Clean eating vs. Paleo vs. Low Carb? Help picking for a jumpstart to weight loss?
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Sevendust912 wrote: »Yeah - I know that.
I am leaning towards CLEAN EATING because it's already a low carb type of plan. I heard Paleo is more restrictive. Thanks for feedback.
what do you mean by clean eating? Try and pick a more descriptive term because clean eating means different things to everyone
Emeals calls it the "clean eating" plan, it's not the OP's name for it. I agree that he needs to have more information about what it contains to evaluate it.
But if the idea is just to have a starting point to take the decisions out of it--as some prefer--my opinion is just try it and see how it works.0 -
Big_Bob_Lob wrote: »Whichever helps you create a sustainable, moderate calorie deficit and fuels you throughout the day, especially once you start adding in exercise. More important that the pluses and minuses of each, is to find one you'll stick with. Otherwise, it won't matter much.
^This. Don't major in the minor. Pick something you can stick with and go...
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Yeah - I know that.
I am leaning towards CLEAN EATING because it's already a low carb type of plan. I heard Paleo is more restrictive. Thanks for feedback.
Based on the criteria in your OP, I'd say choose low carb. Clean Eating has a lot of meanings, but most don't include things like premade shakes. Paleo allows no leeway, though you are of course free to take leeway anyway. Low carb should be fairly lenient as to everything except carbs.0 -
So my wife and I have decided we both want to make big changes in our life. She wants to be healthier and get her tiny 105 pound beach body back she had before we met (I am a bad influence). I want to lose the 100 pounds that I am overweight and try to shed about 40 of that this year (3-4 pounds per month).
There is 1.5 months left in the year. 40 pounds in 1.5 months. Nice.0 -
I've no idea what the difference in all those things might be and would pick the one that seemed easiest and yummiest.
I can never follow specific diets, though, because they always throw something in I don't like...like broccoli.
Good luck!0 -
So my wife and I have decided we both want to make big changes in our life. She wants to be healthier and get her tiny 105 pound beach body back she had before we met (I am a bad influence). I want to lose the 100 pounds that I am overweight and try to shed about 40 of that this year (3-4 pounds per month).
There is 1.5 months left in the year. 40 pounds in 1.5 months. Nice.
If you do the math it seems more like he meant one year from today, than the rest of calendar year 2014.0 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »So my wife and I have decided we both want to make big changes in our life. She wants to be healthier and get her tiny 105 pound beach body back she had before we met (I am a bad influence). I want to lose the 100 pounds that I am overweight and try to shed about 40 of that this year (3-4 pounds per month).
There is 1.5 months left in the year. 40 pounds in 1.5 months. Nice.
If you do the math it seems more like he meant one year from today, than the rest of calendar year 2014.
The joke.....You missed it0 -
I would also pick clean eating of those choices.0
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Need2Exerc1se wrote: »So my wife and I have decided we both want to make big changes in our life. She wants to be healthier and get her tiny 105 pound beach body back she had before we met (I am a bad influence). I want to lose the 100 pounds that I am overweight and try to shed about 40 of that this year (3-4 pounds per month).
There is 1.5 months left in the year. 40 pounds in 1.5 months. Nice.
If you do the math it seems more like he meant one year from today, than the rest of calendar year 2014.
The joke.....You missed it
If that was supposed to be funny, then yeah ... whoosh!0 -
I think you have a bad case of analysis paralysis. Stop over-thinking it. Just pick the one that sounds best to you and start. Or just start counting calories and learn to cook. Just get a calorie deficit in a sustainable (for you) way however you can.
Otherwise you are going to be asking this for the next 6 months all the while still gaining weight.0 -
Jump starting weight loss isn't a thing. When you try to change all of the things you decide are wrong with your diet all at once, you usually fail. Your best bet is to get your calories under control first, then make better choices regarding protein, carbohydrates, and fats. I recommend getting a food scale and logging all of your food/drink for a week or two. You will see right away how easy it is to eat at a deficit depending on your food choices (e.g., if you have pizza for lunch, you may have to have a tiny, unsatisfying dinner, which means you won't have 4 slices in one sitting again because you want a bigger dinner, etc.).
The problems with clean eating:
-No one really knows what it means. To some it means one thing, to others it means something else. I don't know what it means for the EMEALS program.
