foods you used to think were healthy...

alaskagrown

... until you started counting the calories in them!

for me:

--veggie burritos! i'm in the bay area, and the mission-style burrito is omnipresent. however, these "silver bullets" pack between 900 and 1500 calories EACH.

--on that note, tortillas in general seemed okay until i saw the calorie count for the large white ones.

--white pasta of all kinds. i don't even think about eating it anymore. i love the whole wheat pasta, but even that doesn't have much nutritional payback.

what else?

LuckyLeprechaun

salads. Big cheesy creamy crouton filled salads used to be my idea of "choosing healthy" A cobb salad is not my friend at 1500 calories or more!

carrieliz81

Nuts. Don't eat more than a measured-out serving or you will be sorry!!! I love you, nuts, but you have too many calories. Makes me sad.

alaskagrown

salads. Big cheesy creamy crouton filled salads used to be my idea of "choosing healthy" A cobb salad is not my friend at 1500 calories or more!

oh, yeah! processed salads. i had a four hour layover and chose the healthiest looking thing i could find, a sesame chicken salad that was almost all cabbage, white meat chicken, and cucumbers. Ate the whole thing before seeing 1900 cals on the bottom! OMG!

cflorkie

my beloved microwave steam brussel sprouts. 1000mg of sodium.

Cheese

luv2ash

salads at restaurants!

Pasta, any kind! Not no more!

those cute little packaged 100-calorie snacks! NEVER!! Not any more! Too much processed carbs.

sg9219

Try Birdseye steamfresh brussel sprouts, only 10 mg of sodium in 1/2 cup.

alaskagrown

white rice. i figured it at least had some fiber.

not much fiber or anything but calories.

corn. i love frozen corn.

marsbar_0789

bump

alaskagrown

packaged pasta sauce. sodium killer.

sheenabe

Sushi. I used to think sushi was a relativley healthy dinner, but no! the rice is nothing but calories and the soy sauce is mega sodium.....BUMMER!

kitchentales

Sushi. For me, one meal would be about 1500 calories.
That makes me sad.

marniehodges

Chinese food! Calories not so bad in some of it but ohhhhhhhh the sodium! And iceberg lettuce-not much nutritional value to speak of at all. Now I eat green leaf lettuces like romaine.

Shawnalee0703

This should make you guys happy that you have become more aware. Anything not made by you is made to taste good by adding unnecessary crap...bummer huh! Time to kick off the shoes and put on an apron huh ladies? we have made some amazing choices. I still make mexican at home have sushi now and then and enjoy my nuts...yes one serving at a time. Nuts are loaded with nutrients so I refuse to give them up. But I have most definitely given up most packaged processed stuff. We make our own sauces and buy all natural breads, or make our own, same with pasta. Fresh tastes better anyway.
The process of figuring out all the ick is definitely a bummer but think about the benefit of eating clean. Our bodies will.love us.

2hdesign

Eating out. It's truly hard to find something healthy the whole way around eating out. Too much sodium.

Cheese.

Shawnalee0703

Eating out. It's truly hard to find something healthy the whole way around eating out. Too much sodium.

Cheese.

The average american actually consums nearly 10,000 mg of sodium per day!!! Blech! No wonder there are so many blood preassure issues.

alaskagrown

Eating out. It's truly hard to find something healthy the whole way around eating out. Too much sodium.

Cheese.

The average american actually consums nearly 10,000 mg of sodium per day!!! Blech! No wonder there are so many blood preassure issues.

Is this a money/class question? I'm hijacking my own thread, but it's interesting. Here in the Bay, there's no shortage of delicious, healthy restaurants that serve clean food-- for a price. The high end is of course places like French LAundry and Chez Panisse, etc. and Berkeley has a number of mid-range restaurants with clean food, like Gather and Cafe Gratitude-- but you're looking at MINIMUM $20/person without drinks.

Then you have chain restaurants like Applebee's and Red Lobster which are offering lower calorie meals PACKED with preservatives and sodium, because most of their food is shipped frozen to them so it's the same all over...

Finally you have the holes-in-the-wall, the little pho and taco places that use cheap ingredients and a lot of salt and oil.

Why is cheap food so bad for you?!?

LuckyLeprechaun

sigh.. I love Cafe Gratitude. It's one of the only Bay area things I miss now that I'm in So Cal.

LuckyLeprechaun

Eating out. It's truly hard to find something healthy the whole way around eating out. Too much sodium.

Cheese.

The average american actually consums nearly 10,000 mg of sodium per day!!! Blech! No wonder there are so many blood preassure issues.

