One day the food section of my blog will be up and running and I’ll be able to discuss everything health-related that has been on my mind but, for now, I’ll post it here.
In an ideal world, where money is no object and cravings don’t exist, how would you eat? How do you feel about the way you eat right now? How far removed are you from your ideal?
Would you eat Traditional Foods?
Would you be a vegetarian or vegan?
Would you be a flexitarian, similar to the plan Michael Pollan suggests?
Or would you not care and eat whatever?
I am so confused and overwhelmed. I subscribe to a ton of blogs on nutrition, read books on the subject matter constantly, and follow a handful of respected nutritionists on Twitter. It seems like everyday there is a new study that proclaims to have found the one and only way to eat. The following week arrives a study that refutes it all. I don’t know what to do or who to believe. I’m a rule driven person. I do best with structure and guidelines, and right now I feel lost and out of control. I want to subscribe to an ideal but I have no idea if it exists.
The healthiest I have ever been was in college as a vegetarian. Actually, because I am lactose intolerant, I was really more of a vegan. Since I wasn’t strict about it, I ate meat every few months or so, but my weight was ideal and my health, at least as measured by annual blood panels, was excellent. I think a large part of it had to do with the times. Twenty years ago there wasn’t much processed or prepackaged foods for vegetarians, let alone vegans. I ate real foods: vegetables, grains, fruits, nuts, seeds, etc. There wasn’t even that much tofu. Now there are bizarre vegan lunch meats that can’t be any better than the processed meats they aim to replace plus countless other laboratory foods full of chemicals and soy so far removed from the bean it’s unrecognizable. It’s junk food without the fur.
PCRM‘s 21-Day Vegan Kick Start starts September 6 and I might participate, leaving behind those weird fake foods, of course. The main thing that bothers me about a vegan diet is the lack of B12. Can a diet that requires supplementation be the end all be all? I have no idea. (And, yes, I’ve heard that B12 once was available via the soil in which plants were grown but that is no longer the case.)
I’m interested to hear your thoughts on food. What you eat and why you eat it, and how that fits with the ideal you see for yourself. Thank you for indulging me in one of my favorite topics.
Here’s a short blog post I did on what we eat, since then, I think we had added eating sprouted grain bread every now and then, I guess I would say we eat a traditional/low carb diet :)
http://wanderingnancy.blogspot.com/2010/04/what-we-eat.html
Hmm.. I understand your dilemma.. But really, you should just listen to your own body and make up your own rules.
Our bodies are complex…we need complex things to keep it running and thankfully all these complex items actually grow naturally. In my opinion, this is the key. We were meant to eat from all the food groups (obviously, if you’re lactose intolerant or have a shell fish allergy, this is not what I’m referring to), within reason. If I had my choice and money was limitless (as well as time) then I would just prefer to cook foods and rely less on pre-packaged stuff. For me, time is a factor.. I know, it’s an excuse, but honestly, it really is a factor. Maybe I should just make it more of a priority, but it is difficult.
I don’t think I would prescribe to any one school of thought, but just try to eat healthy..fruits, veggies, grains and meat (preferring meat that was grown healthy) in general.. I don’t agree with the whole organic trend, as there are so very, very few places that grow commercially available veggies ‘organically’, at least from what I’ve seen, that it’s not worth the extra money. The only option would be some sort of co-op or farmer’s market, which would be great but isn’t always an option for everyone.
But in a perfect world all my tomatoes would come directly off the vine… But then again, I really love guacamole..would I be OK with only buying avocados in the summer and when I am in the region…??? I don’t know.
Let me/us know what you decide, and why.
Food: Yes, please. Well, you asked…
Hubby and I have been vegetarian for 21 years (lacto-ovo — animal welfare/environment/health, if you want to know why), and I would never go back to eating the way I did before. Over the years our diet has evolved quite a bit, due to education and also a more interesting food marketplace and, while very well balanced, yes, does include some of those weird fake meats that are not much better than the lunch meats they replace (mmmm, “bacon.”)
I choose vegan options frequently (feel guilty that I find it impossible to go completely vegan); prefer soy or rice milk to dairy milk, and shake it up with a lot of ethnic cuisines. There was a time, not many years ago, when I thought white pasta with a jar of red sauce made a perfectly fine dinner. Horrors!
I was lucky to be raised on whole foods before that was even a mainstream concept; sweetened peanut butter and American cheese never crossed our threshold, and junk food like Cheetos was unheard of in our house. I’m lucky to have grown up appreciating real food and fresh produce, and I’ve never grown out of that.
