Transitioning from processed to real food and real change
I vividly remember the days of wolfing down 100 calorie packs of sweets for a snack or dessert countless times, and then tapping the crumbs directly from the packet into my mouth to make sure I got every last scrap from the bag. While I still struggle with being able to cancel my membership to the Clean Plate Club, of which I am an active member and have been for as long as I can remember, the way that I approach eating now has changed quite a bit from my old ways.
When I first started losing weight with the Weight Watchers plan, 100 calorie packs and sugar-free, fat-free anything were my jam. I felt safe buying prepackaged food that had the nutritional information printed clearly on the side of the box. In fact, I shied away from buying anything that didn’t come in a box (besides fruits and veggies), because it was hard to figure out how many Points were in it and I was worried I wouldn’t be able to track it correctly.
This system actually worked quite well for me, for a while. I was able to eat sugar-free jello, fat-free, sugar-free ice cream, low-fat cookies, fat-free cheese, air-like bread, and fat-free lunch meat and lose weight pretty consistently week after week. In fact, I lost the first 50 pounds with this type of eating.
But then, as I started zoning in on my goal weight, I struggled a lot to break past those first 50 pounds. I only had about 10-15 left to lose, but for the life of me, I could not break past the plateau. Besides that, my daily Points allowance was dwindling as the pounds came off, and I was struggling to feel satisfied with the lower daily target that I was allowed.
I realized it was time to start figuring out how to feel satisfied with less Points, so it was time to start looking not just the nutritional facts (and Points value) of foods, but rather the ingredients the food contained. My focus needed to be on how to eat healthier, not just to lose weight, because the changes I was making were ones I wanted to be able to keep forever.
I made this transition by tackling one meal at a time – starting with breakfast – before moving on to the next. You can see the Whole Foods Weight Watcher Breakfast Ideas, Snack Ideas, Quick Meal Ideas, and Dessert Ideas that I came up with, and it was only after I made this transition to a largely whole foods diet that I was able to not only break through my weight loss plateau, but to feel more satisfied and healthier for the long term.
Now I am not saying in any way that I never eat processed food – I can likely eat you under the table in French fries or nachos, so take your pick – but once I made these changes most of the time, my body adapted and I was able to embrace the real change I made towards eating real food, and my body thanked me for it.
Be well!
Beth
Check out my latest posts here
Jan 26, 2012 @ 06:19:00
Nice post!
Jan 26, 2012 @ 06:54:00
Love this! It’s so true..I don’t know how many times I heard that I should eat less processed foods. I just shrugged it off and continued to eat the “100 calorie packs.” I’ve been eating a lot more “real” foods and I feel great. P.S. the scale is moving, too.
Jan 26, 2012 @ 07:27:00
I think all your quick meal ideas are great – seeing them on your blog and at office lunches has inspired me to eat more whole foods!
Jan 26, 2012 @ 07:31:00
This is a great post and so true! Nothing can be perfect and there will always be yummy processed foods that I will occasionally eat. However, I’ve found that sticking to a diet of mostly homemade/whole foods leaves me more satisfied and energized. Buh-bye holiday weight gain!
Thanks Beth!
Jan 26, 2012 @ 07:33:00
inspirational! moving from processed foods to real foods is a serious change and one that i endeavor to do myself. except for the french fries!
Jan 26, 2012 @ 08:24:00
That is something I have really tried to do as well. I lost a lot of weight on WW in the past living off of mostly diet coke and frozen dinners. I was in my daily points range, but definitely not satisfied. I have since stopped weighing myself, started running, and cut out most processed food and it seems to be working pretty well.
Jan 26, 2012 @ 13:45:00
LOVE this…especially since I’m currently in the midst of the same transition myself…it’s slow going so far, but I’m hoping over time I’ll see more progress!
Jan 27, 2012 @ 23:28:00
It is amazing how our bodies respond so positively to the healthy eating lifestyle. Each small change brings great rewards.
Jan 31, 2012 @ 11:20:00
I can totally relate to this. Even though I’m doing, perhaps, my 5th or 6th journey on WW, the first 4 journeys were centered around pre-packaged and frozen meals (oh those 100 cal packs.. that used to only be 2 Points!). Now I can barely stomach frozen meals and 100 cal packs… this has made ALL the difference this time around. I’d much rather make my own food using ingredients that I select.. and not Lord knows what!