To think that slim people have different habits re food and exercise

[WhatWillSantaBring]

I've been overweight most of my adult life, and find I put on weight very easily. BUT I also think I have had very unhealthy food habits - I think of food as treats, I avoid the scales, I eat when I'm not hungry, I always have the cake, emotional eating etc. I know all the things I do wrong (and that I'm sure a lot of overweight people do) but what I want to know is what do thin people do "right". i.e. what are the habits of people who are consistently a healthy weight (i.e. BMI of 20-25).

I've got some very petite friends who will do things like:

• weigh every day and take immediate action if their weight goes up by more than 5lbs;
• never accept a biscuit
• only drink one glass of wine (unless its a very special occasion when they may have two)
• never order themselves a dessert/ice cream etc (will just eat whatever their kids leave)

- exercise 5-6 days a week without fail, including Christmas Day

• never have seconds

If you're slender, and have maintained a healthy weight for years, what habits do you have that you think help you?

@WhatWillSantaBring

A few of the things that people say they do (that makes them slim) I don’t agree with. I cook everything from scratch (including burgers, pizzas, bread, biscuits, ketchup etc) and almost never eat junk food or takeaways (perhaps 3 x a year?). I was brought up the same way - home cooked food, didn’t step into a McDonalds till I was 13, two sweets after lunch and that was it etc. I think it’s much more about the relationship with food (food makes you better if you’re upset/hurt) and portion control, and listening to hunger signals. I think I also do have a low metabolism (despite being on levothyroxin for the past 4 years) and I have an intense (60 hours a week) and sedentary job, so much as I would love to walk 1-2 hours every day, that is just not going to happen unless I sacrifice time with my family.

On the cooking things from scratch (including burgers, pizzas, bread, biscuits, ketchup etc) and almost never eating junk food - I think all of those things sort of are junk food, unless your burger is in lettuce say rather than a bun, and your pizza has a non bready-base I think there are chickpea or cauliflower bases for example etc. Even if they are cooked from scratch the ingredients are still flour, sugar etc. So I wouldn't view those as everyday food if you see what I mean. It's junk/treat food albeit much better quality than what one could buy.

I exercise regularly, I have a decent set of bathroom scales and weight myself about every other day and cut down on alcohol and snack foo if my weight starts going up. I only eat if I'm hungry, I hate feeling too full I just feel sick and bloated, no pudding is worth that feeling. If I've made something like a fruit crumble I'll sometimes just have that for lunch as otherwise I tend to be too full for puddings. I have an allotment and we eat very few take aways. I don't count calories and eat most things.

I’m not a big weigher, I go more off how things feel. I do snack but it’s mainly raw veg with the occasional apple or banana. I do weights/yoga everyday and walk about 15-20,000 steps a day. I prefer beer as a drink but note in my head two bottles is practically the same calories as a meal, if I’m out out, I’ll just have rum and Diet Coke but no more than 4. Again I’ll note that it’s probably the same as eating a decent chocolate bar.

I think the secret is to adjust your body and expectations as to what you’re satisfied with rather than how much you can get away with.

I think we’ve dulled our senses, we can stop exercising if things start to hurt a bit and stuff our faces at the slightest sign of hunger, it’s worth spending time being mindful of these things and start noticing how they feel and adjust our attitudes as to whether these are good or bad things.

On the cooking things from scratch (including burgers, pizzas, bread, biscuits, ketchup etc) and almost never eating junk food - I think all of those things sort of are junk food, unless your burger is in lettuce say rather than a bun, and your pizza has a non bready-base

Bread is not “junk”

@LouJ85

Also, I'll add that people saying (whether we'll meaning or not): "are you sure you can't finish that last bit? Surely you're not full already?" is one of the most irritating and frustrating things. I had this from being a child, and into adulthood. I now have a stock response in restaurants to the question "oh, was everything on with your meal?" when they take the plate away. I simply say "oh yes it was lovely thank you but I don't eat very much as I feel full quickly". They just smile and nod and off they go. Sometimes they say "yes these are quite large portions actually". It used to wind me up, but now I just educate instead. Because not finishing what's on your plate isn't "offensive" to the person who's cooked it, not is it always a sign of an eating disorder or an unhealthy relationship with food - sometimes it's just too much for the size of the person's stomach!