-Often, more expensive (some Clean Eating diets are all organic meat, some are only fish, some are all vegan and fresh produce only).
-If you're not used to eating a lot of fresh food, you could end up wasting a lot of it when it goes bad.
-If you're not used to eating high fibre, you could blow out your *kitten* for a few weeks.
-It is very easy to go over on calories if you are not weighing your food. Nuts are so high calorie.
-High meal-prep times, depending on what the heck clean eating means.
-High failure rate because the world is full of "unclean" food, restaurants, and treats.
The problems with paleo:
-Founded on broscience: "paleolithic man ate this way, so we should now" ignores years of evolution, plus the fact that paleolithic man ate a ton of bugs and didn't live very long.
-Very restrictive (at least, some paleo books are)
-Ranked LAST in the US New's "Best Diets of 2014" Reasons? See here: http://health.usnews.com/best-diet/paleo-diet
The problems with low-carb
-There are many different types of low-carb diets with various definitions of how low is enough.
-Low carb diets are extremely hard to stick to.
-US News: A 2010 study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that at that two-year mark, low-fat and low-carb dieters had lost the same amount—about 7 percent of their initial weight. Low-carb diets can also be notoriously difficult to stick to, given their often lengthy lists of off-limits foods. Even clinical trial participants who know they're being studied have trouble adhering to low-carb diet plans. None of the low-carb diets evaluated by U.S. News ranked in the top five weight-loss diets.0 -
–Then weight loss should not be an issue...Well anything I do is going to be a calorie deficit.
–You should achieve all those when you lose fat...I want to feel better, lower cholesterol and high blood pressure, and have more natural energy.
–No such thing as a jumpstart...I also want to really jumpstart my weight loss in the first two weeks.
Whatever you do, make sure you exercise...
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For me clean eating isn't a diet plan you can just start - rather just a way of eating better Rather than revolving around the idea of ingesting more or less of specific things (for instance, fewer calories or more protein or less carbs), the idea is more about being mindful of the food's pathway between its origin and your plate. At its simplest, clean eating is about eating whole foods, or "real" foods — those that are not processed at all OR are very minimally processed, refined, and handled, making them as close to their natural form as possible. Avoiding ultra processed foods (ready to cook or eat items) is the main goal.
As far as changing my diet I actually don't want to eat fast food or any of that junk anymore - don't know where the conclusion came from all of a sudden but it literally grosses me out to look at, to think about how it's made, and to imagine it in my body. It might have come from our recent trip to mexico - everything we ate was handmade and fresh and it changed how I looked at my food. It tasted so much better.
I have a friend with MS and it was getting bad. She cleaned up her diet from all this junk food and fast food and changed to mostly all fresh ingredients -- her disease symptoms improved.
I am pre-diabetic with high blood pressure - healthy eating can do nothing but help and clean eating and avoiding processed foods is going to help even more. Studies show processed foods lead to many auto immune diseases as well as obesity, heart disease, diabetes, etc. - I think cutting them out while also eating healthy - sounds like a win win.0 -
JazzFischer1989 wrote: »Still don't really understand what clean eating is.
No one does. It's a made up term to make money
wow!
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Eat Less.. Do More..*** All the rest is BULL PUCKY. I dont know why people want to make it so hard. However, you may want to do a cleanse.. shakology, and a water fast just to get started....
<- -60 lbs in 5 months. No tricks. simple***0 -
Then do it. Asking others about what to do when your mind is already made up about it doesn't really seem necessary. You don't have to have a name in order to do what you talked about above. Just eat how you want to eat. And if you slip up, don't beat yourself up over it.
As a prediabetic you may want to watch your carbs/sugars but overall, do what you want to do to achieve your goals.
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mustgetmuscles1 wrote: »Well anything I do is going to be a calorie deficit. I am going from eating fast food (combo meals + an added hamburger) for three meals a day and nothing but cookies and chips for snacks. So I can do anything at all and be at a calorie deficit from what I was eating. I will be able trying to stay under 2000 calories a day. Most calculators say to eat between 2000-2350 for weight loss so that is where I will be.
I don't just want to lose weight which is why I am trying to pick a good type of eating - I can do that eating all weight loss processed foods and just staying at a deficit. I want to feel better, lower cholesterol and high blood pressure, and have more natural energy. I also want to really jumpstart my weight loss in the first two weeks.
