Does what you eat matter?

macenro

I am really poor at the moment since I am still in the phase of my life when I am just getting out of college and getting into the real world. The lack of money and my long list of allergies are really limiting what I can eat. What I was wondering is:

If I exercise and limit my calorie intake does it really matter that much what I eat?

I know that I can't eat 1700 calories in candy and ice cream, but will I still lose weight eating macaroni and cheese and hot dogs and cheap things that I can afford to buy? Feel free to message me or friend me. I'd like to get people to talk to on here.

*I have OAS which makes me unable to eat most fresh fruits and vegetables. It makes it so at best I can eat canned fruits and vegetables which are not all that good for you. Some of my other allergies are eggs, honey, milk, and shellfish*

ChantalGG

How much do you spend weekly on food before starting a "diet"? eating healthy doesnt have to be expensive.

LaurieBLouise

it does matter, because you want to watch your fat and salt intake just as much as calorie intake. it really doesn't have to be expensive, you just have to know what to buy. i'm a huge coupon clipper.

Baker0821

I agree, I went to our local farmer's market and I got 6 apples, 3 bananas, a carton of strawberries, 6 oranges and a bag of corn for 11.00! That's not bad AT ALL!! So, check out a local produce place rather than a grocery store. Then, you can always try coupons to try to save money. I mean, I guess as long as you are in your calorie goal, it shouldn't matter but eating healthy doesn't have to be expensive.

macenro

Well I have about $60 a week to spend at most for the entire week of meals. That leaves me buying a lot of 99 cent packages of hot dogs and cheap things like that.

Another main problem is that I have allergies to certain things that are healthier. My allergy to pollen makes me not able to eat most fresh fruit and vegetables and other allergies limit my diet too.

ang16

Buying fruit and veg from your local stall and some pasta and rice isnt too expensive. Its also very healthy too

princesslmc2

Yes, keeping the caloric intake while maintaining your current eating habits WILL help you lose weight - at first, particularly if you have a lot to lose. However, as you get further along in your weight loss journey, it is essentially to start making some changes (a little at a time - don't want to get too overwhelmed). Adjust the carb intake or the sugar intake for a month or so, then add something else to the mix.

I've heard that your diet is 70-80% of the journey, with 20-30% being exercise. So that being said, it is highly important what you feed yourself.

I did the step-by-step process so I wouldn't get overwhelmed - and that also gave me time to really investigate WHAT to eat vs. cost to purchase said items. Definitely some ways to get some "cheap" stuff that is healthier than hot dogs.

leakewh

fresh fruits, salad stuff, yogurt, etc. isnt that expensive....in regard to what you eat....I've lost 80 pounds and all along eating popcorn, hersheys candy bars, pizza, etc.....focus on calories and eating sensibly....

ShellyMacchi

actually yes, it dos matter.. as healthy food choices ensures your body is getting the nutrients it needs to retrain itself.
Healthy food (other than occasional treats of junk food) teaches your body to NOT crave lots of sugar and carbs and salts/nitrates.
Healthy food choices just plain make you feel better, not just because you are losing weight, but because you simply ARE healthier in body and mind, you think more clearly, have more energy, and have a more positive outlook/manner in your day to day life *S*

and contrary to popular belief, you can make healthy choices on a tight budget *S*

allanofriesen

I started in April 2011 and have lost 14 pounds eating the same things as before (watching the calories) but adding exercise. It all boils down to calories in and calories out. I look at it as a calorie checkbook - keep too much in and the checkbook gets fat - good for money but not for calories! You want to keep a negative balance in your calorie checkbook and the pounds will come off. Keep on going!

katt742

Well I have about $60 a week to spend at most for the entire week of meals. That leaves me buying a lot of 99 cent packages of hot dogs and cheap things like that.

Another main problem is that I have allergies to certain things that are healthier. My allergy to pollen makes me not able to eat most fresh fruit and vegetables and other allergies limit my diet too.

I shop at Aldi...its a discount grocery store. You can buy canned foods for like 30-40 cents a can (just rinse before you eat to get rid of some of the sodium) Canned veggies and fruit are better than no veggies and fruit. They also have frozen fruit and veggies for dirt cheap!!! They also have great buys on meats and cheese and bread. I can usually fill up my cart with all healthy foods for 50 bucks!! Try and find one of these stores!!

