The salad kick

I just found out that I've been eating way too many carbs...I simply love bread and have it for lunch everyday! and at dinner I have some type of rice or potato something starchy.

An athletic director told me to stop with the carbs... all they are are sugar and it will eventually kill you!

So now I will be eating salads every day with no bread or carbs...I will ease up on carbs in evening and switch to more veggies...so at least salad twice a day...

Does that sound doable?

Mon. Oct 1, 6:33pm

You're listening to a gym teacher about nutrition? Take a step back and think about that one.

Monday, October 1, 2007, 6:36 PM

I don't think salad twice a day is too nuts, but just make sure it's something you can do long term. I always think that you shouldn't do anything to lose weight that you wouldn't do for the rest of your life. Unless you're willing to cut out all bread and carbs for the rest of your life...I personally couldn't do it. And then when you do start eating carbs, you'll puff up again - I know lots of people who this has happened to!

My thoughts: switch to whole grain carbs (bread, pasta, etc.) as much as humanly possible. No more white bread! Cut your carbs down to one serving per meal (and for things other than bread, that may mean measuring for awhile until you realize what a portion size really is!). By all means, eat as much veggie as you can stand. I personally usually have some kind of veggie (carrots or broccoli with dip ) at lunch, and often salad at supper.

Another thought: Be careful whose advice you take and take it with a grain of salt (even mine!) But this person is telling you that carbs are just sugar and will eventually kill you...that's not right. Carbs are the body's main source of energy and are essential to life. Talk to a dietician or a nutritionist, they'll tell you the same thing! Carbs do NOT equal sugar. Often, the carbs we eat are heavily processed and so they are sugar, but not all carbs are. Trust me, I'm a biology teacher and have studied the chemical structure of food molecules...and sugars and complex carbohydrates are very different things!

Good luck with the changes!

Monday, October 1, 2007, 7:25 PM

I tried eating salad twice a day and I just got sick of it. You can burn yourself ourt if you are not careful.

Monday, October 1, 2007, 7:51 PM

Yeah...He's a gym teacher but he played for the NBA back in the day so I think he knows what he's talking about.
He speaks from experience talked to many a nutritionist and doctor and swears that a salad twice a day is more beneficial than loading up on carbs...
I'm not going to completely cut out my whole grains though...I'll just do it sparingly instead of full gusto like I'm doing now.

Besides I think his advice is perfect considering that when I eat carbs I tend to bloat up like a balloon! Whenever I take them away I lose much more and feel lighter!

Monday, October 1, 2007, 8:54 PM

Ok then why are you asking us our opinion if you already think his advice is perfect?

Monday, October 1, 2007, 9:47 PM

I usually eat a salad for lunch w/ a little protein and a salad w/ dinner. While haven't eliminated carbs, I have reduced the amount I eat and try to vary and make them complex carbs. This has worked well for me. I love good bread, so I really have to watch it. I don't get tired of eating salads, but sometimes I get tired of making them!

Monday, October 1, 2007, 10:13 PM

I'm sorry but just because someone has played for the NBA does not mean they have a clue what they are talking about when it comes to nutrition.

Yes sugar is bad for you and yes getting your carbs from white rice, peeled white potatoes, white bread and pastry are completely useless from a nutritional standpoint but carbs are an absolute necessary part of a healthy diet. If you exercise, and if you like using your brain, you need to fuel it with complex carbohydrates. Where do you think this NBA player got his energy to play? The energy came from his glycogen stores in his liver. Glycogen is replaced best by carbohydrates and skip those and your workouts and energy level will suffer. Perhaps you have been eating the wrong type of carbs. Eat more brown rice, whole grain bread, nuts, seeds, quinoa, barley, etc.

Also, just an FYI-those salads you are eating . . .there are carbs in there.

Monday, October 1, 2007, 10:17 PM

If you're not going to speak to a nutrition professional (which your NBA guy is not), at least speak to a woman whose advice you feel you can trust. Men and women lose weight differently, they have different needs - and many men, especially of the personal trainer persuasion, refuse to acknowledge this.

Monday, October 1, 2007, 11:48 PM

yes - i know this was just said - but to re-iterate, VEGETABLES are carbs, too. it's important to realize that carbs in themselves are not bad. it's the type of carbs - for instance, high refined/processed white breads, potato chips, etc.. that are far less healthy for you than eating that salad. ..

to get the real low-down, do a lot of research on the subject, based on trustworthy sources, and even then - take that with a grain of salt as mentioned earlier. there is a lot of mis-information out there, even amongst nutritionists!

in the end, know your body and how it reacts to different types of carbs. also, be wary of discounting entire food groups, and instead, just focus on what IS healthier to eat. as was suggested before, select whole grain breads (less refined, less processed), eat more vegetables (remember..5 a day), empower yourself with knowledge about nutrition so that you can draw your own sound conclusions.

good luck!

Tuesday, October 2, 2007, 2:55 PM

You can get your veggies other ways, too. Try soups and stews. They're really easy to make esp. for a week's lunch and you can throw in so many yummy things - potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, celery, peppers, leeks, parsnips, etc.

Or try a stirfry. And try brown rice or couscous as a grain side-dish instead of bread! There are other options out there!!

Tuesday, October 2, 2007, 3:10 PM

When you eat a lot of carbs, it's easy to eat more calories than you think (a large roll has several hundred.) However, with a salad it's easy too - the topings (cheese, egg, bacon) on a lot of salads are pretty high in calories, and the dressing itself is very very high, if you're not careful about what dressing you pick and the quantity of it that you use.

A typical restaurant salad, with the dressing they give you, if they put it on the salad for you, could easily have close to 1000 calories. Just by taking the dressing off, you'll eliminate several hundred.

If you're going to eat salads every day in order to lose weight, you'll need to find a lower calorie version of dressing that you like, and learn to eat it on the side - dip the tines of the fork into the dressing and then spear a bite of salad, or, spear the salad and dip lightly. It makes a little dressing go a long way.

At the same time, make sure by "salad," you don't mean "bowl of lettuce," as you will be very hungry!

Tuesday, October 2, 2007, 3:12 PM

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