I’m probably eating better than I’ve ever eaten in my life, and it’s because, for the first time, I’m forcing myself to track what I eat. When I write it down, I can’t deny or forget that I ate it! This helps me make much better choices in terms of snacking, for instance, because I’m a BIG snacker/grazer. I’m all about variety and trying new things, and I try not to get into a rut with what I buy or cook. I don’t imagine I’ll track my food intake forever, but it’s an excellent lesson in balance — and learning what a serving of cheese looks like!
I believe in ENJOYING food, first and foremost. I like my fat and carbs just as much as the next person. I don’t deny myself treats, and I don’t believe in low-fat food that has weird additives in place of the fat. I don’t believe in eating just to survive, following someone’s “scientific” diet or even eating for “optimal health.” I believe in eating an overall healthy diet that provides a wide range of nutrients every day, but also enjoying enough goodies that I don’t feel deprived. I also keep trying the few foods I don’t like and every now and then I find that I suddenly like something I thought I didn’t!
Science will drive you crazy. If you’re worried about B12, take a supplement. The most important thing is to enjoy eating and not let it become a chore of measuring, weighing and stressing out.
I wrote my entire post, and then realized I hadn’t actually answered your questions. Here is a revised post – answering some questions you’ve asked, and answering some that I needed to answer for myself. If it doesn’t seem appropriate, I trust that you will delete the post.
I have been overweight, increasingly so, since adolescence. I eat for comfort, to combat stress and to distance anger. I eat because I crave carbs and sugar. When I eat processed, high fat/sugar/salty foods, I don’t feel as well, and I crave more and more. I think that a low-carb diet sounds like punishment. I hate fish, yogurt, cottage cheese, spinach and tofu – all ‘superfoods’ for dieters. I am addicted to diet coke. I would testify before Congress that there’s something in there. It’s not the caffeine, it’s not the carbonation. Something creates the craving, and I wish I knew what it was.
Fifteen years ago, in my 30’s, I quit dieting. (This was when the yo-yo dieting effect was thought to be bad for our health. I decided just to be heavy rather than go up and down a few pounds all the time.) 5.5 years ago, I took a look at myself in the mirror, and in recent photos, and after months of heading toward a tipping point, made a life change in my eating habits, rather than going on a diet. I took the conglomeration of everything I’d heard over the years and combined it with what I knew I liked, and came up with a plan that worked for me.
My personal rules were few and simple: real food, complex carbs found low on the glycemic index, smaller portions, dense-calorie low sugar snacks. I ate protein and a serving of low-glycemic carbs at every meal, more fruits and vegetables, small snacks (usually nuts or string cheese) between to keep me going. Personalized strategies helped me to manage portions. Most importantly, I gave myself one recreational food every day. A couple of cookies, a small piece of cake, one scoop of REAL ice cream, a small bag of potato chips. I lost 35 pounds in 7 months, and enjoyed what I ate. I began to prefer foods with less fat/salt/sugar, and could only enjoy a small serving of a rich dessert.
I kept 25 pounds off for 2 years, and now have gained back another 15 during a time of stress and lack of self-care. I had failed many diets and succeeded briefly with a few in the past. While this didn’t turn out to be a lifetime success yet, it was exponentially better than anything else I’ve done. When I am ready to succeed, I will go back to this plan, with the addition of more exercise. (Note that exercise is a four letter word times two.) Thank you for letting me share my thoughts and experience. It brings me another step closer to my goal.
Finally, since you seem to be asking for advice, I will put in my $.02.
You’re a very bright woman who knows a few key things about herself: “I�m a rule driven person. The healthiest I have ever been was in college as a…vegan. I ate real foods: vegetables, grains, fruits, nuts, seeds, etc. There wasn�t even that much tofu.”
I propose that no one is better able to create your rules (based on your common sense and past experience) than you yourself. If the rules are simple enough, they can serve you flexibly and for the long term. I wish you all the success in the world. I enjoy reading your blog, and thank you for sharing your life and children with me, and the rest of the internet community.
Hi Jules,
Here’s what I think…
I am italian… and I guess that has a quite a lot to do my relationship with food and with the way I eat.
I have a lot of memories of preparing the table with my grandmother and looking at a meal while it takes its form… from raw ingredients to something more, not just “food”, but a way of expressing one’s love for the people he’s cooking for.
For me, it’s not really about the food but more about the experience.
