i'm tempted to try and eat everything in moderation as long as it falls in my daily calorie count for the day. like for dinner order a burger and fries if i want but eat very slowly and eat only half. sometimes i think i'm way stricter than i have to be. i'm at mantainance right now so i guess now is the time to test out how strict i have to be to maintain. does anyone else eat whatever they want and just use moderation and exercise to maintain? and by all means i'm not saying eating a huge bowl of ice cream every night or pancakes every morning; though that would be nice its not healthy
eat everything in moderation
- Thread starter kariev
- Start date
I am doing the clean eating challenge right now and eating very clean, but my plan once done with the challenge (DF and I are going to try to be really strict for two weeks) is to try to eat as clean as possible on the weekdays (but not feel deprived...if I really want something, I will have just a bit) and then make our weekends "cheat days." I am doing the challenge to shock my body into healthy eating (my eating habits are absolutely terrible) and not to lose weight but DF is trying to lose 15 pounds.
I think your idea sounds good. I am interested to know what other people do.
Lorie
I think your idea sounds good. I am interested to know what other people do.
Lorie
Beavs
Cathlete
Personally I find moderation works best for me. To me, a strictly clean diet strips all of the pleasure from cooking and eating (others prefer the simplicity and the food tastes just fine to them).
Moderation in conjunction with common sense is a plan I can stick to and I don't end up binging on the junk (as I have done after trying the "clean" route). I exercise hard five to seven days per week and I see absolutely no reason to deprive myself of things I enjoy within reason and I don't feel the least bit guilty about it. I'm not looking to compete or be a model so this works for me. It really depends on what your goals are.
Moderation in conjunction with common sense is a plan I can stick to and I don't end up binging on the junk (as I have done after trying the "clean" route). I exercise hard five to seven days per week and I see absolutely no reason to deprive myself of things I enjoy within reason and I don't feel the least bit guilty about it. I'm not looking to compete or be a model so this works for me. It really depends on what your goals are.
lioness
Cathlete
I tend to fall somewhere in the middle between moderation and strict eating. This is mainly because I have a tendency to overeat even when I'm just going for moderation. There are things that I just have to stay away from like chips for example because once I start I can't stop. I'm also one of those people who is afraid that I will fall off the wagon and never be able to get back on again. I do allow myself treats and recently went to the beach for 4 days and went hogwild (literally) and ate really bad (but good) stuff. It's easier for my mindset to stay on the path of healthy eating for the majority of time.
kathryn
Cathlete
I think the 'eat everything in moderation' mindset is often more beneficial to manufacturers who want to sell overpriced, non-nutritious junk, and encourage people to think that their non-foods have some place in their diet, than it is to the consumer.
IMO, there are certain 'foods' that shouldn't be eaten, even in moderation: those that have nothing but HFCS, trans fats and chemicals in their list of ingredients, for example.
One can certainly enjoy 'treats' without having them be junk food.
IMO, there are certain 'foods' that shouldn't be eaten, even in moderation: those that have nothing but HFCS, trans fats and chemicals in their list of ingredients, for example.
One can certainly enjoy 'treats' without having them be junk food.
A
[email protected]
Guest
I too eat everything in moderation.
I must say----I do stay away from fast food always (except for a sub shop here and there).
I do not visit McDonalds or Burger King. I don't really crave this, which is good I guess! I know they are trying to get more healthy foods into their choices........
For me, I have to have that little peice of dark chocolate every day. I also like to have that small glass of red wine at dinner!
If I deprived myself of food, I feel like I am not really living!
"Life is too short - Be the best you can be every single day!"
I must say----I do stay away from fast food always (except for a sub shop here and there).
I do not visit McDonalds or Burger King. I don't really crave this, which is good I guess! I know they are trying to get more healthy foods into their choices........
For me, I have to have that little peice of dark chocolate every day. I also like to have that small glass of red wine at dinner!
If I deprived myself of food, I feel like I am not really living!
"Life is too short - Be the best you can be every single day!"
Amy Steppe
Cathlete
I think the key is moderation and that calories are calories and the deficit in calories will result in weight loss.
Eating clean is fine and I try my best to do so, but what a bore it is to other people who are not like us, meaning that they are not as into working out as us.
I think it would be tremendously boring to have a first date and not order much anything from the menu because I have to eat clean.
Another turn off for some people is when a person who is athletic can not talk of anyting else. It comes across as self fixation.
I like to find out about other people (when I am well) and talk about current events, history, shopping, etc.