It would never be acceptable for me to assess the amount an overweight person has eaten and comment "are you sure you need to carry on eating what's on your plate? Surely you're full now?". So why is it deemed acceptable for people to say the precise opposite to those who naturally have smaller appetites and tummies?

Rant over. Take away message: some people just naturally eat less and it's perfectly healthy and normal.

Here friggen here!! Well said Yes I know when I'm full. No there is nothing wrong with the food Our local pub now knows I will ask for a doggy bag lol

@Saracen completely relate to your dd. To me It's wasteful to eat what you don't want, I don't enjoy it at that point so why force it. I never understood the whole eat everything to not offend. To me, wouldn't the person who made the food rather I enjoy it over forcing till I feel sick?

Random question - am I the only person who has no idea how many calories I eat or my bmi? Wouldn't even know how to find it out, nor do I care too

”90% of what I eat is fruit or vegetables”.

A number of posters on this thread have said they mainly eat vegetables. Can anyone say what sort of meals they have? Not detailed recipes, just to give an idea of how the food is prepared. Do you have any carbs or protein with the veg?

Looking for ideas.

squeekums I have no idea of my weight, bmi or calories I eat.

I do know that I wear a size 10 jeans and they fit me comfortably. I don;t need to know any more.

@invisibleoldwoman, I usually chop a pile of veg and boil it.
The veg is usually spring greens, spinach/swiss chard, carrot, maybe potatoes, and whatever I have in like leek, fennel, broad beans....
I'll often add green lentils or sometimes pearl barley.

I'll eat it in a wrap with a little melted cheese, or a poached egg, or some veggie protein like quorn or tofu if I didn't add lentils.

I usually make enough for 2-3 days. You need something greasy on the reheated veg to make it taste nice, so I usually have cheese or sliced up vege/quorn sausage, but you could fry it.

If I fancy a bit of a change, I'll add a sauce or something.

Alternatively, I make a huge pan of veg curry and eat it all week, adding soya chunks for some protein.

Or I might eat lettuce and hummus wraps.

Healthy lunches are my main thing healthy but not boring.
I only take to work a limited amount of snacks so I can only eat that
Workout a few days a week (as many as I can manage)
I weigh myself maybe two/three times a month.
I try to drink as much water as I can

Treat foods are a treat
So if I sit down with a bar of chocolate I won't eat the whole bar
That philosophy doesn't apply to everything g but I'm not trying to loose weight I am happy maintaining

I do sometimes have to stop my jaw gaping when I see what people eat at work. Then they complain they’re overweight! I know there are exceptions but generally it’s a mathematical equation of what goes in against what is burnt off.

Everyone I know who is super slim doesn't think about food iykwim and definitely wouldn't weigh themselves, I suppose because its not their thing-when you weigh yourself it's becoming a thing. The ones I know well get excited because they've a lovely salad, or found some beautiful eg nectarines, in the way I'd get excited because I'm having a yummy takeaway or bought crisps, chocolate etc. Water seems to be tasty to them whereas for me it's a tick box. I'm not overweight and I exercise a fair bit but I'm a fat slim person, I'm a size 12 with love handles and a pot belly, and will never be able to use th he word slender about myself.

I eat whatever I want, whenever I want.

But I also only tend to eat one-two meals per day.

In general I don’t think we “need” 3 meals a day + snacks.

Oh and I don’t own a set of scales - haven’t for 15 years and I used to have an eating disorder so throwing them away was a huge step in getting off the eating disorder train. Scales are the devil!

@invisibleoldwoman good question !
Just seen a recipe for butter beans in salsa verde that looks lush ! Vegtables ( peppers, courgettes,onions) with lentils and pesto is also delicious
Also if you finely slice veg of any variety and steam it in the microwave so its a bit softer and then add it to a bowl of miso soup made from a sachet, thats really tasty.