I love cooking and experimenting in the kitchen… Of course I don’t always have the time to do so (I have my stash of emergency processed food, I won’t deny it), but in an ideal world I would only shop for fresh (and possibly local) ingredients and I would cook everything from scratch like my grandmother used to do…
As for vegan or vegeterian diets… It’s a choice and I respect it but I would feel it as a limit in the kitchen… Homemade Lasagna would just not be the same with tofu… ;)
If time & money were no object, we’d eat three fully homecooked, deliciously prepared meals a day. But, alas, life has other plans for us. Running a business, caring for 2 teenagers, 1 dog and a husband that travels, means that time is a luxury that seems to run out faster than the groceries do. But, we eat a little of everything – red meat, chicken, dairy, eggs, fruits & vegetables. I cook with olive oil and butter and don’t buy artificially low fat foods (we can’t stand fat free or reduced fat cheese).
Last week, I ate 2 hardboiled eggs and a whole avocado for lunch. It felt decadent and indulgent – yet it was so simple.
I am not the healthiest eater, but I do notice a difference in my energy and emotions when I make better choices on what to eat. With two children under the age of six, I am careful about what I keep in the house: cookies and sweets are rare treats, but I do keep fruit bites and other “processed” snacks that are probably not great. On the other hand, we also regularly have string cheese, apples, grapes, and veggie sticks for snacks. My sister, Jill, is a registered dietician, and she lives just two blocks from me with her two young children as well. She has helped me make small changes that make a big difference: for example, when I want a bagel for breakfast, I just have half, and instead of cream cheese, a tablespoon of peanut butter is tasty and gives me some protein.
I identify very much with what’s been said in the previous posts.
I’m a vegetarian for ethical/spiritual reasons, and I would love to be vegan, but unfortunately right now I eat a lot of quick foods and restaurant foods (and I’m carrying the pounds to prove it) which = cheese for protein. I agree that many of the “substitution” foods taste weird and have way too many ingredients, but I do enjoy the fake bacon and chicken patties for quick sandwiches. (BTW, for Maddelaine, I make veggie lasagna with a spinach-artichoke filling and it’s delish!)
Ideally I would like to eat lots of home- or locally-grown produce, more soups and bean dishes for protein, whole grains that are actually WHOLE GRAINS (quinoa, barley, etc) and not broken down into flour, and lots of lovely international herbs and spices.
I did Weight Watchers a few years ago and was very “successful” at it because I, too, excel at rule following. Unfortunately, it became the whole focus of my life and really just helped me switch from one food issue to another. I ended up gaining all of the weight back, but have since learned to do very little emotional eating (who doesn’t need a bite of emergency chocolate now and then?) and to stop grazing my way through the day. Now I’m working on drinking water instead of soda or coffee, and that is going really well (I drink iced tea or lemonade as a treat but haven’t transferred one addiction to another, so YAY!). I feel like I’m getting healthy in my mind first and the rest will follow.
I do love junk food, but I just don’t keep it in the house. Sure, it costs way more per ounce to get a teeny bag of chips out of a vending machine, or one ice cream bar at the gas station…but then that’s the max of what I can eat! So I don’t beat myself up for doing that once in awhile. I’m human. And being American child of the 70’s and 80’s, I figure I started out in the hole (hello, canned green beans and hamburger helper)!
Hi Amy,
I am sure your spinach-artichoke Lasagna is amazing. :)
But I happen to have a very old and secret recipe for a Bolognese sauce which I had to earn (and beg for many many times)… It took me almost two years of wooing and spying…
It might sound silly… but I don’t think that I’d be so happy to prepare it (note: it takes more than 3 hours) if not for the memories behind it. :)
… I would love to try your recipe though…
So, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t change. :)
Ops…
The last line was meant to be: “sorry, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t change it� I would love to try your recipe though�”
Please forgive any other mistakes I may have made. :)
Hi Jule! We’ve talked about this before, but I feel like my thoughts on food are becoming clearer all the time, so I’m going to chime in. First off, I really don’t think there is one RIGHT way to eat. I think there are certain things that certain people can eat without them being affected, while other people need to avoid those things in order to feel good. Our bodies are all different, so it makes sense that our diets will be different too. There is no one size fits all, so I suppose, it means that we each have to find the individualized collection of foods that should make up our ideal diet.
Anyways, lately, I’ve really been focusing in on “eating as close to nature as possible”. Meaning, I try to eat foods that are as whole as possible… loads of veggies, fruits, fish, chicken, lean means, some grains (like cous cous and quinoa), and things with short, readable ingredient lists. I make hummus sandwiches, mix my own salad dressing, whip up tomato soup with ingredients from my garden. I avoid sugar and white flour, and anything that is overly processes. I make my own yogurt, because frankly I can’t find a suitable replacement that isn’t loaded with sugar. I think by feeding my body these whole, unprocessed foods, it knows what to do with them, if that makes sense. I don’t feel overly full, and I don’t get indigestion. These foods sit well, and they burn well.
