04 December 2006
Okay, I know no one cares what you had for lunch, but bear with me. I recently read this article (via Mimi Smartypants), and it's got me all. . . oh, I don't know. . . defensivey.
That Salon article is about calorie restricted diets (and refers to a much longer New York magazine article), which they define as an intake of 1,200-1,400 calories a day. I don't talk much about the way I eat, because it really is quite a boring topic, but I eat about 1,400 calories a day (never fewer than 1,200, and rarely more than 1,400). So when such an intake is referred to as 'disordered horseshit', you can probably guess how I feel.
Of course, reading the New York article, even I wind up thinking the CR people are a bit. . . too focussed. I don't do any calculations other than calorie counting -- I just make sure I eat plenty of fruit, veg, and protein (the carbs and fat just come naturally!). I'm positive that a CR dieter wouldn't consider me to be one of the same, and I'm fine with that. I eat the way I do because I think it's healthier, and I feel better physically and mentally.
My mom asked me the other day what I do when I'm starving hungry and 'can't' eat. My answer was that I don't usually get to that point of hunger, especially now that I'm trying to eat smaller portions more often (which I think almost everybody these days agrees is healthier than three big meals). It's not about battling hunger pains; it's about will power. I'd like to eat a huge plate of nachos, a big basket of chips/fries, or an entire pizza, but it's not necessary, and it's not a good idea. Just like if I were to blow my entire savings on a new wardrobe. I'm not going to go naked if I don't, and doing so will just cause me problems in the future.
I guess I just don't like people clucking their tongues at something I do, because I don't like the disapproval. And I especially don't like for people to be worried about my health, because they can't know what works for me. But there's a history of anorexia in my extended family, so warning bells can go off if you don't subscribe to a more traditional way of eating. And fair enough, too -- it's a family's job to keep tabs on these sorts of things, otherwise they can become problems.
If you'd like to lose weight or want your general health to be better, I really would recommend keeping track of your calorie intake for a week. Just to learn what you're eating. I was really surprised to learn how many calories various foods do or don't have. Vegetables have very few calories, as do some fruits (like strawberries), but some fruits have quite a lot (or what I would consider to be a lot -- over 100 for a banana). Oil (and any sort of fat) has about a million calories per ounce, so it's worth measuring out what you put into the pan.
I think we're too reliant on pre-processed food, anyway -- we don't know what ingredients go into our meals, much less what sort of nutritional value they have. My aunt (hi!) was diagnosed with Celiac Disease (an intolerance to gluten), and you'd think that would be terribly limiting, but her plate was piled as high as anybody's at Thanksgiving; it just happened that hers was with fresh, unprocessed foods. I don't think she ever has to go hungry, and I know I don't.
So, just as an example, what I had for lunch today: half a banana, half a pear, and 100g of strawberries; 1/4 cup cottage cheese; 36g of my graham bread. That's 290 calories, and it fills a dinner plate. I felt full after eating it. Sometimes I crave chips, so I have chips. But you can only have about ten or twelve frozen chips (in addition to the rest of your meal) without going overboard. So. . . ten chips or a big bowl of fruit? It just depends what mood I'm in.
I think it's also important to mention that I have 'off' days (or days off, rather), where I forget about calories. I'm still careful about what I eat (because once you know how bad pizza/chips/etc are for you, it's difficult to forget), but I'll have a scone with my latte. And believe you me, I'm planning my birthday meals already. I'm thinking breakfast at Perkins, donuts for elevenses, tortilla chips with a big bowl of guacamole for lunch. . . and we'll see how mobile I am by dinner time. If my eyes are glazed over, just push me in the direction of the cake.
Oh, and Quorn? I do not understand the hate. Quorn is fabulous -- suspiciously amazing, really -- and I mourn the loss of Quorn deli slices now that I'm in America.
So! That's my boring discussion on food. What do you think? Weird? So not-weird that it's not worth even talking about?
Oh dear, that article is beyond ridiculous.
The "drastic" calorie cutting is not drastic at all- 1,200-1,400 calories a day is pretty damn sensible for an average height, desk bound woman (I was at 1,100 a day to loose a kg a week, which is hardly drastic).
To be a foodie doesn't mean that you have to be overweight. I'm a UK 12 instead of a 10 because I eat a lot. Mind you, that lot is probably no more that 1,600 calories per day, tops, and not every day. But there's still chips, and pizza, and pecan pie. There's also fruit, salad, and a lot of fish.
