Do's and Dont's?

SLLRunner

I avoid dairy because I am lactose intolerant, soy because I am soy intolerant, caffeine because I am caffeine sensitive, and go easy on the sugar because I am sugar sensitive.

Intolerance, allergies, and sensitivities are the reasons to avoid foods. Otherwise, nothing is off limits. Everything in moderation.

IouliaN

In response to all those recommending not dividing food into healthy and unhealthy: yes, for weight loss purposes it might not matter as long as you stay within the calorie range, but for health it, certainly, does. Depends on what the goal is. I would say health comes first, then weight.

nomeejerome

In response to all those recommending not dividing food into healthy and unhealthy: yes, for weight loss purposes it might not matter as long as you stay within the calorie range, but for health it, certainly, does. Depends on what the goal is. I would say health comes first, then weight.

People that advocate not putting foods into categories or labeling foods in a certain way are encouraging a healthy approach to reaching goals. Unless there is a medical condition, there is no reason to eliminate certain foods. People that advocate this healthy approach are not saying just eat cookies and cake all day (although if the calorie deficit is there, a person would lose weight), they are encouraging meeting nutritional needs without the heavy ( and unneccesary) restriction.

JesterMFP

In response to all those recommending not dividing food into healthy and unhealthy: yes, for weight loss purposes it might not matter as long as you stay within the calorie range, but for health it, certainly, does. Depends on what the goal is. I would say health comes first, then weight.

People that advocate not putting foods into categories or labeling foods in a certain way are encouraging a healthy approach to reaching goals. Unless there is a medical condition, there is no reason to eliminate certain foods. People that advocate this healthy approach are not saying just eat cookies and cake all day (although if the calorie deficit is there, a person would lose weight), they are encouraging meeting nutritional needs without the heavy ( and unneccesary) restriction.

^Agreed. I don't see anyone here saying that nutrition doesn't matter. No one is saying the OP shouldn't care about what she eats. However, the overall balance of your diet is far more important than individual foods. No one food makes you fat and no one food (again, barring specific medical conditions, allergies, intolerances etc) is going to make you unhealthy. It depends how much of it you eat, and what else you are eating, and how it fits into the rest of your lifestyle.

Health includes mental health as well as physical health. The OP specifically states on her profile that she hates her relationship with food, and that she is "on the road to recovery" which seems to indicate a history of some kind of issue there. On this thread she has stated that she has lost weight "in the way that no one should ever". I don't think that demonising certain foods is going to help her develop a healthier relationship with food.

IouliaN

If by balanced diet you mean not overdoing it on the foods that don't benefit you, then a balanced diet is a start. A healthy diet is an end goal. For me at least, this is my perspective.

There are foods that just don't benefit you but can do harm: refined sugar, soft drinks, poor quality packaged foods. Yes, it is OK to eat them in small quanititied here and there, but why? Wouldn't the end goal to be to put only (or mostly) clean nourishing food in your body? Certainly is for me (and yes, I eat refined sweets occasionally but aspire not to).

In response to all those recommending not dividing food into healthy and unhealthy: yes, for weight loss purposes it might not matter as long as you stay within the calorie range, but for health it, certainly, does. Depends on what the goal is. I would say health comes first, then weight.

People that advocate not putting foods into categories or labeling foods in a certain way are encouraging a healthy approach to reaching goals. Unless there is a medical condition, there is no reason to eliminate certain foods. People that advocate this healthy approach are not saying just eat cookies and cake all day (although if the calorie deficit is there, a person would lose weight), they are encouraging meeting nutritional needs without the heavy ( and unneccesary) restriction.

^Agreed. I don't see anyone here saying that nutrition doesn't matter. No one is saying the OP shouldn't care about what she eats. However, the overall balance of your diet is far more important than individual foods. No one food makes you fat and no one food (again, barring specific medical conditions, allergies, intolerances etc) is going to make you unhealthy. It depends how much of it you eat, and what else you are eating, and how it fits into the rest of your lifestyle.

Health includes mental health as well as physical health. The OP specifically states on her profile that she hates her relationship with food, and that she is "on the road to recovery" which seems to indicate a history of some kind of issue there. On this thread she has stated that she has lost weight "in the way that no one should ever". I don't think that demonising certain foods is going to help her develop a healthier relationship with food.

skylark94

In my experience, cutting out foods because they're "bad" is nonsense and only leads to feelings of deprivation. I didn't cut a single thing from my diet. The only difference it that now, instead of 1.5 cups of ice cream, I will have 1/2 cup on a sugar cone. I tend to eat a lot slower with a cone (50 calories) than I would if I put the ice cream in a bowl. It's every bit as satisfying and I'm not so tempted to scarf it down quickly. I enjoy every bite.