Unhealthy food vs eating clean help?

lostinureyes17

So I got a bunch of recipes offline today from the recipe threads here, skinnykitchen.com, and healthifiedkitchen.com All the recipes I printed out and shopped for are supposed to be healthier for you.
The ones I got are is turkey chili, sausage egg casserole, one pan spaghetti, and a crockpot chicken. Even though these sites say the meal is healthier and I can see all the nutrition facts I struggle with whether or not they are okay to eat.

My dilemma is they are more carb heavy, include a lot of cheese or creams. I know that everything in moderation is okay but I worry that I will be hindering my weight loss by not eating cleaner.

What does everyone else think? Is it okay to incorporate healthier versions of favorite meals as long as its in moderation and I am still not over my calorie allotment for the day? Or should I try to eat cleaner?

And just for background I drink water all day long and also bought a lot of fresh fruit and veggies to eat along these meals.

lyttlewon

How much cheese and cream are you talking about? It is easy to sub healthy things for cream, fat free evaporated milk for instance. For cheese, depending on what it is, you can either leave out the cheese or use a lower fat version etc.

lostinureyes17

Heres an example:

Breakfast Casserole with Biscuit Crust
Found on Food.com
Makes 8 Servings

1 can biscuit dough
1 pound reduced fat sausage
2 oz. Cabot 75% reduced fat cheddar cheese
6 eggs, well beaten
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Spray a medium-sized pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add to medium heat, and cook sausage for 7 – 8 minutes until no longer pink. In the meantime, spray a rectangular baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Press biscuits into bottom of dish, sealing areas to make a crust. Mix eggs, milk, salt and pepper together. Sprinkle now-cooked sausage on top, then cheese. Pour egg mixture over the meat and cheese. Bake for 15 minutes or until firmly set in center.

Nutritional Information: 344 calories, 26 carbs, 19 fat grams and 16 protein grams.

twsgoody

my problem is pizza, i can only have one pizza or i'll feel guilty later

SoozeE512

If you feel that they are too carb heavy because of creams and cheeses, limit the amount of those things that you add in and add more protein and produce to get a better balance in your meals.

pinuplove

Canned biscuit dough isn't eating clean, in my opinion. But, I don't eat reduced fat or fat free anything either. I just concentrate on proper portions of the real thing instead.

mecaseyrn

Oh i have a skinny healthy chili that is balanced very well.....would you like recipe?

lyttlewon

I would leave out the biscuit dough. That way it is a fritatta.

beccadaniixox

26 carbs isn't really carb heavy. And that's probably just from the biscuit dough..

Acg67

Eating clean won't speed up weight loss, holding everything constant (cals/macros)

robinbarten

Creams and cheese have none or very little carbs, cheese is protien. All the carbs are in the crust. Maybe try to buy a low carb crust that is premade. I don't think the lower carb pizza crusts would taste as good as the biscuits, but might be a way to lower the carbs. I also think if you buy them in lower calorie versions it might make "better" for you. Also to cut calories try using all egg whites.

Bethee101

I try not to buy "diet" or "reduced fat" anything because there is so much garbage packed into those and the body can not break all of that stuff down. I use plain greek yogurt as a substitute for a lot of foods in recipes. Just moderate how much you make or eat. Also you need to decide on what you plan to count for your diet? Calories? Carbs? Fat? You will go crazy trying to count everything. Good luck to you

katm427

I personally don't care much for "eating clean". I care more about eating the things I love while still working to find a balance. It makes things a lot easier on me, personally. If I focused on cutting out certain aspects of my diet, I would crave food nonstop. If you want cream or cheese, go for it. Just be conscious of it. I wouldn't recommend filling up your body with creams and cheeses every day/night, but even a few times in a week couldn't really hurt.

lostinureyes17

Oh i have a skinny healthy chili that is balanced very well.....would you like recipe?

Yes, please and thank you! I am struggling to find good recipes!

lostinureyes17

Eating clean won't speed up weight loss, holding everything constant (cals/macros)

Thanks...I know eating clean is supposed to be better for you but I don't always feel as if it's sustainable for me.

WyLd_ReD

I will just say that I tried to eat that way for quite some time thinking that cutting things down and having some things in moderation would work.

I am an avid believer now in "clean eating" with lean proteins, complex carbs... your greenery is most important fresh and while I do have fruit, I am sure that I never add anything to it and I still eat it in moderation since it is sugars. Now when I say clean eating I mean no processed foods... stick to the outer isles of the store where all the fresh items are. I have the book by Tosca Reno about how to eat/shop/live clean! I will say that it made a huge difference, but it's not easy when you have others in your household that don't want to join in this awesome revolution.

Either way, the choice is up to you. You are ultimately in control of your weightloss journey and how you go about it. Just remember that changing how you eat alone will not do it. You have to have some physical activity too, even if it's just walking or treading water in the pool! ^_^ Good luck on your journey! It can be an awesome new way of life if you allow it to be!