AAJoseph

You can start with making substitutions... mac-and-cheese... if you're buying already prepared go for a $1 and change box of whole wheat pasta add your own cheese... you can get way more portions to freeeze. Ice cream... what about a large $2-$3 store brand of yogurt (I get plain to add my own, like greek style (my fav)... drain the plain). Use agave/honey to sweeten, etc.

In short, I am sure you can loose weight just buy eating almost anything and staying within calorie limits... but is that what you really want to do. If you eat things with higher nutritonal content, you will stay full longer, your body will appreciate it. I know it is tough on a budget, but it can work. I like the post of... "what are you spending now?" I pack my lunch and snacks everyday (by the way try a clif bar instead of candy... with increase in costs for candy the price is about the same). Packing took some getting used to, but now it is religious to the point of I can not figure out anything to pack - fall safe a whole weat wrap with peanut butter and smashed banana.

The investment may be a little costly at first, but you will spend less in the long run, especially when preparing your own meals.

Wishing you the best!

smuehlbauer

Box of instant oatmeal - $3 - 8 packs - there is your breakfast - add a dozen eggs - under $3 for a dozen.

3-4 oz of chicken breast
brown rice - you can buy in bulk for damn cheap
frozen veggie that you can eat to go with it.

cooks once for the week.
you'll be under $60 - you'll have left over $$ for pudding, almonds, more veggies maybe even some protein powder....
if you're serious about eating helathy you will find a way - and hotdogs are not the way!
You are what you eat! You want to feel like poo - keep eating poo. You want to be healthy - eat healthy.

Dawntodusk

Beans are cheap and healthy. Buy then dry and cook them in big batches.

CraftyGirl4

Actually, no. The principle of weight loss is simple. Calories burned need to be more than calories taken in. You could eat 1600 calories of sugar, and if you burned 1800 calories in a day, you would lose weight.

However, allow me to put a disclaimer on this statement. For your optimum health, you should not eat a 1600 calorie diet of pure sugar. You need those nutrients found in fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains and so on so it would behoove you to find a way to incorporate them into your diet the best you can. Only you know the restrictions that your budget and your allergies put on you for buying food, but $60 is actually a fair amount of money for one person. Here's some ideas:

- Eggs (about $0.15 a piece - give or take, great source of protein)
- Beans/Lentils (dried are cheapest, but if you're lazy like me, you'll probably buy canned....do the no salt added variety, and they're about $0.70 a can)
- Milk (price depends on where you live, but here a gallon is like $2.50 - low or non fat, also an excellent source of protein)
- Tuna (canned... it's good fat, fairly low in sodium and great protein also)
- Peanut butter (good protein, good fat)
- Whole wheat bread (the store brand is just as good as the other stuff, just make sure you get one where the first ingredient is "whole wheat flour")
- Whole grains (cornmeal, amaranth, quinoa, brown rice, millet, oats... there's a ton of them. Health food stores carry them in bulk so you can buy as much or as little as you would like.)

Let me know if you need other healthy eating ideas. I've got a few more :-)

macenro

Actually, no. The principle of weight loss is simple. Calories burned need to be more than calories taken in. You could eat 1600 calories of sugar, and if you burned 1800 calories in a day, you would lose weight.

However, allow me to put a disclaimer on this statement. For your optimum health, you should not eat a 1600 calorie diet of pure sugar. You need those nutrients found in fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains and so on so it would behoove you to find a way to incorporate them into your diet the best you can. Only you know the restrictions that your budget and your allergies put on you for buying food, but $60 is actually a fair amount of money for one person. Here's some ideas:

- Eggs (about $0.15 a piece - give or take, great source of protein)
- Beans/Lentils (dried are cheapest, but if you're lazy like me, you'll probably buy canned....do the no salt added variety, and they're about $0.70 a can)
- Milk (price depends on where you live, but here a gallon is like $2.50 - low or non fat, also an excellent source of protein)
- Tuna (canned... it's good fat, fairly low in sodium and great protein also)
- Peanut butter (good protein, good fat)
- Whole wheat bread (the store brand is just as good as the other stuff, just make sure you get one where the first ingredient is "whole wheat flour")
- Whole grains (cornmeal, amaranth, quinoa, brown rice, millet, oats... there's a ton of them. Health food stores carry them in bulk so you can buy as much or as little as you would like.)