Trying to think of “food as fuel” is another helpful thing for me. You wouldn’t put low-grade gasoline in your prized sports car, would you? Nope. You’d fill it up with premium.
So I’ve rambled a bit… but I guess in a nutshell, I am trying to eat more and more whole, natural, organic and unprocessed foods!
I like to eat real foods and leave it at that pretty much (Micheal Pollan is one nutrition guy I really like). I like peanut butter to be made out of nuts. Bread to be flour, oil, honey, yeast. Not chemicals I can’t pronounce. Nothing hydrogenated. I try to keep high fructose corn syrup out of our house and out of our diets. We try not to drink our calories (except for milk for the kids and alcohol for the adults ;). We try not to eat out except for real food but that is super hard. I try to keep snacks around that are healthy – fruit is always a good option, and a little protein. I try to limit sweets so we don’t expect dessert every day though that’s been hard this summer – hello ice cream! We all use small plates and I hope we eat less that way, less food to fill up the plate.
It’s hard to know what to eat. I’m amazed at how much advertising money is used to get us to eat certain things.
As I’ve late I’ve been more concerned with being more healthy. Mostly, I want to get off my rumpkis and move {the only time I love to walk ad nauseum is while traveling; at home I tend to lean toward lounging about with a good book and chocolate}. In regard to rules, I try to follow Weight Watchers. I’m not actually a member, but many family members are. So basically just portion size and trying to balance.
As for the food itself, if money were not an option, I’d eat salmon every week. And definitely shop the perimeter–lots of fresh fruits and veggies, nuts, etc. I try to do this anyway, but sometimes it’s just too expensive!
But more than anything, I want to enjoy my food. Sometimes I think that’s what gets us here in the United states: we’ve forgotten how to savor meals. We’re too afraid of fats and calories … eating something we shouldn’t… and we’re so dadgum rushed all the time. I want to learn to take time with meals … in preparation and eating. I guess you might say I want to learn not only to nourish my body, but how doing so can nourish my soul as well …
I mostly do not eat how I wish I would. If I was going to weigh 500 pounds, I would eat how I ate on a vacation to Charleston (so good and yet so bad). I think if I was going to eat healthy, but still amazing food, I would eat how I ate when we went to Italy for ten days. I wasn’t deprived. The food tasted great. I’ve never had such amazing tomatoes. And I felt great. Although I did walk my ass off every day, so maybe that would be a problem here. People in Dallas do not walk. We drive.
http://40daysof.wordpress.com/2010/08/24/the-purse-strings-are-getting-tighter/
Dear Jules, I love you just the way you are. But I hope you will continue to work at losing weight and eating good foods because I want you to live a long and healthy life, sans diabetes and heart disease. Keep trying, don’t ever give up. You deserve it and so do your husband and kids.
I finally stopped dieting after reading Geneen Roth’s book, “Bite by Bite”.
Have you read any of her books? She talks about how people vacillate between being “Restrictors” and “Permitters” when it comes to their diet. And how we all do both. I am primarily a “Restrictor” during the week and a “Permitter” on weekends. I am still working on paying attention to what my body wants and not my mind. Simple concept. Hard to practice.
My daughter gained 20 pounds last year being a strict vegan. She ate too many processed carbs because she was not willing to take the time to prepare whole foods and plan a balanced diet. Being vegan is not a ticket to weight loss and good health.
I think a vegan diet can be healthy if you have the time to do it right. Not many people have that time.
Regarding veganism, also keep in mind that, you may need to bring your own food wherever you go. Most people don’t have anything vegan at a party because they don’t understand that cheese is not on a vegan’s menu. My daughter lives in Beverly Hills and she found that, typically, all she could eat at a party was chips and salsa.
Are you willing to cook separate meals for you and your family? Or are you willing to raise your children as vegans? How about The Mister-is he a willing participant?
Your life is already so incredibly busy. I feel very protective of you and hope you will not take on something that will only make your life more complicated. You’re spinning enough plates!!
xxoo Tina
I posted before when your boys were having allergy tests and made mention of my daughter & peanut/tree nut allergies-when she was diagnosed we made over our eating plan completely
I’m a single,f/t working mom & I started making a good 60%-75% of our foods from scratch (got tired of searching for nuts in everything) and we pack breakfasts, lunches, snacks each day. We also upped the ante on our fruit & veggie intake-as they’re naturally nut-free. (who knew)?
over these past few years we’ve cut down on red meat (not for ethical reasons, although certainly that can be a part of this story) because the cost is prohibitive and I would rather spend the money on quality from time to time rather than quantity.
I’m guided by how I’m feeling. I can tell when I’ve overdone it in any area . I’m a big believer in ‘know what’s right for your body’, and number two, ‘moderation in everything’. And the last thing I’ve absorbed since being a mom… .”if I wouldn’t have my daughter eat it, why would I want to eat it?!” That’s been huge.
