If you try to avoid processed foods or certainly ultra processed foods …

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

[Anonymous]

I don't know of any specific blogs for avoiding processed foods, but I do two things that help me:

1. I don't buy processed foods. If they are not in my house, I don't eat them.

2. I am always on the lookout for easy, cheap, tasty recipes. There are tons of sites out there, but this is one that I like: https://www.budgetbytes.com/category/recipes/

[Anonymous]

I eat the majority of unprocessed or very little processed food. Bake my own bread, make my own pasta, etc. I used to be super addicted to things like Doritos and potato chips. I think my taste pallet adjusted so now when i have a few it just tastes so chemical.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Look, most people just don't eat like this, due to a number of factors, so maybe try grasping the fact that we're not all as perfect as you and some of us need a bit of encouragement and motivation to prioritize this kind of cooking and eating? And yes, when I've come home after 10-12 hours out of the house, of course takeout is faster than simmering lentils, onions, and carrots in chicken stock and white wine. Duh.

[Anonymous]

https://www.loveandlemons.com/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I eat the majority of unprocessed or very little processed food. Bake my own bread, make my own pasta, etc. I used to be super addicted to things like Doritos and potato chips. I think my taste pallet adjusted so now when i have a few it just tastes so chemical.

Totally agree that your palate changes over time when you cut out those foods. I used to regularly eat BBQ flavored chips and loved them. LOVED THEM. After changing my diet those things taste awful now.

Packaged/processed foods are made to be hyper-palatable (and addictive) and have a long shelf life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Look, most people just don't eat like this, due to a number of factors, so maybe try grasping the fact that we're not all as perfect as you and some of us need a bit of encouragement and motivation to prioritize this kind of cooking and eating? And yes, when I've come home after 10-12 hours out of the house, of course takeout is faster than simmering lentils, onions, and carrots in chicken stock and white wine. Duh.

So make a big batch of rice and beans over the weekend and put it in the refrigerator. Heat up batches in the microwave over the course of the week. Healthier, cheaper, and just as fast as takeout.

[Anonymous]

NP here. OP, I clicked on this thread because I too would love a site or guidance on how to do this. Ignore the unhelpful posters who are just hurr durr make beans and rice only! Welcome to your new life!

Does anyone have any good ideas on substitutes for crackers or chips? Crackers are not horribly processed in the sense that I can bake them from my choice of ingredients. Wonder if anyone has tried that and has recommendations. As for chips, I see several air fryer recipes. To me, sliced potatoes, salt and olive oil are not very processed at all. But it's a lot of work, and I'm thinking there are brands out there that only use those three ingredients. OK to just go that route?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Look, most people just don't eat like this, due to a number of factors, so maybe try grasping the fact that we're not all as perfect as you and some of us need a bit of encouragement and motivation to prioritize this kind of cooking and eating? And yes, when I've come home after 10-12 hours out of the house, of course takeout is faster than simmering lentils, onions, and carrots in chicken stock and white wine. Duh.

So make a big batch of rice and beans over the weekend and put it in the refrigerator. Heat up batches in the microwave over the course of the week. Healthier, cheaper, and just as fast as takeout.

I don't know who these people are who advise everyone to subsist on rice and beans. Life is for enjoying yourself!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP here. OP, I clicked on this thread because I too would love a site or guidance on how to do this. Ignore the unhelpful posters who are just hurr durr make beans and rice only! Welcome to your new life!

Does anyone have any good ideas on substitutes for crackers or chips? Crackers are not horribly processed in the sense that I can bake them from my choice of ingredients. Wonder if anyone has tried that and has recommendations. As for chips, I see several air fryer recipes. To me, sliced potatoes, salt and olive oil are not very processed at all. But it's a lot of work, and I'm thinking there are brands out there that only use those three ingredients. OK to just go that route?

It is a lot of work, but if that's something you just can't live without it's much better to make it yourself because you're not getting all the additives that the companies use.

For me, I just don't eat chips anymore. It's not worth it. I do make fries in my air fryer at home from raw potatoes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Look, most people just don't eat like this, due to a number of factors, so maybe try grasping the fact that we're not all as perfect as you and some of us need a bit of encouragement and motivation to prioritize this kind of cooking and eating? And yes, when I've come home after 10-12 hours out of the house, of course takeout is faster than simmering lentils, onions, and carrots in chicken stock and white wine. Duh.

So make a big batch of rice and beans over the weekend and put it in the refrigerator. Heat up batches in the microwave over the course of the week. Healthier, cheaper, and just as fast as takeout.

I don't know who these people are who advise everyone to subsist on rice and beans. Life is for enjoying yourself!

I did not suggest eating only rice and beans. I offered it as one example of something one can do. There are many other options as well that enable you to eat whole food with minimal expense and preparation time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One of my old WW leaders from decades ago suggested shopping the perimeter of the grocery store (fruits and veggies, milk, eggs), and meat. Skip going up and down the aisles where all the processed food is

Doesn’t really work as well any more. There is processed and ultra processed foods in every single department, and if we’re being honest, food companies are allowed to put a number of additives in our food that they’re not required to list. It’s not a fair fight anymore.

OP which are your three worst foods? That’s the kind of thing I’m thinking of doing, what can I replace with something else that isn’t as bad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP here. OP, I clicked on this thread because I too would love a site or guidance on how to do this. Ignore the unhelpful posters who are just hurr durr make beans and rice only! Welcome to your new life!

Does anyone have any good ideas on substitutes for crackers or chips? Crackers are not horribly processed in the sense that I can bake them from my choice of ingredients. Wonder if anyone has tried that and has recommendations. As for chips, I see several air fryer recipes. To me, sliced potatoes, salt and olive oil are not very processed at all. But it's a lot of work, and I'm thinking there are brands out there that only use those three ingredients. OK to just go that route?

I love crackers, like they just bring me lower-case j joy. Two options that I have enjoyed: Flackers (which are just sprouted flax seed and whatever flavor the bag is) and Norwegian Baked knekkebrød. Both are more expensive than normal crackers and Flackers definitely let you know they’re not crackers.

[Anonymous]

I don’t understand what is meant by “processed food”. How are flour and rice not processed? They’re pretty far from their original states.