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?
it seems that we use to have some of the same bad habits. I lived off of 100 calorie packs as well. Boy did those things always leave you ticked cuz your belly was still rumbling!!
i can totally relate to this. and i used to ADORE pastaroni too. seems gross now, but that totally was my thing. whole foods for the win!
Congratulations on how far you’ve come hunnie! <3
great post! love the idea of homemade peanut butter. must look into this…
Happy WIAW 🙂
Such a great post! I actually have a post similar to this waiting in my drafts folder! I used to live off of 100 calorie packs, too! And they weren’t even good!
And you’re still hungry after eating them!!
I really enjoyed this post. I used to be the queen of 100 calorie granola bars and other diet “treats” until I finally realized that they weren’t satisfying at all. I’d much rather eat less of a food that’s higher in calories but more satisfying than large quantities of depressing diet food.
I love this post, what a great spin on WIAW! I’ve definitely made a few changed myself and am eating real foods rather than over processed foods. Real peanut butter is so much more satisfying!
I was the exact same way in college! Now, I strive to eat all whole foods. Of course, it’s not 100%, but I’ve learned to love real food! It’s do much for satisfying and nutritious for you!
I used to be exactly the same way with calories. Looking back I can’t believe how much junk I ate just because it was “low calorie”. I’ll take real food over that junk now any day thank you very much 🙂
Haha isn’t it crazy?! And it’s so much more satisfying to eat the REAL thing!
MMmmm smoked gouda panini, come to mama!