Typically I let Jen, from Getting Fit With Jen, help me out with answering questions in these posts. However, this time I wanted to speak from my own experience. Rest assured, Jen and I talk about all of this quite frequently while she’s working my tail off engaging in a long, lovely stroll with me as we work to get into shape….
I often receive questions about fat and calorie intake, so I thought it might be nice to address Crystal’s question here in case the rest of you have similar questions:
Laura,
I also weight train like you do, but have just began eating this way. I was on a high protein, low fat diet, but have switched to raw milk, butter, and all the other good stuff you use. Could you share with me how you balance your calorie intake with the high fat food? I feel great, but am concerned I am taking in too many calories.
This is a bit of a tricky question, simply because everyone is different, and there is not a “one-size-fits-all” nutrition plan that will work for everyone. However, I will share with you what is working for me..
First of all, I have to say that I haven’t counted calories since I was a newly-wed, almost 18 years ago. This isn’t because I am one of those people who can just eat anything and not worry about weight gain. If only. I simply found the process of counting calories to be tedious and frustrating. I have since learned more about listening to my body. I now work to be intentional to only eat when I’m hungry, and then to stop eating when I’m full. This has been the most successful method I’ve found to help me maintain a healthy weight. If I get into a habit of over-eating (which would, of course, mean that I am consuming more calories than I need), or if I’m eating a lot of “empty calories”, I definitely start noticing my pants getting tighter. But if I am disciplined to eat only what my body is truly asking for, I find that counting calories is not necessary for me.
As a side note, now that I’m working out regularly, I find that I definitely need more calories, but I have no idea how many. I’m simply listening to my body, eating when I’m hungry, stopping when I’m full, eating protein when I crave it, eating vegetables and fruit in larger portions as I need them, etc.
Easy Breakfast Casserole with Applesauce Bread and Fruit is a great, balanced meal.
By the way, ignore the juice in this pic. We rarely drink it.
We must have had company the day I took this picture!
But now let’s get to the fat of the matter. :) If you’ve been reading here long, you likely know that our family eats a fairly very high fat diet. I don’t hold back on the butter, cream, whole milk, meat, or eggs. I trust our food sources, and I know that whole foods are best for us, even if they may be higher in calories. These high fat foods, when balanced with fruits, vegetables, and other whole foods, are filling, satisfying, and delicious. (Except for those times I eat more food than I should and my pants start getting tight. But let’s avoid bringing that up again, shall we?)
I believe that God made a lovely balance of foods -some which are naturally high fat/calorie foods (like cream) and some which are naturally low fat/calorie foods (like carrots). I believe that all of these foods, in their whole form, have nutrients in them that our bodies need.
I also believe that we have stripped many nutrients out of what was originally a whole food, creating “empty calories” (like white pasta) which do little to nothing to nourish our bodies. These foods may be lower in calories than some, but they provide nothing for us, making them a waste of calorie consumption. (And yes, I do still occasionally splurge and eat empty calories, knowing that the majority of the time I make better food choices.)
I believe that eating too much of anything will make you gain weight, whether it’s good for you or not. If all you eat is carrots, and you consistently over-eat them, you will gain weight, even though carrots are low in calories and fat free. (You’ll also turn orange, but that’s beside the point.) ;)
I certainly don’t claim to be an expert on the matter, but these are my thoughts based on my research and experience. I’d love for you to share your experiences with eating a whole foods, nutrient rich diet and how you work to acheive a healthy weight. (In addition, if you’d like to talk about the times your pants get tight, feel free. Stinkin’ cookies.)
Since I started eating REAL food (well, not that I didn’t eat REAL food before, I just ate more egg whites, skim milk, and didn’t cook with oils or butter) a few months ago I’ve lost 12 pounds effortlessly. Now I eat my whole eggs scrambled in a bit of butter, veggies sauteed in coconut oil, more avocados, whole milk in my tea – and it’s awesome!
Granted, I usually don’t drink a lot of milk or eat a lot of cheese, minus the occasional pizza splurge. I also don’t eat a lot of pasta – more brown rice and quinoa.
I travel a lot for work and am very active as an adventure guide and like Laura said, you DO need more calories being active. However, I’ve found that in certain parts of the world (like now as I am posted in Switzerland) you can consume FAR more than you expend, even if you are cycling or hiking all day! It’s easier in other countries where they eat more fresh fruits! Don’t use exercise as an excuse to eat whatever you want!
Anyway, my point is that it DOES work to eat “real food” and lose weight. However, just remember that “real food” is not just milk, butter and cheese – but also all the delicious fruits and vegetables in the world! I am now craving fresh Costa Rican pineapple…
I think an important consideration here is that losing weight (or keeping from gaining weight) shouldn’t be the goal at all — being healthy should be the goal. If you’re eating good, whole foods, in moderation, when you’re hungry, and you’re active, and you feel good, then it shouldn’t matter one bit that your pants are getting tighter. Buy new pants!
