Calories vs Taste

jdhoward_101
jdhoward_101 Posts: 234 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I take my own lunch into work, which is great because not only does it help me keep exact count of the calories i'm eating, but because there are no shops in the immediate area, i know i won't be tempted to pop out for a few minutes to grab a sausage roll or something!

I'm sat here at my computer, (desk job, ergh), munching on a piece of celery, my second stick today, nom, nom, nom...

And then i realized....celery tastes DISGUSTING. I NOW celery tastes disgusting, i have NEVER liked celery in my 25 years of living. However, since i started this journey, i quite often find myself nibbling on some celery as a low-cal snack. I have always been aware in the back of my mind just how disgusting it is, but i tried to convince myself that the more i ate, the more i would eventually grow to like it. And that just isn't happening.

I realize that i do this with a lot of foods; in short, i'll choose calorie content over taste. Even if i still have, say, 1000 calories left in my daily allowance, i will still munch on celery or rice cakes, (even worse), than make myself a piece of toast or a half bowl of cereal or something. It is most definitely a habit i want to get out of now i am aware just how often i do it.

Anybody else tend to go for calories over taste? Is it something you are happy doing, 'no pain, no gain' and all that??

Replies

  • rosebarnalice
    rosebarnalice Posts: 3,488 Member
    I don't eat foods I don't like-- but then, in my case that's a very small list consisting almost exclusively of broccoli, beef liver, and raw green peppers.

    and by the way, I LOVE CELERY!
  • lagringaloca1
    lagringaloca1 Posts: 22 Member
    Celery isn't bad if you stuff it with peanut butter or cream cheese, otherwise? FORGET IT!

    I refuse to choose calories over flavor, and always allow myself to add a little extra something-something to make my meals taste satisfying. For example, my favorite lunch right now is a high fiber low cal tortilla stuffed with chicken breast, mango habanero salsa and SOUR CREAM with a couple of romaine lettuce leaves so I get hot and spicy with the richness of sour cream and crunch of lettuce. I would not be happy with this lunch w/o the sour cream so its worth the extra calories.
  • chadraeder3
    chadraeder3 Posts: 279 Member
    Only been doing this for about 3 months now but I know what you mean the calories for taste trade off happens. I do try and kick the flavors up by using spices and herbs more now. Like you before I made the decision to make this journey I would rarely touch many vegetables my dreaded nightmare was broccoli but just a few weeks in I was out at a restaurant and ordered a meal which came with mixed veggies I ate the ones I liked and still hungry I said to myself well there is the broccoli tried it and, damn it wasn't half bad.

    After that day I now realize what people mean when they say "Hunger the the best seasoning"
  • BarbieAS
    BarbieAS Posts: 1,414 Member
    Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't.

    On one hand, eating too many things that taste good is what got me here to begin with. Sure, there are lots of veggies and other low-cal things that I do like, some quite a bit, but put a slice of pizza and a dish of broccoli in front of me and tell me to eat the one I think tastes better, which one do you think I'm going to choose? If I NEVER chose calorie count over taste, I'd have a pretty hard time feeling satisfied at the end of the day while staying within my calorie allotment. I'm sure that some people can/would come in here and say that they love fruits and veggies soooooooo much that it's never a problem for them, and that might be true, but I suspect the majority of us are more like me.

    On the other hand...I'm not interested in turning weight loss into torture. I make as many healthy choices as I can so that occasionally I can have a treat, even if it's a pretty high calorie item. It's all about balance. This whole "journey" (gods I hate that word, but it fits here) is about learning when it's ok to indulge a little and when you have to say no and choose something more reasonable.
  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    I don't eat foods I don't like. I'm picky - I'm not a huge fan of a lot of veggies. That said, I eat quite a bit of the ones that I do. I structure my diet to make sure I'm getting plenty of the foods I need with room left over for the foods I want.


    Preplanning helps a lot.
  • xstarxdustx
    xstarxdustx Posts: 591 Member
    I do most of the time, but sorry-not with raw celery. Even Nutella didn't make it any better for me. It's passable in soups since most of the flavour is gone, but other than that, nope.
  • ncl1313
    ncl1313 Posts: 237 Member
    Celery is evil. Kudos to you for even eating that ick. I'm not a huge fan of raw veggies as it is, but celery is just the worst.

    My rule of thumb is not to eat things I hate just because I should. I have found many ways of cooking veggies so that I will like them (broccoli? Hate it raw...LOVE it roasted). I have found that if I sit there munching on carrot sticks, my brain wanders into thinking about all the things I'd rather be eating and doesn't stop until I eat those (usually less healthy) things.

    Is there a raw veggie you actually like? Peppers? Carrots? Asparagus? Cucumbers? Ditch the celery and eat those things instead. Or at least get yourself some decent dip... ;)
  • djeffreys10
    djeffreys10 Posts: 2,312 Member
    I just make sure whatever I am eating fits my macros, and it's something that I like. A lot of nights I will have a mixed greens salad with around 8 ounces of chicken or turkey and...wait for it...ranch dressing (ZOMG!). I almost always plan my day beforehand, and if I am going to have a salad at night I make sure my ranch dressing will fit in my calorie and macro goals for the whole day.
  • poptastic
    poptastic Posts: 151 Member
    I find myself eating things that I think are *ok* rather than delicious, just because if I eat treat foods that are full of sugar or fat, I won't stop eating them even once I'm full. Eating things like salad, fruits, porridge - they're all OK, but I'll stop when I'm not hungry anymore. But I would never eat something I actively dislike! There are so many nice fruits and vegetables, at least find something you like the taste of!
  • MelsAuntie
    MelsAuntie Posts: 2,833 Member
    NO. NEVER. It may take a little trial and error, but there are always tasty choices to replace stuff you shouldn't overindulge with. Cafe latte Greek yogurt instead of coffee ice cream, for instance. I find I like the yogurt better than I ever did ice cream. There's no reason to eat stuff you don't like, EVER, because you'll just resent having to do it, and bingo, you'll quit doing it. And yeah, celery, my hubby eats it filled with peanut butter, I'd sooner chop up the nasty stuff and feed it to the ducks, therefore turning nasty celery into delicious duck eggs. :)
  • Loulady
    Loulady Posts: 511 Member
    No. Why am I going to waste any calories on something I don't like?
  • endoftheside
    endoftheside Posts: 568 Member
    There are so many foods to choose from, why eat something you do not like? Granted, it may take 15+ exposures to become accustomed to a new food, but if you give it a fair shake and it doesn't work for you, why bother? There are so many greens out there with crazy varied flavors for nibbling, maybe hit a farmer's market for variety.
  • jdhoward_101
    jdhoward_101 Posts: 234 Member
    I just surprised myself, because constantly on these forums i'm preaching the whole 'eat-whatever-you-want-as-long-as-it-fits-your-daily-allowance'. Realized my own hypocrisy this afternoon! No more celery, or yukky food for me! Part of the problem is that me and my boyfriend don't have much money, and celery is one of those things we seem to have lying around because he uses it a lot in cooking, although we always buy way too much of it, so i tend to find myself snacking on it, not only because it's there but because wasting food is one of my biggest pet hates. Think i'm going to try and persuade the boyfriend to 'accidentally' buy too many raw carrots rather than stupid celery next time.

    I was just wondering if there was anyone as silly as me out there :p
  • olDave
    olDave Posts: 557 Member
    Can't say that I do. I count calories so that I can eat what I like. I've never been into self denial philosophies of any kind.

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