How to balance heart healthy diet with weight loss diet for stubborn foodie

[Anonymous]

I have a family history of heart disease as well as high cholesterol. I know I need to change some of my eating habits (like eating less cheese.) In the past I found I only lost weight on a very low or no carb diet with an emphasis on protein and vegetables.

Honestly, it's really unsatisfying to me to eat the way I ate when I was able to lose weight: very small breakfast or no breakfast, a mid-morning fruit and cheese or hummus and vegetables, salad with chickpeas for lunch, and dinner of fish and vegetables. or maybe zucchini noodles or veggie burger with no bun. (For what it's worth, I didn't limit coffee/tea but didn't drink alcohol.) These kind of menus are constantly discussed on DCUM so I don't feel like I have to give more examples of what I might have eaten. My total caloric intake (not factoring in my moderate exercise) was probably 1500.

Eating this way led to weight loss but I felt mildly hungry all the time and a little depressed. I felt I could never/rarely eat the foods I love, mostly cuisines I don't have the skills to create at home: ramen, pho, thai, sushi, chinese, indian. I feel like life has no meaning if I can't have these foods in an authentically prepared way (i.e. not cooked by me or with healthy substitutions). And eating these foods "once in awhile" feels hard because I never know what the right frequency is. Once/week? Is twice/week too much if I eat according to the "plan" the rest of the time?

And what about the occasional pastry? How do I balance the need and desire to lose weight with finding a lot of pleasure in well-made food. And then I have the added dilemma of never really getting enough protein when I track my intake and how to incorporate whole grains without upping total calories and carbs.

Any suggestions for either of these two dilemmas? I need to lose 10 lbs but 12 would be better. 15 would be amazing but probably unrealistic--I'm perimenopausal and my body is holding onto weight like crazy.

[Anonymous]

OP, the most sustainable path is to track what you currently eat, and try to reduce something that doesn't make you feel like you are depriving yourself. I see nothing wrong with eating healthy 5 days a week and then more yummy food the other two days, just don't go crazy. Also, if you are in perimenopause, start strength training, like today.

I'd download the LoseIt app and set it for losing 1/2 pound per week. 10lbs will take you 4 months, 15 longer. But sounds like trying to lose more will make you feel deprived and give up.

Good luck. It sucks getting older because we have to change our habits.

[Anonymous]

Start cooking for yourself more. I focus on proteins and lots of yummy veggies with various spices and condiments to create the flavor profiles you like. Eg, check out Brooklyn Dehli.

I need/want my belly full too ... and have lost 80 lbs eating this way.

[Anonymous]

Also - lift weights!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Start cooking for yourself more. I focus on proteins and lots of yummy veggies with various spices and condiments to create the flavor profiles you like. Eg, check out Brooklyn Dehli.

I need/want my belly full too ... and have lost 80 lbs eating this way.

I am this PP. OP - start with your mindset, including your identity as a "foodie" (I understand this, I really do - I used to be a cook at fancy restaurants, so being a foodie is very much a part of my identity!). As a practical matter, you can eat anything you want if you are in a calorie deficit.

Do you journal?

Things that I really had to evaluate before weight loss was possible for me (80 lbs - which I had gained gradually over 10 years including 2 pregnancies, sedentary job, unhappy marriage, and lost in about 1.5 years) because I came to a place where I feel aligned about how I want to treat / feed myself and food is just one part of that. I still go out to restaurants, I still drink, I still eat a variety of things.

1. Why did I want to lose weight?
2. What factors led to weight gain? For me - a combo of typical lifestyle stuff as well as deepseated emotional coping mechanism of overeating and overdrinking
3. What does it mean to me to be a "foodie"? Is this identity and how I express it really working for me? Does it mean that I eat anything / everything I "want" (do I really "want" to do that?)
4. Am I aligned in how I want to treat myself?
5. Is food my only pleasure? This was a huge one for me, and before I lost weight, I really started building a life that included more pleasure and rest
6. What else do I need / want?

[Anonymous]

Why do you think you need to lose weight? You could probably reduce your risk substantially just by eating a balanced diet and exercising at your current weight.

[Anonymous]

I think its possible to eat all those things and lose weight. Just a LOT less. Like max 1/3-1/2 the portion. And move a lot more to make sure your body has muscle and is burning calories. Sushi certainly has a ton of protein if you focus on nigiri. Definitely keep track of calories in baked goods. A large muffin is 400-500 calories and a croissant is 300 ish.
After a certain age for women its either hungry and thin or a little overweight.

