Do you eat healthy? (1 Viewer)

[gianmarco]

Do you regularly choose to "eat healthy" in whatever form that means to you? Without getting into what's better or healthier, just a more generic question: If you have an option that tastes better but isn't very good for you (fried/oily/fatty/calorie dense) vs. an option that doesn't taste as good but is better for you, which do you choose on a more consistent basis?

I'm not talking about an occasional splurge or the fact that you might eat a salad for lunch once/week. Overall, do you tend to eat what tastes good without regards to what's in it or do you tend to be more careful of what you eat while sacrificing some taste.

Also, I know that there are plenty of healthy foods that can taste very good but for the sake of this discussion, assume that if you're more discerning about what you eat that you are likely giving up some very tasty (albeit bad for you) food.

ETA-- I added another pole to quantify just how healthy you eat. Oh, and adding another to add exercise into it.

 

[Cjw_55106]

On the surface, eating healthy is more important. Do I really practice that? Not at all. Waaay too much sugar in my diet...and that's without soda!

 

[Stinkin Ref]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

 

[bigmarc27]

I tend to eat healthy at home, notsomuch if we go out.

At home, lots of grilled chicken, brown rice, veggies and the like. At restaurants, anything goes!

 

[FreeBaGeL]

Grew up eating whatever I wanted, always about 20-30lbs overweight. Then transitioned slowly over the period of a few years to the point where I'm now ultra healthy.

Started with just making sensible decisions. Then tracking on myfitnesspal. Then doing cardio regularly. Then learning more about food and which food/ingredients are pitfalls and which are surprisingly OK while still being tasty (IE subbing mustard for mayo, etc). Then lifting weights. Then eating super lean.

Now about ~4 years later I'm in the best shape of my life. Hit the gym basically every day, do outdoor sports like mountain biking regularly, track my eating to the point where I'm tracking not only calories but macros. I'm 32 now and I have more energy and more sexy time than I did when I was 22 despite now being married with a 7 month old kid.

 

[gianmarco]

I would have expected eating healthy to be winning handedly.

 

[Major]

Life is too short to be a fat slob

 

[MC Gas Money]

My lunch today

Grape tomatoes

Black olives

Shaved reggiano

Endive

Strawberries

Dates

Roasted chestnuts

 

[ChiefD]

Both. Eat healthy when possible, but eat good tasty stuff when I feel like it. I run a lot, so my overall health is pretty good.

Could I go 100% healthy? Sure, but that's no fun. I like a slab of ribs and some fries like the next guy, and I want to enjoy food once in awhile. My philosophy has always been:

You just never know when you are going to die. You can eat 100% organic and healthy and whatever, but if you walk into the street and get hit by a bus, all that doesn't matter.

Eat good food, indulge once in awhile, exercise, have a beer when you want, and enjoy life.

 

[Nugget]

Way too much gluten.

 

[Swing 51]

I run a lot,

How much is a lot?

 

[the moops]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

I don't think cost has anything to do with it. Convenience on the other hand

 

[E-Z Glider]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

It's not even the money. The bigger problem is that most people dont have the time, ability, or desire to do it. You need to plan out and shop for meals in advance. You need to have a spare hour every night to get dinner ready (and then clean up). You need to be a decent cook if you're going to make things that actually taste good. And most importantly, you need to actually like doing it, or you'll never keep it up. How many people can check all those off?

 

[jwb]

I'm in the "enjoy your life" camp as well. I generally eat what I like, and there's a solid mix of healthy and unhealthy.

A few things I do that I feel are important:

- I do not drink soda. Regular or diet. Stuff is terrible for you. I drink tons of water, some coffee, occasional alcohol, and if I feel the need for something sweet, flavored seltzer.

- No more cold cuts. For lunch, I make tuna / chicken / egg salad, and have them on rye crackers. It's excellent. I don't care about the fat content of the mayo - I feel it's way healthier than cold cuts.

- We chucked the microwave. Nothing good comes out of a microwave.

- Fast food is rare. So is pizza.

- I love bread, but eat it sparingly. Usually when we go out to eat. This doesn't mean I won't grill burgers at home and use a bun, but we don't have loaves of bread here, either.

 

[Wrigley]

Looking good is 80% diet

 

[Stinkin Ref]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

I don't think cost has anything to do with it. Convenience on the other hand

you're right....I just made that up....it's not a factor at all.....

 

[beerbarron]

Tend to eat much healthier in the winter due to the over usage of the croc pot.. Home made stews, soups, chilis..

