Yes. You CAN eat 'normal' food! (my rant.)

I think this is a bit of an oversimplification of both sides.

I wouldn't call processed foods normal. They might be habit, but the fact that half the ingredients in most processed foods aren't food at all I don't think is normal. That's just me.

I enjoy eating healthy. I almost never eat salads personally, but I like my organic turkey burgers on whole wheat buns with organic romain lettuce and tomato and cheese with a side of sweet potato fries. The whole meal is less than 500 calories and it's all healthy and I don't consider it a "swap" for any food I'd rather have. My life got so much better when I learned to cook great food in a clean and healthy way. After about two weeks of cleaning up my eating habits I stopped craving any of those foods. I haven't eaten fast food in 10 weeks. I've gone out to eat a couple of times but our resteraunt choices, my choices off the menu, and my portion sizes have changed a lot. I do not treat food as a reward, even if it tastes amazing.

But here's the thing. I didn't jump straight into clean, healthy food when I started losing weight. The changes I made were slow and deliberate. One week I swapped out our regular skim milk for organic. Then I swapped out most of our cheeses for organic and low fat. Then one week I swapped out our thin skinned veggies with organic versions. I researched what foods are best eaten organic and swapped those out. I think all in all my grocery bill has gone up about $15 overall. Worth it, I think, especially since we don't really spend money eating out anymore.

Eating this way is a personal choice and not one I regret. I don't miss any food in particular and I still make pizza and burgers and chinese food at home. I still have desert. There are still some processed foods in my diet, but not as much. I don't think it's just a scale thing. For me it's the way I feel. I feel better and I like not craving certain foods anymore. I like controlling what I eat and when. If you don't want to do it this way, that's fine, but I don't think there's anything wrong with it either.

for a while, I was seeing an abundance of "what's gonna happen to my boobs" threads. new batches daily, it seemed. but, lately, I'm seeing new folks coming in and asking if they can eat so-called 'normal' food. and, of course, soon thereafter they are informed by various members that, no, all of that food is terrible and they must stock their fridge with organic lettuce grown under the sunshine reflected off a tropical rainbow.

that really bothers me. people join this site, often, after years of failed attempts. many are frustrated ... discouraged. so much so that it probably wouldn't take much for them to just throw it in and give up. and you know what just might be that push? the organic rainbow lettuce brigade.

you know what, that food is certainly nutritious. no one is really going to argue that point. and is nutritious food better for your body than not-so-nutritious food? well, yeah. but here's the thing, ORLBs. that's an extreme change many -- if not most -- people can't make. and, yes, I said can't -- not won't. it isn't always as simple as just throwing away all the food you've got and restocking with fresh produce and tofu burgers. the first obstacle is cost. the second is ease/feasibility. and that's not even figuring in the fact that many -- if not most, again -- don't like to eat that food!

I get the concept that food is fuel. sometimes you have to eat things you may not like. but I'm not going to make it long by making that kind of food my only kind of food. that's no way to live, dreading your next meal. and most people won't. that's why diets fail. and that's why MFP works. because a calorie is a calorie.

Yes. You CAN eat 'normal' food. I'll eat pizza. I'll eat chocolate. I eat pasta and bread and even, now and then, a cookie or some candy. I lost 3.5 pounds this past week. I've lost more than 17 pounds in less than two months. and it's because I'm learning to keep my food portions under control. I keep under my calorie limit. I plan ahead if I know I'm going to have a larger meal or a higher-calorie treat that day. and if it just happens without planning and I decide to take that treat? that means a longer stint at the gym to burn those extra calories off.

the ORLBs will now start sputtering, 'but that's not healthy!' and to that, I'd like to ask if being obese is healthy. I think ... no. so. let's move to basic food math:

eating less of most the food I like, keeping calories under my limit = weight loss;
weight loss = a healthier me;
therefore, eating less of most the food I like, keeping calories under my limit = a healthier me.

shedding that extra weight automatically makes you healthier, no matter what it is you are eating. there's simply no way around that fact. now, that isn't to say that you shouldn't make smart decisions. that isn't to say that you shouldn't work to find 'healthy' foods that you like, working them into your daily life. but, like weight loss, that's a process. it doesn't need to happen overnight.

focus on what works. turn yourself into a better you. and do it in a way that will allow it to be a life change. and if, for you, that means 'normal' food? do it, and do it without any of the guilt you've been programmed or pressured to feel.

Real quick here: for those "healthy eaters" who think that what they eat now as "normal" food, do you think that if everyone "normally" ate that way, they'd be overweight or obese? I'm betting the answer is no.
So since the majority of overweight and obese people probably didn't get that way from eating whole grains, vegetables, whole foods etc., then wouldn't the processed, junk, high sugar, high fat foods actually be the norm?

A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

I think price is a major roadblock to healthier eating followed by convinience. I'm sort of fortunate to be on furlough right now so I have the time to devote to eating better. Hopefully I will be able to sustain these new habits when I go back to work.

lol seriously, ffs, sun dried peanuts. amazing.

I don't "do" organic. I think it is a waste of money & if this is what you end up thinking like then I'm even more glad of it.

What a twonk

I'm a little confused by this post. Are you responding to anyone in particular?

Real quick here: for those "healthy eaters" who think that what they eat now as "normal" food, do you think that if everyone "normally" ate that way, they'd be overweight or obese? I'm betting the answer is no.
So since the majority of overweight and obese people probably didn't get that way from eating whole grains, vegetables, whole foods etc., then wouldn't the processed, junk, high sugar, high fat foods actually be the norm?

A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

I definitely got overweight that way. Eating a huge bowl of pasta with meat sauce while you sit on your *kitten* is still going to pack on the pounds whether or not the pasta is whole grain and the meat sauce is made with veggies and grass fed beef. Making a wonderful veggie stir fry and serving it over a double helping of rice is still going to get you overweight. My problem was portion control. And sitting on my *kitten*. My problem was not that I ate a bunch a processed junk. Sorry to disappoint.

I grew up with a home cooked and well-balanced meal everyday to go along with my packed lunch. Every once in a while my mom would fry chicken or fish or take us out to eat at McDonald's or Taco Bell. I still cook all the time. I LOVE to cook. I love to cook with whole grains and veggies. I always have. Even in college I was the one having baked chicken with brown rice and veggies while everyone else ate their Hot Dogs and top ramen. I had fast food maybe once or twice a week when I was too busy with school to cook.

The fact of the matter is that eating processed junk is not everyone's normal.

My bowl of oatmeal this morning may have had the same amount of calories as an Egg McMuffin, but I know that in the long run, steel cut oats, blueberries, and ground flax seeds are WAY better for my body than the McMuffin. Calories aside, the actual foods themselves are waaaay better for you.

You're missing the point. No one is going to argue that those foods aren't more healthful. What I think folks are attempting to say is that the world isn't going to end because you treat yourself to McD's now and then.

I know, I have way too much time on my hands. I gotta get called back to work. Just to be fair, I do still eat some organic whenever I can. It just isn't my religon anymore. No offense to anyone, I'm just having alittle fun.