Drinking Water / Eating Better

[Trish Bessette]

Ok my DIS friends, you are all so wonderful with advice so here is my question: I'm trying to change our eating habits. My size 10 are tight and for the first time in my 42 years I have to do something! I'm not fond of muffin tops

So, for a few weeks I've incorporated fresh fruit and veggies in our diet. I'm drinking about 3 16.9 oz bottled waters a day. I'm also doing plenty of other things like fresh fish, chicken, etc.

You know what? I feel awful! By early afternoon I feel so darn bloated from the water. Yes, I am frequently going to the rest room. Why do I feel so awful

My weakness is exercising and I know I have to do that. I leave at 6:30 a.m. and by the time I get home after kids games, etc it is dark out. I know it is an excuse but this is all new for me, never had to diet before.

Will I get used to drinking all this water and eventually feel better?

 

[legalsea]

Ok my DIS friends, you are all so wonderful with advice so here is my question: I'm trying to change our eating habits. My size 10 are tight and for the first time in my 42 years I have to do something! I'm not fond of muffin tops

So, for a few weeks I've incorporated fresh fruit and veggies in our diet. I'm drinking about 3 16.9 oz bottled waters a day. I'm also doing plenty of other things like fresh fish, chicken, etc.

You know what? I feel awful! By early afternoon I feel so darn bloated from the water. Yes, I am frequently going to the rest room. Why do I feel so awful

My weakness is exercising and I know I have to do that. I leave at 6:30 a.m. and by the time I get home after kids games, etc it is dark out. I know it is an excuse but this is all new for me, never had to diet before.

Will I get used to drinking all this water and eventually feel better?

Cut back on the water. There is no set rule about how much you need (the 8 glass a day theory was simple an urban legend). Plus, you are getting water from your fruits (and vegetables, to a lesser extent). Your body will tell you when you need water.

 

[AustinTink]

Try adding asparagus, artichokes and melon daily to your diet. They all have natural diuretic properties and will keep the water flushing through your system. I swear by asparagus... it should be a superfood! You can also add the juice of one whole lemon to a cup of warm water every morning, it's great for water retention among other things.

 

[puffkin]

I agree...it may be too much water because you are getting it from other sources as well.

Also watch the fruit intake. Some fruit in moderation is great...but it really isn't that great for you in large quantities. A TON of sugar. If you are eating a lot of fruit, especially in the morning, you may be "crashing" in the afternoon.

I would also look into your fiber intake. That is very important!

Congrats on trying healthy...it is people like you who inspire me to stop making excuses!

 

[mjkacmom]

I drink more than a gallon of water/seltzer per day (it's all I drink except coffee), and have been for most of my life. I feel fine, so I guess your body will adjust.

 

[Christine]

Some people cannot handle a lot of water and others can handle it all day long.

I am not a water drinker. I drink a HUGE mug of tea each morning, a bottle of water at lunch and then another mug of tea in the afternoon and maybe an 8 oz glass of water later. That is PLENTY for me.

The "health" world has actually relaxed its stance on water and you really don't need to drink so much. Not necessary. Your food also provides water. Since you have increased your fruit and veggie intake you're probably fine.

For me, the excess liquid in too many beverages (of whatever kind) makes me bloated and also exacerbates my GERD.

 

[Trish Bessette]

Try adding asparagus, artichokes and melon daily to your diet. They all have natural diuretic properties and will keep the water flushing through your system. I swear by asparagus... it should be a superfood! You can also add the juice of one whole lemon to a cup of warm water every morning, it's great for water retention among other things.

I've had steamed asparagus every night this week for dinner (it's on sale this week)

Love the tip about lemon in warm water - THANK YOU!!!

 

[Trish Bessette]

I agree...it may be too much water because you are getting it from other sources as well.

Also watch the fruit intake. Some fruit in moderation is great...but it really isn't that great for you in large quantities. A TON of sugar. If you are eating a lot of fruit, especially in the morning, you may be "crashing" in the afternoon.

I would also look into your fiber intake. That is very important!

Congrats on trying healthy...it is people like you who inspire me to stop making excuses!

I'm only having one fruit in the morning. Today was a nectarine. I do know they have a lot of sugar.

There you go - jump aboard my eating healthy bandwagon!!

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Try drinking a 8 oz glass of water when you wake up in the morning, it's a great way to kick start your metabolism and it helps you feel full.

I have to ask, prior to subsitituting the water, what were you drinking? Soda, Caffienated product? If so, the reason you feel bad is your body is still craving some of the old. I'm a big combo drinker, I drink a lot of water and soda (diet/zero), but I also don't usually get bloated from the water as I go all the time.

Also, avoid eating processed foods, when you do your grocery shopping, stay on the outside of the store. Also avoid things like enriched flour, it can really drag you down, eat more whole grains (things that are notorious for enriched flour is baked items, like white bread).