 

[jhib]

- We chucked the microwave. Nothing good comes out of a microwave.

What do you consider wrong with something like the acorn squash I cooked in mine last night?

 

[gianmarco]

I'm in the "enjoy your life" camp as well. I generally eat what I like, and there's a solid mix of healthy and unhealthy.

A few things I do that I feel are important:

- I do not drink soda. Regular or diet. Stuff is terrible for you. I drink tons of water, some coffee, occasional alcohol, and if I feel the need for something sweet, flavored seltzer.

- No more cold cuts. For lunch, I make tuna / chicken / egg salad, and have them on rye crackers. It's excellent. I don't care about the fat content of the mayo - I feel it's way healthier than cold cuts.

- We chucked the microwave. Nothing good comes out of a microwave.

- Fast food is rare. So is pizza.

- I love bread, but eat it sparingly. Usually when we go out to eat. This doesn't mean I won't grill burgers at home and use a bun, but we don't have loaves of bread here, either.

I agree with most of this except the microwave. My microwave is used almost exclusively to heat up leftovers from the dinner I made the night before.

 

[Major]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

I don't think cost has anything to do with it. Convenience on the other hand

you're right....I just made that up....it's not a factor at all.....

Yep, cost is definitely a factor. To overlook this is quite ignorant.

 

[Random]

We just try to eat as little processed food as possible. I don't consider a steak or a slab of ribs unhealthy (certainly the BBQ sauce could be, but doesn't have to be). We also eat organic when the option is available.

 

[jwb]

- We chucked the microwave. Nothing good comes out of a microwave.

What do you consider wrong with something like the acorn squash I cooked in mine last night?

To each their own, of course, but I never, ever liked the taste of microwaved food. Or leftovers heated up in them either - much prefer the taste of leftovers heated in an oven / stovetop. And it really isn't that much time. What, ten minutes?

 

[jwb]

I'm in the "enjoy your life" camp as well. I generally eat what I like, and there's a solid mix of healthy and unhealthy.

A few things I do that I feel are important:

- I do not drink soda. Regular or diet. Stuff is terrible for you. I drink tons of water, some coffee, occasional alcohol, and if I feel the need for something sweet, flavored seltzer.

- No more cold cuts. For lunch, I make tuna / chicken / egg salad, and have them on rye crackers. It's excellent. I don't care about the fat content of the mayo - I feel it's way healthier than cold cuts.

- We chucked the microwave. Nothing good comes out of a microwave.

- Fast food is rare. So is pizza.

- I love bread, but eat it sparingly. Usually when we go out to eat. This doesn't mean I won't grill burgers at home and use a bun, but we don't have loaves of bread here, either.

I agree with most of this except the microwave. My microwave is used almost exclusively to heat up leftovers from the dinner I made the night before.

wrap it in foil, pop it in the oven, ten minutes later, re-heated just fine, without the flavor-killing radiation.

 

[beerbarron]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

I don't think cost has anything to do with it. Convenience on the other hand

you're right....I just made that up....it's not a factor at all.....

Yep, cost is definitely a factor. To overlook this is quite ignorant.

4 value meals at McDonalds.. Go large.. about $25 - That's four meals

Here is a standards Croc Food List

Beef round 2.5 pounds - $15

Bag of carrots - $2 only use 1/2 - $1

10 pound bag of potatoes - $6 only use 1/3 - $2

Beef Stew Seasoning Packet - $1.50

Onion - $1 only use half $.50

Beef Boullion - $3.00 worth or much cheaper if you use cubes

Garlic Bulb - $1 only use half $.50

Can or Geen Beans or Corn $1.50

Various Spices ??

That's $25 worth of material and easily 6-8 meals of much healthier food..

Tru soft drinks not included in this plan... neither is electricity or the cost of the croc pot.

Two different ways to spend $25 on food...

 

[the moops]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

I don't think cost has anything to do with it. Convenience on the other hand

you're right....I just made that up....it's not a factor at all.....

Yep, cost is definitely a factor. To overlook this is quite ignorant.

show me some math

 

[jhib]

- We chucked the microwave. Nothing good comes out of a microwave.

What do you consider wrong with something like the acorn squash I cooked in mine last night?

To each their own, of course, but I never, ever liked the taste of microwaved food. Or leftovers heated up in them either - much prefer the taste of leftovers heated in an oven / stovetop. And it really isn't that much time. What, ten minutes?

