Sometimes, I have a hard time relating...

clynch08

everyones body is soo different on we react to foods. just consider yourself lucky you dont have any wierd feeling after something you eat.

spatticus

once you've stayed away from unhealthy/processed/fast food long enough you will relate! I don't eat a lot of red meat and its been that way for a few years. Now when I eat it I feel pretty terrible. Once your body is used to the good stuff and you realize how good you could feel, you won't want to go back. But just cutting soda isn't going to do it.

spatticus

When you eat healthy for so long unhealthy food makes you feel horrible, sluggish, headaches, sick to your stomach, lack of energy, etc. which makes it much easier to stay away from it.

Playing devil's advocate here, then why, when I'm feeling awesome and all of my tests from the doctor come in swimmingly well and I'm pretty fit, do I want to increase the chances of me feeling like poop. From a logistical standpoint, it seems better for me to keep my diet moderate.

What do you mean increase your chances of feeling bad? Just don't eat the stuff and you won't feel bad...are you saying there's no way of possibly staying away from fast food so why even try? I dont understand.

TK421NotAtPost

You're young and you run marathons.

Hehe, to be honest, I'm sort of in the same boat as you. I actually feel fine after eating junk or semi-junk...as long I'm not gorging on Oreos or sugary sweets.

I think the bigger issue behind why "some" people don't feel so well after eating junk is because of a confounding factor...namely calories consumed.

A better way to put this in context is to compare clean vs. unclean meals while keeping total calories and macronutrient breakdowns within the same ballpark. One is obviously going to feel different after eating 500 calories in Oreos vs. 500 calories in organic grass fed beef with broccoli on the side.

As long as calories are reasonable, the way your body reacts to food is determined more by macro-nutrient content and total calories rather than the source of the food.

bunchesonothing

When you eat healthy for so long unhealthy food makes you feel horrible, sluggish, headaches, sick to your stomach, lack of energy, etc. which makes it much easier to stay away from it.

Playing devil's advocate here, then why, when I'm feeling awesome and all of my tests from the doctor come in swimmingly well and I'm pretty fit, do I want to increase the chances of me feeling like poop. From a logistical standpoint, it seems better for me to keep my diet moderate.

What do you mean increase your chances of feeling bad? Just don't eat the stuff and you won't feel bad...are you saying there's no way of possibly staying away from fast food so why even try? I dont understand.

To a certain extent, yes. You can probably cut them out most of the time, but keeping them out completely, 100% of the time, can be extremely difficult. Unless you want to always keep separate food from everyone you're around. I'm not saying don't try, but I would probably be advocating a moderation type approach. If I eat completely clean and then the rare time I eat "unhealthy" I get sick OR I have the option to eat pretty healthy(not partaking in unhealthy foods enough to affect my health), but have the occasional fast food and don't get sick regardless of what I eat for a meal, I'm probably going to choose moderation. Because: (1) it doesn't seem to be affecting my health too positively to keep completely clean(too much effort for little perceived gain) (2) frankly, I don't want to do anything that increases my chances of making me feel sick

taem

Sometimes, I have a hard time relating to some of the people on this site. Not everyone. But sometimes, I think some of us are such health-o-philes that we create issues for ourselves, or chalk things up to things that don't relate. I know everyone's different, but... I just have a hard time shaking this thought. And if the thought is true, it makes it harder for me to take stuff seriously. I want to, but...

Really, I would like to eat better. I would like to cut down on fast food. I've decreased my soda consumption considerably. I'm working on it. But I know I will never have a purely clean diet, even though I'm making strides.

But what I don't get is:

~I feel so worn out from all of the unhealthy foods I've been eating at parties lately.

IDK, maybe you're worn out from all of the parties, period? I've never felt worn out from processed or fast foods. I feel pretty good, unless I haven't gotten enough sleep, or I'm stressed... or... but not from food... unless we're talking a LARGE Thanksgiving style meal. I do get tired, but not SOOOOOOO worn out.

~I had (insert some unhealthy sounding food here that's not the best, but not going to kill you) and now I feel totally gross. I need to cleanse.

Other than having something like food poisoning or perhaps too much grease, I've never felt gross or terrible from eating a meal. As a whole, unless I need a shower or I'm sick, I don't feel gross.

I wish I could understand. Or, maybe I don't, because... I don't want to start feeling worn out and gross.

While I understand that for some moderation is a good thing, here is my reason for why it is not.

If you have high levels of cholesterol, your doctor might say to cut down on your meat intake a little, say 5%. So you eat 5% less and while going through that, you have to change your eating habits and you might become a little irritable because you eat a little less meat.

You go back to the doctor a few months later and your levels improved, slightly, but not enough and the doctor now gives you pills to take. A little less meat in your diet is not going to help you. Now I understand everyone has different circumstances. However, a little bit of this and that doesn't fix the underlying problem.

This recognition and then finding out other factors of health, one might conclude that a drastic change is required in order to reverse disease or to gain health (depends how you look at things).

I guess we are on our own journey, and it is good to show our perspective to show others different ways to good health.

spatticus

I guess we agree to disagree! Clean eating IS that important and health beneficial. You can't say eating fast food every once in a while doesn't effect your health because it does. And you can certainly still go out and participate with friends ECT but order a salad or whatever. To choooose to eat fast food sometimes simply so that next time you eat it you won't feel sick is just not logical.

bunchesonothing

I guess we agree to disagree! Clean eating IS that important and health beneficial. You can't say eating fast food every once in a while doesn't effect your health because it does. And you can certainly still go out and participate with friends ECT but order a salad or whatever. To choooose to eat fast food sometimes simply so that next time you eat it you won't feel sick is just not logical.

When I go to the doc and get tested, everything, and I do mean everything is in a healthy range. So please, tell me, that my lack of perfectly clean eating is affecting me negatively. Please diagnose me over the internet. This should be fun!

I was just throwing devil's advocate out there on the stomach pains and woes thing.

neurochamp

To the OP: thanks, this is an interesting and amusing thread :happy:

A couple of weeks ago I spent a few hours at the driving range with friends, hitting buckets of balls and sweating buckets, too. After that, we went to Portillo's and I had a hamburger and fries with lots of ketchup. This was my first burger and fries in probably at least 3-4 months. Know how I felt after I ate it? I felt AWESOME. Portillo's makes a darn fine hamburger, and nice, crunchy, salty fries. And after burning off lots of calories golfing, I didn't even feel remotely guilty for indulging.

Know what makes me feel awful after I eat it (but I eat it anyway)? Broccoli. Cabbage. Lettuce. Nearly every kind of bean on the planet. I love these things and eat them as often as I can, but even if I eat "clean" for weeks on end, I still get bloated and uncomfortable from veggies. Given the track record so far (more than a decade of eating all of these regularly with no improvement on the, uh, side effects), I kinda doubt this is ever going to change.

I still eat as healthy as I can, as often as I can, but I'm just sayin' (as others have already stated) - we all handle food differently. I think if you can indulge in feel-good foods now and then without feeling guilty or "gross", and your doctor says you're in good health, then by all means go for it...

Barneystinson

To the OP: thanks, this is an interesting and amusing thread :happy:

A couple of weeks ago I spent a few hours at the driving range with friends, hitting buckets of balls and sweating buckets, too. After that, we went to Portillo's and I had a hamburger and fries with lots of ketchup. This was my first burger and fries in probably at least 3-4 months. Know how I felt after I ate it? I felt AWESOME. Portillo's makes a darn fine hamburger, and nice, crunchy, salty fries. And after burning off lots of calories golfing, I didn't even feel remotely guilty for indulging.

Know what makes me feel awful after I eat it (but I eat it anyway)? Broccoli. Cabbage. Lettuce. Nearly every kind of bean on the planet. I love these things and eat them as often as I can, but even if I eat "clean" for weeks on end, I still get bloated and uncomfortable from veggies. Given the track record so far (more than a decade of eating all of these regularly with no improvement on the, uh, side effects), I kinda doubt this is ever going to change.

I still eat as healthy as I can, as often as I can, but I'm just sayin' (as others have already stated) - we all handle food differently. I think if you can indulge in feel-good foods now and then without feeling guilty or "gross", and your doctor says you're in good health, then by all means go for it...

This is exactly why I don't touch wheat. It's not an allergy, but I feel like death after I eat wheat-containing products.

spatticus

I guess we agree to disagree! Clean eating IS that important and health beneficial. You can't say eating fast food every once in a while doesn't effect your health because it does. And you can certainly still go out and participate with friends ECT but order a salad or whatever. To choooose to eat fast food sometimes simply so that next time you eat it you won't feel sick is just not logical.

When I go to the doc and get tested, everything, and I do mean everything is in a healthy range. So please, tell me, that my lack of perfectly clean eating is affecting me negatively. Please diagnose me over the internet. This should be fun!

I was just throwing devil's advocate out there on the stomach pains and woes thing.

I didn't say anything was wrong with you and I'm not trying to diagnose anything....im saying 1) you don't understand why SOME people feel bad when they eat bad because you don't have their diet...the cleaner you eat the worse you will feel when you don't eat clean. Thats pretty simple. The more "in moderation" you eat the less of those effects you are going to feel.. 2) No, not eating 100% clean may not be affecting you badly....im saying though that eating 100% clean would affect you and anyone in a super GOOD way.is moderation key for some people? Yes definitely. I'm just saying the few awesome ppl out there that can pull off a clean diet will tell you its worth it.

jo_marnes

Well I'm one of those people who can feel awful after eating foods that aren't often a part of my diet. Not all the time, but some of the time. I am also celiac so I know now that it can be related to gluten, but since going GF I've stopped getting a LOT of the symptoms that used to bother me. However, I will still feel crappy after a lot of sugar or grease. I never feel like that after a low fat, veggie crammed meal, no matter how much of it I eat!!

I guess my point would be that everyone should be aware of what suits them and their diet and food intake, so who really cares what anyone else thinks they know? And you know, all my bloodwork came back perfect also, despite the fact that my intestines were being broken down by celiac disease. Go figure. The body adapts in amazing ways to get the nutrients we need, so just because your body has everything it needs, doesn't mean it's going about it in the most straightforward way.

Just because you don't get it, doesn't mean that someone else won't.

bentobee

When you eat healthy for so long unhealthy food makes you feel horrible, sluggish, headaches, sick to your stomach, lack of energy, etc. which makes it much easier to stay away from it.

what he said also i have to watch my carbs and fat vs. the next person not having to. We are all different. chalk it up to that.

I agree.
My diet is far from perfect, but I don't eat junky junk anymore. A few weekends ago my husband picked up donuts in the morning (the kids had been begging for months... "how come we never have donuts anymore?" :laugh: ) and I thought I'd go ahead and have one. I ate HALF of one donut (a cake style one with icing) and I felt SO SICK after it. I had a stomach ache for the rest of the day. Yuck. I will avoid donuts for as long as I live now!

Another one... a very poorly planned outing with my kids one day led me to resort to eating a snack from a vending machine. Besides candy the only option was Cheez-Its. I ate one small pack of those. Again, totally sick to my stomach after.

Believe me, before I started this new healthier lifestyle I would have totally been thinking "those health freaks" were out of their minds to claim illness over eating some junky foods... but here I am, experiencing it myself. Crazy!

bunchesonothing

Just because you don't get it, doesn't mean that someone else won't.

I've said this earlier in the thread... I don't know how anyone implied that from my post. Again, my post was about asking for that perspective.

EDIT: This isn't a exactly a long thread either ...

msblueyes5

When you eat healthy for so long unhealthy food makes you feel horrible, sluggish, headaches, sick to your stomach, lack of energy, etc. which makes it much easier to stay away from it.

Playing devil's advocate here, then why, when I'm feeling awesome and all of my tests from the doctor come in swimmingly well and I'm pretty fit, do I want to increase the chances of me feeling like poop. From a logistical standpoint, it seems better for me to keep my diet moderate.

Then keep your diet moderate if you feel good!