My partner comes from a very slim family. His mum drinks about 10 cups of black coffee a day, has one salad in the evening and a bowl of muesli at lunch. I think she has to work a bit more at being slim now she’s older. She’s very obsessive about food and constantly comments on what other people are eating, saying it’s too much or it looks horrible or how she could never eat it all. I wouldn’t say this lightly but I definitely think she has an eating disorder purely because of her obsession around food.
His sisters on the other hand are the slimmest women I’ve ever met. Neither of them have much appetite and don’t think much about food at all. They’ll get up and put a slice of bread in the toaster then wander off and forget about it. It’s still sitting there a few hours later. I have never in my life forgotten about food 😂 I find it fascinating!
His youngest sister eats nothing but sugar but only in tiny portions. Clear to me that it’s mainly under eating but also partly genetics. I do wonder if their eating habits will catch up with them when they’re older (not wondering in an unpleasant way, just out of interest) - in terms of skin, hair, bone health etc as none of them have a balanced diet.

Clear to me that it’s mainly under eating but also partly genetics.

What makes you think they are under eating - if they are slim, they are eating a normal amount for their lifestyle/body. Most people's ideas of portion, and I say most because most people are overweight, is out of kilter with reality.

A number of posters on this thread have said they mainly eat vegetables. Can anyone say what sort of meals they have?

I’m vegan so things like vegetable curries, chillies, stir fries, pasta bakes, tagines etc... Most things with a sauce get stir fried in a little oil. I quite often roast a lot of veg in the oven to use for several different meals. Most days, lunch is homemade soup. I also eat loads of chick peas and different types of lentils. They’re a great way to replace meat in lots of dishes.

I do a lot of batch cooking and freezing, not just whole meals but portions of curry sauce etc so I can cook fresh tofu/veg and just add that.

I agree that bread isn’t junk food and I don’t think carbs are the devil’s work like some posters. Most meals have rice, pasta, cous cous, noodles etc on the side. I do measure these to make sure the portion isn’t huge.

@Mominatrix

On the cooking things from scratch (including burgers, pizzas, bread, biscuits, ketchup etc) and almost never eating junk food - I think all of those things sort of are junk food, unless your burger is in lettuce say rather than a bun, and your pizza has a non bready-base

Bread is not “junk”

I think it can be - it depends. The sliced white polystyrene stuff in bags I think is pure junk. A spelt sourdough isn't. But a white baguette, gorgeous as it is, is treat food not everyday food. To me! And that's probably because I was used to spelt and rye growing up. I love a white baguette, with butter ham and jarlsberg - best work lunch in the world (from EAT I think it was), or just with cheese and grapes yum - but to me it's a special treat.

@Mominatrix

Clear to me that it’s mainly under eating but also partly genetics.

What makes you think they are under eating - if they are slim, they are eating a normal amount for their lifestyle/body. Most people's ideas of portion, and I say most because most people are overweight, is out of kilter with reality.

I would say half a Mars bar and half a slice of toast every day is under-eating for most people

I don’t think carbs are the devil’s work like some posters

I don't either, but I think that it is easy to eat a diet that is too high in carbohydrates especially wheat.

Clear to me that it’s mainly under eating but also partly genetics
How can it be under-eating if they're a healthy weight for their size? It might not be healthy eating, that's totally different. But probably they're getting the right number of calories.
Possibly it will catch up with them. It did for me when I hit 35. Or maybe it was because instead of eating when I was hungry and what I wanted I had to feed little people responsibly at set meal times.

@MikeUniformMike
@frumpety
@PurpleDaisies

Thank you so much. All your comments are very helpful.

Yesterday as a family of 4 we had:
12 "light" croissants for breakfast.

lunch: BBQ + risotto
plain risotto (DH 3-4 serving spoon, I have 2, DC 1 each)
two peppers - quartered and put on bbq as they are
1 aubergine, sliced and painted with crushed garlic/olive oil
4 chicken legs, 2 sausages.
There was one chicken leg left over, will put it in salad tonight.

evening meal, salad shared between the 4 of us:
1 iceberg lettuce, 1 pepper, 2 tomatoes, handful of cherry tomatoes, 1 block feta. Home made salad dressing.
Bread (1-2 slices each, home-made, brown)
Fruit one piece each.

Gripping.