Oh, I assumed from the rest of your post that you meant good in terms of health. Fair enough.

Of course, roasted squash is much better tasting, but sometimes a few minutes in the microwave is a good option vs the time it takes to preheat the oven and roast.

 

[FreeBaGeL]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

I don't think cost has anything to do with it. Convenience on the other hand

you're right....I just made that up....it's not a factor at all.....

Yep, cost is definitely a factor. To overlook this is quite ignorant.

4 value meals at McDonalds.. Go large.. about $25 - That's four meals

Here is a standards Croc Food List

Beef round 2.5 pounds - $15

Bag of carrots - $2 only use 1/2 - $1

10 pound bag of potatoes - $6 only use 1/3 - $2

Beef Stew Seasoning Packet - $1.50

Onion - $1 only use half $.50

Beef Boullion - $3.00 worth or much cheaper if you use cubes

Garlic Bulb - $1 only use half $.50

Can or Geen Beans or Corn $1.50

Various Spices ??

That's $25 worth of material and easily 6-8 meals of much healthier food..

Tru soft drinks not included in this plan... neither is electricity or the cost of the croc pot.

Two different ways to spend $25 on food...

You're comparing pre-made, prepared food to a list of ingredients. And an arbitrary one at that. That's like me saying that a 99c box of kraft mac-n-cheese is cheaper than a healthy lean 6oz filet and side of grilled veggies a Ruth's Chris.

Lean meat is more expensive than fatty meat. Quinoa is more expensive than rice. If you want to compare completely different categories of food that's one thing. But healthy pre-prepared food is more expensive than unhealthy pre-prepared food. Healthy boxed grocery store food is more expensive than unhealthy boxed grocery store food. And healthy ingredients are more expensive than unhealthy ingredients.

As someone that eats very healthy and has learned all the tips and tricks to make it as cheap as possible, there's no doubt that eating healthy is generally quite a bit more expensive than not. There's a reason that poor college students gain weight. They can eat an entire day's worth of food for 3 bucks. It's just not any good for them.

 

[beerbarron]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

I don't think cost has anything to do with it. Convenience on the other hand

you're right....I just made that up....it's not a factor at all.....

Yep, cost is definitely a factor. To overlook this is quite ignorant.

4 value meals at McDonalds.. Go large.. about $25 - That's four meals

Here is a standards Croc Food List

Beef round 2.5 pounds - $15

Bag of carrots - $2 only use 1/2 - $1

10 pound bag of potatoes - $6 only use 1/3 - $2

Beef Stew Seasoning Packet - $1.50

Onion - $1 only use half $.50

Beef Boullion - $3.00 worth or much cheaper if you use cubes

Garlic Bulb - $1 only use half $.50

Can or Geen Beans or Corn $1.50

Various Spices ??

That's $25 worth of material and easily 6-8 meals of much healthier food..

Tru soft drinks not included in this plan... neither is electricity or the cost of the croc pot.

Two different ways to spend $25 on food...

You're comparing pre-made, prepared food to a list of ingredients. And an arbitrary one at that. That's like me saying that a 99c box of kraft mac-n-cheese is cheaper than a healthy lean 6oz filet and side of grilled veggies a Ruth's Chris.

Lean meat is more expensive than fatty meat. Quinoa is more expensive than rice. If you want to compare completely different categories of food that's one thing. But healthy pre-prepared food is more expensive than unhealthy pre-prepared food. Healthy boxed grocery store food is more expensive than unhealthy boxed grocery store food. And healthy ingredients are more expensive than unhealthy ingredients.

As someone that eats very healthy and has learned all the tips and tricks to make it as cheap as possible, there's no doubt that eating healthy is generally quite a bit more expensive than not. There's a reason that poor college students gain weight. They can eat an entire day's worth of food for 3 bucks. It's just not any good for them.

How is that arbitrary? I didnt list brand names but those prices are accurate.. Beef may vary by state.. so maybe you get 2 pounds instead of 2.5 or use a different cut to save money

There is better Beef and it costs more but the Beef in that stew is much healthier than the pancake beef from a burger joint. Plus you can cut out the excess visible fat before you put it in the croc if you want.

Just listed two ways to spend $25 on food.. You spend it your way.. Ill spend it mine..

My recipe may not be Hipster/Foodie Healthy.

You can eat healthy for $25.. and get more meals out of it than at a fast food joint..

 

[Gator Shawn]

I eat what I believe to be healthy based on my research and reading about HFLC diets a la Primal and Paleo. My relatives disagree.

