Define "Healthy"

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-06-2006
Define "Healthy"
7
Tue, 04-03-2007 - 8:56am

We all make statements like "I am eating healthy".. What do you mean when you say that? What is your definition of "healthy"?


Do you think it's enough to say "I'm eating healthy" and stop at that? Same goes with "I'm making better choices". Do you think such startegies can really cause weight loss?


That's my brain teaser for today LOL

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-21-2003
Tue, 04-03-2007 - 9:08am

I rarely say that I'm eating healthy, cause i still have "bad food" sometimes (chips, chocolate, icecream etc). I like to say I'm watching my portions.. which is true. i'm trying not to over eat and I am not going back for more after my plate is clean.
I think changing your WOE (way of eating) will make you lose weight to a certain point, then you have to start exercising to burn calories.
Most of the weight i've lost is just from changing my WOE.. cause i don't exercize that much... until just recently

Sara
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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 04-03-2007 - 9:21am
It doesn't work for me to think of some foods as bad and some as healthy, but to say that you're "eating healthy" can mean that you're making better choices in terms of balance. It's so easy to get caught up in the buzz-word world of advertising that sells products based on the perceptions they can create around them. They've introduced so many processed foods under the "healthy" label that have done incredibly well in terms of sales, and yet we keep hearing that the population keeps getting fatter. (At least it's not just me! LOL) Even the way we talk about our food intake is influenced by the language they use. Annie
A
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-08-2003
Tue, 04-03-2007 - 9:47am

good one!

I try to be careful and always say "healthier" and not "healthy" for the very reasons you mention. What is healthy? Healthy to one may be very unhealthy to another. I do pride myself for "making better choices" but considering what I was eating that could really be anything. (like one little debby instead of 3...) Although that isn't what I mean when I say I have been making better choices. ;-) I imagine it is different for everyone. When I started out the making better choices was one of my first steps. swapping out fruits and veggies for snacks instead of sweets and fruit snacks, etc. some times for me the better choice is still the grilled chick sand at a fast food joint over a burger. They still aren't always the best choice but the better option.

That said, I think making the effort to make the better / healthier choice has made me more aware overall about what I am eating as well as how i am preparing foods. I choose the healthier fats, a better oil, more whole grains, more veggies, Salads, etc. that one small step has made bigger changes.

I don't think on it's own, it will do the trick. It will for a while, then other changes will have to follow to keep it going and even to sustain the losses. But I think It is a great place to start!

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-01-1999
Tue, 04-03-2007 - 9:56am

I personally don't like to use the word "healthy" in terms of how I eat...because while physically right now I am very healthy (according to the medical system), I know that my weight is not healthy in that it makes me susceptible to injury, disease and a host of other problems.

In terms of eating, I'm striving for "clean"...choosing foods as close to their natural state as possible...that means fewer refined products (flours and sugars in particular) and very little that has been processed or preserved. It means trying to stay away from the 'convenience' foods that are so filled with chemicals and preservatives - who knows what they will do to our systems over time? Also, by eating more cleanly we naturally take in more fiber and vitamins and minerals.

Kelly

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iVillage Member
Registered: 01-25-2006
Tue, 04-03-2007 - 10:42am

To me it is making better choices and just being mindful of what I eat. I am not a big candy fan anyways so that isn't a problem for me, however I do like certain sweets and I have to limit those which isn't hard cuz the ones I like I want fresh from the oven and they are all near/in the mall and dh won't go there and I only go a couple times a year....LMAO


so like others just making better choices and watching how much I eat


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Angela

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iVillage Member
Registered: 10-25-2004
Tue, 04-03-2007 - 2:03pm

Here is my definition(s) of eating healthy:

About 7-12 servings of fruits and vegetables a day.


 


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iVillage Member
Registered: 05-08-2006
Tue, 04-03-2007 - 8:55pm

For me, healthy is both quality and quantity. Lots of fruits and vegetables is healthy. Baked, not fried, is healthy. Low fat is healthy as long as I don't need twice as much to be satisfied(low fat salad dressing is a yes-low fat cookies, no)

And healthy is eating because I really want something to eat-not because I want to feel happpier, calmer, less bored, whatever. And healthier is stopping with one plateful, not eating more simply because there is more.

I totally believe that this will work, and does work but it is a lot of work to make it work.

SJ
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