I question this figure...I know we don't eat well overall, but that is a REALLY high amount. When the "worst" restaurant dish in america (PF Chang's pan fried noodles) is 7000mg, I have a hard time believing that people are topping 10K daily. Maybe 5000.

wolfchild59

I've read nutrition labels and seen what goes into most dishes for year and years, so nothing really came as that huge of a surprise to me when I started counting everything more carefully. I worked in a specialty food store with a gourmet kitchen for about four years awhile back and before that worked in a kitchen supply store that had a teaching kitchen and gourmet food product section. So for at least 11 years I've been well aware of the crap I was eating and just not caring. lol

Though, it actually helped me in the long run, because as soon as I made the choice to start counting calories and downloaded MFP because it was a really easy transition for me since I already knew what was healthy and could stay in my food plans and what had to instantly be cut.

But I will say that I've loved the constant discovery of more and more new products over the last year. I shop and browse markets like my friends browse clothing stores, and do so at least three-four times a week. So I'm constantly finding fun new products and things to try that I somehow just never saw before, which has helped keep things new and exciting the entire time.

caitlinaudrey

Definitely cheese. I miss you cheese Haha.

Shawnalee0703

A lot of people eat out multiple times a week and sometimes multiple times a day! Packaged foos at home run in the high 500's for a serving....remember that a lot of america doesn't eat just one serving. I would think 7000 is totally realistic tho!!!! Even I, who eats 80% clean can go into the high 3000's on an off day.... 7000-10,000 is totally realistic for someone who rarely preparestheir own food. I usually have no problem staying below 2500 but most everything we eat is fresh...or low sodium. I got this figure from a providence medical center dietician...pretty sure she didn't make it up. Maybe not the average american, but a lot of them!

bka8

For me it was canned soup - it wasn't the calories, because that was great, but the SODIUM!!! I'm not as concerned about hitting my sodium goals everyday, but I don't want to obliterate it and eat that American average of 10k. I used to love how easy soup was for lunch at work. It was filling, I thought I was getting good veggies and sticking super low cal to support my snacking habit at work and when you catch them on sale its pretty darn cheap!

I miss canned soup...but I'm going to try making my own in the crock-pot! Hopefully that'll cut down the sodium down and keep my calories near the same.

Shawnalee0703

For me it was canned soup - it wasn't the calories, because that was great, but the SODIUM!!! I'm not as concerned about hitting my sodium goals everyday, but I don't want to obliterate it and eat that American average of 10k. I used to love how easy soup was for lunch at work. It was filling, I thought I was getting good veggies and sticking super low cal to support my snacking habit at work and when you catch them on sale its pretty darn cheap!

I miss canned soup...but I'm going to try making my own in the crock-pot! Hopefully that'll cut down the sodium down and keep my calories near the same.

Homemade soup is delicious and you can make it your own! Have fun with it. There are some great organic broths that have a very reasonable sodium to them or make some at home. Enjoy!

jessieinblue

The average american actually consums nearly 10,000 mg of sodium per day!!! Blech! No wonder there are so many blood preassure issues.

This isn't true. I wouldn't be surprised if some Americans were nearing 10,000 mg, but the average intake is about 4,000. Still way too high, of course.

Shawnalee0703

The average american actually consums nearly 10,000 mg of sodium per day!!! Blech! No wonder there are so many blood preassure issues.

This isn't true. I wouldn't be surprised if some Americans were nearing 10,000 mg, but the average intake is about 4,000. Still way too high, of course.

Maybe, but I am still certain, after doing some math that many people are still consuming well over 4000! Lol

modernfemme

salads at restaurants!

Pasta, any kind! Not no more!

those cute little packaged 100-calorie snacks! NEVER!! Not any more! Too much processed carbs.

No pasta?? You are crazy. Life is way to short to cut out all the foods I love.

Lyadeia

packaged pasta sauce. sodium killer.

Also is a sugar high in a jar.

lbarrett74

Doctor says if ur gonna have cheese then American is better than cheddar because cheddar has a lot of oil. I'm staying away from cheese now for the most part but a little fetta goes a long way: i.e. spinach, fetta, egg white wrap, a sprinkle on a spinach salad is wonderful too.

Fruit has way more sugar than i realized. If I eat a banana in the morning, I'm already maxed out on my sugar intake for the day.

LuckyLeprechaun

fruit sugar is not the problem, it's processed white sugar you wanna limit. Enjoy your banana guilt free!

Lyadeia

salads at restaurants!

Pasta, any kind! Not no more!

those cute little packaged 100-calorie snacks! NEVER!! Not any more! Too much processed carbs.

No pasta?? You are crazy. Life is way to short to cut out all the foods I love.

I agree. I have pasta at least once a week. If you watch portion sizes and have proteins with them instead of just a bunch of carby veggies, then the insulin spike is reduced and the GI index is actually very low. I don't understand why so many people needlessly vilify pasta. Of course too much of anything is not good, but a serving of pasta eaten proportionally is very filling and tasty.