Other people's odd ideas about healthy.

That's funny because it sounds just like my friends at school. They are all using MFP too, but struggle to accurately enter the amount of jelly beans, Kettle Corn, chocolate muffins, and Ranch dip with their carrot sticks. Hello, it's not all about calories in calories out! It's quality of food!

Well, a low calorie count doesn't mean it's healthy and a high calorie count doesn't mean it's not. But it doesn't sound like those foods will help them lose weight if they continue eating them in those quantities.

I think it's justification. My ex-husband claimed his breakfast was healthy because it only costs 99 cents at Speedway - red hot smokies
Everyone knows the cheaper the meal, the healthier it is, right?

When I saw bacon I was thinking Adkins but the pasta & pizza threw me. Maybe it was whole wheat pasta? Low fat cheese? Maybe they were eating donuts, pie & cake for breakfast before? Keep doing what you're doing and maybe they'll learn good habits from you.

the way they are dieting maybe works for them. i was on a diet for a long time that didnt count calories or anything but was just focused around low fat dairy, whole grain breads, eating the right kind of fats and eating whatever i wanted one time a week, and from that i lost weight BUT i was a lot more active then and i followed it strictly. but now, i'm not doing that, being less active i'm watching my calorie counts and i dont have access to nice weather all year round like i did in California but maybe once i'm up to that activity level again i will go back to my Abs Diet.

but everyone diets differently, you just have to know what is realistic for you and how your body reacts to the regiment.

I am not an expert and i would never claim to be. I eat biscuits and other less nutritious foods but i also try to balance it with the other good things i eat.
However, i started a new job on monday and every single girl in the office (all four of them..) are 'dieting together' which is great but i'm trying hard not to watch them eat pasta, cheese, bacon and jacket potato for lunch as a way to cut calories right now. And one of them had pizza for breakfast but it was ok because it had sweetcorn on so it was healthier. The mind boggles!
Do they really think they are eating food which will help them lose weight? I'm really muddled by this.

pasta, cheese and bacon and potato are not 'unhealthy' but high calorie.
and yes most people dont realise just how different a bowl of pasta is and a bowl of vegetables is calorie-wise.

so true. Although I consider pasta very unhealthy. It's a refined carb. And those carbs just make you "hungry" again in a couple of hours.

isn't wholemeal pasta better for you? i eat it occasionally.

I think it's justification. My ex-husband claimed his breakfast was healthy because it only costs 99 cents at Speedway - red hot smokies
Everyone knows the cheaper the meal, the healthier it is, right?

Are you trying to say it isnt??

I am not an expert and i would never claim to be. I eat biscuits and other less nutritious foods but i also try to balance it with the other good things i eat.
However, i started a new job on monday and every single girl in the office (all four of them..) are 'dieting together' which is great but i'm trying hard not to watch them eat pasta, cheese, bacon and jacket potato for lunch as a way to cut calories right now. And one of them had pizza for breakfast but it was ok because it had sweetcorn on so it was healthier. The mind boggles!
Do they really think they are eating food which will help them lose weight? I'm really muddled by this.

pasta, cheese and bacon and potato are not 'unhealthy' but high calorie.
and yes most people dont realise just how different a bowl of pasta is and a bowl of vegetables is calorie-wise.

so true. Although I consider pasta very unhealthy. It's a refined carb. And those carbs just make you "hungry" again in a couple of hours.

isn't wholemeal pasta better for you? i eat it occasionally.

^^^^ I hope so! I eat wholewheat penne pretty much everyday (have lost 26lbs in last 8 weeks) and I think it's the one thing which keeps hunger at bay. I thought it was a slow energy release carb hence why marathon runners eat masses of it the night before they run

I am not an expert and i would never claim to be. I eat biscuits and other less nutritious foods but i also try to balance it with the other good things i eat.
However, i started a new job on monday and every single girl in the office (all four of them..) are 'dieting together' which is great but i'm trying hard not to watch them eat pasta, cheese, bacon and jacket potato for lunch as a way to cut calories right now. And one of them had pizza for breakfast but it was ok because it had sweetcorn on so it was healthier. The mind boggles!
Do they really think they are eating food which will help them lose weight? I'm really muddled by this.

I think a lot of folks are very misinformed about what healthy is. And it is really sad. And a lot of people think eating that food will help them lose weight and for some it will work, temporarily. Some folks think eating a salad is a "healthy" choice. And then they mound it with all the wrong things to make it more fattening than the pizza or the cheeseburger.

My eyes were re-opened about others views on nutrition when I would go out with friends for lunch and I would have to order "non menu foods" just to get something low-fat, low-cal, and low salt. That is new for me, and my friends will say, "Is that all you are eating?" and I will tell them that I went to the restaurants website nutrition page, and the salad they ordered has more sodium than I should have for three days and more calories than I can have in a day-and-a-half and that does not include the dressing!

A book that is really a good read and has good information is called the New Glucose Revolution. It gives you lots of newer information about carbohydrates and the burn of them, which ones are slow burn and don't spike the sugar levels.

They are cutting their usually 3 slices of pizza and the food they used to eat with the potato jack so they justify it. They need to learn to like the healthy stuff.

It depends what they were eating before but yeah I can't imagine anyone seriously thinking pizza for breakfast is healthy!

It's like the people who boast about going to the gym but you only ever see them on the recumbent bike at 0 resistance reading a magazine for half an hour...

Maybe they are just trying to lose some weight, not convert to being healthy.

I'll be the first to admit, and if people are honest i'm sure i'm not the only one, i'm trying to lose fat to be lighter, faster, and not as round.

Health is a by-product for me.

You don't have to cut all the "bad" food, eat only "good" food, whole grains, veggies, nuts, etc. There's "healthy" and there's "healthier". If you have 10 choccy bars a day, and cut down to 3, its "healthier".

Remember, not all of us are trying to get mega fit and that perfect 6 pack. We're just looking for a way to lose fat that is sustainable for a long time. Simply cutting down on things and exercising more will do that.

Don't vilify those who don't eat a perfectly healthy, well balanced diet.

My FIL is a Type 2 diabetic. I will never forget going out to eat and when the waitress told him the side of the day was brown rice, he said he can't eat rice because of his diabetes and said he'd have the mac and cheese instead. :huh:

As long as they're holding themselves accountable, what's the problem? Will it give them loads of nutrients? No. But can they lose weight eating it as long as they're staying within their calories? Yes. Plus, who's to say they aren't eating a crazy healthy dinner? It's really not anybody's business but their own, IMO.

...Don't vilify those who don't eat a perfectly healthy, well balanced diet.

I think this is a wonderful statement! Not everyone can eat the same way. Please don't judge other people who don't have the same eating habits as you do. Instead, try to be a good role model by bringing healthy foods with you to work. That is all you can and should do, unless they ask you otherwise.