I am not dissing anybody here because I come to this forum to discuss fitness and Cathe with like minded people.
But for the mainstream, we are in the minority.
One of my ex girlfriends was boring to me and began to be an emotional vampire. All she could talk about was money. She was jealous of other people's money and kept trying to find a man worth a million dollars or so.
I got sick of listening to her gripe and we had a parting of the ways.
I am glad. I was only a lackey to give her free rides to shop for the perfect bra and to complain about how she was the heart and soul of the place she worked (she was a personnel clerk) and how "fat" people were not worthy of having money.
She hates fat people. She hates my daughter because of her weight. She whispers the word "fat" like people in years gone by whispered to word "cancer" or "psycho" -- like if she unttered the word "fat" she might get "fat"
Eating clean is fine and I try my best to do so, but what a bore it is to other people who are not like us, meaning that they are not as into working out as us.
I think it would be tremendously boring to have a first date and not order much anything from the menu because I have to eat clean.
Another turn off for some people is when a person who is athletic can not talk of anyting else. It comes across as self fixation.
I like to find out about other people (when I am well) and talk about current events, history, shopping, etc.
I am not dissing anybody here because I come to this forum to discuss fitness and Cathe with like minded people.
But for the mainstream, we are in the minority.
One of my ex girlfriends was boring to me and began to be an emotional vampire. All she could talk about was money. She was jealous of other people's money and kept trying to find a man worth a million dollars or so.
I got sick of listening to her gripe and we had a parting of the ways.
I am glad. I was only a lackey to give her free rides to shop for the perfect bra and to complain about how she was the heart and soul of the place she worked (she was a personnel clerk) and how "fat" people were not worthy of having money.
She hates fat people. She hates my daughter because of her weight. She whispers the word "fat" like people in years gone by whispered to word "cancer" or "psycho" -- like if she unttered the word "fat" she might get "fat"
Tess_ATL
Cathlete
I do this too. There are certain things I enjoy and would be too impossible to give up permanently - pizza, chocolate, ice cream, CAKE! Even sometimes if I really want it, I'll have a burger and fries. Now this is only once in a great while, but sometimes you just gotta get things out of your system.
Amy Steppe
Cathlete
Hi Kathryn,
I agree with you to an extent.
Here is where I want to rant and I am not flaming at you at all. I respect your knowledge and posts tremendously. They are always helpful and well informed.
But:
It is expensive to eat clean.
It actually almost is outside my budget.
For lower income people, they are hear the message of adding lots of fruits and vegatables and lean (expensive) meats to their diets.
It is much easier for people with limited income to purchase a .99 bag of potato chips and discounted .79 white bread than to try to eat healthy.
Do you (or anyone else here) find it financially challenging to eat clean or can you please offer tips on how to eat clean on a limited budget.
Also, my husband does not eat clean, which complicates things for me.
Cheers!
Amy
I agree with you to an extent.
Here is where I want to rant and I am not flaming at you at all. I respect your knowledge and posts tremendously. They are always helpful and well informed.
But:
It is expensive to eat clean.
It actually almost is outside my budget.
For lower income people, they are hear the message of adding lots of fruits and vegatables and lean (expensive) meats to their diets.
It is much easier for people with limited income to purchase a .99 bag of potato chips and discounted .79 white bread than to try to eat healthy.
Do you (or anyone else here) find it financially challenging to eat clean or can you please offer tips on how to eat clean on a limited budget.
Also, my husband does not eat clean, which complicates things for me.
Cheers!
Amy
Beavs
Cathlete
Amy,
I once mentioned similar thoughts and was roundly pooh-poohed by other posters. However, I have to agree and I've kept tabs on prices and found that often times such things can indeed be more pricey (when Ramen Noodles are ten packages for a dollar). I recently took a trip to Aldi where many low income people shop (and bargain hunters like me) and I would agree that lean meats, fish, and fresh fruits and vegetables are in short supply (though they are available) and organic foods are no where to be found. I would also love to buy all organic but many items are more than double the price of the non organic versions. I started growing many of my own veggies (which I can during the summertime) and visit the farmers markets frequently. I agree it can be tough given the constraints of cost, availability, and taste buds of perhaps yourself and the people you may have to feed (some people actually enjoy potato chips and not raw vegetables). So let me be flamed, but these are my thoughts and I see your point.
