Is it possible to be a foodie and also be slim/ lose weight

[SeeooelllaaaCola]

Following from my post on another thread. I have only managed to lose weight for the first time by 'breaking up' with food. In the past I could take or leave chocolate and most cake, I ate probably ten bags of crisps per year, I never enjoyed fast food. My typical Sunday would be sourdough bread toasted, eggs and hot sauce, lunch would be an avocado wrap, snacks would be olives, dinner would be a roast dinner.
I now try to see food as fuel and choose foods that will fill me up but not use up much of my tiny calorie allowance. Taste rarely comes into it. I don't go until local businesses and browse the shelves for inspiration. I don't read recipe books. I don't (even when I could) travel to food markets and street food stalls. I feel like I've had to give up a side of myself, and a hobby, but I now fit into size 12 jeans. Sometimes I wonder if it's worth it.

Anyone managed to combine a love of food with losing weight or maintaining a healthy weight? Please tell me how!

Yes, we try to be active.
We have lovely meals, enjoy treats, lots of home baking, nice pastries for breakfast on a weekend.
But we walk lots, run, bike ride etc

Yes. Exercise so you can afford to eat more and still be in deficit calorie wise. I burn over 1000 with just one an hour's run and an hour's walk per day. Cut portions but eat good quality delicious foods. Log what you have eaten to ensure you still have a calorie deficit.

@DivGirl I eat because I love the flavour and the ritual of preparing food. I have two kids and work full time and there's a pandemic so my vices are limited.
Getting a slice of Stilton and layering it on a cracker with a walnut and a spoonful of the neighbours chutney is life affirming and pleasurable to me. There's no parallel to this for me. I would like to be slimmer but I have to be honest that good food is a huge part of my quality of life and the way I reward myself. There's nothing non food related I can find to substitute for this fleeting pleasure which is free, takes moments and I can do in the house whilst the kids are watching YouTube!

@FatCatThinCat if weight watchers is so good how come people are members for decades?

I am a size 12 and I eat food I love. I have full fat yoghurt berries and home made granola for breakfast but only a tiny portion to stave of hunger because I have more will power in the afternoon. Lunch can be anything. Dinner I often eat asian food eg vietnamese chicken bean thread noodle salad or a hot and sour chinese soup. To me its really tasty but I think it's quite low calorie. Otherwise if its something more unhealthy that the kids like such as KFC style chicken I have a couple of bits rather than a plate full and then just fill up on loads of veg. Always use full cream and butter. I'm not skinny but that's because I drink, I'd be a size less if I stopped drinking.

I read your example menu though and felt full! Eggs and sourdough is more of a brunch than a lunch to me and very filling. If I had a wrap at lunch after that then no way could I easily fit in a roast dinner on top in the evening unless I'd had a load of exercise and fresh air. Could it be a portion issue?

I eat stilton with cracker, not chutney though and I fit it easily into even the 1450 cal day. I do have the recommended portion only though

@SeeooelllaaaCola
150 calories in an egg (I’d have 2)
160 in avocado
and not worth counting in the plate of pea shoots - they’re leaves.
I wouldn’t consider that a high calorie meal...... plus, the fat and protein fill you up.....

I love food and can only maintain being very slim by cutting out all treats and eating much smaller portions whilst exercising seven day a week. I am currently pregnant and trying to make healthier choices but I am already overweight so am just trying to damage control.

My dh loves food from all cultures, he loves finding new recipes and is up for trying anything. He eats moderate portions, no carbs after 7 and exercises daily. This is the way he keeps his weight under control. You absolutely can be a foodie and slim but portion control, when you eat and how much you exercise all goes hand in hand to keep weight under control.

Intermittent fasting for me too. Monday - Friday I only eat an evening meal, so that can carry a fair few calories as it's the only calories all day. Saturday and Sunday I eat 3 meals of anything I fancy. It's not for everyone but it's the only way I can eat the things I want without gaining weight..

I log everything I eat to keep within my calorie limits, and do 16:8 (because I don't like eating breakfast anyway). I exercise daily with a focus on keeping/building muscle. I eat a lot of vegetables, prawns, fish.

I have managed to lose (and keep off) over 5 stone, despite eating out (those were the days!) three times a week and not giving up wine altogether. It does mean making sure that everything I eat is worth the calories. So in a restaurant I don't fill up on bread and butter and I rarely eat pudding. I am more than happy to leave food on the plate if I am full or it isn't as nice as I thought it was going to be. I eat fairly low carb because carbs and sugar stoke my appetite and fairly high fat because fat keeps me feeling full.

@Oysterbabe that's what I'm doing at the moment. I prefer it to anything I've done before.

