1.10.2010

'Diet Food'

Hey all,
waaaaaass up!
Sorry, I am TIRED.
I had a long day that I don't want to discuss...it involved door to door cookie sales, gym time and grocery shopping.
Bleck.
So, I thought I would talk tonight about "Diet" food.
I was grocery shopping.
I think I mentioned once that I used to like to look in skinny people carts to see what they were eating.
Well, now that I am over half way to goal...and feeling skinny in the relative sense...I look in bigger peoples carts to see what they are eating.
It turns out they are eating diet food.
What could I possibly mean?
I mean two boxes of special K. Low fat snack cakes...fake wheat bread....you know the kind..it's brown but doesn't have any grain in it...just molasses.
I see a lot of fake, highly processed and highly chemicalized diet food.
I remember eating stuff like this and feeling proud that I was 'eating healthy'.
all that processed food triggered binging behavior....caused my blood sugar to spike and left me feeling hungry.
I have a feeling it does the same for a lot of people.
I never would have thought of ADDING fat to a salad, or eating nuts.
Or eating eggs....or yogurt...not 'no fat, chemically sweetened' yogurt....but lowfat yogurt with honey and peaches.

Diet for me was what was in the 400 lb women's cart three back in line.
Special K and no fat cheese and white bread with turkey. Limp iceburg lettuce with 'low fat' dressing.
Not a nice vinaigrette.
Not
Lean protiens,
Not
Good Dairy.
Not
Lots of veggies...grilled or perhaps an awesome salad with nuts and feta.
Not
Whole grains,
Eating the way I eat now...those lean protiens, Good dairy, veggies and fruit...
It makes a huge difference in your blood sugar and your feelings of fullness.
I think there are some huge misconceptions about weight loss out there, and it's too bad.
Half of that crap should have a warning labels.
It gives people erroneous ideas about nutrition.
I am not typing this to judge her...she is doing the best she can. I am p*ssed at the diet industry for promulgating bs and sucking in desperate people.
I ate clean today and kept my calories to 1440....I exercised for 1 hour on Christian.
I didn't do my upper body workout today....I was sooooo tired before I even got on him that I barely made it through my cardio. I'll make it up on Wednesday.
So,
Hope you all are having a great night.
I am going to get some sleep now.
Talk to you all later.
Hugs,
Chris

19 comments:

KrysTros said...

I quit eating processed foods at least 2 years ago. I only buy meat, veggies, fruits and dairy. I never shop in the "middle" of the store. Some people think our meals are too simple but I know that sometimes simple means healthy!

Linda said...

I remember the last "diet" I went on, we were visiting some family and the wife had the husband eating all no fat foods - cheese, margarine, everything - plastic! I've never eaten no fat, because the body needs fat to run, but I do eat low fat, but not salad dressings. It doesn't take a lot of logic to figure out that a body needs good, nutritious food to be strong, right?

Hanlie said...

We are so lucky to be avid readers, both online and books, because it keeps us informed. However, the sad truth is that the majority of people don't read anything other than gossip/girlie/car/hunting magazines, so they really don't know any better. They believe advertising as if it's the gospel truth. Tragic.

Retta said...

I have lost a hunk of weight, and NEVER eat fat-free anything. I totally agree with you. Most folks don't know that when they take OUT the fat, they must replace it with something, and usually it's chemicals and some form of sugar. It's a sad trick. And it's just because of the bottomline, $$$$

I used to eat that stuff, and was always starving, and not successful at weight loss. Now, I eat the regular stuff, and less is more satisfying BECAUSE the fat in it caused satiety.

Uh oh, you got me on a soapbox...

Thanks for bringing up the subject, maybe someone didn't know about it, and will find the info helpful.
Loretta
=^..^=

Olivia said...

I totally agree with you. It is all about portion control, not diet foods. Also I HATE high fructose corn syrup. I stay away from that stuff like it is the devil, because it pretty much is. People think because the FDA has approved it that it is okay...think again my friends.