I once mentioned similar thoughts and was roundly pooh-poohed by other posters. However, I have to agree and I've kept tabs on prices and found that often times such things can indeed be more pricey (when Ramen Noodles are ten packages for a dollar). I recently took a trip to Aldi where many low income people shop (and bargain hunters like me) and I would agree that lean meats, fish, and fresh fruits and vegetables are in short supply (though they are available) and organic foods are no where to be found. I would also love to buy all organic but many items are more than double the price of the non organic versions. I started growing many of my own veggies (which I can during the summertime) and visit the farmers markets frequently. I agree it can be tough given the constraints of cost, availability, and taste buds of perhaps yourself and the people you may have to feed (some people actually enjoy potato chips and not raw vegetables). So let me be flamed, but these are my thoughts and I see your point.
I think that buying some canned veggies and frozen berries and veggies can be cheaper than buying fresh and in some cases, are higher in nutrients than the fresh versions (frozen). Also, as a vegan, you save $$ by not buying meat or dairy products. I know Kathryn also makes her own soymilk (among other milks), so I'm sure that saves a ton of $$ as well. I understand not wanting to spend a fortune on food, but I'd rather splurge on healthy foods than on eating out and/or going to the movies or spending $$ on other non essential stuff. The health benefit of eating healthy is too great IMO, so I cut corners on other less important things.
C
C
run_to_step
Cathlete
Amydaisy,
I feel like I could have written your post!
I don't really enjoy eating out at fast food joints (although that wasn't always true), and I love to have a piece of DARK chocolate after a meal. Love the dark chocolate.
I pretty much eat what I want, but mostly consists of good food.
And I do have a weakness for coffee drinks, or smoothies!
And my only source of entertainment besides reading and working out is EATING...
I feel like I could have written your post!
I don't really enjoy eating out at fast food joints (although that wasn't always true), and I love to have a piece of DARK chocolate after a meal. Love the dark chocolate.
I pretty much eat what I want, but mostly consists of good food.
And I do have a weakness for coffee drinks, or smoothies!
And my only source of entertainment besides reading and working out is EATING...
materialsgirl
Cathlete
I, personally, find that processed, packaged foods cost more than clean, whole foods - for the most part. I can make a big pot of from-scratch pasta primavera with whole wheat pasta and fresh vegetables for far less than it would cost to buy a similar, sodium-laden frozen pre-assembled meal. And my pasta tastes way better (if I do say so myself). However, I will temper this by pointing out that I'm a vegetarian, and I know that meat is very expensive. Fortunately for my budget, I don't have to buy meat.
I also know that organic foods, at least in my neck of the woods, cost WAY more than their non-organic counterparts, and even though I like the idea of buying organic, we just cannot afford to buy everything organic. I do the best I can with the money we have, and I grow my own veggies in the summer. So no flames from me, Beavs - organic is expensive!!!
And, as a side note, Aldi scares me. Hats off to anyone brave enough to venture into one.
I also know that organic foods, at least in my neck of the woods, cost WAY more than their non-organic counterparts, and even though I like the idea of buying organic, we just cannot afford to buy everything organic. I do the best I can with the money we have, and I grow my own veggies in the summer. So no flames from me, Beavs - organic is expensive!!!
And, as a side note, Aldi scares me. Hats off to anyone brave enough to venture into one.
thanks for the responses. i think lately i have been overly strict and it is wearing on me. its time to see how much flexability i can have in my diet. for the most part i love to eat healthy things but certain times its not available or mabe i'm just craving and i have to realize that 1 meal out of so many healthy ones per week is not going to make me gain weight. thanks
kathryn
Cathlete
>It is expensive to eat clean.
'Eating clean' covers such a vast array of diets that one can easily 'eat clean' on a budget, or go hog wild and buy expensive foods.
>It is much easier for people with limited income to purchase a
>.99 bag of potato chips and discounted .79 white bread than to
>try to eat healthy.
I don't see what you're getting at. If someone buys the chips, they are paying .99 for about 2 cents worth of potatoes. How is that economical?
>Do you (or anyone else here) find it financially challenging
>to eat clean or can you please offer tips on how to eat clean
>on a limited budget.
Right now, I do eat more foods that are more expensive (açai, maca, etc.) but that's my choice. I also rarely eat out, except when travelling, and I bring my own lunch to work.
If I were to suddenly lose my job or my food budget were more limited, I would go back to eating more like I did when I was a poor undergraduate (and ate mostly clean..in fact, more clean than I often do now, because I didn't have the extra money for junk food).
