Unhealthy Eating to Healthy Eating.... Help

Baby steps.

I switched my diet to mostly cooking for myself years ago, so it wasn't really related to how I lost this time (eating less was). However, when I did it initially I just worked on one thing at a time and gradually improved (and read about nutrition).

An easy way to start is to pick a strategy for breakfast and lunch. Then gradually start learning to make some dinners that fit into your idea of what's healthy and start buying the ingredients so you have them on hand.

I don't really think there's anything wrong with a burger (or anything, but that's one of the examples you used) -- it can be a quick and easy dinner. I'd just make sure I paired it with lots of vegetables, and usually I choose between a bun (ideally whole grain) or some other starch (I'm not that into bread, so I often like it bunless, and then I make some roasted potatoes to have with my vegetables).

Little things like that.

I always have some good protein options and lots of vegetables at home and I cook what I have -- makes it easier.

What @lemurcat12 said start small. I started by taking my lunch instead of eating out. Something as simple as actually eating breakfast (at home instead of Mickey D's) makes a HUGE difference in my appetite for the rest of the day. Also look at the healthy things that you already like/love. I'm Southern, so I LOVE me some home-cooked, southern style veggies. Things like turnip greens, collards, cabbage. I incorporated them into my meal plan on a daily basis and I still do.

There's an image somewhere about the order in which you should prioritize the different aspects of what makes a good diet.

They are, in this order:

1. Total calories
2. Macronutrients (Protein, fat, carbs)
3. Micronutrients (vitamins, minerals)
4. Nutrient timing
5. Supplements

The idea is, get your calories worked out first, and only move down the list as you become comfortable with and control what's above it. As you make progress in this structured way, you'll come to understand naturally how someone's diet can change in the manner you described.

Let's see how this plays out hypothetically:

Someone who's gaining weight doesn't have their diet under control. That is, they're not even figuring out their total calories, let alone macros and so on. When he makes a change, he should focus on simply eating less first, to the point that he's eating less than he burns each day, and he should stay at this point for a while, no matter what foods comprise those calories.

Next, he may realize that he wants to look good and be healthier and more fit. He'll have to exercise and lift weights. He can maintain his calorie deficit, but he'll need to start thinking about his macros. Protein will likely need to make up a bigger percentage, and take over many of the calories previously occupied by fat and carbs. He'll need a certain amount of carbs to lift weights effectively, and so fat will go down a bit more.

Suddenly, in order to meet these constraints, he can't easily eat a lot of things like pizza or cake. There's nothing wrong with either of those, but they contain macros in percentages that don't work for his diet. He's finding out that chicken breast and rice work much better for him. He has also discovered fiber, and that he needs a certain amount. Now, brown rice helps more than white rice (white rice is fine, but it has less fiber, so in this case it's less useful).

He's getting some good progress, but wants to keep going and be more healthy. He starts learning about certain vitamins like Vitamin K. That sounds really good for you, where do you get that? Broccoli? The more we learn about broccoli, the better it seems. It's like a miracle food. He adds some to his meals. Suddenly, he now has grilled chicken, brown rice, and broccoli all the time. It's essentially a cliche for those who've gone through these ropes before. He starts adding this and that, which contribute more vitamins and minerals, providing more bang for his caloric buck.

Then, he finds out he can lift weights and recover better with pre/post workout nutrition, and that he should eat some slow digesting protein before bed.

Then, he finds out how he should really be supplementing a high quality fish oil for joint and heart health, and how he can easily fill in those 20 pesky protein grams with a scoop of powder mixed with low calorie almond milk.

Long story short, add things as you learn, as they become needed. Don't dive into the deep end, or you'll drown in a cruciferous sea of kale. As you take these little steps, you'll eventually come to a place where you understand how counterproductive your old diet was, even though there was nothing wrong with those individual foods.

Then, one day, you too will be arguing passionately on the MFP forums how there's no good definition of "clean eating." That, my friend, is when you know you've made it.

My tip, focus on getting enough fiber from whole foods. Focus on getting enough protein. But most importantly, make sure to stay within your calorie goal.

In my opinion, if you focus on getting enough fiber and protein, it's nearly impossible for your diet to not be balanced.

Most important thing is to learn to say no. No to lunches with friends at fast food joints, no to donuts at the morning meetings and mostly no to your self as you feel your self control slipping. Consider it a lot like smoking, its hard at first, but as you do it you will learn and adapt into it. One very important thing, Healthy food does not and should not taste bad or Bland. If you find that what you are trying to eat is not tasting good or filling you up you are not going to make it. There are a lot of great tasting healthy food out there, just don't be afraid to look. When you do go out to eat, find the menu online and look up the nutrition information up before you go. It really helps if when you sit down at the table you already know what you are going to have and how many calories it has in it.

I used a weekly experiment, goal, and assessment technique.

I would use the information I was getting from MFP, look at my results, and try something new. For instance, an early lesson was that a single Carl's Junior burger could net 1,250 calories. Eek! I never looked at that restaurant chain the same again.

I developed a habit of making up a salad or a slow cooker meal to last me a few days. Saved money and had ready access to healthier choices.

itsthehumidity wrote: »

There's an image somewhere about the order in which you should prioritize the different aspects of what makes a good diet.

This one?


Having this in the forefront of your mind will solve most of the problems people post about here.

To add: some people quibble about the meal timing tier. The site this is from incorporates Intermittent Fasting, so that's an included angle on things. It's not like "don't eat before bed, 6 small meals!" BS.

I wouldn't say eating salads every day will do the trick, but if you slowly train yourself into eating good/healthy foods, you will eventually get to where all you want to eat is healthy foods. Just like unhealthy foods, you eat them all the time so thats all that you know to eat. Become immune to good foods and you will crave them just like anything else.

WinoGelato wrote: »

activefatgirl wrote: »

Wow! Thanks everyone for your posts. As I don't want to give up my loves (burger, fries, and pizza) I would like to dabble in to a whole new world of food. I call my eating style "kid friendly" and I need to start eating adult foods LOL. I have already started bringing my breakfast and lunch to work, so I think I will try and cook a new thing each night for dinner.... baby steps.

I will also change my food diary back to times and really think about the below.
Total calories
Macronutrients (Protein, fat, carbs)
Micronutrients (vitamins, minerals)
Nutrient timing
Supplements

While I think that pyramid is great and the detailed example of how to apply it above was fantastic, most people will improve health and get the desired results by focusing on the first three and not need to dabble in nutrient timing and supplements.

Good luck.

This is an excellent point that I agree with. I probably should have put a gap between the first three and the last two to indicate that calories, macros, and micros should get 99%+ of your attention and effort.

What I will say is that I think it is beneficial for everyone to take a multivitamin, and probably fish oil. Here are some good examples of each:

http://www.amazon.com/Foods-Female-Multi-Softgel-Softgels/dp/B003EN3KP2/ref=pd_sim_121_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=41Z39Kv8DML&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR86,160_&refRID=1Y52HA1CH9RYPHRRKJ9R

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002CQU564?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00