Let’s assume that I was 100% committed to making a ‘lifestyle change’, not just doing a temporary diet, to become a healthier person, what should I eat in order to become and maintain a reasonable weight and to (of course I know there’s no guarantees) lengthen my time here on earth?
I’d like to leave exercise out of the equation. I realize it plays a part but it’s not what I want to talk about.
So, what should I eat?
Low carb, gluten-free, low fat, paleo, vegetarian, vegan, etc., etc…
Food. Definitely food. With daily intake of no more than 75% of the total calories you expend in any one day - which may be low if “exercise” is off the table.
When you’re at your desired weight, you can increase to no more than a caloric intake that matches your daily expenditure.
Pretty simple, really.
i Like Michael Pollan’s basic advice.
Plants good. Meat good. Fat good. Whole grains and legumes good.
Fast/convenience food, HFCS, anything with many ingredients you cannot identify, yummy and fine but in small, infrequent amounts - not as dietary staple.
You’re allowed to eat food? But meat comes from an animal and clogs your arteries and wheat makes you fat and stupid and fruit has sugar which is a deadly poison and eggs and milk come from animals and make you schizophrenic and autistic and I think I read somewhere that vegetables might have sugar or chemicals or something. That leaves nuts and twigs and some people are allergic to nuts!
You will probably have to become a Breatharian, but be careful because air has oxygen and that’s flammable.
Okay…
Anyone in addition to chiroptera who has a reply with actual helpful advice would be appreciated.
:rolleyes:
My question was sincere. If you think I could have phrased it better, that’s fine, I’m open to suggestions.
Just eat food, in moderation. Don’t assign morality to it. Don’t blacklist entire macronutrients. Don’t restrict calories below your BMR. That’s it.
I follow a few rules for my diet to keep things simple.
Always have fruits or vegetables with your meal.
Stay away from saturated fat and simple carbohydrates.
When in doubt, go with natural food.
If you want to lose weight, then eat less than you normally do.
If you want to gain muscle, then eat protein with most of your meals.
Avoid processed food, fast food, and more than small amounts of simple carbs. Try to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, and more lean protein than fatty protein. Find meals you like to make that naturally fall within these categories so you don’t feel deprived.
Knowing if you’re insulin resistant or not will make a big difference. If you’ve got a normal metabolism, then go with fruit, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and modest amounts of dairy and meat.
If you’re insulin resistant, then you’ve gotta eat more protein and fewer carbs if you want to manage your hunger and lose weight. Same stuff, just in different proportions.
Some good advice so far. I generally try to fill my plate with 50% to 75% vegetables (like a nice salad, or green beans, squash, etc.) and the rest a protein. I generally don’t add a carb to my plate unless it’s something like quinoa.
I try to start with a good, healthy breakfast with a decent amount of protein - around 30% or more if possible.
I snack a lot, usually on fruits and vegetable, so I don’t get famished.
I drink lots of water (and also coffee - until about 2pm - that’s my vice!).
ETA: I often eat a cup or two of a non-cream based veggie soup for lunch. I can get a really nice artisan soup, plus some fruit and cottage cheese, and it’s healthy lunch that fills me up.
All diets boil down to: Eat a mix of foods, not too much. Exercise as much as you can.
All else is window dressing.
There are thousands of programmed diets out there that will help you choose and limit your food intake while getting a good balance of essentials. Choose one and stick to it.
I think the point is that you shouldn’t go on a ‘diet’. It’s not sustainable. Eat real food in moderation. If you don’t know what ‘real food’ or ‘moderation’ means, consider an appointment with a (licensed and certified) dietician.
Am I the only one who thinks the answer may be in the OP’s username?
The right answer depends on what you as an individual can best live with.
The essentials are as already stated: stay off the processed crap. Avoid added sugar, refined carbs, processed meats, and eat foods with lots of fiber and eat a moderate amount of protein. Don’t drink your calories (avoid sweet beverages like soda or juice or Gatorade.)
The exact form of that depends on wht appeals to you. Vegan? That works. Paleo? Yeah that does too. Low carb? Sure. The standard go-to in medical circles is either a Mediterranean-style diet plan or the DASH diet plan but really anything that fits those criteria is good. The Plate metric is a reasonable guide too (half of every plate of food is veggies and fruits with the other half divided between complex -not refined - carb and a protein). Which of those appeals to you? That’s the one you should move to.
I can only give my anecdote, but for me this was huge.
I only drink water when possible and I reduced my alcohol significantly.
I stopped my usual 3 beers a night and found out I really didn’t miss them, it was just out of habit. That’s like 500 calories a day right there.
My thoughts:
Learn to cook, if you don’t know how already. You don’t need to become a great chef, but learn to follow a recipe because 90+% of your meals should be made with whole foods, i.e. stuff that came out of the ground instead of a box. Even “meal starter” packages can contain a lot of stuff that can sabotage you.
On that note, read labels. Read EVERY label. It’s very enlightening.
When in doubt, eat a non-starchy vegetable first. Include vegetables in everything. If you’re anything like me, even making an effort barely meets that standard “5-9 servings per day,” so it’s really difficult to go overboard here. I try to work with the “rainbow” principle too – eat veggies that come in a wide variety of colors, in order to get a broad range of nutrients.
If you can, completely cut out fast food, and processed foods like chips, cheetos, oreos, soda, etc. for six months (or more). Once you get past the “withdrawal” cravings, you will very likely lose much of your taste for them.
Instead, if you have a local farmers market or several, take advantage. The vendors very often have really great suggestions for how to use / prepare their produce, and if you can get into the wide variety and real freshness offered by produce that is practically straight out of the ground, you will tend to miss the processed foods a lot less. Get adventurous here.
Drink lots of water. I aim for at least 2 litres a day. I do exercise, so my trainer recommended up to 5 litres a day (I usually manage 3-4).
Try to cultivate a mindset that treats are special rarities. For example, I don’t drink Diet Coke or Coke Zero every day. But I might have the real deal “Mexican” Coke (made with cane sugar instead of HFCS) once in a month or two. It becomes extra special because it’s real and because it’s rare. Are oreos “special” or would you rather go to that nice restaurant and have their house-made tiramisu? Savor the pleasure of the treat rather than mindlessly snacking.
Savor the pleasure of all of your food, for that matter. Mindfulness can go a long way.
I’ll second this. Great advice.
nitpick: Oxygen isn’t flammable. It’s what inflames other things.
Buy your own ingredients, make your own food, save the sugar for dessert. Want to eat pasta? Buy a pasta maker. Want ice cream? Ice cream maker. Beer? Brew your own. Liquor? well, that you’re gonna have to buy…
For a more detailed suggestion, I’d recommend looking into the Mediterranean diet. It seems to follow a lot of what people are saying so far: don’t flat-out eliminate anything from your diet, but eat a mix of things. Keep your diet interesting and try food from places you haven’t before. Find recipes on the internet before you commit to buying a particular cookbook.