Maybe if most Americans and Britons stopped looking at the 1,400 mark as drastic, the world would be a less obese place. ;)
posted by Vanda at December 4, 2006 09:07 PM
Quorn IS delicious. :) And I had the same thoughts about the "strict" calorie requirements they talked about in that article. That's not CRD, if you ask me, that's being on a low-calorie diet. (Or just not requiring more than 1200 calories, which many women do!)
posted by beth at December 4, 2006 10:00 PM
This is why we worry:
"Prisoners in the camp received meals three times a day: morning, noon, and evening. Factors influencing the nutritional value of the food included the official nutritional norms in the Nazi concentration camps. In practice, Auschwitz prisoners with less physically demanding labor assignments received approximately 1,300 calories per day, while those engaged in hard labor received approximately 1,700."
- "Living conditions"
Memorial and Museaum of Auschwitz-Birkenau Official website
http://www.auschwitz.org.pl/html/eng/historia_KL/warunki_bytowani_ok.html
Maybe you have a small frame. Maybe you are not very active, but that is a VERY LOW calorie range.
posted by Hazel Stone at December 4, 2006 10:15 PM
Hazel, you must also take into account that the food in Auschwitz was also not very well balanced and was often of poor quality (sometimes not fit for eating). Plus even the less physically demanding assignments were probably much more than many of us work our bodies in a day, let alone the emotional toll of such an experience. Lastly, these numbers are probably based on the men, who's bodies typically need more calories in a day.
posted by kate at December 4, 2006 10:57 PM
I wish I had your self-control.
As long as you're healthy, do you really care what some magazine article says?
God bless.
Terri
posted by Terri Pollhein at December 5, 2006 12:21 AM
Hazel, I think Kate is right in her interpretation of that quote.
I am 5'8" and have an average body type (healthy, that is -- not an 'average' American shape, which is probably overweight). I should have mentioned that I take exercise into the equation; if I burn 250 calories by running, I eat an extra 250, so the balance stay at 1400.
posted by Anna at December 5, 2006 02:01 AM
Anna, i know exactly how you feel. i have bolimia in the family and had to deal with it myself for many years. it's been a tough battle. what i think most people don't understand is that eating disorders are a form of addictive/obsessive behavior. that's why this kind of articles really bother me. not that anyone needs to eat whatever they want all the time in order to live a happy life, but an obsessive counting or dealing with numbers, portions and such is in itself a disorder no matter how much you end up weighing. my ultimate cure was by me hiring a personal trainer to take away from my overly obsessive mind the need to deal with counting and measuring, and she literally saved me. i have turned from a panickly creature that freaks out at an extra ounce of weight to a much calmer person in control of her own life. i have a general idea of an eating plan, based on 5 meals a day, and that's all i know. granted, a vagetarian usually does lead a healthier lifestyle (quorn rocks, i don't care what they say), but the lack of the compulsion to balance the in and out of the calories balance has only done good things for me. and i too have a weekly "junk food day", which is a very good habit (as long as it's once a week). i think the main problem of the avarage american today is the lack of basic knowledge about food, fitness and in general - health. balance, people! no obsessing needed.
posted by michal at December 5, 2006 04:40 AM
I eat about the same as you do - I'm honestly not sure how many calories I take in a day, but I spend my days munching on fruits and veggies and drinking gallons of water and hot tea. When I was pregnant, people were amazed to see me snacking on a cheeze stick and a slice of flax seed bread. My friends would tease me and say that pregnant women are supposed to eat pickles with ice cream, or entire bags of chips in one sitting. That's just not me. Besides, I always feel so 'blah' after an unhealthy meal. My daughter was born at a healthy weight, and I never had any problems with blood pressure, sugar levels, or swelling my entire pregnancy. I attribute that to the fact that I maintained my healthy eating throughout the pregnancy.
You know your body better than anyone else. If eating this way makes you feel your best, then more power to you for finding what works for you.
posted by Sharon G. at December 5, 2006 05:27 AM
the fact that you knew precisely the amount in grams that you're taking in is a bit scary...and you're one of those people who eat half a banana? what do you do with the rest? b/c bananas turn brown soon right after they're peeled.
anyway, i wish i had your discipline when it comes to food. my mind knows how much i should eat but my mouth apparently thinks on an entirely different wavelength. and then there are degrees of fullness. when to stop is always an issue for me.
posted by k. at December 5, 2006 10:38 AM
K -- I know how many grams because that's the easiest way to measure calories. In the UK, pretty much everything has a calorie value per 100 grams listed on the package (it's a bit trickier to figure out in the US); it's just the most accurate way to measure. It's in no way related to how much *I* weigh, if that's what you found scary.
The half a banana thing -- I cut it in half with the peel still on and put the second half in a plastic bag, where it stays airtight and doesn't go brown. Usually I'll have one half with, say, my elevenses, and then the second half a couple of hours later with lunch. It's not so much that I don't want to eat the entire banana, but that I want to eat something else as well, so it makes sense to 'spread it out' over two meals, so I can have some crackers (or whatever) on the side.