If money was no object I would be eating even more organics (although we try to hit the main items now), I would eat a traditional diet of ‘real’ foods. I feel that I’m fairly close to how I would want to eat- it could be better, but overall I’m happy with our choices 85% of the time. We are physically active almost every day, but not maniacal about that either. Truly, it’s more ‘if TIME was no object’- I could reach all my goals every day! HA! who knew?
~and as a note, both myself & daughter have very healthy ‘health’ numbers across the board when we’ve been in for physicals.
The great food debate rages on!
I try and eat smaller portions. I also try and eat real food by staying away from prepackaged meals and learning to cook. I eat pretty much anything I want, but also try to maintain a balance. I don’t deny myself sweets or snacks, I just eat a smaller amount once in awhile.
Cheese is not the enemy. Butter is not the enemy. Salt is not the enemy (for most). We need sodium, we need fat and carbs. We just don’t need a Cheesecake Factory’s portion of it.
The problem is that for some people, “just eating a smaller amount once in awhile” isn’t reality. For some people, it’s like telling an alcoholic to drink only a little every now and then.
Speaking of Cheesecake Factory–I’m not a fan of cheesecakes, but my friend, Tiffany, told me that one of their cheesecakes has over 1200 calories in ONE slice. Unbelievable!
You guys have all written wonderful and insightful comments. Unfortunately, I’ve had a headache for three days now and haven’t felt much like commenting because the computer hurts my eyes. Why have I had a headache? Stress. Why am I stressed? Because Nico has his pine nut challenge in 3 hours. I read Phaedra’s comment and couldn’t keep it in any longer.
I am so nervous. I just want this over.
OH NO- that wasn’t to stress you out- just that you can do it, day by day, whatever you have to do that’s right for you & your family! I will think good things for his nut challenge!! <3
I worked for a naturopath last summer, and before I went back to college last year, she gave me some tips for realistic eating (obviously college life wouldn’t allow me the time or finances to cook fabulous meals everyday, let alone once a week). She recommended sprouted lentils, lentil soup, noodles from the asian market, and tons of other random healthy goods that I can’t remember, but one thing she said stuck with me — 1/2 raw. Whatever I eat, I try to make at least half it raw food (usually salad/spinach/carrots/grapes/cherries). Makes me feel a little better when all I have time for is mac & cheese (& salad!).
My goodness, what an interesting question. Sadly, I have no articulate or well-informed comment to add to the chorus above, other than to say THANKS for asking.
…Have a feeling this will prod some introspective thinking on my part, and frankly, I�ll feel much better contemplating what I *could* eat rather than the calories I *shouldn�t* eat.
Gracias :)
PS: love the site revamp
Hi Jules � I am hugely influenced by Michael Pollan�s thinking. No, scratch that. I always believed in the ideals around food espoused by Pollan and had a �yay, social proof!� moment when reading In Defense of Food.
But, the word ideal is critical here. It�s easy to say, everyone should eat x and avoid y, but that doesn�t take into account the challenges of time, resources and, more importantly, access. But politics aside�
I choose to eat organic, natural foods as much as possible. My budget is not limitless, so I am strict on buying organic and as local as possible for foods that it significantly affects the flavor (I cannot eat a conventional tomato) or quality (as measured by healthfulness). I also have always carefully monitored the ingredients in my food, and I try to purchase packaged goods with the smallest number and simplest list of ingredients. I can�t properly describe my shock in reading the ingredient list of a bakery loaf of bread at Jewel.
The one area I struggle with is the meat question. I LOVE meat. love. I want it as rare as is safe to eat. But I�m not certain that I my ethics jive with conventional meat practices (I already made the move to free-range chicken), and I am ashamed to admit that I actively avoid educating myself further in this area, because I don�t want to be forced by my conscience to give up beef.
I�ve also recently been practicing intuitive eating. Before I could fully let go and permit myself to eat what I felt like when I felt like, though, I embarked on a retraining exercise. My husband and I started measuring out our portions, so we could re-teach our bodies how much they need at one time. I went from being able to devour a Costco-sized steak to only being able to eat 3 oz of protein at a time. It was a hard retraining process, but it worked! Now, if we go out, we often find ourselves ordering a burger to share�and feeling stuffed on just a half portion. I�ve also found that I can�t seem to break the habit of eating quickly, but I can serve myself less than I think I need, wait 5 minutes and then re-evaluate if I�m still hungry. That worked wonders on my portion control.
