Foods hard to give up, is it okay to eat in moderation?
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My own personal philosophy is to eat whole nutritious foods most of the time and enjoy myself eating pizza, burgers, wings, etc. every once in a while in moderation.
So I think the answer is yes; enjoy the foods you love in moderation.
Being too restrictive in not sustainable.0 -
I ate 3 (three) slices of pizza a couple of days ago, and a slice of birthday cake. They didn't put me over my daily quota, so I don't sweat it. To be fair the only other meal I ate that day was a McDonald's quarter pounder BLT, so overall I was still short by 400-something calories. I gained a pound of water weight due to their insanely high amount of sodium, but it's no big deal because I will lose that easily.0
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For me I eat some of the foods I want just a smaller size. I have lost 40 pounds in the last 4 months and am at a point now that my leg will allow me to exercise alot more. I am of the mind that sometimes when you go cold turkey, you can set yourself up to fail.0
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I agree with everyone here, except Nonny.
IIFYM
Yep.0 -
What does your common sense tell you OP?0
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It's all portion control. As long as your within your calories enjoy the foods that you like. I have found that if I try to cut things out completely I end up binge eating them at some point.
^^^^This
No way am I going to stop eating dark chocolate and drinking wine, I just have to plan when to have them, and work them in.
And Chicago hot dogs, only in Chicago, but I will eat them when I get the chance.
Just get very good at logging and planning
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I agree with everyone here, except Nonny.
IIFYM
Yep.
^ This. It's rather simple. Don't complicate it.0 -
Yes just try to stick to your calorie goals and get enough protein and you'll do great
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It's all portion control. As long as your within your calories enjoy the foods that you like. I have found that if I try to cut things out completely I end up binge eating them at some point.
^^^^ this
as soon as I start having foods that I'm *NOT ALLOWED* to eat, I want to eat them all the time at every opportunity. It's like part of my brain sees this food and thinks I have to eat as much of it as I can, because this is the only opportunity I'll have to eat it. However if I allow myself to have anything then I just eat until I stop feeling hungry and stop, and choose foods that are most satisfying, i.e. higher in protein and vitamins.0 -
My biggest hurdle so far is cutting back on the foods I love to eat like pasta, pizza, cheessteaks, etc. Somehow I feel like I should give them up completely. Should I give up the foods I love or is it okay to eat them in moderation?
I eat things like hot dogs, pizza and burgers less often than I had before. Is what I'm doing so far a good thing?
If you can eat these foods in moderation,definitely keep them in your diet. The only food that I gave up totally was ice cream, but will eat a serving of frozen yogurt about 3 x per week. Ice cream tastes way better but I can't eat it in moderation. Good luck in your journey and welcome!
I agree with and try to live by the" moderation in all things" credo, but do find that, for me, there are a few trigger foods that send me into a tail spin. I can't just have a little. I still eat those foods, but only out of the house. For instance, I might have cake when celebrating with a friend, but I don't keep cake in the house. As others have said, you just have to know yourself and what works for you.0 -
My biggest hurdle so far is cutting back on the foods I love to eat like pasta, pizza, cheessteaks, etc. Somehow I feel like I should give them up completely. Should I give up the foods I love or is it okay to eat them in moderation?
I eat things like hot dogs, pizza and burgers less often than I had before. Is what I'm doing so far a good thing?
If you can eat these foods in moderation,definitely keep them in your diet. The only food that I gave up totally was ice cream, but will eat a serving of frozen yogurt about 3 x per week. Ice cream tastes way better but I can't eat it in moderation. Good luck in your journey and welcome!
I agree with and try to live by the" moderation in all things" credo, but do find that, for me, there are a few trigger foods that send me into a tail spin. I can't just have a little. I still eat those foods, but only out of the house. For instance, I might have cake when celebrating with a friend, but I don't keep cake in the house. As others have said, you just have to know yourself and what works for you.
This is me. There were many foods that I just had to get my portions under control. Others I had to completely put aside for a little while. Doritos was one of them. I didn't have any in the house for about 2 months and then, after that, I found that it was easier to only get a handful and walk away.0 -
Stay in your budget and enjoy the foods you like. As you lose you may find those foods aren't as important anymore or that the calorie punch they come with isn't worth it but depriving yourself of everything you love is a great way to set yourself up for failure.