Michal -- I think you've hit on the important factor -- obsession. I don't feel like I spend more time thinking about food that I ever did before (which, to be honest, is still a lot -- I really like food!); in fact, having an accurate calories count means I have to think about what to eat a lot less. Even though I've obviously been talking about it a lot in this post and its comments, I don't feel like my calories or weight define me at all. In fact, I tend to forget I lead a fairly healthy lifestyle!
posted by Anna at December 5, 2006 11:51 AM
Bless you for taking on this topic. It is difficult to thread one's way through the minefield between the extremes of obesity on the one side and CR diets and anorexia on the other (properly done CR and eating disorders being entirely different things, of course).
When I was diagnosed at 41 with the beginnings of macular degeneration, I learned how destructive excess blood cholesterol can be to the eyes. It's a lot easier to turn down ice cream and candy when I know that it might rob me of my eyesight. ("Eat that and you'll go blind" works pretty well to control my eating!)
And yet it is so difficult, in my fairly typical American household of four, to eat well. My kids and husband prefer white bread, lots of cheese, and fatty meats. While they eat lasagne, I have a whole-wheat tofu burrito.
Sounds good (for me), but I'm not the only one bringing food into the house. Ice cream, candy, corn dogs, all manner of refined and processed foods fill my cupboards, and I didn't buy any of it. When I'm stressed and hungry, it's difficult to bypass the chocolate bar for the last wizened apple in the fridge.
What I'm trying to say (in a longwinded fashion) is that you inspire me. Continue to eat well, Anna. Your food looks delicious.
posted by anne at December 5, 2006 02:17 PM
I wanted to say that I've never known anyone make less fuss or be more sensible about watching what they eat and staying in shape. Anna simply started keeping track of what she ate and taking a bit more exercise. No starving herself, no obsessing; she just made a few changes to how she chooses her meals. Not everyone can do that (not sure I could), but it has to be the healthiest approach, mentally and physically, that I've ever seen.
posted by Rob at December 5, 2006 03:45 PM
It seems to me that if you lose weight you are not providing your body enough energy (calories) to function (basal metabolic rate) and therefore your body uses fat reserves to make up for the energy it needs. Likewise, if you intake too much energy you increase your fat reserves. I would say the test for a healthy caloric intake is one where the intake maintains a healthy weight for the long term. If a person loses weight eating what they do they will of course starve to death eventually once the body has consumed all of its energy reserves. From what I can see a normal mid-twenties woman needs about 1400 calories a day or so to function without drawing on internal energy reserves. Here's a handy web site where a person can plug in age, height and weight and see how much energy in calories a body needs.
http://www.bodyforlife2.com/calorie_intake.htm
As for me I now exceed by BMR enough to add about 3 pounds of internal energy each year. I wish that were a good thing. :(
posted by .d at December 5, 2006 08:50 PM
Anna, I think you're totally healthy. You seem to have adopted a similar lifestyle change as I did in 2001. I was considered then to be morbidly obese and at a whopping 20 years old, a sharp chest pain scared me into action. I began watching the calories I consumed---never going extreme. I transformed my health--my blood pressure is an uber healthy 100 over 50, I've lost 150 pounds and maintained my current weight for almost 4 years now...I have a hard time believing this lifestyle is unhealthy--and honestly, by the time you consume the fda recommended 9 servings of fruits and veggies a day, you really don't have much room left in your tummy for nachos. I have more energy, brighter eyes, and softer skin...I think the lifestyle agrees with me. Do what feels right to you Anna...nobody knows your body, your mind, like you do!
posted by Laura at December 6, 2006 11:47 AM
I also wanted to add something that I learned from my surgeon last Friday...I'm having some health problems regarding a genetic disorder and possible Cancer...and anyway, she and I were just chatting about the seeming epidemic of disease, and Dr. Weber said, "it's because people are eating more." Huh? She said that disease is so rampant now because we eat MORE than we need to survive, enough MORE that there's extra energy to help the diseased cells grow, too. If we were able to consume only what we needed, our bodies are smart enough to know where the calories should go. My favorite quote is "Eat to live...don't live to eat."
posted by Laura at December 6, 2006 11:53 AM
Everyone has said far more profound things than I could come up with. Suffice to say, article people = dum.
You're fab. Hope you're doing well!
posted by jessie at December 7, 2006 05:39 AM
Recently I read that the two best things people can do to improve their diets are measuring, and journaling. One of my professional colleagues says "That which is measured is managed," or, measurement (exercise, portion, etc) aids in control and follow-through.
You sound healthy and in control to me, and I think you're inspiring.
posted by Juti at December 7, 2006 10:25 PM
I ate 1200-1400 calories a day for a period of about 10 months, counting every calorie obsessively. Then I started binging. To make up for the binge, I would count calories even more obsessively. But the binge-restrict cycle just got worse. I had to be treated for binge eating disorder as an outpatient at an eating disorders clinic.
posted by Canadian at January 5, 2007 09:23 PM