Pebble321

There isn't any one right answer to this question, it really depends on your personal idea about what "eating healthy" means.

Personally I don't have any problem with carbs, so carb heavy recipes would work fine for me. I'm also OK with cheese and cream in moderation - I usually just tinker with the amounts so they look right for me.

I don't like a lot of the so-called "healthy" recipes out there because they often have artificially sweetened or fake-fat versions of products, and that is not how I like to eat. I see so many dessert recipes that come through the forums that are a combo of fat free pudding, fat free cool whip and fat free syrups. Besides that fact that I can't get those products where I live and that I find the taste of artificial sweeteners horrible - I'm just not interested in recipes that let you eat a HUGE amount of something just because it's low cal. I'd rather cook a regular dessert in all it's sugary, fatty, carby glory and pay attention to how much of it I eat.

Usually I find regular recipes and just change them around myself - by reducing the amount of things like oil and butter (I'll still use them but often find that 1 tbsn works just as well as 2), by adding extra veggies to almost everything, by watching how much of high-salt things like chorizo that I use - and ultimately by watching my portion sizes.

So, my point is, work out which way YOU like to eat, and find recipes that match your personal preference.

imchicbad

I personally don't care much for "eating clean". I care more about eating the things I love while still working to find a balance. It makes things a lot easier on me, personally. If I focused on cutting out certain aspects of my diet, I would crave food nonstop. If you want cream or cheese, go for it. Just be conscious of it. I wouldn't recommend filling up your body with creams and cheeses every day/night, but even a few times in a week couldn't really hurt.

that is truly the worst advice ever. honestly, its about eating better to be healthier not downsizing portions of the crap food that made you fat and unhealthy in the first place. there is no balance, junk is junk, and it doesnt matter how you put it, eating clean makes all the difference in the world on how your body reacts. you feel better, have more energy, your blood -oxygen, all that changes with proper diet and excersize. you cant just sit there doing nothing but eating happy meals and expect results dont get it twisted.

My advice to you (the post-er) if it makes you nervous or your in doubt, if its over processed or to much canned ingredients...then dont eat it. try fresh anything before you resort to that stuff.

lostinureyes17

There isn't any one right answer to this question, it really depends on your personal idea about what "eating healthy" means.

Personally I don't have any problem with carbs, so carb heavy recipes would work fine for me. I'm also OK with cheese and cream in moderation - I usually just tinker with the amounts so they look right for me.

I don't like a lot of the so-called "healthy" recipes out there because they often have artificially sweetened or fake-fat versions of products, and that is not how I like to eat. I see so many dessert recipes that come through the forums that are a combo of fat free pudding, fat free cool whip and fat free syrups. Besides that fact that I can't get those products where I live and that I find the taste of artificial sweeteners horrible - I'm just not interested in recipes that let you eat a HUGE amount of something just because it's low cal. I'd rather cook a regular dessert in all it's sugary, fatty, carby glory and pay attention to how much of it I eat.

Usually I find regular recipes and just change them around myself - by reducing the amount of things like oil and butter (I'll still use them but often find that 1 tbsn works just as well as 2), by adding extra veggies to almost everything, by watching how much of high-salt things like chorizo that I use - and ultimately by watching my portion sizes.

So, my point is, work out which way YOU like to eat, and find recipes that match your personal preference.

That's true. I guess I'm looking mainly to find a healthy way of eating that I can stick to for life and haven't quite found what that is yet. Thanks for your input!

lostinureyes17

I will just say that I tried to eat that way for quite some time thinking that cutting things down and having some things in moderation would work.

I am an avid believer now in "clean eating" with lean proteins, complex carbs... your greenery is most important fresh and while I do have fruit, I am sure that I never add anything to it and I still eat it in moderation since it is sugars. Now when I say clean eating I mean no processed foods... stick to the outer isles of the store where all the fresh items are. I have the book by Tosca Reno about how to eat/shop/live clean! I will say that it made a huge difference, but it's not easy when you have others in your household that don't want to join in this awesome revolution.

Either way, the choice is up to you. You are ultimately in control of your weightloss journey and how you go about it. Just remember that changing how you eat alone will not do it. You have to have some physical activity too, even if it's just walking or treading water in the pool! ^_^ Good luck on your journey! It can be an awesome new way of life if you allow it to be!

I've been going to the gym everyday and started the couch to 5k program. I am trying to do cardio a few days a week and strength training the other days. I know I have to make it a routine so I stick to it. Thanks for the insight!

nxd10

That recipe is healthER than doing it with full fat sausage, but it isn't healthY.

However, for me, I need to redevelop my tastes to make it easy to eat in ways that are better for me. So if I ate something that salty, it would make more want more salt and make me less satisfied with things that were salt-free.

If I ate a small amount of that I'd probably be okay (half cup maybe). If I ate more, I'd feel blooky and full but would want more salty, fatty food later. (Carbs I don't crave - give me salt, fat, and sugar.)

That said, if it looks good to you, eat some - remember portion size. You're not going to go from unhealthy to healthy eating in one go.