I really don’t understand this need for people that want to become healthier by focusing on numbers and percentages of certain nutrients so much.
Obviously proportions should be thought about, but if bad foods are no longer a part of your diet, there doesn’t need to be such a concern for how much of this or that is eaten.
In other words, if you eat healthy, you don’t need to think about it. The only reason someone needs to think about it so much, is if they still have many bad things in their diet that they need to compensate for.
It’s a numbers game.
Accountants play with the numbers to try and make things work – to see how the budget can afford to do specific things. For accountants, the more money there is available, the easier it is to figure out the budget. If there is not an excess in money, things are harder to figure out.
The more knowledge you have about what kinds of foods are nutritious, and the more motivation you have to quit eating the ones that aren’t, the easier it is to eat healthy. You don’t have to fumble with the numbers.
The more junk you refuse to omit from your diet, the more you have to account for it, compensate for it, and again, fumble with the numbers.
Is there so much mis-information out there that people need to focus on numbers so much that when they look at food, all they see is numbers?
I understand that for some people, thinking analytically about things is just how their brian works. Thinking in numbers, for them, makes them feel more at ease than trying to comprehend the vast information about all the different kinds of foods and nutrients.
I think this is where a lot of people run into trouble and over-complicate things to their detriment. This leads them to obsess about it.
Remember, this discussion is pushing aside all of those training for something, especially serious athletes.
Really it all just comes back to the idea that eating better for health and weight loss is so much simpler than people make it out to be.
A little knowledge goes a long way.
When you go through your day, and you see people that appear to be vibrant and of a healthy weight, do you imagine them sitting around crunching numbers before they eat? No.
Then why do you do it?
I don’t even think it’s that much. There are people starving in other countries that live on a small handful of rice per today and a cup of water, and they live to be over eighty and don’t die. Even the 2000 calorie per day suggestion is over the top, and I agree with that that “correct food groups” stuff is nonsense. Fat people just need to stop eating, totally a matter of willpower. They complain whine and make excuses and then get depressed about their state of being.
As a girl who has struggled with her weight, you are COMPLETELY right, it is all about numbers. Sadly, to some, food is a substance…a drug. Somehow, food has become a numbing agent (just as crack or alcohol is for others). It’s sad, really, that some choose living to eat as opposed to eating to live. I am one of them, but am trying to make a change. It’s NOT as simple as “not eating” it goes MUCH deeper than that. I am not making excuses for myself…I’ve chosen to over eat and make myself fat, HOWEVER, you shouldn’t be so quick to make judgment and think you have it “all figured out”. Until you’ve walked in the shoes of someone overweight, you really won’t understand. I hope somewhere deep in your heart you find compassion for “fat” people and instead of saying hurtful things or judging, you encourage and motivate.
Oh, I think I might disagree with you for the first time. This is so exciting! Okay, well I only half way disagree with you.
I agree that when you have *that* moment when you decide you don’t want to be fat and unhealthy any longer that you can start by simply eating healthier. There are certain things that you *know* are unhealthy for you… crisps, chips, triple-fudge-chocolate-brownie-moose-cake… for instance…
But, the sad truth is there is still a big education process that is needed. I think the problem is that most people know this education process is coming and they then use it as an excuse never to get started because they say they need all the information *before* they start. While the exact opposite is true. You can start simply but putting down the Haagen Daaz, and learn as you go.
What I mean to say here, and this is the disagreement, is that if you don’t learn as you go. If you don’t learn portion control (thank you for saying that already), and how to read a nutrition label to be able to figure out how to compare foods, how to cook, and what your body needs for energy. Then you will fail for the same reasons that many dieters do:
- you will get frustrated by not loosing weight since you didn’t mind your portions.
- you will eat foods that you think are good for you but really are only ‘sold’ as good for you and really aren’t (have you ever looked at the nutritional content of many of the frozen meals, healthy request soups, whole grain ‘ready-made’ pastas?) and will continue to not loose weight as you are eating calorie dense, low nutritional value food.
- you will feel tired and sluggish and hungry because the sad truth is that a lot of us simply don’t know approximately what we need to put into our bodies on a regular basis to keep them energized and active
- you will be dependent on the marketers unless you learn how to cook and that leads to all three of the problems above.
In short. You can start by not considering the numbers, but once you’ve started you really need to follow through and educate yourself.
@YaKnow:
I don’t think people are living to be 80 on a cup of rice a day. I know what you are trying to say, but that can’t be a serious statement. Also, while I agree with your point about willpower, as I have talked about that before, I don’t think it’s as simple as: “they just need to stop eating”.
@searchingforskinny:
I’m sorry you got the impression that I feel as though I have it “all figured out”. This blog is a tool for myself and readers to help “figure it out”. How do you know that I haven’t walked in their shoes? I’m sure that if you look around this blog more, you will see that I am in fact trying to encourage and motivate. I do think you may have misunderstood my point though. I am trying to say that it is NOT a numbers game, but a lot of people treat it like it is.
@Beagle:
You’re so excited about a disagreement! haha…
Unfortunately, I don’t think we’re really in disagreement. You seem to be disagreeing with the process for which one figures out how to eat healthy, but I didn’t even address that. And the process you describe, I agree with.
I simply said if people take the time to educate themselves about which foods are healthy (and I have definintely talked before about the fact that there are “supposed” healthy foods that really aren’t) they don’t need to pay attention to labels. In fact, the fewer labels your food has, the better you are probably eating.
If you would really like to disagree on something
, I will disagree with your last sentence, and say that people that have yet to educate themselves about healthy eating should definately “look at the numbers” (meaning the labels) in the beginning, to be more aware of all of the excess sugars, ingredients etc.
If a person gets the bulk of their calories from vegetables and fruits, along with adequate protein from lean meats, small amounts of nuts and low-fat dairy, they will have a difficult time overeating, and not need to worry so much about exact calorie intakes.
However, there is a big difference between someone who is very obese who is trying to get down to normal body fat levels, and someone with normal body fat levels trying to get ripped. The leaner you are, the more careful you have to be about how much you eat of what if you want to continue to lose fat while minimizing loss of lean body mass. For those trying to get really, really lean without a loss of muscle, a little math is needed.
I hate when people label foods as “good” and “bad”, and tell you how you should never eat “bad” foods. People get obsessed over things like that and it can easily lead to orthorexia. When it gets right down to it, it isn’t about good or bad, but knowing the difference between the foods that fuel you and the foods you eat occasionally because you enjoy them.
Numbers… I thought they were fun for a while, but they lead to doing stupid things, like eating foods that are full of Splenda or watered down to lower their calorie count.
http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa447.pdf
According to the UN a moderately active adult is considered undernourished if eating less than 2000-2310 calories per day. Eating less won’t always do it if you want to be healthy too, you have to eat smarter.