Cals vs Carbs

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  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    KristaMac88 wrote: »
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    koalathebear wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    carbs are calorie expensive? 1g carb is 4 cal (same as protein) and 1g fat is 9cal...
    I find them so. Pasta, rice, bread, potatoes, cakes, biscuits - all the carb rich foods I like are quite expensive in calories. I still eat them though but just keep them within budget

    I think potatoes are the black sheep of the family. They're not really that calorie dense (less than 1 calorie per gram) and are very nutritious, it's how people prepare it that makes it calorie dense. If you're having fries or au gratin, of course you'll be adding enough fat to take the calories to harder to fit in levels. I can see why some carb rich items can be calorically expensive: either because they usually have fat added or because the moisture content is low. Cakes and biscuits are a prime example, and to some extent pasta if the sauce is fatty. Some of the common "carby" foods have more calories from fat than they do from carbs. Protein items can be just as calorically expensive if you add fat. Think fried chicken which is low in carbs and high in protein and fat.

    My problem with potatoes is that we do not eat them often, and use real potatoes when making stew and stuff like that but over thanksgiving (just had it here in canada) we use the herb and garlic boxed potatoes and they are TERRIBLE for you despite how easy and delicious they are lol and we hate alot of them over the late few days between two dif dinners and leftovers all week.

    That's the thing, nothing is terrible for you unless you have a medical reason not to eat it, like allergies, intolerance, trigger food for a gastro condition...etc. No, they aren't terrible. Even if it was high in calories it's still not terrible. Today most of my food was what people would call terrible, but I still got great nutrition from it because of the variety.
  • Usman70lbs
    Usman70lbs Posts: 24 Member
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    KristaMac88 wrote: »
    So about 6 months ago I somehow got head strong and decided I was going to do keto, stuck with it for about 2 months and lost 15lbs and felt great. I then decided to have a cheat night with drinks and food with hubby and never got back on after that. Ive gained about 8lbs back. I KNOW its all about calorie deficit in the long run, and keto was just a way of cutting certain things out to make that happen..but ever since I started really looking at carbs, I cant go back to tracking normally and not cringing over high amount of carbs and in my head needing to stay under even 100 for the whole day. Today I didnt get a chance to pack food to bring to work so had a nurtigrain bar in the morning... and mozza sticks at lunch. and when I logged them into carb manager, the mozza sticks (unless boxed and deep fried from a restaurant are very dif) but were less carbs than the kellogs little nutrigrain bar! I honestly dont even know what im asking advice for... I guess just people to give me their opinions on which they count (carbs vs just overall cals) and if they have found a happy medium to eat relatively healthy yet somehow keep a nightly snack in their day to not feel deprived and quit so easy. OR if you can have that snack without going overboard or if you have to cut it all out cold turkey? I just need advice to get my head back in the game before I gain all my weight back and the mirror and feeling gross clearly isnt enough..

    I had a similar experience with keto and I'm sure many other people have had the same. I didn't feel like it taught me or got me in the habit of having good portion sizes which is what I think my problem has always been. It just shifted me from having mostly processed foods to mostly non processed foods(apart from a few things).

    This time, I am making an effort to reduce my portion sizes especially when eating something 'unhealthy'. I am also trying to increase my protein intake and fruit and veg intake.

    It's also worth noting that our bodies does not process all carbs the same, so don't feel like you can't have sweet potatoes, courgettes, aubergine, bananas, dates, etc.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
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    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    KristaMac88 wrote: »
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    koalathebear wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    carbs are calorie expensive? 1g carb is 4 cal (same as protein) and 1g fat is 9cal...
    I find them so. Pasta, rice, bread, potatoes, cakes, biscuits - all the carb rich foods I like are quite expensive in calories. I still eat them though but just keep them within budget

    I think potatoes are the black sheep of the family. They're not really that calorie dense (less than 1 calorie per gram) and are very nutritious, it's how people prepare it that makes it calorie dense. If you're having fries or au gratin, of course you'll be adding enough fat to take the calories to harder to fit in levels. I can see why some carb rich items can be calorically expensive: either because they usually have fat added or because the moisture content is low. Cakes and biscuits are a prime example, and to some extent pasta if the sauce is fatty. Some of the common "carby" foods have more calories from fat than they do from carbs. Protein items can be just as calorically expensive if you add fat. Think fried chicken which is low in carbs and high in protein and fat.