I have been eating whole, healthful, natural foods all my life and still ended up 30 kilos overweight. Why ? Because I ate consistently two baked potatoes with my meals instead of just one. I ate easily two cups of rice with two meals a day and four cups of rive is a LOT of calories for a person under 5 feet (me). I also enjoyed three times the pasta I eat now.
I have never had macaroni & cheese from a package, never had a take out pizza ( or home made for that matter ) Rice-a Roni or similar stuff and maybe had a handful of chain store burgers in more than 60 years. To clarify; this was because I grew up in a cook & eat at home culture and have lived in them all my life and not because of some weird beliefs. But I still got fat, because I ate to many ( very healthy ) calories.
I think you need to inform yourself and get a good understanding of how calories and nutrition works, because just by eating differently and no matter how healthy, weight loss won't happen if you don't maintain a sustainable deficit.
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muffinsandcakes wrote: »JazzFischer1989 wrote: »Still don't really understand what clean eating is.
No one does. It's a made up term to make money
wow!
You say wow but don't offer us a definition of clean eating or what it really is?
I can do a quick search and find at least 20 different definitions to it.
Most all lead back to it just being a silly term0 -
So my wife and I have decided we both want to make big changes in our life. She wants to be healthier and get her tiny 105 pound beach body back she had before we met (I am a bad influence). I want to lose the 100 pounds that I am overweight and try to shed about 40 of that this year (3-4 pounds per month).
We are using EMEALS to provide us with weekly recipes but are trying to decide between their plans: CLEAN EATING PLAN vs. LOW CARB PLAN vs. PALEO. What are your thoughts on what would be the easiest to stick with AND help us lose the most weight?
We plan to start with just eating better - not overdo it. We want to start off strong with some nice weight loss to get motivated and keep losing each week. But mostly we want to learn to eat better in our day to day life. We want to cut back on some of the bad things like sugar, bad hats, high calorie items, etc and get more towards good proteins, lots of veggies and fruits, and less processed foods. We do want a plan that will allow us a little leeway - we both wake up and walk out the door about 5 minutes later so we'd like to sub a store bought breakfast shake or v8 or something in there. But the rest of the day we want to focus on meals made at home. Something we have never ever done!
Next month we plan to add some exercise - we both just joined a small local gym. But we don't want to push it and overwhelm ourselves to fast. Eating right comes first.
Clean eating will run up the bill a bit. it means eating meat from grass-fed animals, free-range chickens, and absolutely no processed foods (not even a little bit!). That can actually be instituted in each diet and isn't really a meal plan. Paleo is a relatively high-fat diet, as you are eating like our ancestors ate. Low carb is a step up from Paleo, as it ramps up the fat and reduces the carbs. But if you were serious about low-carb, there is a level up from that: ketogenic diet. If you are going to do low carb, you can achieve more health benefits because you will train your body to run on body fat instead of carbs. Ketogenic diet is eating at least 70% fat and less than 10% carbs (for most people).
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For all interested....I am in the middle of an n=1 experiment on a ketogenic diet. I am analyzing a multitude of things, from calorie intake, to energy expenditure, to fitness improvements and many more. This current experiment ends on December 5, and then I will be starting a new 2 month experiment analyzing hunger on both a high-carb diet and then a ketogenic diet. My diary and blog are both open, and you have access to all raw data and procedures. Just friend me and subscribe to my blog.0
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Then do it. Asking others about what to do when your mind is already made up about it doesn't really seem necessary. You don't have to have a name in order to do what you talked about above. Just eat how you want to eat. And if you slip up, don't beat yourself up over it.
This.
OP, I don't actually believe that the link between "processed foods" and "health problems" is all that strong for most. I choose to keep various processed foods (yogurt, baby carrots, smoked salmon, frozen fish, Quest bars, ice cream, items from my favorite lunch places) in my diet because they further my health goals. Sometimes because having something I can eat quick that fits my nutrition goals as well as a Quest bar or one of my favorite salads or wraps, etc. that I purchase (I choose places where the food is at least similar in quality to something I'd make at home) makes it a LOT easier to keep from just eating whatever is in my office kitchen, sometimes because I think they are nutritious and don't see how the processing makes them less so, sometimes just because they are a great snack (ice cream) that fits my calories and I can both eat healthy and continue eating my favorite desserts in a moderate way.
