Not too much:
From a CRON viewpoint, this seems obvious. But because we are looking at calories as opposed to just volume, there are some caveats here. Leafy vegetables are hard to overeat. They are very high in nutrients, filling, and low in calories. In general though, you want to have smaller than average plates. Become familiar with portion sizes, both the RDA size portions and the portions that you calculate out through your CRON diet software. When I have oats in the morning it is 1/4 of a cup of raw oats. It seems like a small portion until that becomes your mental standard. Especially in the US, the portion sizes have increased significantly over the last 50 years.
Wait 20 minutes before taking another helping. This gives your body time to register that it is satisfied. In fact, it helps if you do not serve "family style", but prepare the plate of food, and put the rest away.
Be aware of calorie density and look for lower-calorie (but actual food), substitutes. For example, as a relaxing winter beverage "treat" I substituted my old comfort cocoa with warm milk with nutmeg, saving 120 calories a serving. Spaghetti squash instead of pasta saves about 360 calories per serving (as well having much higher nutrient density). Fruit instead of cake. Turnips rather than potatoes, etc.
Additionally, we should especially not eat too much of foods that have been highly correlated to increased cancer, heart disease, and other health risks. In no particular order:
Saturated fats and especially trans-fats have been correlated with increased cholesterol and higher risk of heart disease and stroke.
Red meat has been linked to cancer.
Protein consumption of more than .8g per kg per day may negate some of the benefits of the CRON diet.
Sucrose and Fructose have been correlated with a number of health ills including diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. Foods with high glycemic indexes, which include potatoes, and most refined grains have been strongly correlated with type 2 diabetes, and recently with cancer.
Finally, avoid eating things that are not food. This includes artificial and natural dyes, artificial and natural flavors, hydrogenated fats, polysorbate 60, high fructose corn syrup, food gums etc. Basically, avoid foods that are manufactured rather than grown or raised. While I have not seen studies specifically linking food additives (in general) to disease or health problems, it is just common sense that if you don't even know whether something once was a plant, animal, or mineral, not to put it in your mouth. The FDA, after all, is only saying that there is no proof that these additives are UNSAFE.
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Menu from January 12th
Breakfast:
Coffee with half and half,
Egg on 11grain bread with Artichoke Hearts and Tomato Slices
Lunch:
Finnan Haddie Chowder
Braised Zucchini with Almonds
Dinner:
Parsley Salad,
Parsnips,
Peppers, Tomato and onion stir-fry
Snack:
Yogurt
Free Calories (109)
Brown rice with the stir-fry.
Nutrition Summary:
Calories 1108 , Protein 59g, Carbs 156g, Lipids 33g
Vitamins 100%, Minerals 100%
I just stumbled across your blog and look forward to exploring more when I have the opportunity!!! :-) Thanks for sharing in your journey.
ReplyDeleteI know you can't give specific advice, but I'm an active young woman with a history of an eating disorder. That seems to have mixed up my metabolism a lot. If I eat anything less than 2600 cals/day I lose weight. Maintenance is 2600. Slow and steady gain is 3500.
How do I apply the CR principles if they will automatically cause me to lose weight, which could have adverse effects on my bones and hormone levels? Just wondering if you had any ideas.
Also, given the horrid aspartame in gum, do you recommend any substitutes? I have an addiction I'm trying to break but I chew it a lot for breath reasons, fatigue reasons, and hunger reasons (don't want to go above 2600 especially after getting halfway through Pollan's book!)
Thanks.
Just curious - perhaps this is an inappropriate question, but how has this affected:
ReplyDeletea) your weight, and (related)
b) your appearance?
Do you have any data figures and/or photos?
Does your wife follow this plan too?
(What about your cat - he he)?
Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteI am 6-0 and weigh 168 lbs and maintaining on about 1500-1600 calories. Right now I look fit and lean, but if I continue down this road, I will probably start looking a bit scrawny. I am currently maintaining at 168, and have not decided whether I will continue down to 160. I find my eating lifestyle pretty easy right now, but I will probably have to cut out my "extra" starches if I am going to go for 160. My wife does not follow this diet, so we usually cook for ourselves. My cat LOOKS like he follows this diet, as he is a scrawny guy. I is hard to judge his nutrient intake, but he DID just turn 20, and is looking pretty healthy. :)
As far as your first post, I think that the first couple steps are the same.
1) Start tracking your diet
2) Make sure that you are getting all of your nutrients, and please, try to get them from food and not supplements.
After that, with a history of an eating disorder, I think that you will want to find a doctor who is familiar with the CRON research. He or she should be able to set reasonable restriction goals so that you lose weight safely, and in a healthy manner. Remember, the goal of CRON is not to lose weight, but to slow your metabolism. Your hormone levels and your bone density depend on getting enough nutrients, so that is key.
Last, I don't chew gum. It has been my experience that chewing gum makes me hungry. I have heard that it is because the same things that tell the body to make saliva, sends messages to the stomach to tell it that food is coming, and then the stomach sends signals to say that no food has been received. For breath, I will have a wintergreen altoid mint. It is about 5-10 calories. If one or two a day don't do it, you should visit your dentist. For fatigue I have black coffee or tea. I don't have problems with osteo, but if you do, try green tea. For hunger, I will snack on vegetables - especially carrots or celery or pickles. If I have some free calories, I will have an apple.
I hope you dont take this the wrong way but it sounds like your diet could improve. I.e the coffee, bagel, cream cheese and crispbread in the other blog are not what I would personally call healthy. Its true healthy is a subjective thing. But your diet could do with more vegetables and mushrooms and lentils and nuts
ReplyDeleteThis is what I ate today. I hope you can see what I mean (though I understand you are croning so that is part of the reason why there are so few calories, Im not so I include a lot more calories probably)
Breakfast:
scarmbled egg with tomato and parsley, sauteed choy sum in garlic and mushrooms
oolong tea
Lunch:
Chicken and vegetable soup (garlic, fennel, bok choy, broccolini, mushrooms, parsley) with a bread roll( yes not exactly healthy but thats my indulgence)
Snack:
pear & raspberries in maple syrup, cinnamon and crumbled walnuts and some warm hazlenut milk
Dinner:
Bowl of lentils.
oolong tea
I try to avoid dairy and cutting down on meat because they arent the healthiest. Dairy consumption is correlated with a lot of bad crap, Im surprised at the no mention? I assume youve read the china study if you havent check it out.
What do you think of my diet? I'm about 5'4 or 5 and weigh about 110 pounds. Slighty active, I do some running everyday and deadlift every second but am a student. I'm terrible at counting calories though which is why cron will never work for me because I can't measure every last thing out perfectly and it drives me totally crazy.