    My problem with potatoes is that we do not eat them often, and use real potatoes when making stew and stuff like that but over thanksgiving (just had it here in canada) we use the herb and garlic boxed potatoes and they are TERRIBLE for you despite how easy and delicious they are lol and we hate alot of them over the late few days between two dif dinners and leftovers all week.

    That's the thing, nothing is terrible for you unless you have a medical reason not to eat it, like allergies, intolerance, trigger food for a gastro condition...etc. No, they aren't terrible. Even if it was high in calories it's still not terrible. Today most of my food was what people would call terrible, but I still got great nutrition from it because of the variety.

    really the biggest issue with boxed potatos if you call them that is the sodium that they contain
  • KristaMac88
    KristaMac88 Posts: 163 Member
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    deannalfisher wrote: »
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    KristaMac88 wrote: »
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    koalathebear wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    carbs are calorie expensive? 1g carb is 4 cal (same as protein) and 1g fat is 9cal...
    I find them so. Pasta, rice, bread, potatoes, cakes, biscuits - all the carb rich foods I like are quite expensive in calories. I still eat them though but just keep them within budget

    I think potatoes are the black sheep of the family. They're not really that calorie dense (less than 1 calorie per gram) and are very nutritious, it's how people prepare it that makes it calorie dense. If you're having fries or au gratin, of course you'll be adding enough fat to take the calories to harder to fit in levels. I can see why some carb rich items can be calorically expensive: either because they usually have fat added or because the moisture content is low. Cakes and biscuits are a prime example, and to some extent pasta if the sauce is fatty. Some of the common "carby" foods have more calories from fat than they do from carbs. Protein items can be just as calorically expensive if you add fat. Think fried chicken which is low in carbs and high in protein and fat.

    My problem with potatoes is that we do not eat them often, and use real potatoes when making stew and stuff like that but over thanksgiving (just had it here in canada) we use the herb and garlic boxed potatoes and they are TERRIBLE for you despite how easy and delicious they are lol and we hate alot of them over the late few days between two dif dinners and leftovers all week.

    That's the thing, nothing is terrible for you unless you have a medical reason not to eat it, like allergies, intolerance, trigger food for a gastro condition...etc. No, they aren't terrible. Even if it was high in calories it's still not terrible. Today most of my food was what people would call terrible, but I still got great nutrition from it because of the variety.

    really the biggest issue with boxed potatos if you call them that is the sodium that they contain

    True! Not that I eat them often at all or add salt to my food ever, but my blood pressure is elevated still and hes now starting me on pills so I want to avoid that sort of processed food and hopefully not have to be on pills for long!
  • candylilacs
    candylilacs Posts: 614 Member
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    And the sugar: maltodextrin, dextrose, etc.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
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    candylilacs wrote: »
    And the sugar: maltodextrin, dextrose, etc.

    but sugar isn't inherantly bad - its just the new bad guy
  • KristaMac88
    KristaMac88 Posts: 163 Member
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    I dont know if I could ever get rid of my sweet tooth completely., I just need to figure out which is the best option specially for coffee if its sugar or sweeteners. I know theres "sugar free" chocolate and stuff which for keto is fine, and diabetics..but just for the average person wanting weightloss, is the sugar substitute really doing me any better...
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
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    koalathebear wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    carbs are calorie expensive? 1g carb is 4 cal (same as protein) and 1g fat is 9cal...
    I find them so. Pasta, rice, bread, potatoes, cakes, biscuits - all the carb rich foods I like are quite expensive in calories. I still eat them though but just keep them within budget

    Pasta is usually eaten with foods other than pasta, and personally I don't find a serving very caloric, especially if one bulks it up with vegetables and protein (as in a normal pasta meal). I would find plain noodles pretty boring and so wouldn't eat them anyway. But I could see plain noodles not delivering much satiety/bulk for the calories.

    I find 100 g of potatoes (weighed raw and then roasted) quite filling and quite a reasonable portion, and that's only 70 cal. I feel generally the same about rice, although rice are in the same category as pasta in that I find it boring on its own. Both of these I'd normally eat in the context of a meal with veg and protein, however.

    Fruit and veg (also carbs) are generally low cal for the amount you get (vegetables more so than fruit).

    Cakes, biscuits, high cal, but typically they get a lot of their cals from fat.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    KristaMac88 wrote: »
    kimny72 wrote: »
    KristaMac88 wrote: »
    Thats true! I wish you could change your calorie amount to instead of using the typical 1200 they give you. It doesnt seem like enough to me without causing a big drop or change in food at once instead of easing into it and not being hungry at the end of the night. Or going over and feeling like you failed for the day.