But�I love French fries. A lot. So…I�m certainly not an angel. I certainly over-indulge in ice cream or salty goodness from time to time. But I am much closer to my goal of eating intuitively than ever before in my life.
End dissertation.
This is me, paragraph by paragraph. Especially the ones regarding meat, fast eating, and french fries.
Brigitte…
I think that you summed up how I feel about meat.. We are in accord, and I too, after reading very little have qualms about learning any more. I am scared, no positive, that our current meat industry is doing a lot of “no no’s”; ignorance is bliss and so I am trying to stay that way.
For me, purchasing free range meats is just way too expensive, and it never seems to go on sale!
Maybe I should stick to fish.
B
I knew you would appreciate my fry addiction! I cannot live without them.
I love food so so much. I’m sure it’s a sin. I love looking at food, shopping for food, cooking food, eating food, sharing food…I think I probably spend a respectable portion of my time daydreaming about food.
This results in my having a sort of snobbish hedonistic attitude towards food. When you’re first really getting into food and you’re reading all the classic cook books, Julia Child and Irma Rombauer and everyone else tells you over and over again that the quality of your meal relies on the quality of your ingredients. And it takes forever for it to sink in, but it’s so true! And the more you cook and the crazier you get about showing up at the farmers’ market at 4 am for some awesome onions or wearing a low-cut blouse to the butchers in hope of a preferential cut and your whole paycheck mysteriously evaporates in one meal and as the psychosis spirals out of control…you sort of lose the stomach for the mystery patty on the skinny bun or the dubious pastry of unknown origin. And it seems to me that after a while your palette sort of guides you. Like, when I discovered foie gras for the first time, I could definitely have eaten it by the pound. But I came out of the fog and wanted some tomatoes and some brussel sprouts.
You know what I mean…someone…I hope. Perhaps I’ve said too much. I suddenly feel like a butcher skank.
Not that it helps…just my own food disorder…
Well, if I could anything at all I would eat tons of bread, butter and cheese all the time. The only thing that has worked for me to stay trim and with a modicum of energy is eating a balanced meal-carb+protein+good fat. The fat is essential to keep you full.
Also, I know this may sound odd but chewing. If I take the time to chew and savor, I feel fuller faster than scarfing down an IN & Out Burger in my car. Sometimes though you HAVE to have the burger in the car scenario (or whatever floats your fast food boat) but if you do don’t flog yourself, make it a once in a blue moon thing and try for the majority of your meals being healthy. Oh, yes LOT’s Of veggies. You will be surprised how full you can get on veggies and you are such a great chef that I am sure you could make them sing;)
If I could eat whatever I wanted whenever I would subsit on french fries, salsa and guacamole with occasional fried chicken. But you can’t, unfortunately. I’m with Brigitte. I never ate alot of processed food, I just didn’t grow up like that. When I read Pollen’s ‘In Defense of Food’ it really resonated with me. The ‘rules’ are pretty simple to follow and just make sense. What I liked most is his advise to just ignore all the nutrition news that comes out; its constantly changing and often proved incorrect or incomplete. That, and keep the list of ingrediants to a minimum. Just concentrate on eating a variety of real food, while limiting your meat consumption. It might be more time consuming to prepare, but in the end so much simplier and healthier. It explains why Europeans are so much healthier although they eat what we consider to be ‘bad’ food – bread, cheese, dessert, alchohol, red meat, pasta, etc.
You can drive yourself crazy over ‘organic’, ‘local’, ‘sustainably farmed’. Each term means something different and aren’t really regulated (USDA rules for organic are not what you think organic means). And you could never eat out if you did. I don’t eat much meat to begin with, so I spend the extra money for beef that was grass fed till slaughter and chickens that are free-range (you have to read labels carefully on both these as free range can be interpreted many ways). One thing that is non-negotiable for me is meat and diary products raised without hormones and anti-biotics. I think the impacts on our health and environment are so invasive and long-term as to be worth it.
But in the end it all comes down to portion control. My personal Waterloo. I’m working on this one, but prefer to exercise to accomodate more eating.
If money were no object I’d eat seafood every night. And probably a steak (filet) once a week. I could do without poultry although I like it in any ethnic food (immersed in sauce). We are in MD (blue crab country) and it would be wonderful to eat it all the time! I have found for fruits & veggies & dairy – I prefer local to organic – we have ours delivered from a farm (milk in glass bottles, etc.) once a week.
And while we are sharing meal plan stories -I eliminated wheat, processed sugar, and dairy at one point a few years ago. But I got tired of fixing separate meals…now my husband is on a health kick. I’m glad, but annoyed in a way that his preferences set the tone.. Until Feb of this year he didn’t eat ANY vegetables!