 

[SacramentoBob]

Does buying a supersized meal but getting a diet soda count as eating healthy?

 

[Nugget]

I know there will be plenty of people that will disagree with this and post articles saying it's not true......but the biggest factor for me and my family is that eating healthy is usually much more expensive.....if we were rich, we would eat different/more healthy.....

I don't think cost has anything to do with it. Convenience on the other hand

you're right....I just made that up....it's not a factor at all.....

Yep, cost is definitely a factor. To overlook this is quite ignorant.

4 value meals at McDonalds.. Go large.. about $25 - That's four mealsHere is a standards Croc Food List

Beef round 2.5 pounds - $15

Bag of carrots - $2 only use 1/2 - $1

10 pound bag of potatoes - $6 only use 1/3 - $2

Beef Stew Seasoning Packet - $1.50

Onion - $1 only use half $.50

Beef Boullion - $3.00 worth or much cheaper if you use cubes

Garlic Bulb - $1 only use half $.50

Can or Geen Beans or Corn $1.50

Various Spices ??

That's $25 worth of material and easily 6-8 meals of much healthier food..

Tru soft drinks not included in this plan... neither is electricity or the cost of the croc pot.

Two different ways to spend $25 on food...

Why did you choose McDonalds? Grocery store prices are going to be cheaper than restaurant prices. I could do 6-8 meals with bologna sandwiches or hot dogs in Mac & cheese for a third of the price of your stew recipe.

In general, a healthier option costs more. Lean beef costs more than fatty beef. Asparagus costs more than corn. Salad costs more than rice.

 

[Hu-Tang Clan]

Life is too short to be a fat slob

It's also too short to not eat the things I enjoy, even if they aren't the healthy choice.

 

[ChiefD]

I run a lot,

How much is a lot?

Right now, about 30 miles a week.

 

[MC Gas Money]

I run a lot,

How much is a lot?

Right now, about 30 miles a week.

I have longer runs in my shorts

 

[Arizona Ron]

I'm about 40, I've found that eating better trumps working out post-late 20s, early 30s. Working out is still important but not as much as eating right at my age IMO.

 

[RC94]

The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd rather not. - Mark Twain

 

[Jack White]

I'm in the "enjoy your life" camp as well. I generally eat what I like, and there's a solid mix of healthy and unhealthy.

A few things I do that I feel are important:

- I do not drink soda. Regular or diet. Stuff is terrible for you. I drink tons of water, some coffee, occasional alcohol, and if I feel the need for something sweet, flavored seltzer.

- No more cold cuts. For lunch, I make tuna / chicken / egg salad, and have them on rye crackers. It's excellent. I don't care about the fat content of the mayo - I feel it's way healthier than cold cuts.

- We chucked the microwave. Nothing good comes out of a microwave.

- Fast food is rare. So is pizza.

- I love bread, but eat it sparingly. Usually when we go out to eat. This doesn't mean I won't grill burgers at home and use a bun, but we don't have loaves of bread here, either.

I agree with most of this except the microwave. My microwave is used almost exclusively to heat up leftovers from the dinner I made the night before.

Microwaves are useful for gently reheating cooked food (but not pizza), boiling water for tea, defrosting green chile, and steaming veggies like winter squash, broccoli and cauliflower.

 

[Jack White]

Does buying a supersized meal but getting a diet soda count as eating healthy?

No, the diet soda is the worst part of that meal.

 

[RedmondLonghorn]

104 Year Old Woman's Secret to Longevity

 

[Thunderlips]

I'm not terribly healthy, but I don't eat bad. I'm not hitting the almonds, steel cut oats, etc. etc......but I'm also not eating Twinkies and subs everyday. I think I eat like a 1950s guy.....hearty breakfast....moderate lunch and a protein/starch/veg for dinner.

If anything kills me, it's the snacking in between.

 

[MC Gas Money]

Forgot to mention I had 3 Quayle eggs for lunch too

 

[Juxtatarot]

Forgot to mention I had 3 Quayle eggs for lunch too

Did you get them from the Bush?

 

[Ilov80s]

Healthy can be tasty. I actually really enjoy raw veggies and don't really care for things like mayo, ranch, pop.

 

[Mister CIA]

Nowadays, I let my taste buds dictate my choices, and the only three rules I try to adhere to are (1) avoid total crap food and (2) eat slowly, and (3) don't eat too much (2 and 3 work hand in hand). I had to get to this point because dietary fixation was driving me batty.