I’ve never been big on calorie counting. I know it works for some people, but it’s just not my thing. I either completely lose track, or I start selecting food based on its calories, not its nutritional value.
When I was losing weight three years ago, I followed this set of nutrition guidelines from the trainer I was working with. While those guidelines cut out a lot, they did emphasize eating lots of real food–plenty of vegetables, healthy fat and protein. This was so much easier for me than trying to count calories or points.
So, I don’t often look at calorie counts for food. I generally know what’s good for me and what’s not, and I try to eat more of the what’s good for me, and less of what’s not, and make sure that when I do eat stuff that’s not as good for me, it’s something I really want, and I don’t go overboard on it.
But for some reason, I decided to look at the calorie count for one of my favorite (random) lunches, chicken tacos with guacamole from Chipotle.
[via ChipotleFan.com]
Since I am not really sure of the amount of calories I consume daily (although maybe I’ll do an experiment and record a few days to see?), I’m not positive how many calories I should be having at lunch, but it’s not the 630 calories that gave me pause.
Do you see the amount of sodium? No wonder I feel so bloated. I probably have these sweet taco babies at least twice a week.
The fat levels are also pretty high, and it’s not just from the guac. The guac actually only accounted for 13 of those grams of fat and 2 grams of saturated fat.
So, just a note to beware of the health halo and how things are prepared, and that cooking for yourself is (almost) always more healthy. (That last one is a huge reminder to myself, as well.)
How do you do healthy eating? Calorie counting? Weight Watchers? Eating real foods? Also, what did you think was healthy and find out was actually not that great for you?
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I try to follow Weight Watchers, but I've been pretty bad about it lately.
I don't pay attention to calories unless I'm training for a big race and want to make sure I'm eating enough. I'm a huge fan of chipotle but ever since calories have been posted on the menu, I'm shocked by their counts. There's a lot of added ingredients that we don't realize, like butter, etc... that contributes to it. I typically just try to eat whole, real foods and feel like as long as I keep running, I don't really have to worry about it.
@Erica Sara: I think you also probably have a pretty awesome metabolism! But yeah, definitely a lot more stuff in Chipotle than I'd previously realized.
I like to think I do Weight Watchers/eating real food (the latter as best as I can!). I've been on WW since October 2010, and have lost 102 pounds so far. WW has taught me how to eat healthy without "calorie counting" (I have my points instead of my calorie budget), and I now I can't imagine my life without it!
@Rebecca W.: 102 pounds!!! Congrats!
@Theodora: Thanks!! It's been a long time coming. Now it's time for the hard part -- losing those last 8 or so, and then maintenance!
For me, counting calories has really worked. Since last summer, I have lost around 20lbs and a majority of that came from watching my calorie intake. I use SparkPeople and on there I noticed how high my sodium intake was. I had no idea, just like you did! Some of my favorite foods had more than half a day's worth of sodium. Definitely something alarming. Another bonus of watching my calories is also noticing that I lack calcium and fiber in my diet. When I look back at my day, I always strive for an even balance of everything and I can make room for treats that I know I will want later on.
@April: I thought that once I lost weight, I was pretty good about my sodium intake...but this obviously served as a reminder to be more cognizant of that.
I try WW. I had success in the past with them, but I cannot be bothered to track these days. I'm trying to eat healthier foods -- real foods, but it's not easy, especially since I have a BIG weakness for sugar (addiction?). I'm reading this great book about how it's not about simply counting calories -- The Smarter Science of Slim: What the Actual Experts Have Proven About Weight Loss, Dieting, & Exercise. Sometimes it's weird reading the book because what apparently are the teachings of science are not what we've been told time and time again by countless sources. I'll let you know if it works, so far, I know I should lay off the sugar.... sweet sugar (yeah, I have an addiction.... first step is admitting it, right?).
@Linda: yes, I'd love to hear more about it!
I try to eat clean: fruits, veggies, making my own everything, 7 ingredients or less, etc...although when my parents send me "care packages" they often include guilty treats(special k treats, nutrigrain bars, etc).
These are, like you mentioned, great on cals but have zero or negative nutritional value-and lots of carbs. So NOT CLEAN haha.
Anyway, do you have an iphone? there is an AMAZING free app that I should be getting paid to endorse because I don't stop singing it's praises; it is called FOODUCATE. it is amazing. get it!
@Katherine: I just downloaded it, thanks!
@Katherine: Wow, I just downloaded it as well and it might be the most amazing app ever created! Thanks Katherine!!!
Sometimes when i feel like i need to get myself back on track I use my fitness pal on my iPhone which is super easy to record your diet and exercise for the day. It even has a barcode scanner for any food that you buy! I love it!
For me calorie counting works. Doing it I lost 167 pounds. But calorie counting really made me look at what I eat and see that it was so bad for me. I then switched to try and eat real foods as much as possible.
-So many things I thought were healthy and found out it wasn't was salads at restaurant. You figure how bad can a salad be but some are worse then sandwiches! Crazy.
@Ashley Pomes: 167 pounds!! Wow! Congrats.
@Theodora: Thanks :)
I know that for me counting calories works - I've gotten great results from it. But, I also find it very "restrictive-feeling" (diet-y, if that makes any sense), and labor intensive. Once my life got a little more hectic, I stopped counting calories and went back to my natural eating habits and put all the weight back on. Now I'm working not so much on counting calories or watching the numbers on the scale, but just changing my habits so I default to eating healthy, natural food. And recently I've been paying attention to ingredient labels and seeing all the nasty chemicals that are in there so products can have a shelf life - even the "healthy" products. This has led me to start making my own salad dressings and granola bars as of late.
I do a combination of a few things. Most of the time I eat clean and work out plenty, so I don't have to count anything. Sometimes when I want to know how much protein or sodium I am consuming, I log on to SparkPeople and get an idea. Very neat website and absolutely free. When I go out to eat, I assume I exceeded my calorie needs no matter what I ate. It is understood food gets bathed in butter and sprinkled with generous amounts of sodium to be more palatable. And looking it up and counting calories doesn't do you any good. Just get over it and start fresh tomorrow. We all need treats sometimes. Making something your lunch staple that comes from a Mexican place, not so good :) And nutrient analysis makes you cringe for a reason. Clean eating, being active, being well aware of your food's nutritional and calorie value (comes when you cook it yourself and measure all the ingredients, healthifying along the way), eating slowly and mindfully enjoying and thinking about each bite - all of it will eliminate food related anxiety.