Food question

[disneygal2007]

How many of you eat the same foods even snacking but just cut down on portion sizes and still is loosing weight. A friend of mine still ate all the same food but just cut down of how much. How many has this worked for.

 

[cobbler]

Everything in moderation is good. I did cut back on the amount I eat - snack wise. And when I did eat it I did use smaller portions. I didn't cut it out of my diet altogether because that is just a recipe for disaster. Me personally if I did that I would just go on a binge after being deprived for so long.

When I have a sweet tooth and want chocolate, I find just eating a few Hershey Kisses - oh about 4 - that takes care of it. I just remind myself that the first one tastes the same as the 20th and really notice that I am satisfied that 4 kills the craving.

Also those 100 calorie snacks help too, just don't eat a bunch of the 100 calorie snacks. They have those cream filled cupcakes from hostess now. So good and just enough to get that cake, treat, sweet tooth killed

 

[disneygal2007]

I think I'm gonna start eating smaller portions of the same foods I used to eat expect I won't eat fried foods. I get these crazy cravings and i'll just put them aside and won't eat them ans then at 12 am I get up cause i can't sleep and I give in. I love potatoes and want some really bad but have put it off so tonight I am gonna make some potatoes and onions and have just a cup of it. I am still learning my way to this diet stuff without the fast fix of the pills I am also diabetic so I need to be smart about stuff. I have only lost 3 pounds and and today when I stood on the scale I could have cried but I will keep my head up. And do my walking everyday. IS 30 minutes enough or should I add more? I will succeed at this I want to be healthy.

 

[Otto's Doll]

I have continued to eat all the foods I have always eaten, although for the most part I do make smarter choices. For example, I only have ice cream once a week or so instead of eating a pint every night. I keep more fruit in the house, and I also buy the 100 calorie packs. I don't have a snack every night, but if I am hungry I do have something. I exercise now, which I NEVER did before. I don't do anything strenuous, but I do walk about 60 minutes a day. Another huge change for me is that I eat much smaller portions and very, very rarely do I go back for seconds.
Good luck!

 

[Tiger Lily 03]

Smaller portions should work. You might try recording what you are eating in one of the free online sites such as fitday.com or sparkpeople.com. From there you can get an idea of what it is you are consuming in order to try for balance. These programs are not exact, but you can get a good idea.

Think balance, protein, carbs green veggies lots and lots of them and hold down the other choices to a limited amount. If you get your mind toward making healthier choices, you may find you are really getting there.

Oh, and as someone from one of the other threads here said...if it's fried it ain't food!

WISHing you all the best. Let us know how it is working.

 

[disneychrista]

I do eat a lot of the same foods in smaller quanities as before but I have also made substitutions and modifications.

For example when I get pizza I get it with light cheese. I will get a light frappacino (from Starbucks) instead of the regular and ask for sugar free syrup when available. Brown rice and whole wheat pasta in place of regular. Slow Churn/Low Fat ice cream. Low fat shredded cheese.

But I have also made changes. I eat more veggies, fruit and salads.

I refuse to eliminate foods from my diet. IMO, that is just setting yourself up to fail.

 

[disneygal2007]

I am trying smaller portions. Yesterday I made the kids dinner that included rice. I didn't have the rice I just had veggies and the pork that I backed

 

[JMD]

How many has this worked for.

Reducing your caloric intake works for everybody. If you are overweight then eating less will help you lose weight.

And reducing your portions will only work for so long, at some point you will need to make better food choices.

 

[JMD]

IS 30 minutes enough or should I add more?

30 minutes will be enough until your weight loss plateaus. When that happens its time to increase the cardio.

 

[JMD]

I refuse to eliminate foods from my diet. IMO, that is just setting yourself up to fail.

Refusing to eliminate the foods that made you overweight in the first place is setting yourself up to fail. I don't mean to be rude, but if you think you can get in shape and be heathly without making sacrifices and making healty food choices then you are only fooling yourself.

 

[disneychrista]

Refusing to eliminate the foods that made you overweight in the first place is setting yourself up to fail. I don't mean to be rude, but if you think you can get in shape and be heathly without making sacrifices and making healty food choices then you are only fooling yourself.

And this is your opinion. I have lost nearly 60 pounds by making better choices but also not depriving myself of foods that I enjoy. I never said I ONLY eat foods that are unhealthy. IMO, DIETS that make you deprive yourself of foods you enjoy or in some cases entire food groups set yourself up to fail beacause as some point you are going to give into your cravings and go overboard/binge. And then have that well I blew it I might as well give into this and that and the other. BUT if no foods are off limits and you allow yourself to have small portions of these foods (on occasion) then there will be no over powering cravings that will lead to binging.

 

[JMD]

I have lost nearly 60 pounds by making better choices

I refuse to eliminate foods from my diet. .

Which one is it?

There is no way to get healthy and stay healthy without elimating the bad food from your diet and replacing it with better alternatives. Thats not just my opinion, its a fact. Maybe we are saying the same thing and I'm just missing it, but you seem to contradict yourself.

Either way, congrats on loosing 60lbs, thats not an easy thing to do.

 

[disneychrista]

Which one is it?

It is BOTH!! I make better choices but do not completly eliminate foods that I love. That does not mean I eat potato chips and chocolate cake all day. I have changed how I eat. But that does not mean I can never enjoy my favorite foods again. It means that I have learned to prepare them in healthier ways or to eat them in moderation.

There is no way to get healthy and stay healthy without elimating the bad food from your diet and replacing it with better alternatives.

I whole heartedly disagree. You can have your favorite "bad foods" once in a while and still live a healthy life.

 

[disneygal2007]

I had a really bad night tonight. I made the kids cookies and ate the mix as I was dropping them in the pan. Uggg I feel awful and my stomach feels huge. Plus for dinner we had burgers and tots. Tomorrow will be better. I'm gonna up my work out to a hour!!!!!!! Wish me luck

 

[PattnFmly]

Well, I've just started this weekend. Going to start this time by making better choices, eating less, and exercising more. Once I plateau I may change my strategy, but this is it for now. Have lost weight in the past, but it was many years ago. Every time I've tried since, I've cut out all the bad stuff and ended up quitting after a week because I couldn't take it anymore. The weight loss on the scale was nice, but I missed those foods so much I was miserable. So starting with the cutting back strategy. We'll see how it goes ....

 

[disneygal2007]

Well, I've just started this weekend. Going to start this time by making better choices, eating less, and exercising more. Once I plateau I may change my strategy, but this is it for now. Have lost weight in the past, but it was many years ago. Every time I've tried since, I've cut out all the bad stuff and ended up quitting after a week because I couldn't take it anymore. The weight loss on the scale was nice, but I missed those foods so much I was miserable. So starting with the cutting back strategy. We'll see how it goes ....

Good luck hun!!!!!!!!

 

[C_leen]

Everyone has to start somewhere - and just noticing where you can make some changes is a start.

Calories in should be less than calories out if you want to lose weight. If you commit to weighing your food and measuring for 1-2 weeks, you'll eventually be able to estimate pretty well on healthier portion sizes. Once you have a handle on what you are eating and where you are overeating, slowly cut back or make adjustments. A food diary is a proven tool to track these items and help people lose weight. There are online calculators to tell you how many calories you need for various activity levels, etc.

If you can stand to exercise, I recommend it. At the very least, it fills up time where you could be eating or sitting in front of the TV.

And I have to agree that making changes in your diet doesn't mean you don't still indulge once in a while.

Weight Watchers teaches most of these ideas in their program offerings if you feel you need a supportive group. Best of luck to you both!