What are your food rules?

[locolala]

We don't have any real food rules, except that we can't have anything with coconut in the house, and that's just because I'm allergic to it. Once my daughter is older, we'll have some rules about limiting sugar and caffiene intake, but the biggest rule will be (again, once she's old enough) if you don't like what I've made for dinner, you know where the kitchen is and how to make a bowl of cereal/sandwhich.. if you don't want something you can make, you go hungry. Tough luck.

 

[VBsHustla]

I have quite a few!

1. No animal products (meat, dairy, eggs, etc.)
2. No nuts
3. No soy (including soy lecithin, soybean oil, etc.)
4. Limited oil (I don't cook in oil or add it into anything but I'll occasionally eat some pretzels that have some canola oil in them)
5. Rarely ever any refined flour (unless I'm starving at a restaurant and eat spaghetti or something)
6. As little processing/artificial ingredients as possible

 

[ICF]

none....other than the kids generally drink milk with their meals and have only the occasional lemonade or pop and don't over do it with the candy / sweets.

 

[Had2stopLurking]

No rules other than self inflicted ones that if I want something, my butt better swim/walk/elliptical it off if it's full of calories.

It's all about moderation. I still have thin mints from last year in my freezer (yes, I realize I need to clean it out ). I'm just not big on sweets. I gave all the boxes I bought from my niece to friends this year.

 

[PebblesMK]

I am not dumb
I am weak willed. I have problems with food -but I am not ignorant. I am glad this all comes so easy for you. Some of us struggle with it. Even though we know better

I know how that is. I can know that something is horrible for me, but sometimes cravings are overpowering and not everybody has the will power to put down the cookies and say "Woah!!! Let's step back and not touch these evil things". I wish I could say that, but it's all I can do to eat things in moderation.

I find the behavior dumb, or at last silly, not the person. Many very intelligent people make dumb decisions form time to time, including myself. It is when one continues to make the same poor choices that it becomes a reflection of the person.

You seem to be a very strong willed person who is capable of overcoming whatever may come your way. However, some people have vices that they find very difficult to escape from. Is the behavior dumb? Sure, and most people who make dumb decisions know so, but it's trying to figure out how to overcome it that is a problem. I don't think that it becomes a reflection of who they are- more a reflection of the problems that they face (or have faced). What may be easy for you is beyond difficult for another and you won't ever grasp that to the full extent. It's like a math whiz who doesn't understand why somebody struggles with percentages, or like me not understanding how reading can be difficult to some. If we don't struggle with something in our own lives, it's easy to tell somebody to change their actions.

 

[disykat]

Our "rules" are:
No peanuts
everything in moderation
stay hydrated (water)
eat lots of veggies and fruit
we only buy soda and/or chips if we are having a party

 

[WeLoveLilo05]

I don't want to over analyze the situation that is being bounced back and forth (just wanted to add my .02 really), but I agree with the poster who said that some of us can't step back and say "I need to put the cookie down". I have been over-eating a lot lately and honestly, I think it has a lot to do with being sad (not depressed, but just feeling down since I graduated college in Dec). So I have been over eating and just eating whatever I want when I want, the past 2 weeks has been a struggle with trying to eat in moderation and read labels and think twice about what I am eating, in a sense it really can become an "addiction". And sadly, unlike a drug addict or alcoholic who are told to not be around alcohol or drugs people who love food cannot not be around food, we need food to survive!
I am determined though to try and live a better life style all around, the past 2 years of college really did me in and IDK why, but since I have finished it has just gotten worse (before I started school 2 years ago I was 107lbs, in 2 years I have gained 20lbs!) Trying my best to have a nice body and feel better for our Aug Disney trip.
GL to everyone who is struggling with "putting down the cookie!" I understand and feel your pain. It stinks big time.

 

[iheartjacksparrow]

I actually just recently changed my diet and feel better than ever.

*I only drink water (4 bottles a day) or green tea. Once in a while I also have diet soda or diet juice, but rarely.
*I only eat healthy carbs, I stick with mostly meat/veggies/nuts and either low carb or whole wheat when I do have bread.

At first it was a hard change, but now I find that I have more energy than ever. I try and have all natural foods, but I wish they were more organic. Everything we get is from shop rite or walmart as we have no health stores around here.

And I can't lie when I get to Disney I plan on fully indulging myself

 

[C.Ann]

Well - it's only me here at the lake, so any "rules" would basically be those I impose on myself.. I'm very underweight, so calorie restrictions are not an issue for me.. Whatever I like, (that might not be the "healthiest" choice) I try to eat in moderation.. I don't drink soda - nor do I ever have any type of alcoholic beverages here (even to serve to guests)..

The biggest "food rule" I have imposed on myself (due to a serious health issue a few years back) is that I make sure I drink plenty of water every day.. I always hated water - and very, very rarely drank it - but once it became medically necessary, I was able to overcome my resistance towards it and don't even find it necessary to drink it cold anymore.. I just grab a bottle several times throughout the day and drink!