Let me know if you need other healthy eating ideas. I've got a few more :-)

Some of those would work, but I am allergic to both eggs and milk.

Losingitin2011

You will lose weight as long as your calories in is less than your calories out. However, healthy food is important for health. Eating "crap" is better than not eating, especially if you're still watching your portions and calories. Hang in there, and remember that this is temporary!

ChantalGG

But a big ol' box of healthy high fiber cereal, you can eat it for snacks and lunches sometimes if you want. soak your fruit and veggies in water and lemon juice to get rid of stuff on it. bag of apples is cheap it will last you a week. buy larger bags will let you get more for less and will last a couple of weeks so then next week it will give you more cash to buy different things. I get my meat only when it is on sale and i buy enough for a few meals. i portion out and freeze the rest for another day.

Shappy75

Well if you're only concerned is weight gain and not health, I would have to say limiting your calories while eating unhealthy foods could serve as a solid regiment to maintain or losing weight.

Keep in mind you'll blow your calories quick on junk food, so choose wisely.

"Junk food" is full of preservatives, salt, hydrogenated/ interesterified oils and artificial substances. These things poison the human body and do not digest well, even inhibit the absorption of the healthy foods you do eat.

This diet will make exercise difficult as it will mess up your hormone levels, increase your bad cholesterol and deliver pain and suffering to your organs.

Chuckw40

You will lose weight as long as your calories in is less than your calories out. However, healthy food is important for health. Eating "crap" is better than not eating, especially if you're still watching your portions and calories. Hang in there, and remember that this is temporary!

Is this actually true? If so how do you explain starvation mode or plateus? There are numerous people on here who claim that they had to increase their calories in order to lose weight. How could this be?

dls06

If you are eating that much in candy and Ice Cream I would suggest you spend a little and get yourself a multi= vitamin.

macenro

If you are eating that much in candy and Ice Cream I would suggest you spend a little and get yourself a multi= vitamin.

I was joking about that. It is more like eating it in pizza, pastas, and bread.

1234lbsgone

I'm with you in the whole being poor thing AND having allergies. It's a pain in the *kitten*! OMG! I was given 4 boxes of food from a pantry and couldn't eat any of it except for the canned vegetables. My daughter and I are allergic to wheat, eggs, milk, and peanuts. The American staples, lol, they are in EVERYTHING! Just curious though, if you are allergic to milk, how can you eat Mac and Cheese?

Here are MY staples:

Beans (They are cheap, healthy, and filling)
Brown Rice (I cook up a big batch twice a week in vegetable broth. Again, healthy and filling)

What fruits and veggies CAN you eat? Thats a tough one. I highly recommend figuring that out and working around it. Weight loss is pointless if in the end you aren't healthy enough to enjoy it in the end.

Losingitin2011

You will lose weight as long as your calories in is less than your calories out. However, healthy food is important for health. Eating "crap" is better than not eating, especially if you're still watching your portions and calories. Hang in there, and remember that this is temporary!

Is this actually true? If so how do you explain starvation mode or plateus? There are numerous people on here who claim that they had to increase their calories in order to lose weight. How could this be?

Oh for spork's sake. Any EXCESSIVE calorie deficit will cause starvation mode. Do you just enjoy trying to tear me apart or is it by chance that you always pick my thoughts?

macenro

I'm with you in the whole being poor thing AND having allergies. It's a pain in the *kitten*! OMG! I was given 4 boxes of food from a pantry and couldn't eat any of it except for the canned vegetables. My daughter and I are allergic to wheat, eggs, milk, and peanuts. The American staples, lol, they are in EVERYTHING! Just curious though, if you are allergic to milk, how can you eat Mac and Cheese?

Here are MY staples:

Beans (They are cheap, healthy, and filling)
Brown Rice (I cook up a big batch twice a week in vegetable broth. Again, healthy and filling)

What fruits and veggies CAN you eat? Thats a tough one. I highly recommend figuring that out and working around it. Weight loss is pointless if in the end you aren't healthy enough to enjoy it in the end.

Milk isn't one of my worse allergies. I can have some small amounts of it without much harm, but if I drank a glass of it or something on a larger scale it gives me some rough digestive problems.

