Nutrition

lisawilkes20 wrote: »

Thankyou for the info.
I had an apple before which I did'nt weigh but put it down as a medium apple, in brackets it said 154, I looked at the nutrients just to see what it said, it said I had gone over on vitamin A, I could'nt believe it with just one apple.
Its getting abit too technical for me so I'm going to just stick to what I have been doing up to now, which is weighing my food & logging the calories. I joined at running club, so the days I go I eat abit of what I fancy knowing that my calories will allow for it.
Thankyou

Yes, I think you should leave the smaller bits and pieces until you need them. There is no way an apple could make you ingest too much of anything. Be aware that the information of the item you picked could be wrong. Yes, even (or in particular) the "verified" ones. Ideally, you would check every item against the packaging, or the USDA database if it has no nutrition label. You should also weigh everything, in grams, and just the part you eat. I subtracted the weight of the cores, pits, shells, peels, bones of everything - whenever possible, of course; oysters are difficult to weigh, and you don't bring your scale to the restaurant - when I tracked calories.

Maybe you should take a step back and think about what you are doing and why you are doing it and what you want to achieve - this can lead you towards a set of behaviors that really works for you. There is no reason to take unnecessary steps, or following arbitrary rules, but on the other hand, you won't succeed if you fumble around in the dark. Logging and tracking isn't meant to add confusion and extra work, but to make you more aware of what you are doing and how that affects you. Just the right amount of structure will make you feel like you're in charge, not like a chore. I liked taking a closer look at my diet. But I don't use tweezers and magnifying glass anymore.

I needed to correct the things that were off with MY eating habits: I ate too much junk, tried to compensate by postponing meals and eating less food, but when I did eat, I overate food too, because I didn't "believe" in "portions". I had tried eating "healthy", but all the restrictions and superfoods I belived necessary, just lead to rebellion - I need taste, and to make my own choices.

I still plan my meals, in a spreadsheet, weigh foods that can be weighed, and log as I eat, but I don't record amounts unless for planning purposes. I eat mainly "ordinary food", food that doesn't trigger overeating, but only food I like, and I aim to make every meal tasty and delicious. I know how much I need, I serve myself that amount, I know how "full" (or "satisfied") is supposed to feel like, and I don't want to go beyond that. I weigh myself every morning, record that, and calculate the weekly average every Friday. I have stayed within a range of 55-58 kilos for 21 months now.

It takes an effort, but it doesn't feel like a lot of work. It's like clockwork, where lots of little things make the whole machine going. Compared to the stress and worry I lived under before, this is fun and liberating. (I guess it'd just feel "normal" if I had done this all the time).

lisawilkes20 wrote: »

Well done for maintainng that long

Thanks - but I think you are missing the point: I have managed to maintain for so long because I've found a way to make it vitually effortless. It's not a struggle, I do not find it difficult. If it were difficult, I couldn't have stuck with the behavior that makes me maintain my weight.