Anybody eat junk food fairly regularly and just work it into calorie budget?

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  • dave_in_ni
    dave_in_ni Posts: 533 Member
    I have fast food and junk every weekend, been the same weight for the past 2 years. I eat clean during the week which allows me to go a bit mad at the weekends. Yesterday I had a cooked breakfast, burger and fries for dinner, bar of chocolate last night, today had a roast dinner with ice cream, i weigh every Wednesday morning, I know I'll be the same weight this Wednesday.
  • Theoldguy1
    Theoldguy1 Posts: 2,454 Member
    SummerSkier wrote: »
    So I totally agree with folks that you can absolutely eat/drink whatever you want and continue to lose or maintain weight. However lately I am seeing that is not the complete story. Weight is only one health metric. There are quite a few others.

    I have been maintaining for almost 4 years now, and at the beginning of this month I went to the dentist for a checkup. They routinely take your blood pressure. So why was mine 148/92? I am a good weight, I run regularly. What the heck? I thought their little wrist machine must be wrong or perhaps I am just anxious at the dentist right?

    So I dig out my own little BP machine and put new batteries in it and monitor. Yup... my BPs are in the 130's over 80s. Now for a 60's person that is considered normal, but for me I consider it unacceptable. So... boom. What can I change? Diet is all that remains for me to make a difference if I don't want to go on meds. So the past month yes I have reduced greatly all the "treats" which were in my cal allowance but obviously not healthy for me. This morning I was 107/72 which is what I have always considered MY normal. My readings of course vary but more and more they are under 100 / under 80. And I sleep better.....

    The other health indicators to watch with "junk" food diets are blood work. I have my annual blood pull being done in mid June. We shall see if I continue to manage input better if cholesterol and blood sugar markers improve.

    So yeah, you can lose weight and maintain weight eating whatever you want. But that doesn't necessarily mean you are healthy. ;)

    Yep can be a slippery slope.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,030 Member
    SummerSkier wrote: »
    So I totally agree with folks that you can absolutely eat/drink whatever you want and continue to lose or maintain weight. However lately I am seeing that is not the complete story. Weight is only one health metric. There are quite a few others.

    I have been maintaining for almost 4 years now, and at the beginning of this month I went to the dentist for a checkup. They routinely take your blood pressure. So why was mine 148/92? I am a good weight, I run regularly. What the heck? I thought their little wrist machine must be wrong or perhaps I am just anxious at the dentist right?

    So I dig out my own little BP machine and put new batteries in it and monitor. Yup... my BPs are in the 130's over 80s. Now for a 60's person that is considered normal, but for me I consider it unacceptable. So... boom. What can I change? Diet is all that remains for me to make a difference if I don't want to go on meds. So the past month yes I have reduced greatly all the "treats" which were in my cal allowance but obviously not healthy for me. This morning I was 107/72 which is what I have always considered MY normal. My readings of course vary but more and more they are under 100 / under 80. And I sleep better.....

    The other health indicators to watch with "junk" food diets are blood work. I have my annual blood pull being done in mid June. We shall see if I continue to manage input better if cholesterol and blood sugar markers improve.

    So yeah, you can lose weight and maintain weight eating whatever you want. But that doesn't necessarily mean you are healthy. ;)

    I utterly agree. Food choices are important for health . . . probably very important for all, and can be more so depending on family health history in some cases.

    However, if someone is materially overfat, typically the #1 thing they can do to improve their health is to really and truly reach a healthy weight and stay there (not just "go on diets" 😉).

    The second priority, IMO, would be to get some healthful exercise (both cardiovascular and strength, ideally; which is more important *for health* is a debate point!).

    I think there is pretty good statistical evidence for both of those looming largest, as the key priorities.

    Personally, with a bit less clear statistical evidence (but some), I'd put good overall balanced nutrition (macros, micros, fiber) in the #3 priority slot. That's related to food choice ("junk" vs. whatever its opposite is), but it's not absolutely identical with it. It's possible to choose "good" foods (however defined) and get poor overall nutrition, and reasonably possible to include a fairly large fraction of what many people would call "bad" foods, yet get decent nutrition at reasonable calories.

    After that? Yeah, some potential for specific food choices to have very meaningful impact.

    I feel like compliance with calorie goal is a huge factor in whether priority 1 (healthy weight) happens or not, for a lot of people. In that context, I don't much argue with advice to eat in ways that are happy for a person, consistent with calorie goal, and (ideally) trying to get at least decent-ish nutrition. Further, I feel as if people who do reach a healthy weight (#1), and start doing regular exercise (#2) will figure out along the way, all on their own, that they feel and perform better if they make mostly nutrient-dense food choices; and that that self-learning will be *much* more effective than any amount of lecturing by internet strangers.

    In reality, it sounds like that's exactly what you did, @SummerSkier: You got body weight and exercise to a good place, but found that your health markers weren't where you ideally want them, and adjusted how you eat.

    I did some of that in maybe a different order. (I was active, pretty fit, when obese; saw continuing bad health markers; *then* lost weight.) Whatever on-ramp (or series of them) gets a person to better health is part of a good road, IMO. Some people can do it all at once, but I don't think that's realistic for all.

    (I'm not saying I think you said anything significantly at odds with that, BTW: I'm just trying to add in another layer about fitting the pieces together as a realistic sequence/practice.)

  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,501 Member
    SummerSkier wrote: »
    So I totally agree with folks that you can absolutely eat/drink whatever you want and continue to lose or maintain weight. However lately I am seeing that is not the complete story. Weight is only one health metric. There are quite a few others.

    I have been maintaining for almost 4 years now, and at the beginning of this month I went to the dentist for a checkup. They routinely take your blood pressure. So why was mine 148/92? I am a good weight, I run regularly. What the heck? I thought their little wrist machine must be wrong or perhaps I am just anxious at the dentist right?

    So I dig out my own little BP machine and put new batteries in it and monitor. Yup... my BPs are in the 130's over 80s. Now for a 60's person that is considered normal, but for me I consider it unacceptable. So... boom. What can I change? Diet is all that remains for me to make a difference if I don't want to go on meds. So the past month yes I have reduced greatly all the "treats" which were in my cal allowance but obviously not healthy for me. This morning I was 107/72 which is what I have always considered MY normal. My readings of course vary but more and more they are under 100 / under 80. And I sleep better.....

    The other health indicators to watch with "junk" food diets are blood work. I have my annual blood pull being done in mid June. We shall see if I continue to manage input better if cholesterol and blood sugar markers improve.

    So yeah, you can lose weight and maintain weight eating whatever you want. But that doesn't necessarily mean you are healthy. ;)
    Do you have a family history of high blood pressure? Because if so, then it's usually SODIUM that's the culprit and not the actual junk. Although a lot of junk food does have high sodium.


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  • SummerSkier
    SummerSkier Posts: 4,785 Member
    @ninerbuff I totally agree that sodium can be a huge culprit, but in my case when I look back at my diary I don't really see that. Is it something in our family? Not really. What I have changed is going to fresh fruit and fresh juices for snacks instead of yasso or enlightened type treats and although I haven't cut them out completely I am working to eat more normal portions of them. LOL.

    @AnnPT77 I totally agree that there are a lot of pieces which fit together and being a healthy weight and getting exercise are definitely the top tiers (so yeah you can eat junk food if it fits in your cal allowance for sure). Just in my case it obviously is not enough to really be and remain as healthy as I would like. It also needs to be sustainable so that means I have to enjoy the foods. And maybe that's something to focus on after #1 and #2 are addressed.

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