Trading “Healthy” Foods
The other day, I was thinking about how I ate in college, and how different it is from what I eat now. I was very “healthy” in college… meaning I lived off of 100 calorie pack snacks, and low fat Pasta-Roni. From a calorie counting perspective, I was probably doing “better” than I am now. I never ate nuts (too many calories) I avoided anything that didn’t have a nutritional label (how would I be able to tell how many calories were in it?) and I lived off of “light” products (lets replace real food with a bunch of chemicals and try to achieve the same taste!)
I’ve come a long way. And while I still keep things like calories in mind, they’re not what drives my eating habits anymore.
Breakfast
In college, I would have a container of Carbmaster yogurt, with blueberries, and Fiber One cereal. Ok, not that bad, but after comparing the ingredients of the “Carbmaster” yogurt with Chobani… it’s no contest. I don’t need to be filling my breakfast with aspartame. I still love a bowl of yogurt with blueberries, but now I look for plain greek yogurt, and I top it with wholesome granola, rather than “diet” cereals.
Lunch & Snacks
More often than not, I packed a mini whole wheat bagel (ok, not so bad) topped with Better’n Peanut Butter. Oh my gosh I can’t believe I used to eat that stuff! If I try it now, it tastes like plastic.
And of course, I’d wash it all down with a diet coke.
Now I try to pack leftovers from dinner, or I get a salad from the salad bar at work. And no more low-fat-ranch dressing. I literally crave the taste of balsamic vinegar!
Peanut butter isn’t scary. Just because it has a lot of calories doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a place in your diet. And real cookies are so much more satisfying than those little wafers.
Lunches like this are just as easy to make, but are packed with nutrients. Forget those low-calorie-excuses for dressing. Drizzle a little balsamic vinegar + olive oil and you’ve got a simple, tasty dressing.
Dinner
Sometimes my dinners were actually pretty close to what I eat now. Alexa and I often lived off of chickpeas and black beans, (yay for cheap food!) but I also did eat entirely too much Pastaroni. I have no idea why I loved that stuff so much. I’m sure I’d still enjoy it if I tried it today.
I’ve since moved on to bigger and better things. Such as this smoked gouda panini from Ipanema Cafe.
Holy yum. So what if I don’t know the exact nutritional info for this? It was so tasty and filling, I only needed half, and I packed the other half for lunch. Real foods are just so much more satisfying.
I still eat lots of fruits and vegetables, because I’ve always loved those. But I’ve made an effort to eat what I’m really craving, rather than substituting it with some chemical-artificial-substitute. My tummy, and my tastebuds are both happier that way.
What do you think about “diet” foods?
Pretty jealous of your dinner. Yum! I was the same way in college. I was much more strict with my diet, but there was a lot more “diet” eating. For instance, I am very familiar with that 100-calorie pack of Oreos. I was even more into light beers too – or whatever the heck was in my solo cup.
Hahaha at least my calorie counting kept me from drinking 😉
I lived off goldfish, alfredo & bojangles in college! Somehow I managed to loose weight though! I think it’s because I got crazy excercise walking everwhere, not owning a car and living off campus. 8 hour days + hills = skinny me. I’m much healthier (and a little heavier) now!
I have got to try those ginger cats!!
I love looking back on what I ate when I was younger! So much processed crap! I don’t know how I ever managed to eat Skippy, Aunt Jemimah’s, or those flavored yogurts – real food tastes and makes me feel so much better.
Haha I’m glad my taste buds have grown up a bit 😉
Great changes and choices, Liz! I need to get around to making my own nut butters. They always look so much more tasty than the “bought” ones. Have a great Day!!
You should try it! It’s pretty easy as long as you have a good blender or food processor!
I always wish I could go back to my first unhealthy experiences with “dieting,” etc and give myself a little smack and a BIG snack of my new favorite things. What a great post! X
I know, right?! Live and learn I guess 😉
i really dont care about any diet products……i cant believe peopole actually live on those products! i had a similar, yet easy lunch salad as yours today… greens,sprouts, cooked beets and walnuts in olive oil and balsamic. so simple and NO EXCUSE it takes 2 mins to assemble!
And real foods taste SO much better!!
I had no concept of nutrition in college. I think I lived off of cheese and crackers and pasta with marinara. And that’s pretty much it… ugh.
Haha I’m pretty sure there were days when I lived off wheat thins and popcorn 😉
I see similar “diet foods” in most of my friends diets. They of course bombard me with questions and now I have a few of them reading labels and ingredients 🙂 Healthy junk food is still junk food. Thankfully, when I decided to incorporate lots of healthy foods in my diet, I stumbled across healthy living blogs that put me on the right track by eating real and whole foods!
Great comparison! You’ve really come a long way! Congrats 🙂
~Kelly
http://www.leafynotbeefy.com