Oh yeah, I left out that I’m not so tiny. :) And I love me some french fries and ice cream (not necessarily together but cravings are cravings).
Also, I’m pretty sure portion control is the devil in a blue dress for me.
If we are suspending reality, it’d be great to be able to grow my own veggies and eat Japanese food in Japan, Korean food in Korea, Italian food in Italy, etc.
Even though I live in Manhattan, getting decent produce can be tricky. I don’t often get off work in time to get to the green market and despite 3 grocery stores in my neighborhood, sometimes none of them will have unwilted basil, etc. Plus, when you’re 2 hours past hungry, who can sensibly cook a good meal?
Commenter Brigitte mentioned above that access can be tricky. This is so true. When I was living in Japan, it was easy to cook healthier as a single person because I could drop in at the farmer’s coop stand on the way to the train and pick up a single eggplant and bring it home and cook it that day. Here, I’m forced to pay $3+ for basil as garnish for that one dish if I haven’t planned sufficiently ahead.
Community mis-design, and food desert ranting aside, thanks for sharing about your food obsession online!
Honestly, if nothing mattered, I’d just eat a lower calorie, well-balanced diet. I’d eat less fried and sweet, and I’d be more active. I don’t go for fads anymore, I just go for healthy options and smaller portions. I did Weight Watchers on multiple occasions, and it did me wonders, losing over 20 lbs in 14 weeks, but it wasn’t always healthy. Our farmers markets are limited in their produce, so we just get the best we can in certain markets.
I’m not into vegan or vegetarian so much, but with our family’s food allergies, we tend to take the vegan diet and add our proteins back in. It’s worked fairly well for us.
My palate is happiest as a vegetarian, though my mind is more at peace with veganism, so I eat vegan when I can and don’t stress when I can’t.
Many brands of nutritional yeast (often used as a topping for popcorn, or in making vegan mac & cheese) are fortified with vitamin B12, and I think a lot of vegan vitamins (I’ve used Deva for years) also have added B vitamins.
I have been vegetarian for 5 months(I still eat dairy and fish) for ethical animal-loving reasons. I tried going vegan first, but gave that up b/c its so hard, esp when you go out to eat, although I try to buy vegan cheese, mayo and any other non-dairy substitutes as much as I can. I am trying to eliminate fish from my diet in a slow process for the same reason I don’t eat pigs, chickens, cows, bison, goat, turkey, etc. A few times since I converted I ate meat if I was feeling mal-nourished but since then I do take vitamins too(calcium-magnesium, B-12, Vitamin D) and that has helped stave me off from straying.
In my ideal, financially independent world, I would shop exclusively at Whole Food, or as we call it on the North side of Chicago, Whole Paycheck, and local farmer’s markets. Everything I would buy would be organic, local, or some mix of the two. Most of these things would be vegetables, fruits, cheese and whole grains, with some lean cuts of organic, grass-fed beef or free-range chicken added into the mix.
I would buy these things for two reasons: one being that they make my body feel good and run more efficiently, and two being that they’re better for our world. I know there’s a lot of debate about whether or not organic food is actually better for you, but at the end of the day, organic food is better for our lakes, rivers, countrysides, wildlife, and oceans. What’s good for the Earth is good for my body, or at least that’s how I see it. And I feel good knowing that the food I put into my stomach doesn’t cause deforestation or species extinction.
With that viewpoint, it probably seems that I should embrace a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle. And while I have the utmost respect for the people that choose to take this path, it hasn’t worked for me in the past. My body, it seems, really really likes a good dose of bloody steak and the heap of protein it provides. During the periods of my life when I’ve avoided meat, I’ve consistently felt weaker and been sick more often. So now I mix one serving of meat into my daily diet (much to my boyrfriend’s delight), but I try to make sure that meat is raised and treated as humanely and ethically as possible (no hormones, antibiotics, corn-based diets, etc).
Of course in this economy, eating ethically and responsibly is a HUGE challenge. So I find myself doing the best I can–buying organic, humanely-raised meats, some organic vegetables and produce, and the rest . . . well the rest (things like garbage bags and taco shells and cheese) I buy whatever’s on sale. Sometimes this means making a trip to Trader Joe’s, Jewel, and Aldi, but this is the best solution I have for now. I get to splurge on the products that I care the most about being organic (such as meat, chicken, and dairy) and make up the difference on other items.
I also leave some room in the budget for the “cheat” items, like tollhouse chocolate chip cookie dough or Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food. Because I don’t care what anyone says–you need a little treat every week, and organic, carob-chip cookies just don’t cut it.
