How many people drive themselves crazy with watching sodium

Watching my sodium has really helped me with my weight loss. When I grocery shop for myself, I stay away from the inner aisles. Restaurant food is so high in sodium- Subway is high in sodium. You're better off just eating at home.

I watch the sodium simply because I strongly dislike waking up to an extra puffy face in the morning. For me it doesn't matter how much water I drink, I will bloat if my sodium is high. It is difficult to find convenience foods which are low in sodium. I agree with aznladie82, avoid the inner aisles.

Sorry I'm new to all this how can sodium stop you loosing weight ?

It's all chemistry.

Your body tries to maintain a certain ratio of water/electrolytes. When your sodium levels go up, there's proportionally less water, so your body doesn't eliminate as much water as it normally would. That's when you put on water weight.

I'm never over on my sodium.... I'm not sure if the foods i'm logging have the sodium content correctly written in. I think we measure it differently in the UK so it's not showing up properly on the diary???

Anyways, having been a huge, major salt addict (Seriously, I put it on toast.. and pizza.) I have now stopped adding it to food, so I figure i've practically halved it anyway. And I drink more. So yeah, I'm gonna say that i'm good.

Here is something my dietician said to me. Too much sodium will cause swelling and water follows sodium. Therefore, it can greatly affect your weigtloss. MFP says 2500 of sodium per day, but ideally you should stay under 2 tsp or 2000 mg of sodium! Great alternatives are 1/2 the sodium iodized salt (if you really need salt), Mrs. Dash is a great seasoning back up along with garlic & onion. No matter what you eat from a box, frozen and even cheese has sodium due to preservatives. Avoid those high in sodium at all cost! If you pay attention when shopping you will find great low sodium choices, Jif all natural low sodium tastes great & is better for you, greek yogurt in place of sour cream is a great alternative, A good rule of thumb is sodium should be 1/2 the calories listed on the item. As one other reply stated, even subway has sodium so no place really is safe to eat out.

No matter how much water you drink to flush the sodium, it still greatly affects your body.

I decided to have pizza one night as a family fun friday night. Couldn't decided where to get the pizza, I figured the bake & take kind from the grocery store would be the healthiest. After spending 1 hour reading the labels on frozen pizzas and the fresh bake & take pizzas, and making the pizza from scratch, I quickly realized my sodium was going to be through the roof. I decided to run to dominos and read their ingredients. Too my surprise, it was the "healthiest" way to go, by that I mean, less calories, less sodium & less fat, if you order the basic dough, basic sauce and pepperoni only. Not what I expected, but it makes sense, the more fresh ingredients, the less preservatives!

I do drive myself, and my husband, crazy watching the sodium especially when eating out. I have given up some seafood restaurants and food because of the sodium, and I only buy low sodium canned beans (which I also rinse before using), and tomatoes. I try to use fresh or frozen vegetables for my meals as much as possible, and I read the labels. No more cottage cheese for me until I find a lower sodium brand, no pizza, no pre-packaged food unless they are below 600-500 mg of sodium, no added salt in my meals. Just lots of other seasoning. No chinese food or sushi, no fast food places.

I am usually between 500 and 1000 mg below my sodium limit everyday, but it takes lots of planning. There are many foods, not processed or canned, that are high in sodium so it is difficult to estimate until I enter everything in my diary. It is not easy but it is duable.

I watch it now that my dad has been having liver problems, and developed diabetes. His diet has gotten so strict. I've been reading labels for a long time so it's just one more thing for me to look out for. And, I'm a salt person more than a sugar person. You get used to it, though.

i agree, it sure does pay to investigate and be aware!
i was just checking nutritional info on chain restaurant sites... and i was AMAZED to find i could have an individual perogy pizza (from Boston Pizza) for 1/2 the sodium i could have on just about any item on the 550 cal menu form applebees.

i just do NOT understand why reataurnats cannot cook with less salt and leave it to the customer to add extra if they feel they need it... isn't that why there are salt shakers on the tables??

I'm suprised Applebees is even as successful as it is. Or still open for that matter. It's got to be the most processed food at any restaurant. I got chicken once and I'm fairly certain it wasn't even a real chicken breast, but chicken parts used to form a breast.

It all depends how active you are. If you do any kind of endurance activities you actually need salts to maintain a decent electrolyte balance.

The standard setting is based on a sedentary persons needs.

I ignore it.

Same here.

I almost always go over my sodium intake each day by about 1000 mg. I am pretty active and I sweat a lot. But I drink a lot of water throughout the day and my blood pressure is healthy.

To the OP: Everyone is different. If your blood pressure is in a healthy range, you drink a lot of water, and if the food you are eating is minimally processed, I wouldn't worry about your sodium intake too much.

Where do I find the sodium tracker?

Never mind...found it :blushing:

I don't watch sodium at all. Not that concerned with it.

In fact, a while back, I was reading something that said people are waaaay too freaked out about it. It said that of the people with blood pressure, it's usually only a small fraction of that population that really has to worry about it. Wish I could find that report.

But do what you feel is safe.

I set my sodium goal lower than MFP gives. MFP adheres to the American standard of 2300 mg per day, but the Canadian Food Guide suggests much less: 1500 mg!

I do try to keep it below 1500, but if I go over I don't freak out, so long as I stay under 2300 mg.

The real reason why you need to watch your sodium intake is for your cardiovascular health. If you have a family history of heart problems or high blood pressure, you should really be careful about your sodium.

The USA just revisited the sodium intake standard. Its also down to 1500 mg per day. I was put on a low sodium diet by me Dr. because I have kidney issues. Its not hard to stay under the 1500. Its all about the choices you make. If you make most of your food, buy fresh foods and stay away from ham, bacon, fast food and crap foods, you'll be fine. Read all the labels, make your own foods, and cut back on pre-made (grab and go foods).

So, I was getting frustrated cuz I wasn't losing any weight and haven't since about mid February. I joined MFP this week. I was doing great on my calorie intake levels and I was exercising a bunch, but I still hadn't lost even an ounce. Then I read about watching sodium intake. It wasn't on my list of levels, so I added. WOW!!! I was over mostly everyday or at least close to being over. I did this on Wednesday. Since Wednesday, I have lost 1.5 lbs. I think my problem was my sodium intake!!

i just do NOT understand why restaurants cannot cook with less salt and leave it to the customer to add extra if they feel they need it... isn't that why there are salt shakers on the tables??

very good idea i feel that this maybe one thing i need to watch ...i will be avoiding the noodle bar till i am down to the weight i want to be at .
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Because they don't make much from scratch, and at chain restauarnts they don't make anything from scratch. It's all at least partially prepared before it is shipped to the restaurant. So yes, you're going to the chain restaurant to eat frozen food!