Finding balance in your diet

jaclyndanette

How do you find balance in your diet so that you don't feel deprived but are still able to indulge? Can you indulge and still lose weight?

agct1

i cook almost everything I eat, so it tastes exactly like i want it to. your own creativity is the limit to your meals! prepare your food with lots of seasoning -- even a simple broth (with tumeric, cayenne and green onions, perhaps?) will be an indugence. tonight i'm planning a yogurt+egg beaters+banana+Spenda+nutmeg egg nog treat!

AnvilHead

How do you find balance in your diet so that you don't feel deprived but are still able to indulge? Can you indulge and still lose weight?

Read this thread for an excellent explanation of an oft-misunderstood concept:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/817188-iifym

currierand

I'm a big proponent of "everything in moderation". That said, I have been trying to not deprive myself of anything, but to also make it count. Meaning if I'm going to splurge on a piece of cake, for example, it will be the best quality one I can find (or bake myself). I don't drink cheap booze and I don't eat crappy food anymore! (well, I try not to anyway)

I liked something I heard the other day regarding Holiday treats. It said to only indulge in items that are truley special to the season, not something you can eat all year. For me that's egg nog or the box of toffee I get special delivered from Colorado. It's something we had only in our house growing up at Christmastime, so I can't imagine being without it.

So enjoy! Make room in your food diary for special indulgences, they are a part of life and with an extra workout the can be "semi" guilt free!

Melo1966

This is what I do "If it Fits" and if you want it bad enough "Make it Fit". I wanted sweet potato fries recently and made them fit. If you deprive yourself then you are setting yourself up to fail. This is why diets don't work. I am learning how to eat for life. Change recipes to be healthier versions. My favorite hot cocoa is cocoa power, water and stevia (20 cals of deliciousness) if it fits I add spiced rum.:drinker:

kaypat09

Although I don't deprive myself, I have found that in order to be successful, I have had to make sacrifices. I eat "healthy" foods probably 90% of the time, and allow myself to indulge minimally. It might just be me, but I have found that when I tell myself "it's just one cookie," it often leads to other bad food choices. That's just my personal experience.

jaclyndanette

Thank you all for the replies; you all had some great ideas. I'm going to try to really zero in on what I want and then truly enjoy it instead of filling it in with other things only to cave later. Thanks again!

jzammetti

As a general rule, if I want it, I eat it so long as it is in my calorie goal. I do try most days to meet a particular protein amount, but the rest I just let fall where it may. I am still losing so it works for me.

Good luck!

MrsSWW

Where possible I say I can have it tomorrow - if it's such a big treat surely waiting 24 hours isn't such a big deal... and then the next day I say the same thing to myself... carry this on until you have had the chance to see if it's something you REALLY want or if it was just a passing whim.

Today I have had a 575 calorie muffin that I've resisted for two weeks and I enjoyed every last crumb, the old me would have probably had one a day for the last fortnight. I've been resisting Gregg's sausage rolls for about 3 months though :bigsmile:

Obviously there will be situations where you might not be able to do this (erm, wedding or birthday cake are the only ones I can think of?) but if it works 90% of the time then it's fine by me :flowerforyou:

jacksonpt

Pre-logging is REALLY helpful in this regard. Pick 1 or 2 or 5 foods that you really enjoy, log them, then balance them out with other foods the rest of the day/week. It takes some practice, but it's not hard to get the feel for it with time. IMO, finding this balance is the only way most of us can really expect to succeed long term.

Yes, you can indulge and still lose weight. Weight loss isn't dependent on what you eat, it's dependent on how much you eat.


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nxd10

I love to eat and I actually enjoy it more now that I choose what I eat carefully.

I don't just eat to eat - I'm much more mindful. I eat anything I want - but not that much. And the first few bites of anything great always taste the best - I don't need a lot.

And, as my son always parrots back to me - if it doesn't taste good, don't put it in your mouth.

Eat tasty food. All the time. In modest amounts.

Jpinpoint

Where possible I say I can have it tomorrow - if it's such a big treat surely waiting 24 hours isn't such a big deal... and then the next day I say the same thing to myself... carry this on until you have had the chance to see if it's something you REALLY want or if it was just a passing whim.

Today I have had a 575 calorie muffin that I've resisted for two weeks and I enjoyed every last crumb, the old me would have probably had one a day for the last fortnight. I've been resisting Gregg's sausage rolls for about 3 months though :bigsmile:

Obviously there will be situations where you might not be able to do this (erm, wedding or birthday cake are the only ones I can think of?) but if it works 90% of the time then it's fine by me :flowerforyou:

Long ago, my dad brought home multiple boxes of Twinkies.

I WANTED THE TWINKIE. With every single fiber in me, I WANTED IT.

My mother was a nutritionist for a nursing home, she has had diabetes since she was 15 yrs old, she kind of specializes in that. Anyway, she helped me lose 40 pounds one year.

I WANTED THE TWINKIE. She told me to eat it. She said there was no use in depriving myself and making myself obsess over something like a Twinkie.

I ate it. It was horrible. It tasted horrible. I didn't feel good after I ate it. I remember this when I think I MUST HAVE THAT. I remember the Twinkie. :happy:

vjohn04

Honestly... what I found was that I never had a TERRIBLE diet... yeah, sometimes it wasn't THAT great, but overall it wasn't terrible.

What caused my problems was my food intake coupled with the calories from alcohol. My job requires travel quite a bit, where I sit in airports (where there's not much else to do besides drink) and entertain clients when I am out on the road (again... food and alcohol).

Add no exercise to that.... and welp.... there's an extra 15-20 lbs added, easy.

I really like my food, and can pretty much eat whatever I want (like I did before) on 1900 calories, and around 2500 when I exercise.

I do find myself indulging less in my goose and tonics..... however if I am going to have one, (or a few like I will tonight at a business event) I just have to fit. it. in. my. budget.

firemanfive0

i just posted this as answer on another topic but i feel it fits here as well:

eat what you want..just in moderation. Let's take a peach pie that is double crust. trim the 1/4 of a pie slice to that of an 1/8. Just eat the top crust and the filling. Have a nice cup of coffee or tea with that and to me you have enjoyed a wonderful dessert. This is how I still eat most everything I did before...Wendy's spicy chicken sandwich 524cals...order it with no mayo and then remove the top bun, you have removed close to 135cals from it. But by all means stay on track and dont let all you hard work go for nothing...you have accomplished so much...so for that BE PROUD!

and feel free to friend me...my diary is open and maybe it would help you.

smithme09

I resist the temptation to have a sweet until I'm done eating for the day. Then, if I still want it and it's still early enough before bed, I will only have it if I've managed to leave enough calories for it after the day.

Weebs628

I eat what I want in moderation. If I'm having a craving, I make room for it in my calories. I've started cooking a lot at home which also helps. I know exactly what's going into my food. On Saturday, I had a killer workout and my husband and I went out to eat and I got this big, juicy hamburger with fries. It was so good. Then I woke up in the middle of the night because my stomach was churning. My body DID NOT like that food.

It's funny how our bodies adapt. I can't eat as much as I used to. I will think twice before eating a big juicy burger again.

jaclyndanette

Thanks again for the continued replies. I am definitely going to implement some of these strategies!