is a great life lesson for losing weight and also long term maintenance at goal weight.

lemurcat2

Pasta is fine, just don't eat huge amounts with high cal sauces on the regular. I ate plenty of pasta when losing.

Also, I read the title in my Jerry Seinfeld voice. I am old.

Diatonic12

Pasta is one the best vehicles in the whole world. It goes with almost everything.

Italians have a 3-4 oz serving and it's the first course. When I was out of high school, I lived with an Italian family in Venice during the summer. They showed me how to live and eat. I traveled all around but those people had a beautiful way of living and eating. Talk about a relationship with food. I should've stayed there.

Find the best quality you can afford and just love the smithereens right out of it.

PAPYRUS3

wilson10102018 wrote: »

How do you get to 1200 calories? Is it 600 calories of olive oil + pasta?

I'm talking for OP now, but I'm fairly sure she was meaning 1200 calories/ day....not a 1200 calorie pasta meal...lol

If it (pasta) fits into your calorie limit for the day and your daily macros (if you track those too) then mangia e divertiti

Diatonic12

The best pasta sauce in the world only contains 3 ingredients.

Canned plum tomatoes
Butter
Onion

Marcella Hazan, Mar-chella Huh-zahn, was on born on April 15, 1924. She grew up in the village of Censenatico, Italy, 120 miles south of Venice, Italy.

In 1969, she began teaching Italian cooking classes, wrote best selling books, The Art of Italian Cooking and the Italian Art of Eating. She had a doctorate in natural sciences and biology.


Serves: 6
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes

2 cups canned plum preferably Italian tomatoes, cut up with their juice
5 tablespoons butter
1 medium yellow onion cut in half
salt to taste

Put canned tomatoes in saucepan, add the butter, and onion
Cook uncovered at a very slow steady simmer for 45 minutes
Stir from time to time, mash larger pieces tomatoes with wooden spoon
Gently stir butter fat back into the sauce
Taste for salt

Before you add to your pasta, throw the onion halves away
Serve with meatballs or not. Add freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Marcella was a genius when it came to taste. She said, why chop or saute an onion. 'I'm going to put the onion, tomatoes and butter together and forget about it

Written by me.
I used to have a blog.
Who cares.
Blogging went by the way of the dodo.

lynn_glenmont

lemurcat2 wrote: »

Pasta is fine, just don't eat huge amounts with high cal sauces on the regular. I ate plenty of pasta when losing.

Also, I read the title in my Jerry Seinfeld voice. I am old.

That's not old. If you see pasta and think of these, you're old.








Of course, it's very hard to read anything in your Buster Keaton voice.

cgvet37

Eat what you want as long as you meet your goals.

nanastaci2020

Yes!

The 'problem' with pasta is that it can be easy to eat large quantities of it, and with lots of added oils and heavy sauces.

There is no actual problem with eating pasta (or anything else) as long as you are aware of calorie content and how it fits into your day.

Made home made mac & cheese over the weekend. Recipe included 16 oz elbow pasta, 21 ounces shredded cheddar 2.5 cups heavy cream, 1.5 cups 1% milk, butter, salt, pepper, flour. After it was all accounted for, the reasonable sized scoop that I put on my plate was about 500 calories. It was good, and I enjoyed it. And I fit it in my calorie needs for the day.

maddduo wrote: »

Ok. So, I know regular pasta is supposed to be a no go....but, I plugged in two of my pasta recipes and the serving size still fit into my counts, including trying to be around 1200 calories. So, is it ok to eat pasta if everything else aligns for the day? Thanks, Lynne

missysippy930

Anything goes if it fits into your calorie deficit. Any, and all food, is diet food, ir you stay in a deficit.

Watch your numbers for proper nutrition.

kshama2001

cmriverside wrote: »

I tend to bulk up my pasta recipes with lots of vegetables and I usually use 40 grams instead of 56 grams of pasta.

Another vote for bulking up pasta with veggies (and protein.)

I can eat an insane amount of just pasta, butter, and salt, but with the veggies and protein I have portions that fit in my calorie goals.