LillypadLeaper
Active member
Since the forum is just getting going, I'll start a thread. What little things do you do to eat better and get more nutrients? I have some ideas, but they might not work for everyone. I like to keep things simple and easy to stick to.
I think about "processed food" a little differently than others. I see any change to the original food as processing, and I use some common sense when deciding what to eat.
For instance, plain oatmeal with milk isn't super tasty, but it's filling and nutritious. It's a bit rough, and you can tell it takes effort to digest.
Now, think about overnight oats instead. It's the same basic ingredient, with maybe a little bit of high GI carbs from some berries or sweetener. But the texture is almost pre-digested, which changes how it affects your blood sugar and how full you feel.
Grind it up into flour, add an egg or two and some milk, and make pancakes. It goes right through you, and you're hungry again quickly.
The same idea applies to a bag of potato chips. Lots of calories, and you're ready for dinner right after finishing the bag. If you ate the same amount of calories in boiled potatoes, you'd be eating a couple of pounds of potatoes - good luck eating dinner after that!
Of course, chips taste better, which is a big part of the problem. That leads to my next tip:
Try to enjoy more plain, bitter, or sour tastes. Tea without sugar is nice once you get used to it, and it can help control cravings.
It might sound funny, but getting used to plainer foods helps me a lot. I focus on nutrition over taste most of the time, and I have easy options for when I'm lazy or don't have much time. Not really enjoying most of my meals is helpful, and it makes the tasty ones even better.
I keep hard-boiled eggs in the fridge. If I want a snack, I eat a couple of eggs. I don't love them, but they stop the craving.
Instead of ordering takeout when I'm tired or lazy, I put rice in the rice cooker, cook some ground beef or chicken, and have a bowl of rice and meat with some sauce. It takes 10 minutes and is cheap!
Try to get used to being hungry:
I don't think we need to eat a certain number of meals every day. I think that often makes us even hungrier. It might not work for everyone, but I find that I can ignore hunger after a while. The feeling lasts for a bit, but then it fades away once you get used to it.
Time your carbs:
I read somewhere that there are essential proteins and fats, but no essential carbs.
Carbs are important, and I don't think being in ketosis all the time is good. It can also have side effects. But you don't need carbs with every meal, and definitely not a lot of them.
Carbs are fuel, and that's how they should be used. You don't need 70g of carbs for lunch if you have a desk job. But if you exercise for more than 45 minutes, carbs during the workout can help you push harder and get better results.
After a workout is another good time for carbs. It's as important as, or even more important than, protein. This is when your glucose levels are low. Carbs cause insulin production, which helps move amino acids into muscle cells to help them repair and grow. Carbs after a workout make sure protein synthesis happens well, which reduces muscle breakdown. And you refill your energy stores, so many of the carbs you eat after exercise for the next several hours are used for refilling and recovering. So, it's a good time for a snack you want, and a reward for a good workout.
More protein is almost always a good thing:
Protein helps you feel full, and you also use about 20% of the calories in protein when you digest it. So, it's hard to eat "too much" protein.
Fruits, juice, etc:
I want to go back to my first point about processing. When you juice fruits or make a smoothie, your body can digest it very easily. I don't think that's a good thing, even though fruits are generally healthy.
Try to eat more vegetables and less fruit. And when you eat fruit, choose the ones with more fiber. I find I get addicted to healthy but tasty treats, which makes me crave more things in general.
I have to make this short for now, but I'll try to add more later.
I think about "processed food" a little differently than others. I see any change to the original food as processing, and I use some common sense when deciding what to eat.
For instance, plain oatmeal with milk isn't super tasty, but it's filling and nutritious. It's a bit rough, and you can tell it takes effort to digest.
Now, think about overnight oats instead. It's the same basic ingredient, with maybe a little bit of high GI carbs from some berries or sweetener. But the texture is almost pre-digested, which changes how it affects your blood sugar and how full you feel.
Grind it up into flour, add an egg or two and some milk, and make pancakes. It goes right through you, and you're hungry again quickly.
The same idea applies to a bag of potato chips. Lots of calories, and you're ready for dinner right after finishing the bag. If you ate the same amount of calories in boiled potatoes, you'd be eating a couple of pounds of potatoes - good luck eating dinner after that!
Of course, chips taste better, which is a big part of the problem. That leads to my next tip:
Try to enjoy more plain, bitter, or sour tastes. Tea without sugar is nice once you get used to it, and it can help control cravings.
It might sound funny, but getting used to plainer foods helps me a lot. I focus on nutrition over taste most of the time, and I have easy options for when I'm lazy or don't have much time. Not really enjoying most of my meals is helpful, and it makes the tasty ones even better.
I keep hard-boiled eggs in the fridge. If I want a snack, I eat a couple of eggs. I don't love them, but they stop the craving.
Instead of ordering takeout when I'm tired or lazy, I put rice in the rice cooker, cook some ground beef or chicken, and have a bowl of rice and meat with some sauce. It takes 10 minutes and is cheap!
Try to get used to being hungry:
I don't think we need to eat a certain number of meals every day. I think that often makes us even hungrier. It might not work for everyone, but I find that I can ignore hunger after a while. The feeling lasts for a bit, but then it fades away once you get used to it.
Time your carbs:
I read somewhere that there are essential proteins and fats, but no essential carbs.
Carbs are important, and I don't think being in ketosis all the time is good. It can also have side effects. But you don't need carbs with every meal, and definitely not a lot of them.
Carbs are fuel, and that's how they should be used. You don't need 70g of carbs for lunch if you have a desk job. But if you exercise for more than 45 minutes, carbs during the workout can help you push harder and get better results.
After a workout is another good time for carbs. It's as important as, or even more important than, protein. This is when your glucose levels are low. Carbs cause insulin production, which helps move amino acids into muscle cells to help them repair and grow. Carbs after a workout make sure protein synthesis happens well, which reduces muscle breakdown. And you refill your energy stores, so many of the carbs you eat after exercise for the next several hours are used for refilling and recovering. So, it's a good time for a snack you want, and a reward for a good workout.
More protein is almost always a good thing:
Protein helps you feel full, and you also use about 20% of the calories in protein when you digest it. So, it's hard to eat "too much" protein.
Fruits, juice, etc:
I want to go back to my first point about processing. When you juice fruits or make a smoothie, your body can digest it very easily. I don't think that's a good thing, even though fruits are generally healthy.
Try to eat more vegetables and less fruit. And when you eat fruit, choose the ones with more fiber. I find I get addicted to healthy but tasty treats, which makes me crave more things in general.
I have to make this short for now, but I'll try to add more later.