As for fruits and vegetables, I can't really eat any fresh fruits that I know of. Raisins and things that have been processed are fine though. As for vegetables, potatoes and carrots and things that grow mainly underground seem to be fine as a general rule of thumb. haha

BerryH

Bulk-buy pasta, rice, potatoes and make dishes with pulses like lentils and beans. Mix it up with different herbs, spices and tomato or stock-based sauces. I survived on a diet like this when I was unemployed! Shop at a local market at the end of the day when they sell meat and fish off cheap.

Chuckw40

You will lose weight as long as your calories in is less than your calories out. However, healthy food is important for health. Eating "crap" is better than not eating, especially if you're still watching your portions and calories. Hang in there, and remember that this is temporary!

Is this actually true? If so how do you explain starvation mode or plateus? There are numerous people on here who claim that they had to increase their calories in order to lose weight. How could this be?

Oh for spork's sake. Any EXCESSIVE calorie deficit will cause starvation mode. Do you just enjoy trying to tear me apart or is it by chance that you always pick my thoughts?

Are you sure because I don't remember trying to tear you apart?

I am asking because I hear it all the time but then i hear people say that they couldn't lose weight until they increased their calories. If all that matters is calories in < calories out than this can't possibly be true. I mean wouldn't an excessive calorie deficit cause an even greater loss of weight?

I am not trying to tear you apart, just get some answers, sorry if it comes off that way.

Losingitin2011

When you eat less than your body needs to survive, you won't lose weight. I guess I should say when you net less, because there are many people who net 500 calories a day and wonder why they're having problems. Say your BMR is about 1800. If you eat slightly less than that, enough to equal 3500 calories per week, you'll lose weight. If you cut too drastically, you won't. The idea of eating more still involves a calorie deficit, just a less severe one, like eating 1600 per day instead of 1200 per day. You're still at a deficit for your BMR, but not so much so that you're shocking your body.

serendipity22

I think it probably matters in the long run. you want to be healthy as well as thin. Someday, you will have more money and be able to eat anything you want. I understand about being broke because I am too. I spend about $300 for 6 weeks of groceries for two people which comes out to about $25 a week per person. I eat really well but then I don't have any allergies. Obviously, your allergies are a problem but you can work around them. I would recommend that you ask your doctor what you can eat instead. You should also see if you can get a cookbook from a used bookstore. If you want find recipes online, there are many websites for recipes. I like Allrecipes because you can put in the ingredients you have and it will give you recipes that have those ingredients. Here are some healthy things I think you can eat.

Beans. I really like black beans but any beans are good for you. You can put them in a burrito with canned corn and salsa.
Nuts are great for snacking on. Peanut butter is really good. You can make peanut butter noodles or peanut butter chicken. Popcorn with little salt and butter. Sandwiches can be made with luncheon meat and whole wheat bread.

If you are going to eat junk food, then find the better of the two bad items. If you want to have a candy bar then look at the calories between two of them and pick the better option.

Barneystinson

Buy "club packs" of meat at the grocery store, whole chickens, etc.

I'm amazed not many people here have suggested to buy meat. You get a lot of bang for your buck in terms of nutrient value and caloric density in a simple package of ground beef.

Potatoes, also good. Along with any vegetables and grains that you are not allergic to. Not sure if you can have nuts, but these are also good for caloric density and cost.

Chuckw40

When you eat less than your body needs to survive, you won't lose weight. I guess I should say when you net less, because there are many people who net 500 calories a day and wonder why they're having problems. Say your BMR is about 1800. If you eat slightly less than that, enough to equal 3500 calories per week, you'll lose weight. If you cut too drastically, you won't. The idea of eating more still involves a calorie deficit, just a less severe one, like eating 1600 per day instead of 1200 per day. You're still at a deficit for your BMR, but not so much so that you're shocking your body.

I looked at all your posts for nearly a month and I'm pretty sure I've never posted in any of those threads.

Anyway, what you are saying is much different than "if you eat less calories than you burn than you will lose weight no matter what" I guess you were the wrong person to ask since you don't actually believe that. Their are people who will claim that the law of thermodynamics can not be broken and so it must be true.

These constant contradictions have me spinning in circles with no real idea on what I am supposed to do.

By the way, I'm a gamer too. I have played WOW since 2004 and just recently started playing Rift. :happy: