Everything in moderation is a load of crap?

kelsiehoagland

I find this extremely interesting! Check it out. I'm not sure if I believe it entirely, but it's interesting anyway =P

What do you think?

http://www.youbeauty.com/nutrition/everything-in-moderation

MuffinMan25

bump

cervenec

I've skimmed it, and I agree. Not all calories are created equal- 100 calories from fruit is going to be much better for you than a 100cal snack pack of oreos. I think most of the people on here have made a life style change to eating healthier, rather than just limiting cals.

Nomomush

Loved the article. So true..not ALL calories are created equal. My high protein lower fat and good amounts of clean complex carbs 1200 calorie diet (6 meals) gives me energy and fuels my body ALL day vs a 1200 fast food meal (maybe only 1 or 2 meals for the whole day) that leaves one starving and crashing with no energy.

killagb

I like what this article is saying...they have the right idea. You can certainly treat yourself to bad things as a rare occurence...meaning once a month or two...not once a week. They are basically saying that you should try to eat foods that are GOOD for you rather than foods that are simply low in calories. I completely follow this mantra myself, granted I could tighten up my game but I do believe in what that article is saying, absolutely.

carolynmittens

though i'm in the overwhelming minority here, i totally agree with that article. i don't know anything about sugar changing the protein structure of foods and all that biological jargon, but yes i completely agree that it's never ok to put crap into our bodies :flowerforyou:

jackieb79

they treat "moderation" as a free pass to eat whatever you want... that's not my understanding of moderation. I still believe you can have indulgences once in a while and that no specific food should be entirely off limits if you love it, but having it in moderation means balancing those indulgences within an overall healty diet (at least to me that's what it has always meant).

leomom72

bump

mike_hill

http://articles.nydailynews.com/2010-11-09/entertainment/27080716_1_junk-food-food-diary-unhealthy-food

Not saying I agree with either article, but there is a happy medium for most people with clear evidence of calorie counting working in the results of many (including myself) on this site

bellieff

i get the point that they are trying to make. basically bad foods are bad. but we all already know that. no one puts a cheeto in their mouth and thinks about how nutritionally valuable it is, lol. so i think this is definately more of an opinionated article. some things are just hard to stay away from. i think calorie counting is extremely usefull in learning to control your lack of self control over those foods. one step at a time. if in time people who have weaned themselves off of binges using counting can eventually get rid of processed foods all together, then more power to them. i personally could never completely stray away from those naughty things that made me pack on the pounds because i just dont have that kind of will power, but what i can do is make sure i moderate it. which so far is working for me and has for many others.i know cheetos are bad, but i still like them.

alyssamiller77

they treat "moderation" as a free pass to eat whatever you want... that's not my understanding of moderation. I still believe you can have indulgences once in a while and that no specific food should be entirely off limits if you love it, but having it in moderation means balancing those indulgences within an overall healty diet (at least to me that's what it has always meant).

I agree with Jackie here, the article totally misses on what "moderation" means. Moderation in every definition I know of including my own would be understanding the good and bad of everything we're eating and making sure we don't over do it on the bad stuff and couple any intake of the "bad" stuff with plenty of the good. Ultimately the article is poorly written in my opinion. It goes all over the map and really doesn't back anything with evidence. A few quotes from doctors, some non-sequitur conclusions and really nothing of any assistance to anyone.

UpEarly

I think that depends on how you define 'moderation'. Everyone seems to have really different definitions for the same word/concept. For some people it means eating all the junk food they want, as long as they stay under their calorie goal. For other people, it means having cheat days that they allow themselves to go way over calories. For me, eating in moderation means eating mostly healthy foods, but making room for daily indulgences and social situations.

Personally, eating in moderation works for me. I've lost 32 pounds since April 10th. I normally eat around 2000 calories a day. I eat 'treats' of some sort every single day. I am not on a 'diet'. But that said... I eat lots of fresh, unprocessed and homemade food.

For example, this morning I made a smoothie with fruit and yogurt. For lunch, I had a board meeting for a local arboretum I work with. Pizza was served, and I ate two pieces. For dinner, I made a big taco salad with tons of romaine lettuce, homemade salsa, homemade taco filling made with lean sirloin, cheddar cheese, olives and low-fat sour cream. I had a chocolate merlot cupcake for dessert and a mini-bag of microwave popcorn for a snack. I went for a six mile hike. I came in around 2000 calories, 1300 net. I know plenty of people will disagree and tell me I'm doing it wrong. But, it works for me. :-)

george_ie_girl

I see where they're coming from - they assume that calorie counters are only eating processed, low fat foods and they also assume that people who count calories are ignorant about what they're putting into their bodies. They're wrong - obviously. Most of us eat a lot of good foods - because veges, lean meats and whole foods are low in calories! Calories in versus calories out works!

Jesung

they treat "moderation" as a free pass to eat whatever you want... that's not my understanding of moderation. I still believe you can have indulgences once in a while and that no specific food should be entirely off limits if you love it, but having it in moderation means balancing those indulgences within an overall healty diet (at least to me that's what it has always meant).

I agree with Jackie here, the article totally misses on what "moderation" means. Moderation in every definition I know of including my own would be understanding the good and bad of everything we're eating and making sure we don't over do it on the bad stuff and couple any intake of the "bad" stuff with plenty of the good. Ultimately the article is poorly written in my opinion. It goes all over the map and really doesn't back anything with evidence. A few quotes from doctors, some non-sequitur conclusions and really nothing of any assistance to anyone.

Pretty much my thoughts on this article...
Eating junk food in moderation means that at the end of the week, your total calories and macros will not be very different from a 100% clean diet. Sure, there will be more simple carbs and such but in the end, it's better to indulge in a smart way than to give up after 2 months of a strict diet and binge eating that overloads your body with junk.

kelsiehoagland

they treat "moderation" as a free pass to eat whatever you want... that's not my understanding of moderation. I still believe you can have indulgences once in a while and that no specific food should be entirely off limits if you love it, but having it in moderation means balancing those indulgences within an overall healty diet (at least to me that's what it has always meant).

This is EXACTLY what my definition of moderation is! I will, on occasion, have a drink from starbucks or some jasmine rice (as opposed to my regular brown rice) and I think that that kind of moderation is perfectly fine.

kelsiehoagland

I think that depends on how you define 'moderation'. Everyone seems to have really different definitions for the same word/concept. For some people it means eating all the junk food they want, as long as they stay under their calorie goal. For other people, it means having cheat days that they allow themselves to go way over calories. For me, eating in moderation means eating mostly healthy foods, but making room for daily indulgences and social situations.

Personally, eating in moderation works for me. I've lost 32 pounds since April 10th. I normally eat around 2000 calories a day. I eat 'treats' of some sort every single day. I am not on a 'diet'. But that said... I eat lots of fresh, unprocessed and homemade food.

For example, this morning I made a smoothie with fruit and yogurt. For lunch, I had a board meeting for a local arboretum I work with. Pizza was served, and I ate two pieces. For dinner, I made a big taco salad with tons of romaine lettuce, homemade salsa, homemade taco filling made with lean sirloin, cheddar cheese, olives and low-fat sour cream. I had a chocolate merlot cupcake for dessert and a mini-bag of microwave popcorn for a snack. I went for a six mile hike. I came in around 2000 calories, 1300 net. I know plenty of people will disagree and tell me I'm doing it wrong. But, it works for me. :-)

Wow, 32 pounds?! That's amazing. I just figure, if it works for you and it's healthy, stick with it! That sounds like a great day to me. I'd love to go on a long, lovely hike right now.

ninerbuff

This "nutritional psychologist" theory is debunked by an actual nutritional professor who actually ate Twinkies and some other junk food as an experiment to see if "calories in calories out" was really what weight loss is based on. He lost 27lbs and even had lower cholesterol doing it.
If moderation was "bogus" then many countries that have the same "junk" products that we have should have obesity problems.

ladybarometer

good theory, but I'll eat what I want, when I want, in moderation, while counting and working out.
You can't sustain limiting certain foods you like.

I'm not saying that you should eat a bag of chips and fill your daily calorie intake that way, but if you want a doughnut, eat ONE, and fulfill that craving or else your gonna risk a binge later. I eat lots of veggies, fruits, and whole grains, but I also HAVE TO fulfill my little cravings every now and then, and it is way more than once a week, almost daily, and it hasn't hindered my progress.

We're all different though, and for that reason, I stay away from these types of articles.

xunsungxherox

they treat "moderation" as a free pass to eat whatever you want... that's not my understanding of moderation. I still believe you can have indulgences once in a while and that no specific food should be entirely off limits if you love it, but having it in moderation means balancing those indulgences within an overall healty diet (at least to me that's what it has always meant).

I agree with the above, i think if you limit yourself completely you can go off track so easily with your diet because your urges will catch up to you. There is no point in letting a diet ruin your life even when wanting to lose weight. Endulging in something "bad for you" now and then wont hurt you if your overall diet is a healthy one.