You’re not saying anything my Mum hasn’t been telling me for years, which is basically “everything in moderation”. My problem is I love the ‘everything’ part of that, but have trouble with the ‘moderation’.
This is what I am learning: Eating (good) fat doesn’t actually make you fat (or clog arteries), eating sugar does both, along with a BUNCH of other problems. Unfortunately, sugar is my nemesis. Thankfully, God gave us lots of wonderful ways to eat sweet things full of nutrients (honey, maple syrup, fruit, etc.), but they still need to be eaten in moderation. If you ARE gaining weight after eating more fat in a balanced healthy diet, you either need it, your metabolism is extremely sluggish and needs a chance to repair, your gallbladder/liver needs some boosting (to process the fat appropriately). That is my quick two cents on the subject. I think a healthy body will find its healthy weight and size (and it probably will not resemble a super model).
You are right on Andrea – good fat or saturated fats are actually very healthy for us and contrary to popular belief do not cause high cholesterhol (a whole other discussion), but when your body gets enough of these good fats, it becomes satisfied and will eventually stop craving so many of the bad foods (empty pastas, sugars, etc). Another way to curb your cravings for sugars is to make sure your gut health is at optimum by eating fermented foods rich with healthy bacteria. Over time the SAD diet depletes these healthy bacteria and the sugar & flour products actually “gum” up our guts so that little nutrients are absorbed. By eating some fermented foods, I have noticed my sugar cravings disappear.
i began eating true whole foods after my daughter was born. i eat real butter, raw milk whole grains, veegies, fruits, protiens. i was nursing and needed good food, i am 30 lbs smaller than i was when i got pregnant. i dont work out but play softball once a week. and of course chase a toddler all day. lol it feels good to hold my daughter get on the scale and still weigh less then i did when i got pregnant. i think eating nutrient rich food makes all the difference, everyone is different and as long as you listen to your body and eat well that is good! although it seems when most switch to whole food they do seem to lose weight. i encourage all to not be afraid of eating the good fats, sugars, i think since are bodies can process them easier. i always send people to this website, bc you do such a great way of teachong and approaching whoke food to people who have never or know little about it. thank you for all the wonderfull recipes, menus, and love you put into it. you are my go to gall and im on here daily.
I AGREE whole-heartedly with all that has been posted. I will give 1 other point, eating smaller meals more often. I even have a eating scheudle that I stay very close too. I have to do this because of my blood sugar issues. For many years, I was able to do just like Laura wrote, eat when I’m hunger, and eat till I was satisified (full can be an unclear term). But as I have aged my body’s “hunger” signal changed and often times left me in some bad situations. Here’s an example, just 2 days ago I ate a very healthy lunch of asparagus, corn on the cob, and 1 slice of peanut butter toast. In about 1 hour I began to get that “on no I’m coming down with something” feeling–tired, sore throat, upset tummy. This has happened a few other times so I eat some homemade egg salad and had some fruit. Hepled but only enough to get me through the responsibilities at the house. I felt so bad I had to lay down. Praying I wasn’t coming down with something just as summer is getting nice, I went on to dinner at church. As I’m eating spagetti w/meat sauce and a salad my body began releasing the proper insulin and I felt a hugh change. By the time dinner was over I felt like a new person, ready to train my VBS leaders. I point this out to show how some people need to learn their “hunger” clues. I never felt hungry, my stomach never growled, but boy did I need to eat.
When I began fixing my family real foods and not paying attention to the calories or fat, just that we were eating balanced, healthy, good foods we didn’t lose weight right away. But we didn’t gain any, either. Then all of the sudden I noticed that my husband and my oldest son (who has always been a little chubby) were needing belts with every pair of pants they owned! My 7-year-old, who has never grown very fast because of health issues, grew from a 4T to a size 7 in less than a year. My son’s asthma, eczema, and ADHD all settled down considerably (enough that his pediatrician actually okayed lowering asthma and ADHD meds!). When I became pregnant after the first of the year, I was so sick all the time that we went back to “convenience” food. And we felt awful! It didn’t last long before we were back to eating right again! I have not focused on losing weight, just putting healthy things into our body. And am glad to say I am slowly getting my mom and sister to convert, too!
Thank you all for the encouragement and stories! We are making a slow transition to real food, and I have been discouraged that it might not be worth it. My son cannot have any dairy or eggs, so it was daunting to look at many recipes and think I would have to adjust or make him something different. For now, we’re going to increase our fruits and veggies, decrease processed grains, and see where that takes us.