Have a great day!

MizFit said...

I know for me when I FINALLLY lessened the amount of processed foods I ate in the name of "dieting" I was FINALLY SATIATED.

who knew all that food was making me famished.

Tara Stevens said...

So true.

I'm annoyed that it's taken me this long to realise that 'diet' foods make you fat, unhealthy and ultimately unhappy!

South Beach Steve said...

What an interesting case study this would be. Perhaps I need to get a part time job working as a cashier - as crazy as it sounds, I bet it would be interesting.

Melissa said...

I totally agree!! My brother and I were discussing Slim Fast yesterday. Do people realize what they could EAT for those number of calories? It's insane!

Unknown said...

I think once we learn that those "diet cakes" are not going to help us lose weight is when we are going to WIN this battle. Your doing it correctly! :)

paulawannacracker said...

I hear you Chris... I too look at other people's shopping cart and I'm all SO GLAD I DON'T EAT THAT WAY... Yes, I'm guilty of indulging but I don't buy that packaged "diet food" you mentioned. I too love veggies and fruits and nuts. Last night, Daniel and I were watching tv and he wanted a snack... he asked for the unsalted nuts/cranberries/raw almond mixture I had prepared. He then took a handful and said... put them away or we'll eat all of them and he was right. We had a handful and that was it.

He even asked me for the peppers and made fajitas and he used red, green and those pasilla peppers. There was so many vegetables. I totally hear what you are saying about the yogurt. I'm not buying yoplait light anymore!

Tricia said...

Great points! I wish more people realized this.

karen@fitnessjourney said...

I feel so much better knowing I'm not the only person who peeks to see what other people are buying. LOL!

Trying to get people to see that processed diet foods aren't the answer is a hard sell. For so long the advertisers have sold us on the idea of losing weight through the consumption of these products.

It is frustrating to try to get people to understand that whole foods are the way to go. I actually have a friend who is positive that she is going to lose weight by eating "healthy cookies" for breakfast. She found the recipe in some womens magazine. AHHHHH! It drives me bonkers.

Christine Jeske said...

I am right there on the same page as you! They make money off of keeping people fat, they label their foods "diet" or "fat free" and it's all empty calories with no nutritional value. Once I started learning about correct serving size for veggies, then having two servings of bulky veggies per meal -- I really started to see the difference in hunger level and how to get more fill per calorie. You have to relearn how to eat and not just blindly do what the food industry tells you. Do your research!!!

aimeeinak said...

It's scary what some of that 'diet' food is made out of. But I never thought about it before I started eating better and reading more about what's in our food. I look to see what people are buying too!

Anonymous said...

It really is sad what the food and diet industries have created in the name of profit. Foods that not only don't *help* us lose weight, they make it even *harder* to do so!

David Kessler addresses these issues in his book The End of Overeating - it's mind-boggling and interesting and gets me all fired up!

WTG on working out even though you were pooped.

debby said...

Great observations, Chris! And so very true. I do love the yummy nutritious foods I get to eat now.

Ellen said...

I'm going to start checking out people's carts and see what's what. You just might have something there, Chris!

deisegal said...

A lot more people are coming around to that way of thinking. It will probably always be the prevalent attitude though - the food industry will spend a lot of money to keep it that way.

Do you guys get bombarded with the "Special K" diet in the States after Christamas. Over here we get it big time...oooh eat a bowl of cereal for breakfast and a bowl for lunch and a low fat dinner and POOF lose a lot of weight. I will admit I have been through a lot of diets in my time but I never once went near the Special K diet (1) one "standard" bowl of cereal would not satisfy me and even if I could stick to it I'm sure most of the weight would just be water weight. Mutter mutter...

I've cooked most things from scratch for a while now. I do have low fat milk and some lower fat cheese in my fridge but I also keep a block of parmesan handy because the taste is just the best :-)