But that's me. If you have some other way that you want to eat (or try eating) that's cool. I tried a few things too. You can always modify and what others think doesn't matter.
I'd rather pull my hair out than eat a meal plan created by someone else (okay, that might be exaggeration), but again that's me and you know what will ultimately work for you. People have success with a wide variety of things.0 -
I agree with this. Though honestly, my stance is that if you focus on a healthy lifestyle, weightloss or weight maintenance (depending on what your body needs) will come with stride.
OP: as other people have stated, choose a way of eating that best fits with your current lifestyle, financial situation, and time management situation. Don't pick a diet that will not work with your lifestyle because it WILL fail in the long run.0 -
True, clean eating does not necessarily mean weight loss. Yes, a calorie deficit is a must for weight loss. However, I can't believe the amount of negativity towards clean eating. I have talked with GI doctors who say that the additives in our food have led to a loss of good bacteria in our digestive systems. I try to reduce the number of additives my family and I ingest. There is a history of colon cancer in my family and I want to avoid that path. I don't push this way of eating on others, it is just a choice. There are times when I do eat things with additives and I know that that isn't the end of the world. But it doesn't hurt anyone if I try to reduce them in my life. I don't get upset when people choose other diets. All are personal choices and we all have our own personal reasons for making them. I guess what I am trying to say is live and let live.0
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I can't believe the amount of negativity towards clean eating.
I don't think this thread has been particularly negative.
If you actually focus on the arguments in the usual "clean eating" thread, what people (including me) have issues with isn't the idea of someone trying to eat healthier or even reduce their own consumption of certain additives. It's instead a few other things:
(1) The name. It's pointless and intentionally insulting. If you mean something specific, say that, as no one knows what you mean by "clean eating" anyway, since people have such a broad variety of definitions and most people don't even do what their personal explanations would suggest (i.e., cut out all processed foods). If you prefer a term that doesn't actually convey any information but refers to the foods you don't eat (but many others do) as "unclean," than the obvious message to draw is that you aren't trying to convey information about your diet, but seeking to insult those who eat differently.
(2) The concept that it is healthier to cut things out vs. focusing on getting adequate nutrients and eating in accord with your goal. I personally think that for some people cutting stuff out works well and might be the best option. But I don't think it's somehow healthier to eat a diet that includes 200 calories of ice cream and 1550 calories of other stuff, on average, vs. one that includes 1750 calories of other stuff. And this is even apart from the fact that many "clean" eaters include in their "clean" calories things other "clean" eaters (or just normal people like me) might not think are ideal from a nutritional standpoint. So maybe the focus should be on the overall diet and we should stop all this silliness about how "clean" means healthy.
(3) Related to (2), the idea that one MUST do whatever you think is "clean" to eat healthy. If you want to, great. I tried lots of things myself and am in favor of experimenting. But it usually goes beyond that--either people post who seem to have the idea that it's necessary for losing weight or they announce that other posters should stop eating whatever it is.
(4) The general idea that it's an antidote to "addiction" or necessary to combat the big corporations who have tricked us into getting fat or the various conspiratorial stuff that often goes along with those threads.
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It has everything to do with health.0 -
I am pre-diabetic with high blood pressure - healthy eating can do nothing but help and clean eating and avoiding processed foods is going to help even more. Studies show processed foods lead to many auto immune diseases as well as obesity, heart disease, diabetes, etc. - I think cutting them out while also eating healthy - sounds like a win win.
In this case, it would be best for you to meet with a registered dietician. They will be able to set up a meal plan with you that best suits your needs, all while treating the pre-diabetes and high BP.
I am not pre-diabetic or diabetic but I am insulin resistant and hypoglycemic and therefore follow a similar diet. Here's what my dietician told me:
-Eat between 15-30 grams of carbs per meal and less than 15 grams per snack.
-Never eat carbohydrates alone… Always pair with a protein.
-Eat healthy fats like olive oil, nuts, seeds, avocados and fiber. It helps keep blood sugar stable.
-Stick to complex carbohydrates as much as possible. This includes: veggies (potatoes and sweet potatoes in moderation because they are starchy vegetables), quinoa, buckwheat, brown rice.
