Almonds - bad?

It depends on your goal. If you are just counting calories, then too many almonds can mess you up. If you are counting calories as well as other nutrients, then almonds are good.
Think about it this way. What happens if its late at night and you still need a few more calories to eat? Eat almonds. That will take care of those calories and will not mess up your metabolism like a burger would.
To me, although almonds are high in fat (good fat); they are not bad as long as I am not overdoing them. If I take the serving size, its all good. Better almond fat than chips fat. Almond fat can actually help you out. You need fat to burn fat. Why not use good fat to burn off bad fat?

I started eating a serving of almonds almost daily when I revamped my diet. As far as eating a whole cup of them, there are probably more satisfying and well-rounded ways to budget 800 calories, but eaten in "reasonable" amounts almonds can certainly be a healthy part of one's diet AFAIK.

Eat them slowly -- one at a time -- rather than stuffing one's mouth 2-4 at a time like most people do with nuts and it will make the 24 in a serving seem like more than it is.

I started eating a serving of almonds almost daily when I revamped my diet. As far as eating a whole cup of them, there are probably more satisfying and well-rounded ways to budget 800 calories, but eaten in "reasonable" amounts almonds can certainly be a healthy part of one's diet AFAIK.

Eat them slowly -- one at a time -- rather than stuffing one's mouth 2-4 at a time like most people do with nuts and it will make the 24 in a serving seem like more than it is.

^^THIS! I'm pulling an all-nighter right now for a work deadline and am about to get 2 oz of almonds (weighed), a banana, and 24 oz of water to keep me going. I eat 1-2 servings several days a week, especially as a late night snack. Got a big ol' bag from Sam's Club and they have 0mg sodium... so full of win!
P.S. Coincidentally, I just put them in my diary right before I read this post! Headed to the kitchen now...

A whole cup is too much. Average is about 24-28 nuts.

I just happened to had read a pretty good article tonight so thought I'd share -
http://www.vegsource.com/news/2012/08/nuts-weight-gain-its-worse-than-we-thought.html. It basically points out that nuts are healthy but if trying to lose weight you might want to keep them to a minimum as they are more a source of (healthy) fat than protein.

since starting this journey I have cut or limited nuts. Yes, I know they are healthy, but too many calories for what you are getting.
I can easy down a cup of almonds within mintues. I one of those people that can eat peanuts by the handful.
I have no self control- especially with nutsl.

If I was able to count out 24 almonds and eat then one by one sloooowly AND then stop, I wouldn't be here in the first place.

for me it's like saying I will buy a bag of doritos and only eat a handful or order a pizza and eat one or two slices...

Nuts ARE high in calories because they are full of healthy, nutritious, good fats. (fat keeps you full and helps your body to absorb nutrients. it's NOT bad for you! The only fats you should really stay away from are trans fats. Even some saturated fat in your diet is good for you.) Although they're healthy, too much of anything isn't a good thing.

No, eating a whopper or a big mac wouldn't be better or equal to eating nuts. Both of those are pretty much chemical-filled lab experiments molded into the shape of food, whereas nuts are vitamin rich, mineral packed, energy powerhouses.

also when you say a "cup" you should really be careful. Measuring things in cups instead of by weight usually leads to even more being consumed. I'm not sure how you even managed to EAT a whole cup of almonds, they would get sickening to me.

I usually eat around 15-20. one almond has about 7 calories.


Also, in regards to the thing you said about protein and carbs: Carbs are not the devil. The carbs you want to avoid are called "refined" carbohydrates, or "white" carbohydrates. These are processed, stripped carbs that provide empty calories and spike your blood sugar. The carbs in a big mac are refined. The carbs in whole grain rice or quinoa are not.


I hope this helped at least a little, and happy snacking! ( in moderation :laugh: )


Edited to say : Eating too many carbs wont make you fat, nor will eating too much protein or too much fat. People make the mistake of going on low fat diets and such when they don't understand that in the end CALORIES make you gain weight. If you have a surplus, you will gain. (unless doing activity that requires a surplus) If you only ate carbs or fat or protien, you would still be unbalanced & unhealthy. It's all about balance!

In terms of weight loss, no. Dietary fat is good. If you're eating clean or whatever you want to call it, yes.

http://www.cornucopia.org/almond/Almond_Fact_Sheet.pdf

Nope - clean eaters eat nuts all the time!

Right. There is nothing unclean about almonds or any other nuts.

I eat them as meal, :P Got all the right macro's for me