We eat pretty much only organic, it's amazing, even within our store, we can pretty much complete all of our shopping in the "store in store" concept that they use for organics/natural foods. There are only a few items we haven't found a comparable organic version of.

 

[Micca]

...when you do your grocery shopping, stay on the outside of the store.
QUOTE]

You mean where they keep the propane, the dvd rentals, and the pony ride?

 

[jlewisinsyr]

You mean where they keep the propane, the dvd rentals, and the pony ride?

BWAHAHAHA...okay...let me rephrase, shop in the aisles closer to the outside walls, avoid the aisles with all the processed foods/junk foods.

 

[monkeybug]

A handful of nuts a day! Protein is important, it makes you feel full and gives you some energy that sticks around! (not to mention super for your heart)
Make sure you aren't cutting too much out! You have to give your body enough food to fuel your day!
Great snacks are cottage cheese, yogurt, hummus and veggies, small slices of cheese with a piece of whole grain toast or some fruit, a bowl of cheerios and a banana. If everything you eat is low calorie or low fat you might run out of steam at the end of the day. Sounds to me like you are on the right track though!
Have you ever tried http://www.mypyramidtracker.gov
It is an amazing site, and totally free! They even have one for kids. It's not a gimmick, or a fad, just solid nutritional advice and information!

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Have you ever tried http://www.mypyramidtracker.gov
It is an amazing site, and totally free! They even have one for kids. It's not a gimmick, or a fad, just solid nutritional advice and information!

Another good site to watch calorie intake (and other intake) is caloriecount.about.com

 

[Golf4food]

Other tips besides what is already mentioned:

Replace the empty calories with good calories. Not all calories are created equal. You can get the same amount of caolories from part of a donut or from an entire piece of fruit, but that piece of fruit is natural and has vitamins and minerals, etc. that the donut does not. Still tastes good. Simple switch? Replace the processed, high fat, high sugar, low fiber, low V&M, unhealthy items with something that is higher in all of those good things.

Brown rice instead of white rice.
Multigrain/whole wheat bread instead of processed white bread.
No sugar added fruit juices/fruits instead of sugary processed foods.

No soda. Zero. Sodas are terrible for you no matter how good they might taste. Empty calories and pumped full of bad sugars or bad artificial sweeteners that may or may not cause cancer or other bad things. Why risk it? Contrary to what some may thing they are NOT vital for life as we know it!

For an afternoon snack I ditched the sweetened trail mix with peanuts and chocolate pieces, etc. and instead have 10 or so almonds (Emerald brand Cocoa Roast Almonds are dusted with unsweetened cocoa powder so they taste a little chocolatey but don't have the sugar content - I normally cannot stand almonds but I can eat those!) and about 30g of dried fruit (Sunsweet Antioxidant Blend: dried cherries, blueberries, raisins, and prunes). Makes for a great afternoon snack that tastes great but is also FULL of protein, fiber, natural sugars, vitamins, etc.

Make sure you only eat cereal that is truly healthy, not just a trick of marketing on the box, and watch the serving size. Most cereals are 1/2 cup or 3/4 cup. Find one that is a full 1 cup serving size and go from there. Chances are if the serving size is under 1 cup then it is not truly healthy. And any decent cereal should have a few grams of fiber per serving.

Check out the Eat This Not That books and website - all sorts of great tips and tricks and comparisons you can use for groceries, restaurant meals, etc. Truly frightening how horrible for us some seemingly "healthy" foods out there are for us, such as veggie burgers that have over 50 grams of fat and 1000 calories, etc.

 

[JessicaR]

Ok my DIS friends, you are all so wonderful with advice so here is my question: I'm trying to change our eating habits. My size 10 are tight and for the first time in my 42 years I have to do something! I'm not fond of muffin tops

OK, there is an easy fix and you can do something. Go shopping and get yourself some nice size 12 jeans. Muffin top be-gone.

Yeah just kidding, sorta kinda. You did get some excellent suggestions that are probably better than mine - I would go with those.

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

A PP said no soda, that should include diet soda. Studies have shown that people who drink diet soda are more tempted by other sweets than those who don't drink soda at all. Something to do with the sweet taste of the soda.

Net - they might not have been consuming calories with the diet soda, but they were making up for it in other places in their diet by eating sweets...

 

[LPZ_Stitch!]

I've found that it seems better to separate the "eating healthy" from the "trying to lose weight."

If you want to lose one pound in one week, you need to take in 500 calories less (per day) than you need. Most nutrition studies have "proved" this; for the "average" person, 1 pound of fat = 3500 calories.

If you're trying to lose weight, it doesn't really matter if 500 calories comes from a big Hershey's chocolate bar or a bowl of organic fruits and nuts; it's *still* 500 calories.

And, while there's nothing wrong with substituting calories from fruit instead of a calories from a donut, unless the number of calories drops the weight won't drop, either (or, at least not significantly).

