Ignoring Calories???

Almonds are great to eat but like the others said, you want to watch the portion size. I get the 100 calorie packs and I'll have 1 pack with my lunch or as a snack. It's just enough for me to get in my fix.
As far as granola, same thing. Portion it out. Try it as an added item to yogurt in the morning for breakfast. I wouldn't recomend handfuls of it. Also, as a substitute, try the Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal. Simular to Granola but has lots of protein. I have a 1/2 cup of that in my yogurt with a cup of frozen blueberries or a banana mixed it. It keeps me satisfied until I eat lunch.
Good luck!!


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You can still eat almonds and granola, you just have to manage the portion sizes.
But yes, you can forgo calorie counting and use other means to monitor your progress, like measurements or how your clothes fit, etc.

Agree. I eat an ounce of almonds, walnuts, flaxseed, pumpkin seed or other nuts/seeds a day for omega-3s. Can't overdo it 'cuz they're big calorie/fat items; even good fats are calories. Yes, if you want to increase your raw fruit and veggie consumption, you have to ignore the carb/calorie overage but I don't worry about it much. I eat large amounts of green veggies and lots of fruit, routinely blowing my carb/fiber limit. No worries. Still steadily losing. BUT I don't eat meat at all, fish maybe once a week or less, limit my starches (potatoes, rice, grains) to about a cup a day, and very little dairy/cheese/eggs so I have more calorie leeway there. Works very well for me.

I eat granola and yogurt almost every day for breakfast and sometimes for a snack.
Yes, granola has carbs - but it is also loaded with fiber and lots of good stuff.
After much searching, I found, and really like, Cascadian Farm Organic Fruit and Nut Granola. 210 calories for 3/4 cup serving, Total fat 8%m Cholesterol 0%, Sodium 3%, Potassium 4%, Total Carbohydrates 13% (dietary fiber 3g, 12%, sugars 15g, other carbs 21g) Protein 4g (Ingredients: Whole grain oats, sugar, rice, sunflower oil, raisins, tapioca syrup, rice maltodextrin, sunflower seeds, almonds, molasses, drued cranberries, sea salt, soy lecithin, malted barley extract, vanilla extract)

I add Chobani Lowfat Greek Yogurt (love the Pineapple with th granola (160 calories) - 21 g of carbs but it is also loaded with 13 g of protein. By the end of my days, I'm usually running too high in protein rather than carbs - even though I eat a lot of granola and yogurt.

Since all granola is going to have sugar (unless you make it yourself) and plenty of carbs (then there's no way to measure the carbs) - Perhaps you could just cut back on the serving size of granola (each 1/4 cup would be approximately 70 calories), but use the full portion of the single cup size of yogurt? This way you get all the additional protein (think of the benefits - not the negative side of yogurt) and the granola you crave.

(I also like the Kashi Cinnamon Harvest Whole Wheat Biscuits with plain yogurt - yum)

i eat almonds, avocado or olive oil every day. and i always fit in the cals just fine. stick to one serving, and you'll be fine.

Peek at some of my diary days. I also have the base intake set at 1420 cal without exercise... (ignore my wine... Haha!) I eat yogurt and almonds all the time. Perfect snacks! I went to the bulk barn and bought raw whole almonds and sat at the table afterwards and made little Saran wrapped packs of 15 almonds each... 104 calories for 15 almonds! Perfect to stick in your purse or pocket for that in between meals snacks... And as for yogurt, you can buy the sugar free/fat free ones that only have 45 calories... Go ahead, throw a spoon of granola in and you still have an approximate 100 cal snack!

There are some healthy foods that I want in my daily diet but I end up avoiding because they are fairly high in calories compared to what I should eat each day (about 1400 cals). Some examples are almonds and yogurt with granola.

Since I'm missing out on some great healthy food because I'm too busy focusing on my calories, I'd like to somewhat ignore my calorie intake and just focus on the food itself. Has anyone else done this and if so did it work?

Yes.
I do this. I do not count calories but simply eat the healthy foods that I want when I want. I've cut out all processed foods and on occassion (like once a month) I'll eat something I love like Chinese food (which I know is likely processed but it's my once a month treat to myself)

As far as does it work? I think my results speak for themselves. I've lost 30+ lbs in roughly 12 weeks (about 3 months) might be 14/15 weeks... I'd have to go back and check for the exact week ratio but it's roughly three months I know that much. I've also lost a fair bit of inches. I'll be getting a new seamstress measurer (not sure of the right term atm) as my old one has mysteriously disappeared... I blame pixies and nixies playing tricks on me. *nods and chuckles*