    It only gives you 1200 because of the settings you chose. How much weight in total do you need to lose and how many pounds per week did you set yourself to? If you go slower, you can eat more. If you chose 2 lbs per week, that is really only practical for larger folks with a lot of weight to lose.

    I think its at 1.5 per week. And I have about 30lbs that I want to lose. But could def lose more than that. But would be happy there. And set at seditary because i work an office job and besides the little walk to and from buses and odd 40min lunch class I do I dont get alot of exercise otherwise.

    If I were you, I'd change it to 1 lb per week. It will give you a few more calories so you don't psychologically deal with always going over. And you know you have some wiggle room so if you actually only eat 1200 one day, you get to see bonus calories sitting there :smile:

    If there's any way you can make this happen, try to focus on positive goals rather than negative, and on patting yourself on the back for good behaviors rather than feeling guilty for bad choices. So focus on getting enough protein, or one extra serving of veggies, or taking a 5 minute walk after dinner. Who cares if you ate a "naughty" snack, it's not going to matter in the long run! Log it, hit your calorie goal, and keep moving forward (even if it's super slow and in a windy roller-coaster path :lol: )
  • sammidelvecchio
    sammidelvecchio Posts: 791 Member
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    I know how you feel. It's so hard to get out of a mindset you've been in for a while. I am still figuring out how to incorporate carbs back into my diet after being scared of them for years. It won't happen overnight, and it can be especially difficult if you tie "carbs" with just things like chips, cakes, cookies etc and you also have trouble moderating those foods.

    I was like this for so long, I always thought I had trouble moderating carbs, but I don't, because I can definitely eat broccoli in moderation LOL. I do tend to feel better physically on a lower carb diet, but its for medical reasons.

    If you don't have any negative feelings physically eating carbs, start slow with introducing what you think are "bad foods" and then start noting whether it's somewhat easy for you to moderate it. If not, leave that out of your diet for a while.

    That's the advice I have based on my experience anyways, but most importantly you're not weird or crazy for having these thoughts. A lot of people are struggling with this right now! Diet culture can really be a you-know-what on our mental health !
  • KristaMac88
    KristaMac88 Posts: 163 Member
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    kimny72 wrote: »
    KristaMac88 wrote: »
    kimny72 wrote: »

    If I were you, I'd change it to 1 lb per week. It will give you a few more calories so you don't psychologically deal with always going over. And you know you have some wiggle room so if you actually only eat 1200 one day, you get to see bonus calories sitting there :smile:

    If there's any way you can make this happen, try to focus on positive goals rather than negative, and on patting yourself on the back for good behaviors rather than feeling guilty for bad choices. So focus on getting enough protein, or one extra serving of veggies, or taking a 5 minute walk after dinner. Who cares if you ate a "naughty" snack, it's not going to matter in the long run! Log it, hit your calorie goal, and keep moving forward (even if it's super slow and in a windy roller-coaster path :lol: )

    aha yeah thats true! Thank you, i feel better about this now I think!
  • KristaMac88
    KristaMac88 Posts: 163 Member
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    sammidelvecchio wrote: »
    I know how you feel. It's so hard to get out of a mindset you've been in for a while. I am still figuring out how to incorporate carbs back into my diet after being scared of them for years. It won't happen overnight, and it can be especially difficult if you tie "carbs" with just things like chips, cakes, cookies etc and you also have trouble moderating those foods.

    I was like this for so long, I always thought I had trouble moderating carbs, but I don't, because I can definitely eat broccoli in moderation LOL. I do tend to feel better physically on a lower carb diet, but its for medical reasons.

    If you don't have any negative feelings physically eating carbs, start slow with introducing what you think are "bad foods" and then start noting whether it's somewhat easy for you to moderate it. If not, leave that out of your diet for a while.

    That's the advice I have based on my experience anyways, but most importantly you're not weird or crazy for having these thoughts. A lot of people are struggling with this right now! Diet culture can really be a you-know-what on our mental health !

    Right! Thank you!!! Theres so many dif diets out there that have you counting specific stuff that once ur in that mind set its hard to believe if you dont focus on that macro you will still loose. I have no problem with good carbs like the few thats in broccoli or even carrots and fruit - because I dont eat a ton of fruit. Its the junk food carbs that get me because junk food i have zero control around! even if its not "junk" like a nutrigrain bar or flavored yogourt - still packs carbs, but is still my kids enjoy so is always in the house and so easy to grab n go to work!

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