I spend a fair bit of money on healthier, and some more gourmet, food. I love a good steak, and I totally love cheese, so I never want to deprive myself of all that to be vegan. However, I try to buy only responsibly-farmed dairy and meat products. And yes, they cost more. But shouldn’t we be supporting small and local farmers, who raise their livestock in a humane way? I think it’s just the right thing to do.
I don’t like all the junky imitation meat and dairy products that some vegans consume. They’re so high in sodium, and filled with other crap. That can’t be healthy.
Overall, though, I think the best anyone can do is try to eat a balanced diet – make room for fruits and veggies, lots of them. Try to avoid processed foods if possible. Enjoy some sweets, but only in moderation.
Life is all about balance. I don’t think one single diet works for everyone.
I have been reading “Natuarlly Thin” by Bethenny Frankel and a few of the Eat This Not That series. I think its more about making good choices and listening to your body. I don’t like a lot of meat in a meal – so I am now cutting back how much I take, hubby loves meat!
I am no expert and I need to get in tune myself.
If money were no object? I’d hire a nutritionist-chef to make all the decisions for me! ;)
Oh, I would add to my above comment that if you need rules but don’t want to go on a ‘diet’ i would recommend Bob Greene’s ‘Best Life Diet’. I made a few minor adjustments and lost 8 pounds in about 5 weeks. I didn’t follow his rules to the letter, never left Phase 1, and still lost weight. The rules are more about sensible eating/lifestyle choices and fall into line with many of my philisophical musings on food. If you are looking for guidance, I really recommend this book.
you know, I see food as a blessing. We are in a fortunate place in the world, in time. We can eat anything. So many people feel anxiety or sadness about food, and that really is a bummer. I see it as a perfectly designed smorgasbord of taste, nutrition, and enjoyment… not something to fret too much about. (okay, that does not mean eat anything you want. I mean, you know… don’t be too hard on yourself but by all means: eat your veggies! we kind of go along the Jamie Oliver lines… eating whole foods, and preparing it ourselves.)
I think the most important thing we can do is to eat compassionately. If you eat meat, allow the animal you’re eating to have lived a life that was respectful and dignified. That’s what we’re teaching our kids.
In the mean time… Mangia! Enjoy your food!
**I realize I sound like I don’t care about nutrition… on the contrary, it’s very very important to me! I do pay attention to what we all are eating, but I also don’t subscribe to any regimen. I learned the basic four food groups… remember that? I know it’s out of date, but I still kind of lean on that!**
You were healthy in college eating as a vegan because you were:
a) young
b) not eating processed foods
c) still occasionally eating meat
I would suggest Lierre Keith’s book “The Vegetarian Myth” if you want to find out what going hard-core vegan is really like. (Hint: her health is permanently damaged and still declining, albeit much more slowly, now that she is eating animal products again.) The best thing about the book is that she very decisively argues against the moral arguments for veganism.
If you decide to eat vegan, do it because your body tells you, not because you want to save the planet, because the ecological and moral arguments for avoiding meat are extremely simplistic and basically just wrong.
My reasons for being vegan are outlined on this site but let me say first off that it really is a healthy lifestyle, not just because you will lose weight doing it (if that is your goal, otherwise, it’s entirely possible to gain weight). Most diets are void of one or more essential vitamins and the vegan diet is the one with the MOST variety because most nutrients come from veggies and fruits… not beef and milk. For example, here is just as much calcium in a head of broccoli as a cup of milk, for a lot less calories and there are additional nutrients in broccoli. If you’re doing this, you’re doing it the right way by avoiding the fake stuff but do tie in some non-gmo tofu and some almond milk. Hope it’s going well, check out my site for some tips!
Hi Jules,
Just stumbled upon your blog and thought I’d comment on this post. Love your blog title by the way!
Now the answer. Currently I’m doing Jamie Eason’s LiveFit 12-week Trainer, and I love it! I’m not new to they gym, I love working out; however, I have learned from reading from fitness models I admire (like Jamie Eason, Tosca Reno, who is author of The Eat Clean Diet (though its not a diet, its a lifestyle) ), that losing weight and being fit is about nutrition. I keep reading that is 90% nutrition, 10% exercise and 10% genes. I cook 90% clean but for my goals, I need to eat cleaner. When I do, I see amazing results, but my downfall continues to be going to Chipotle and ordering a bowl; however, I do divide it into two meals!
Personally I think clean eating is great. If some don’t want to eat super clean, they don’t have to. The important thing is to eat foods closest to nature.
LiveFit: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/jamie-eason-livefit-trainer.html
http://www.eatcleandiet.com/community/success_stories.aspx
Good luck with your plan!
~ L.
PS. My response is not that good but I’m in the middle of doing homework and writing my workout plan for tomorrow, so sorry if it does not make sense!