[Anonymous]

I’m similar and I’ve decided I’d rather just be slightly overweight than give up the things I love. I do “save” calories by not eating crap that isn’t really good — for instance, there’s really no good lunch options near my office so I just eat really healthy for lunch rather than get a crappy tuna salad sandwich or whatever.
But I am concerned for you that things you list seem like mostly really unhealthy takeout food with high sodium and saturated fats. That’s not great. I cook a lot so will make delicious meals that have lots of vegetables but also have carbs and fat and flavor. It really is easy to learn to cook at home and then you will be able to figure out what substitutions work for you — last night I made a great new recipe and used olive oil instead of butter because I decided the butter taste would not show in that recipe. It was delicious.
I also eat pastry all the time but I mostly home cook them. At least that way you avoid a lot of the preservatives and some of the industrial fats, and actually see how much sugar you are using. For me, it makes it easier to decide what’s “worth it.” Some cakes are equally delicious with half the sugar — it just really depends on the recipe and if you are cooking it yourself you can make those judgement calls.

[Anonymous]

Are you getting enough exercise? That can help your heart and cholesterol concerns without having to change your diet as much.

[Anonymous]

I would rather be chubby than slightly depressed and hungry all the time. I make choices and I'm healthy but not skinny. For example I don't waste calories on drinks. I spend 40 calories on coffee creamer once a day and that's it. I don't drink much alcohol because I just don't love it. I love chocolate so I'll have some multiple times a week. I love sushi, but it's a calorie bomb so I don't have it as often as I want. Breakfast is eggs and vegetables because I don't need bagels or pastries, but I have a heavier lunch or else I'll binge until dinner. Leftovers, salad with a lot of protein and avocado, etc.

But yeah, I won't have a flat stomach ever, and I'm ok with that, I love food too much and I hate being hungry. Find your balance, find your peace

[Anonymous]

Everything in moderation.

[Anonymous]

OP here,

Thank you SO much to all the PPs. I think there are some really valuable responses here and I think already I am tuning into what I need to do.

My takeaways: I have to reduce my portions. Cook more at home. Exercise more/weight train. (I do exercise but not enough!) And go back to tracking my food.

And, a really big thank you to 13:58 for those thought questions. I do need to re-evaluate these things and congratulations on your weight loss! Your questions about other sources of pleasure resonated with me and I need to find other sources. My life is stressful right now so time is short for the things I want to do for myself. And, if I am honest with myself, being a foodie is starting to feel too stressful. Too many choices get overwhelming and if I eat more simply at home I will save time in the decision making process.

And fwiw, I do cook healthy foods. I have above average cooking skills and like a variety of healthy foods. I think after 2-3 nights of healthy dinners I get fatigued and bored. But I will figure out how to push past this. Part of the problem is being a short order cook for the rest of my family--picky eaters, sensory issues, etc and this contributes to my burnout. I am actually in the kitchen all the time!

[Anonymous]

Check out Craig Claiborne’s diet cookbook. He was a food critic for the New York Times back in the day, who went on a diet for health reasons. He realized that he needed to cook more of his own meals to meet his medical needs, so he ended up writing a cookbook that’s very foodie / flavor focused. Even if you end up not using many of the recipes, you’ll get ideas for adding flavor without a lot of fat and salt.

Penzeys and MarketSpice — in Seattle— both sell excellent salt free seasoning mixtures. I’ve found it much easier to make healthier choices when the food that I end up with has interesting and complex flavors.

https://www.amazon.com/Claibornes-Gourmet-Pierre-Franey-Claiborne/dp/0517081334/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=


https://marketspice.com/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Everything in moderation.

This. No need to cut those things completely. If you’re eating we’ll majority of the rest of the time, having one cheat meal a week shouldn’t derail you. Or get it and just don’t eat all of it. Or for sushi/Japanese, Thai, etc - don’t eat the rice or get brown rice instead and limit the portion. However stuff like ramen should only be once in a while.

Plus one benefit of eating boring healthy stuff most of the time is those savory indulgent meals taste soo much better when you have them.

[Anonymous]

I would challenge you to 'flip' your mindset. Most of your diet should be those cuisines/foods that you find pleasurable, but just reduce your portions. I am of the opinion there is nothing wrong with most of the food you listed, although it can be trickier with restaurant foods because you can't see the ingredients.

There is no reason why you need to avoid ramen, pho, thai, sushi, chinese and indian. Most of these cuisines prepared in a somewhat authentic manner are actually very healthy. Just don't eat all of the full portion your are served. Regarding pastries, my advice would be to stick to before lunch. I