 

[DisneyFairytale]

For me it's a matter of making home made food so I dont spend it going out for dinner. I don't have any specific food rules other than try to keep more of the "fat free" foods in the fridge. Eat smaller portions as well which speads up stamina as we eat more throughout the full day instead of just during meal hours.

 

[Tazicket]

In our house, we have a few rules that we try to stick to:

1. Limit red meat to 1x per week
2. Limit salt (we use herbs and seasonings instead)
3. Only eat things that we can pronounce (not too keen on the ingredient lists that read like science experiments)
4. Limit HFCS as much as possible
5. Work the whole grains and high fiber stuff
6. Switch to organic when possible
7. No sodas (we stick to water, green tea, milk, and the fruit juice we use to make our morning fruit smoothies)

I'm also keeping a food log as a tool to help shed the last few pounds I want to drop. It's really been a big help to me to think about what I'm putting in my body and why (am I really hungry, or am I just bored and looking for something to do?).

We've managed to follow these rules for around 3 1/2 months now. It's been really great - and the longest we've ever managed to stick with something like this. We have much more energy and actually want to get out of the house and go do stuff, where before I mostly wanted to stay home and nap on weekends.

 

[C.Ann]

This morning - on "The Doctors" - there was a male guest on who has written two books some of you might find interesting/helpful.. Can't remember his name (sorry), but the books were:

"Eat This, Not That"

and

"Cook This, Not That"

It was very interesting - also had demos of food you might order in specific popular restaurants and how by substituting something else from their menu, you could cut out at least half of the sugar, fats, calories, etc.. Some of it was pretty surprising, because the one order might "look" healthier, but it really wasn't..

I was also quite surprised to learn that drinking just one soda a day for a year (that contains HFCS), you will gain as much as 15 lbs.!!!!!

Anyhow - just thought I'd toss that out there for anyone who might be interested in checking out these books.. I would assume you can find them on Amazon and read some excerpts from them..

 

[ccgirl]

I see HFCS in many posts and have to admit I have no idea what that is. Could someone please share? Thanks!

 

[Pakey]

For health reasons, I eat a very low fat diet.

For weight reasons, I eat a low carb diet.

My husband and I mostly eat fish or poultry and fresh fruits and veggies for lunch and dinner; breakfast is oatmeal for the fiber. Snacks/treats are raw almonds and raw vegetables. The only beverage at my house is water.

But when I just can't stand it anymore, I order some Graeters ice cream and all is right with the world again.

 

[Acklander]

Not much in the way of family "rules" except everything is fine in moderation.

I have personal food rules though that I try to follow

1) I drink 1 sports bottle of water (25 oz) before each meal or snack. This helps me keep up on my water (since I tend to get kidney stones) and helps limit the mindless eating. Usually it's just easier to pass on the ice cream cone than to drink an entire bottle of water before eating the ice cream.

2) for everything I eat I try to eat at least an equal amount (size wise) of either a fruit or veggie. So, if I have a cup of cereal, I'll also have a cup of fruit. If I eat a cup of chicken, I'll also have a cup of spinach and so on.

3) Stay away from white bread/white rice/white pasta etc.... but will eat the whole grain kinds

4) Limit trips to 5 Guys burgers (the best!!!!) to once a month - and I savor tht one trip

 

[C.Ann]

I see HFCS in many posts and have to admit I have no idea what that is. Could someone please share? Thanks!

High Fructose Corn Syrup - which is in most everything these days..

 

[WeLoveLilo05]

I see HFCS in many posts and have to admit I have no idea what that is. Could someone please share? Thanks!

high fructose corn syrup

 

[kirbydog48]

I find the behavior dumb, or at last silly, not the person. Many very intelligent people make dumb decisions form time to time, including myself. It is when one continues to make the same poor choices that it becomes a reflection of the person.

It's not dumb behavior. It's an addiction, just as difficult as drug or alcohol addiction, that usually has very deep seeded roots. I understand you are just stating your opinion, but this is an issue I have struggled with my entire life. I am extremely intelligent, have excellent knowledge of nutrition and fitness, yet struggle every single day of my life. It's not something one can just rationalize away. Please try not to pass judgment about something you know nothing about.

 

[flamingglobessigmund]

If it's on the floor longer than 5 seconds...it's trash.

 

[marcyinPA]

No big rules here. We are on a very tight food budget, since we've entered the land of the unemployed. We buy what we can afford. I do not buy junk or processed crap often. I try to cook from scratch. I buy fresh and frozen veggies in season, and fruit in season. Other than that, I try my hardest to keep costs down, so no top of the line meats, or organic produce. I just can't justify the added cost. (I can't wait until summer, though, when I have my own tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers, and my neighbor's lettuce! )