Denise,
we took our 4 year old son off of all dairy products for about 9 months to help his guts. i know it feels overwhelming at first, but you can do it! my favorite substitutes for dairy products were coconut oil (in place of butter) and coconut milk (which is a touch thicker than the other non-dairy milks). i got very good at making non-dairy meals and put putting a little cheese on the side for other family members who wanted it. my son loved it when we had pizza, which his didn’t have cheese, but was pilled high with meats and veggies. :) just wanted to encourage you in this new cooking adventure. once you get in a rhythm, it will be second nature!
It’s not that fat is bad so much as it lacks nutrients. 200 calories of leafy greens for example offers much more nutrients and is more filling than the same amount of calories in fat. A tablespoon of butter has 102 calories, which is about the same amount of calories in 3.5 cups of broccoli, 15 cups of spinach, or 1.5 cups of apples just to give you an idea
Dr. Fuhrman has a great nutrient density chart, although I don’t agree with his low fat, anti-meat or dairy agenda, the chart is still great and shows you which foods give you more nutrient bang per calorie.
Our stomachs can only hold a limited amount at any given time, so by eating low calorie but high nutritent foods, it’s pretty much physically impossible to eat to many calories. It’s the fat and grains and sugars and meat that add the bulk of our calories, all of which doesn’t have much nutrients.
Real fats, such as butter, coconut oil, tallow and lard (from grass fed animals) are full of fat soluble vitamins! I’m not saying overdo it, but I disagree that they don’t have many nutrients. Also, every cell membrane in our body is made up of saturated fats, and we need a certain amount in our body for the new cells being made all the time. They are also critical for the brain. Adding just a little butter, olive oil or coconut oil to veggies allows your body to actually absorb the fat soluble vitamins in the veggies. Grass fed and pastured meats are also full of awesome nutrients. Again, I’m not saying to overeat these foods by any means, but they are critical to good health, in my opinion. :)
I also think that fats fill you up and keep you full. I used to believe in the fiber bit about being full, but when I studied the effects of fiber on the gut, they provide no benefits and can even cause harm. I always ADD coconut oil to my smoothies and sometimes when I’m hungry will just eat some off the spoon. Saturated fats are incredibly healthy and they really do get a bad rap, but your brain is actually made of fat.
I started eating real foods about 2 years ago and without tracking calories I’ve lost a total of 65lbs. Now I’ve started tracking calories a little bit lately but that’s because I’m within about 10 lbs of my ideal weight and I’d like to lose that in time for my wedding in 3 months. My future husband loves the way I’m eating and is excited to really be eating this way too.
Since I stopped eating low-fat and started eating more good-for-you fats, I haven’t gained weight at all; I’m actually slimmer now than I was when I counted calories, fat grams, ate low-fat everything, etc. When I started eating well and exercising to be healthy and to feel good, as opposed to just being skinny, THAT’S when I lost weight.
I have a long history with weight and my body has had a “set point” since high school that seemed impossible to go below. I had thought this was how my body was meant to look. Then I started eating real foods a couple years ago- but I didn’t lose weight until I started actually eating less food (blush). You’re right on, Laura, that too much of any food will lead to weight gain (though I think it’s because we get used to eating lots of everything!).
Here’s my story: I don’t count calories, I eat small to moderate portions of whole, real foods (even sweets!), and I’m 20 pounds UNDER my set point for the first time in my adult life:
(http://www.anoregoncottage.com/2012/05/how-i-lost-weight-eating-real-food-more.html).
God knew what he was doing when He created food – why do we always think we can “improve” it? :-)
My family and I have been eating real foods since September of last year and I’ve lost around 40 pounds and he’s lost about 25 (I needed/still need to lose a lot more than him). We don’t count calories, carbs or fat grams and eat tons of healthy fats- butter, whole milk, cream, full fat cheeses, coconut oil and olive oil. Since I was 15 or 16, I’ve tried every diet under the sun, from the more popular ones that count points to the cabbage soup diet (I’m blushing from admitting the cabbage soup thing). This is the only diet (lifestyle, now) that I’ve been able to stick to longer than a few weeks. We love it.
Great post. Eating should be this simple, shouldn’t it?
Thank you, Laura, for answering my question, and to all of you for your amazing advice. I think it boils down to that dreaded “m” word…moderation. It’s really never been one of my favorites. It is a discipline that has been harder than many others…but will be totally worth it! Thanks again!
just wanted to voice my “amen” to the being healthy, not just skinny, idea. also a reminder that, being women, our bodies and weight can fluctuate and that’s ok. i’m not as thin as i was before i started having babies, but (most days) i don’t even care. i don’t weigh myself everyday because i know that i can go up and down as much as 7 pounds just depending on the time of month that it is. the number on the tag or scale isn’t important. what’s important is to honor God with our time, money, and health. :)