-Fruit should be eaten in moderation (i.e. 2 servings per day… Berries are preferred as they are low in carbs)
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So my wife and I have decided we both want to make big changes in our life. She wants to be healthier and get her tiny 105 pound beach body back she had before we met (I am a bad influence). I want to lose the 100 pounds that I am overweight and try to shed about 40 of that this year (3-4 pounds per month).
We are using EMEALS to provide us with weekly recipes but are trying to decide between their plans: CLEAN EATING PLAN vs. LOW CARB PLAN vs. PALEO. What are your thoughts on what would be the easiest to stick with AND help us lose the most weight?
We plan to start with just eating better - not overdo it. We want to start off strong with some nice weight loss to get motivated and keep losing each week. But mostly we want to learn to eat better in our day to day life. We want to cut back on some of the bad things like sugar, bad hats, high calorie items, etc and get more towards good proteins, lots of veggies and fruits, and less processed foods. We do want a plan that will allow us a little leeway - we both wake up and walk out the door about 5 minutes later so we'd like to sub a store bought breakfast shake or v8 or something in there. But the rest of the day we want to focus on meals made at home. Something we have never ever done!
Next month we plan to add some exercise - we both just joined a small local gym. But we don't want to push it and overwhelm ourselves to fast. Eating right comes first.
OP deactivated.
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RockstarWilson wrote: »For all interested....I am in the middle of an n=1 experiment on a ketogenic diet. I am analyzing a multitude of things, from calorie intake, to energy expenditure, to fitness improvements and many more. This current experiment ends on December 5, and then I will be starting a new 2 month experiment analyzing hunger on both a high-carb diet and then a ketogenic diet. My diary and blog are both open, and you have access to all raw data and procedures. Just friend me and subscribe to my blog.
Your diary is an experiment in making me depressed.0 -
(1) The name. It's pointless and intentionally insulting.
(2) The concept that it is healthier to cut things out vs. focusing on getting adequate nutrients and eating in accord with your goal.
(3) Related to (2), the idea that one MUST do whatever you think is "clean" to eat healthy.
(4) The general idea that it's an antidote to "addiction" or necessary to combat the big corporations who have tricked us into getting fat or the various conspiratorial stuff that often goes along with those threads.
[/quote]
1- I agree that name "clean eating" is not the best. I tried to reduce additives long before I realized people label that as "clean eating". I didn't label it but I am sorry the name insults you. Seems like such a little thing, though.
2 - I do focus on getting adequate nutrients and eating in accord with my goal. That is my primary focus. I just happen to do it while trying to eat in a way that I personally feel is best for my GI system.
3 - I don't think it is the only way to be healthy. That would be very close minded.
4- I have no idea where this one is coming from. I am overweight because of my own doing. Buck stops with me.
Maybe I don't do what you consider as "clean". I understand it's not for everyone. I am not a vegetarian but respect those that choose that diet. If you don't like it, that's fine. Why bother arguing against it?
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(1) The name. It's pointless and intentionally insulting.
(2) The concept that it is healthier to cut things out vs. focusing on getting adequate nutrients and eating in accord with your goal.
(3) Related to (2), the idea that one MUST do whatever you think is "clean" to eat healthy.
(4) The general idea that it's an antidote to "addiction" or necessary to combat the big corporations who have tricked us into getting fat or the various conspiratorial stuff that often goes along with those threads.
1- I agree that name "clean eating" is not the best. I tried to reduce additives long before I realized people label that as "clean eating". I didn't label it but I am sorry the name insults you. Seems like such a little thing, though.
2 - I do focus on getting adequate nutrients and eating in accord with my goal. That is my primary focus. I just happen to do it while trying to eat in a way that I personally feel is best for my GI system.
3 - I don't think it is the only way to be healthy. That would be very close minded.
4- I have no idea where this one is coming from. I am overweight because of my own doing. Buck stops with me.
Maybe I don't do what you consider as "clean". I understand it's not for everyone. I am not a vegetarian but respect those that choose that diet. If you don't like it, that's fine. Why bother arguing against it?
[/quote]
I don't argue against any way of eating. I argue against the term "clean" and the other things I mentioned above. (If you haven't yet noticed 4, just wait.) And I imagine I'm as interested in health as you are, as are most people in these discussions, which is one reason the "why do you hate health" thing always bugs.
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