*than in the afternoon

Agree with you on the stilton. I have found that eating when I'm hungry and stopping when I'm full helps. It sounds totally obvious but I find because im cooking for others I will just eat. And I am naturally stuck in the 3 meals a day mindset as that's how I was brought up. And sometimes it means leaving food and chucking it out which I hate. But it does make a difference. I have to be notstreased and not tired though as otherwise I'll just eat anyway

Getting a slice of Stilton and layering it on a cracker with a walnut and a spoonful of the neighbours chutney is life affirming and pleasurable to me.

You still can do this and lose weight! Log it (I use the FitBit app, very easy). Jig your portions so you are at deficit. Aim for less carbs but you can still eat some (think quarter of a medium size potato for dinner). You can eat chocolate but think one chocolate box type chocolate after a meal. Exercise. Walking 1 mile burns about 300 to 400 cals. Running for an hour burns about 600 to 700 cals.

@FFSAllTheGoodOnesArereadyTaken My menu was based on an indulgent Sunday not Monday to Friday. I agree it's a lot but I just wanted to get across that I'm not a McDonald's and 6 bakewall tart sort of fatty. In fact I don't know any fat person who is!

They do OP. I’m a size 8 but I calorie count and I weigh myself every week. I can’t ever just eat what I want I have to work hard at it for me that means calorie counting and exercising 4 times a week.

Then of course there are others who eat and drink what they want and stay slim because they’re genetically like that - this is my DH. It’s big portions always has bread with his lunch and dinner (and when out of my sight shovels in the chocolate and take aways) but he is slim skinny and can easily look to thin.

If you know you’re not the latter and you want to be slim you’re going to have to control your eating in whatever way works and is sustainable to you. This unfortunately won’t mean eating half an avocado a day.

I've got a really slim friend who is a real foodie and has worked as a chef. She loves cheese! But she eats small portions because she gets full really quickly. She often leaves stuff on her plate even if it is delicious. And she never eats processed/convenience food. I do think weight and body shape is largely down to genetic factors though.

There you go then - your priority is the enjoyment you get from food. Other people prioritise fitting in to a size 8 or being able to keep up with the dog on runs or their priority is work and so forget lunch. As long as there’s no health issues and your BMI is healthy then there’s no real harm in it.

You need to stop beating yourself up about enjoying food.

I took action because my BMI crept up to 29, but once I started losing weight I suppose my priorities changed. My BMI is 23 now, still a stone to lose I think but I’m guided more by how I look than numbers. I don’t feel like I’m dieting, and I definitely don’t miss the things I used to eat before.

nMy menu was based on an indulgent Sunday not Monday to Friday.

You could have all those things and lose weight still. Just get the portions right.

It's portion size and listening to your cues. I used to be a restaurant reviewer in the days when restaurants existed. A big part of the job is trying everything - so if it's a three course meal kind of restaurant you have all three courses. But what you don't do is finish them all - think of someone tasting wine and spitting it back out. It took me years to learn how to do this bc when I was growing up I was very much taught to clear my plate.

I think it's interesting that you say you never get hungry. Hungry isn't something to be feared.

But a think so much of this is hormonal actually. I'm a heffalump right now, ten years ago I swear I could just think myself slim.

@DivGirl I wouldn't say it's a priority. It's not an excuse either. You asked me why I ate. I told you why.

And I went from a BMI of over 27 to a BMI if 19 by cutting my portions, running and walking everyday.

[quote SeeooelllaaaCola]@Oysterbabe that's what I'm doing at the moment. I prefer it to anything I've done before.[/quote]
I'm glad it's suiting you, it's definitely the way for me. I've tried counting calories at least 100 times but I always give up in days because I find it so depressing. I want add a glug of oil or cream to my dish, I don't want to measure out 15ml then search for it on MyFitnessPal then become depressed at the amount of calories. It takes the joy out of cooking.
I lost 3st of baby weight with intermittent fasting while still enjoying cooking and discovering new recipes. I've been maintaining for a year now and plan to stick with it forever.

Adding to the others who say 5:2 or intermittent fasting is the best for people who really like food.

[quote SeeooelllaaaCola]@FatCatThinCat if weight watchers is so good how come people are members for decades?[/quote]
Because they don't/can't stick to it. I don't know, I guess you'd have to ask them. I've lost 25 kg using their menu plans and I think the food is delicious.

You can still eat good food and be slim. Have your eggs for breakfast but skip the toast, eat the avocado but not with a wrap. Have the cheese but skip the cracker and the chutney if it’s high sugar content.

Avoid processed foods, sugar, grains, bread, pasta, rice. Lean meats, fish, cheese, avocados, veg, small amount of fruit, nuts are all good. Cook with butter or olive oil and avoid vegetable oil. Dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate.

Once you ditch the breads, grains, sugar you won’t miss them and still have a huge range of foods to choose from.

Don’t snack in the evenings (‘once you break the habit you won’t even think to snack or feel you’re missing out). A few times a week, keep 16 hours between last meal of the evening and first meal the next - a 16/8 approach.