Totally agree. For the beginning of my weight loss I completely gave up certain foods due to them always leading to a binge. I definitely have a "cheat" meal once a week and eat the foods I love in moderation, but there are still a few foods that I just will not eat because I know myself and that I will want the whole bag or box. I guess it just comes down to, if you can eat them in moderation and work them off then go for it.....if not, then it is not worth it so find an alternative to make it healthier instead.0 -
I chose two of my favorite foods of all time and decided to give them up forever, those specifically were pizza and hamburgers, everything else I will eat in moderation, though I treat bread more like dessert.0
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I take one day a week and just go for it. I am disciplined enough to get back on track the next day. It works for me...you gotta find what works for you. One problem for me was I did not really understand the word "moderation". I thought it was like 1 time a day....turns out for me that didn't work at all, even while marathon training. Once I figured out what my "moderation" was, i started losing about a lb a week.
I had to learn to tell myself "it tastes good"....not "this is so good". Most things that taste super good have been processed and modified with god knows what to super flavor them. Not super good for your health or weight.0 -
I've tried many times to lose weight by cutting out "bad" foods, especially sweets and chocolate. I always ended up feeling deprived and craving those foods to the point that I'd give up and eat everything in sight.
This time around I only gave up things that I know I can live without for the rest of my life. You know the only thing I gave up is soda. I have cut back greatly on eating out but everything else (most days) I eat in moderation and fit it in my calorie budget. No, that's not to say I haven't had days where I've said "screw it, I'm eating what I want" and there haven't been family gatherings and celebrations where I know I've eaten more than I should, but those days are a part of life. I just start back logging the next day and go on. I also never feel guilty on the days I go over. Again, they're a part of life. One of the quotes I love is "If you fall off the wagon, run along side till you can jump back on."
I do avoid one trigger food because as much as I try, I can't eat just one and those are Krispy Kreme donuts. I'll still have one every now and again but only if I pick it up at one of our businesses and take it back to my office. If the box is at the office, I won't have one. Anyway, that's just me.0 -
No reason to give up any of the foods you enjoy just tackle the mental side of this journey and learn that these foods can be enjoyed in moderation. This will set you up on a sustainable path..... Just make sure you are hitting your caloric intake goals and hit your nutrient goals..... It has worked pretty well for me so far...... Best of
Take a look at the number on Ed's ticker. 3-1-2. You just heard from Master Yoda there. What more info is needed?0 -
I eat and log my favorite foods often. Because I watch sodium levels I have had to start making some of my favorites from scratch, but I still have the foods I love. I would completely give up if I could not have burgers, fries, and cookies. Life would not be as enjoyable!0
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Yes. It's OK to eat "bad" food in moderation. I eat candy everyday. I just make sure to track it in my diary and keep within my goal calories. Go for it.0
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now that i have gone 3 months on MFP, and i have better control over food addiction that i had, i think i might enjoy a slice of pizza saturday.. i am kinda scared to play around with eating too many foods that got me here in the first place.. but i might take a chance..
i think i am ok enough to try. wish me luck. its a bit scarey... i hope i dont start going back to my old ways that got me fat.
but i think i will be brave and take a chance.
this is what it is like to venture back out and eat a treat,,, its pretty scarey, coz i am doing so well ,, i dont want to screw it up.0 -
I still eat the things I love, just not as much.It's all portion control. As long as your within your calories enjoy the foods that you like. I have found that if I try to cut things out completely I end up binge eating them at some point.0 -
My biggest hurdle so far is cutting back on the foods I love to eat like pasta, pizza, cheessteaks, etc. Somehow I feel like I should give them up completely. Should I give up the foods I love or is it okay to eat them in moderation?
I eat things like hot dogs, pizza and burgers less often than I had before. Is what I'm doing so far a good thing?
Eating them less often is good. Making yourself miserable by feeling like you can never eat them is not good. You are on the right track.0 -
The problem with moderation is there is no guideline or definition of what makes a moderate amount.
Like one chocolate bar daily is moderate? How about a twinkie every two days.
Using a macro diet I could survive on pop tarts and still log my macros.0 -
I also stay away from buffets as I have learned that I can't handle them
I still eat the things I love, just not as much.It's all portion control. As long as your within your calories enjoy the foods that you like. I have found that if I try to cut things out completely I end up binge eating them at some point.0 -
One of the things I decided to give up completely was Hot Pockets because of so much sodium in two pockets! I try to avoid any foods that's over 1,000 grams of sodium, I don't want to go over my daily sodium intake.0
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The problem with moderation is there is no guideline or definition of what makes a moderate amount.
Like one chocolate bar daily is moderate? How about a twinkie every two days.
Using a macro diet I could survive on pop tarts and still log my macros.
That is ridiculous. "Moderation" is what fits into your calories and macro/micro/fiber goals.0
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