I also disagree a little with Golf4food; most of the whole-grain/multi-grain breads are *higher* in calories than an equal serving of white bread. So, if you eat the "same" sandwich on multi-grain bread you're actually eating more calories....

There are lots of "how many calories do I need" calculators out there; I like: Free Dieting

The trick is to learn what reasonable servings actually look like (believe me, we were SHOCKED when we started looking into how many calories were in our favorite takeout/eat out foods!!! ) and measure out your foods and snacks. A little kitchen scale (in ounces) is a blessing!

Using this technique, both my DW and I have lost 35lbs (each!) and have kept it off!

Yes, we DO eat healthier ... but, watching/counting the calories was how we lost the weight and are keeping it off.

 

[monkeybug]

A PP said no soda, that should include diet soda. Studies have shown that people who drink diet soda are more tempted by other sweets than those who don't drink soda at all. Something to do with the sweet taste of the soda.

Net - they might not have been consuming calories with the diet soda, but they were making up for it in other places in their diet by eating sweets...

I believe recent research shows that regular soda is a better than diet for weight loss.
If you really want something sweet and yummy try mixing soda water with fruit juice. Still loaded with sugar, but at leas you are cutting out some preservatives and getting some vitamins and minerals out of the deal.
This coming from a girl who had a root beer float last night

 

[Trish Bessette]

Try drinking a 8 oz glass of water when you wake up in the morning, it's a great way to kick start your metabolism and it helps you feel full.

I have to ask, prior to subsitituting the water, what were you drinking? Soda, Caffienated product? If so, the reason you feel bad is your body is still craving some of the old. I'm a big combo drinker, I drink a lot of water and soda (diet/zero), but I also don't usually get bloated from the water as I go all the time.

Also, avoid eating processed foods, when you do your grocery shopping, stay on the outside of the store. Also avoid things like enriched flour, it can really drag you down, eat more whole grains (things that are notorious for enriched flour is baked items, like white bread).

We eat pretty much only organic, it's amazing, even within our store, we can pretty much complete all of our shopping in the "store in store" concept that they use for organics/natural foods. There are only a few items we haven't found a comparable organic version of.

To tell you the truth I don't drink much at all. A cup of coffee around 5:30 a.m. then I usually try to have a bottled water during the day and at night either a cup of milk or a cup of pepsi. This is all BEFORE...now I have a cup of coffee early morning then 3 bottled water and usually a cup of milk with dinner.

Although I'm eating healthy I'm trying to watch my calories as well.

Today I had a cup of coffee and a nectarine for breakfast. For lunch I had 4 crackers and a babybell cheese = 105 calories and a bag of healthy pop mini popcorn - 100 calories.

 

[monkeybug]

I've found that it seems better to separate the "eating healthy" from the "trying to lose weight."

If you want to lose one pound in one week, you need to take in 500 calories less (per day) than you need. Most nutrition studies have "proved" this; for the "average" person, 1 pound of fat = 3500 calories.

If you're trying to lose weight, it doesn't really matter if 500 calories comes from a big Hershey's chocolate bar or a bowl of organic fruits and nuts; it's *still* 500 calories.

And, while there's nothing wrong with substituting calories from fruit instead of a calories from a donut, unless the number of calories drops the weight won't drop, either (or, at least not significantly).

I also disagree a little with Golf4food; most of the whole-grain/multi-grain breads are *higher* in calories than an equal serving of white bread. So, if you eat the "same" sandwich on multi-grain bread you're actually eating more calories....

There are lots of "how many calories do I need" calculators out there; I like: Free Dieting

The trick is to learn what reasonable servings actually look like (believe me, we were SHOCKED when we started looking into how many calories were in our favorite takeout/eat out foods!!! ) and measure out your foods and snacks. A little kitchen scale (in ounces) is a blessing!

Using this technique, both my DW and I have lost 35lbs (each!) and have kept it off!

Yes, we DO eat healthier ... but, watching/counting the calories was how we lost the weight and are keeping it off.

While I agree that cutting out calories is the key to weight loss (either by exercising more or eating less), the type of calorie definitely DOES make a difference.
Whole grains may be more calories, but your body expends more energy digesting and breaking up those complex carbs, than those from a simple carb like white bread. Whole grain also benefits your heart, and make you feel full longer.
A donut may have the same amount of calories as a fruit salad, but that fruit salad has fiber and your body processes it differently.
If you use pyramid tracker (or a similar website) that takes into account the types of food your eating, not just calories, you can reduce your calories, feel full, and eat a more healthy diet!
There is no reason to skimp on health to lose weight. You can do both and still feel full (and have some tasty stuff)
A plate of Salmon, cous cous, and asparagus might have more fat and calories than a box of macaroni and cheese, but it will take you a lot further in a long term weight loss than the mac and cheese will!