Bananas? Good for weightloss or toss?

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catscats222
catscats222 Posts: 1,598 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am trying to eat foods high in magnesium, potassium, etc.
And eat more fruits and veggies.
And lose the last bit of weight (yes, during holidays coming).

One week I will eat bananas, the other no.
I read about them, one site says yes good, another site says no.
I want foods to keep me full, and not keep me wanting sugars.
nutrition banana: 110 calos 14 grams sugar
I want to be one of those people that says "I don't even crave sugars anymore".
Do you eat them, or do you choose other fruits/veggies?

Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    If they fit in your goals, they'll be good for weight loss. Just like anything else, you'll want to log the calories.

    I don't personally eat them (except for in smoothies) because I think they're gross. But many people find them delicious and include them in their meals when they are losing weight.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited November 2015
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    I think you are overthinking this. See how you feel when you eat them and don't worry about what some site says.

    I eat them sometimes, because they tend to be convenient post-workout options and I like them and find them filling. I don't eat them a lot because I usually prefer berries or local fruit in-season (I just like peaches or plums more than bananas and I get tons of apples (even now) and cantaloupe (in the summer) from my CSA and feel compelled to finish those before buying any other fruit). Bananas have more calories than some other fruit options, but I don't find a banana a particularly difficult thing to fit in my day. Eating them has zero effect on cravings.
  • amberlyda1
    amberlyda1 Posts: 154 Member
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    I keep them in my diet because I like them. Have you ever dipped them in Greek yogurt and stuck them in the freezer?...so good. I like them for the potassium and other nutrients. They are a great pre/post workout snack with peanut butter.
  • markrgeary1
    markrgeary1 Posts: 853 Member
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    I eat them daily(some days 2) as well as berries. Good food, potassium is important for me as I'm no longer on BP. meds.
  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
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    I don't think anyone can answer this for you, eat them and if it makes you crave sugary things stop eating them. It is a very personal thing.

    I love them and have no ill effects to eat them.
  • RogerToo
    RogerToo Posts: 16,157 Member
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    Hi
    I have a Banana a Day with my breakfast to help keep leg cramps away. I Get the smaller ones FWIW. I slice them into if very ripe into healthy Cereal or Blend them into a Vanilla Protein Shake, Or if Still firm I eat them Plain.

    As You can see they have worked with my weight loss program.
    88672520.png

    Good Luck
    Roger
  • Lourdesong
    Lourdesong Posts: 1,492 Member
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    I eat bananas occasionally. I weigh them though. One banana = 110 calories? Maybe on average. Bananas come in many sizes.

    Being precise about your calorie intake will take you farther towards your weight loss goals than fretting about over minutia like sugar and magnesium and food types.
  • ngagne
    ngagne Posts: 57 Member
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    I seem to eat in cycles - for awhile I'll eat of lot of something then switch to something else.
    at some point, I wanted to try using a protein shake as my breakfast replacement - which for me to feel full, I made it in a blender with ice & added a banana for creaminess (it seriously tastes like a milkshake to me). Later I was also back to eating some eggs for breakfast with the protein shake. But then I thought the same thing - that maybe I should cut down on always eating a banana a day. so I did. I also happened to switch protein powders at the same time (which I was working out before breakfast, so the protein breakfast shake was also my post-workout). at the same time I cut out my banana, I also tried a brand-equivalent protein powder.
    I started feeling sore during the day (from my workouts, which essentially hadn't changed).
    I thought it was the new brand-equivalent protein powder as a recovery was just not doing it's job too well. So, I switched back to the original protein powder. I was still more sore than I had been before.
    So... I put back in my banana post-workout. And now I feel great again.
    Point of my rant - I think the banana helps me post-workout. I don't have it everyday, just the days that I have a more strenuous workout (so like every other day now). But, on days where I don't have banana, I will sometimes have an apple instead (or some kind of fruit).
    enjoy the banana, if you want. I'd just limit yourself to only 1 serving of fruit a day if you're trying to lose weight or 'get leaner'. All fruits have sugar-carbs & shouldn't account for a lot of your daily calories/carbs anyway.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    ngagne wrote: »
    I seem to eat in cycles - for awhile I'll eat of lot of something then switch to something else.
    at some point, I wanted to try using a protein shake as my breakfast replacement - which for me to feel full, I made it in a blender with ice & added a banana for creaminess (it seriously tastes like a milkshake to me). Later I was also back to eating some eggs for breakfast with the protein shake. But then I thought the same thing - that maybe I should cut down on always eating a banana a day. so I did. I also happened to switch protein powders at the same time (which I was working out before breakfast, so the protein breakfast shake was also my post-workout). at the same time I cut out my banana, I also tried a brand-equivalent protein powder.
    I started feeling sore during the day (from my workouts, which essentially hadn't changed).
    I thought it was the new brand-equivalent protein powder as a recovery was just not doing it's job too well. So, I switched back to the original protein powder. I was still more sore than I had been before.
    So... I put back in my banana post-workout. And now I feel great again.
    Point of my rant - I think the banana helps me post-workout. I don't have it everyday, just the days that I have a more strenuous workout (so like every other day now). But, on days where I don't have banana, I will sometimes have an apple instead (or some kind of fruit).
    enjoy the banana, if you want. I'd just limit yourself to only 1 serving of fruit a day if you're trying to lose weight or 'get leaner'. All fruits have sugar-carbs & shouldn't account for a lot of your daily calories/carbs anyway.

    As long as OP is meeting her goals, I don't see the problem of having carbohydrates come from fruit. How will this impede weight loss?
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    No one individual food is good or bad for weight loss.
    Do you like bananas?
    If no.... don't eat banana.
    If yes... can you fit it into your calories for the day?
    If yes... eat banana.
    If no... don't eat banana OR go for a walk then eat banana OR wait till tomorrow and then eat banana.

    In closing..

    tumblr_muryj8MfOF1s821tso1_500.gif
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    no particular food is good or bad for weight loss...weight management is about energy balance. when you consume more energy (calories) than your body requires to function optimally and maintain the status quo, that surplus of energy is stored for later use as body fat (or if you're lifting some of it will be used to build your muscle mass). when you consume less energy than you require to function optimally, your back up generator kicks on and you burn stored fat to make up the deficiency. it has nothing to do with whether you eat a banana or not.
  • misterdale67
    misterdale67 Posts: 171 Member
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    I don't know if they are good for weight loss or not. I just eat them because they are delicious! :)
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,224 Member
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    WinoGelato wrote: »
    No one individual food is good or bad for weight loss.
    Do you like bananas?
    If no.... don't eat banana.
    If yes... can you fit it into your calories for the day?
    If yes... eat banana.
    If no... don't eat banana OR go for a walk then eat banana OR wait till tomorrow and then eat banana.

    In closing..

    tumblr_muryj8MfOF1s821tso1_500.gif

    ^^^^
    THIS!
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,224 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    no particular food is good or bad for weight loss...weight management is about energy balance. when you consume more energy (calories) than your body requires to function optimally and maintain the status quo, that surplus of energy is stored for later use as body fat (or if you're lifting some of it will be used to build your muscle mass). when you consume less energy than you require to function optimally, your back up generator kicks on and you burn stored fat to make up the deficiency. it has nothing to do with whether you eat a banana or not.

    ^^^^
    THIS!
    AGAIN

    No one food makes a difference, if it fits in your calories, it is fine.

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