Are chicken fajitas healthy

Well how about if you’re making claims about ‘leading scientists’ and ‘peer reviewed scientific studies’ and ‘several papers’ and ‘academic nutritionists’ that you put links in for posters to read? You’re the one making claims then ridiculing people for not knowing after all.

There are many but I’d point you in the direction of the Zoe research team at KCL who do very nice summaries on many things nutrition related. If you look up the Zoe podcast, that is a good starting point for all things health related.

Here is an article link for a very basic summary. There is a lot of science behind it. zoe.com/learn/why-calorie-counting-doesnt-work

There are hundreds of studies on the topic though.

It’s taken me 5 mins to find a whole plethora of scientific studies agreeing that restricting calories causes weight loss.

that is common knowledge. That is a big part of why wli work, they suppress appetite and people don’t eat as much.

it works for animals and humans.

What is it with people on mumsnet who are ignorant about something who then require posters to set out common knowledge for them in a post? I would refer you, if I may, to the www where you will find a whole plethora of peer reviewed scientific studies undertaken by leading scientists. It will likely take you 5 mins to find several papers that you can read, from the original source.

I've lost weight by being in a calorie deficit, too. So have my best friend and her husband.

I have a medically underweight friend, 5 stone 4 pounds, 5 foot 5 inches tall and yet, she has got to this point by being calorie deficit. Just like everyone who has been affected by starvation or famine. So not exactly debunked. Those that say otherwise need to share their know across Africa.
Count your calories across three days and have proper cheese, white wraps etc etc. The skinny pens stop you wanting to take in calories, that's why they work.

Chicken and veggies and carbs with a bit of fat is fairly balanced. If you put loads of cheese, guac, SC then it will be very fatty. If you put loads of rice and beans it will be very carby.
But it's a bit like saying 'is a sandwich healthy'. In that it very much depends on what's in it and how much.

Apologies if this gets explained later in the thread but can you elaborate on this please or point me in the direction of some literature on it?

Are you talking about the weight set point theory discussed in Why We eat (Too Much)?

Healthy is very subjective but I’m on MJ and would eat the mix part of the fajitas (make our own spice mix, peppers onions etc chicken, small amount of oil for frying) and I use a lettuce wrap so I can eat more of the stuff that’s nutritious enough for my needs and reduce the stuff that aren’t (in this case, a white wrap which is what the rest of my family would have). My appetite is reduced so I need to focus on getting as much of the good stuff in before I get full as I can. I do eat bread some days but only homemade and if I eat it it’s once per day and a small amount.
I spread a bit of sour cream and a squeeze of lime on my lettuce ‘wrap’ but have never added cheese because I don’t like it in fajitas. The rest of my lot do.

So you’re equating high calorie with unhealthy?

fajitas are perfectly healthy. So is every food in moderation.

just calculate the calories and adjust to fit your allowances.

change your mentality from “good” and “bad” and focus on fuelling your body.

i love fajitas. To make them better for a calorie controlled diet I adjust the proportions. So lots of peppers, beans and onion, piled on each wrap, with a small amount of sour cream/guac/cheese. So a lot more “bang for your buck”. I don’t eat meat so that lowers the calories significantly.

I do have cheese in my fajitas and I don't think it's unhealthy.

But op is dieting. We’re discussing op. The entire thread is about Op wanting to be in a calorie deficit.
It felt implied.
Certainly it seems more likely that it was implied, rather than I was unaware that chicken and avocados have nutrients…

You don't need to eat sour cream or cheese with them. Just have chicken marinated in spices, peppers and onions. Have it all in Crosta and Mollica tortillas (as not UPF).

Cheese isn't unhealthy. It's calorific but it's also highly nutritious.

If you're cutting calories, have less cheese and either ditch the sour cream (which I find revolting, tbh) or substitute Greek yoghurt for the tanginess.

Rather than stuffing a wrap, which ends up with more stodge to filling at one end than is palatable, anyhow, just top the wrap with the filling and serve with lots of salad.

Wraps are very high calories for what they are

I was answering your final sentence, you didnt add the qualifier 'and if I was dieting'

All you said was if you wanted big portions of nutrient dense foods, fajitas wouldnt be your first choice, implying that the meal isnt full of nutrient dense components. Which of course it is.

I don’t think I understand your question
I didn’t say it didn’t have nutrients?

I did say if I wanted big portions (as op indicated) of nutrient dense food, and I was dieting it wouldn’t be my first choice. Obviously wraps, cheese etc are quite high calorie vs how ‘full’ they typically make you feel.

I'd also be interested to know how I lost 5 stone through lock down just by restricting calorie intake to 1500 to 2000 calories a day and doing moderate exercise. And eating pretty much any old rubbish, as long as I knew how many calories were in it and wrote it down.

What do you think calories are? Do you think the body will not burn fat reserves if you don't eat?

I mean the principles are straightforward, so instead of just saying "nutritionists say no", explain why a calorie deficit will not lead to weight loss, and why people in famine zones are so thin, please.

Personally, I’d rather eat at a higher calorie deficit for the start of the day and just have a proper nice fajita for dinner (just have the one if it’s deemed too calorific).

I can’t stand “low fat” alternatives. I’d rather just eat less of the nice stuff.

You're right the body doesnt work like that. All those people starving to death because they're not eating enough, they just need to think big!

For heaven’s sake. Just listen to some academic nutritionists. It’s nonsense. I genuinely didn’t realise people still thought that it works.

coat the chicken and loads of onions/peppers/extra veg in a fajita seasoning but air fry or oven bake. Serve over cauliflower rice (I find the best method is to shred it and freeze it, then dry fry from frozen with seasoning) with some fat free yoghurt and homemade salsa, maybe a sprinkle of cheese if you need it.

How so?

Chicken nutrient dense
Cheese nutrient dense
Avocado nutrient dense
corn or beans nutrient dense

The rest isnt nutritionally empty either, apart from lettuce. Sweetcorn, tomatoes, wraps, cream all have beneficial nutrients in them to varying degrees.

‘Healthy’ and ‘low calorie’ are not the same thing.

A meal isn’t really healthy, it’s more about being holistic with your diet. Eg, If you’re only ate apples that wouldn’t be healthy.
Fajitas as part of a balanced diet are fine.
You can have fajitas without sour cream and cheese. If you’re trying to have big portions of nutrient dense food fajitas would not be my first choice.