How to eat clean on a budget:
Prepare most of your foods yourself, avoiding processed foods (which are the most expensive foods).
Buy your whole grains, beans and other staples in bulk at a coop (you can buy several pounds of dried beans for the same cost as one can of prepared beans.
Not really that hard, IMO.
'Eating clean' covers such a vast array of diets that one can easily 'eat clean' on a budget, or go hog wild and buy expensive foods.
>It is much easier for people with limited income to purchase a
>.99 bag of potato chips and discounted .79 white bread than to
>try to eat healthy.
I don't see what you're getting at. If someone buys the chips, they are paying .99 for about 2 cents worth of potatoes. How is that economical?
>Do you (or anyone else here) find it financially challenging
>to eat clean or can you please offer tips on how to eat clean
>on a limited budget.
Right now, I do eat more foods that are more expensive (açai, maca, etc.) but that's my choice. I also rarely eat out, except when travelling, and I bring my own lunch to work.
If I were to suddenly lose my job or my food budget were more limited, I would go back to eating more like I did when I was a poor undergraduate (and ate mostly clean..in fact, more clean than I often do now, because I didn't have the extra money for junk food).
How to eat clean on a budget:
Prepare most of your foods yourself, avoiding processed foods (which are the most expensive foods).
Buy your whole grains, beans and other staples in bulk at a coop (you can buy several pounds of dried beans for the same cost as one can of prepared beans.
Not really that hard, IMO.
kathryn
Cathlete
> I personally would skip a
>hostess twinkie but a nice sliver of homemade cheesecake with
>fresh strawberries on top on occasion is entirely another
>matter.
My point exactly.
Twinkies....shudder! (and talking about expense: how much do you think the raw ingredients for Twinkies cost? I'd say about 1/50 of what they charge for Twinkies).
I agree that organics are often more expensive (ie: direct cost to the consumer, not factoring in the real cost of non-0rganics, like the costs taxpayers are paying to subsidize non-organic food production). There are certain foods that it is wise to buy organic (soy, corn and canola, which, if not organic, are most likey GMO, for example, and some fruits and veggies that contain the highest quantity of, or the most toxic chemicals, expecially if you eat them unpeeled...you can find lists of these on the internet and in books).
I don't buy all organic, but I try to as much as I can. The organic apples I buy locally are sometimes actually cheaper than the non-organics, sometimes about the same, and sometimes more expensive.
The other day, I passed up the ridiculously overpriced organic cucumbers ($7 for two!!!) and went for the English cucumbers.
This summer, I'm growing my own organic beans, peas, cucumbers, tomatoes, kohlrabi and other odds and ends, and going to the local farmers market (where even the non-organic stuff is often less treated than foods in the supermarket).
The more demand there is for organic, the lower the prices will be. And it would help if our government subsidized organic growers they way it subsidizes non-organics.
BUT: 'eating clean' doesn't necessarily mean 'eating organic,' so I don't know why we got onto this tangent (though I'm happy to discuss it, as you can see!)
>hostess twinkie but a nice sliver of homemade cheesecake with
>fresh strawberries on top on occasion is entirely another
>matter.
My point exactly.
Twinkies....shudder! (and talking about expense: how much do you think the raw ingredients for Twinkies cost? I'd say about 1/50 of what they charge for Twinkies).
I agree that organics are often more expensive (ie: direct cost to the consumer, not factoring in the real cost of non-0rganics, like the costs taxpayers are paying to subsidize non-organic food production). There are certain foods that it is wise to buy organic (soy, corn and canola, which, if not organic, are most likey GMO, for example, and some fruits and veggies that contain the highest quantity of, or the most toxic chemicals, expecially if you eat them unpeeled...you can find lists of these on the internet and in books).
I don't buy all organic, but I try to as much as I can. The organic apples I buy locally are sometimes actually cheaper than the non-organics, sometimes about the same, and sometimes more expensive.
The other day, I passed up the ridiculously overpriced organic cucumbers ($7 for two!!!) and went for the English cucumbers.
This summer, I'm growing my own organic beans, peas, cucumbers, tomatoes, kohlrabi and other odds and ends, and going to the local farmers market (where even the non-organic stuff is often less treated than foods in the supermarket).
The more demand there is for organic, the lower the prices will be. And it would help if our government subsidized organic growers they way it subsidizes non-organics.
BUT: 'eating clean' doesn't necessarily mean 'eating organic,' so I don't know why we got onto this tangent (though I'm happy to discuss it, as you can see!)