Dieting v saving money.

june89

mothernerd wrote: »

I don't like SW as the diet clashes with my diabetic one. I don't like the heavy reliance on artificial sweeteners as they are contra indicated long term and they also ruin your palate and don't allow you to fully appreciate the natural sweetness of things like fruit. Several things I eat as healthy have more 'syns' than worthless options (I eat oatcakes, a ritz cracker is just sugar and salt but guess which is more syns) and don't get me started on bread (I have wholemeal seeded as these are necessary but limited components of my diet).

I agree that a lot of the recipes and suggested products DO have sweeteners, but it's a choice to use them - not a requirement. The only artificial sweetener I purposely use is the occasional sugar free syrup in my latte, but even that I am phasing out. Most of my food is unprocessed, or minimally processed/few ingredients such as weetabix, etc. I do have a stash of their cereal bars to use up, but I'm not planning to repurchase these. Does make SW a LOT harder as I won't just fill up on "free" mugshots and mullerlights like everyone else seems to. But I'd rather be fat than eat that crap. :rotfl:

Before this I did calorie counting, but got too obsessive over the numbers. What I'm eating hasn't really changed between the two diets though.

ETA:

Hermia wrote: »

SW didn't work for me for that reason. The local leader was very fond of processed foods and making desserts that contained lots of sweeteners and weird artificial ingredients. I am trying to eat all natural ingredients even if I just eat a small amount (e.g. small amounts of real dairy products, not low-fat stuff that is full of rubbish). I also clashed with the leader over wholegrain stuff. I eat several portions of wholegrain (bread, brown rice, high-fibre cereal) a day to keep, errr, everything moving (TMI!) and I was told I had to count most of it as syns. This made no sense as my doctor was encouraging me to eat that stuff and I was being told it was regarded as a treat even though it was all low-cal and healthy!

I just ignore my consultant when she suggests stuff I don't personally agree with. I needed help in the beginning with limiting the "synned" stuff, as that was my real problem. Now I'd probably be fine to just live a "healthy lifestyle" and still continue to lose weight. The plan is all for high fibre though, so surprised you were getting told to syn it all - although it does depend on your specific choices.

BEAT_THE_DEBT

Thanks for all the replies. Yes I agree there doesn't have to be conflict but sometimes there is. I am a good planner but we all get caught short sometimes don't we. For example there is often buffet food left over in work for the next day is I eat this I save money but it is often high in fat things. I know I don't have to but that is my point it saves me money if I do

Hermia

june89 wrote: »

I agree that a lot of the recipes and suggested products DO have sweeteners, but it's a choice to use them - not a requirement. The only artificial sweetener I purposely use is the occasional sugar free syrup in my latte, but even that I am phasing out. Most of my food is unprocessed, or minimally processed/few ingredients such as weetabix, etc. I do have a stash of their cereal bars to use up, but I'm not planning to repurchase these. Does make SW a LOT harder as I won't just fill up on "free" mugshots and mullerlights like everyone else seems to. But I'd rather be fat than eat that crap. :rotfl:

Before this I did calorie counting, but got too obsessive over the numbers. What I'm eating hasn't really changed between the two diets though.

ETA:



I just ignore my consultant when she suggests stuff I don't personally agree with. I needed help in the beginning with limiting the "synned" stuff, as that was my real problem. Now I'd probably be fine to just live a "healthy lifestyle" and still continue to lose weight. The plan is all for high fibre though, so surprised you were getting told to syn it all - although it does depend on your specific choices.

I would eat a healthy high-fibre cereal (no added sugar or anything like that) for breakfast and then take a sandwich to work made with high-quality wholemeal bread. I was told I had to syn that and any other wholemeal ingredients I ate because you could only have one wholemeal item free a day. I had a horrible feeling if I had bought some awful low-cal processed lunch from the supermarket I could have had it free!

I did ignore the consultant, but it got to the point where I wondered why I was paying to attend a meeting and listen to this consultant's weird ideas about food!

Pollycat

BEAT_THE_DEBT wrote: »

Hi is it just me or is there sometimes a conflict. I am trying to lose weight and eat accordingly to do so but sometimes the money saver in me takes over for example I have a sausage roll in the freezer that I will prob have for lunch to use up rather than buy a healthy lunch. We go to mils on a Sunday for roast as it saves us money. Anyone else find this?

Why not make a healthy lunch instead of buying one?
And leave the sausage roll for someone not on a diet?:)

BEAT_THE_DEBT

I get your point Polly I was just trying to say that sometimes in order not to spend money I could eat high fat food available x

Hermia

BEAT_THE_DEBT wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies. Yes I agree there doesn't have to be conflict but sometimes there is. I am a good planner but we all get caught short sometimes don't we. For example there is often buffet food left over in work for the next day is I eat this I save money but it is often high in fat things. I know I don't have to but that is my point it saves me money if I do

True, but you learn to manage it. I wouldn't turn down free food either! Maybe try to focus on the healthier options? I remember reading a study about the way thin people and fat people ate. They discovered that thin people will naturally eat less or eat healthier the next day if they overindulge. Fat people will just eat their normal amount the following day. Maybe that is something to think about? Grab that free food, but aim to stick to healthier options the following day.

WantToBeSE

Losing weight and eating healthy isnt all about deprivation.

Have the sausage roll, but have it with a large salad and/or crudites, and dont snack until your next meal.

Hermia

WantToBeSE wrote: »

Losing weight and eating healthy isnt all about deprivation.

Have the sausage roll, but have it with a large salad and/or crudites, and dont snack until your next meal.

Indeed. I have a French friend who is the epitome of the slim chic Parisian and she never goes without. If she wants chocolate she buys a tiny bar, if she wants cheese she has a small portion of real cheese. She says if she deprived herself or ate low-fat stuff she would end up going crazy!

MallyGirl

BEAT_THE_DEBT wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies. Yes I agree there doesn't have to be conflict but sometimes there is. I am a good planner but we all get caught short sometimes don't we. For example there is often buffet food left over in work for the next day is I eat this I save money but it is often high in fat things. I know I don't have to but that is my point it saves me money if I do

if there is always buffet food being left over then I think you need to make a conscious decision to not always have it. If it is occasional then take it home and freeze some/eat some with salad/veg but no extra carbs or naughty things.

OH bought me a salted caramel millionaire thingy the other day to take on a walk. I looked at the back and it was 390 calories!!
I didn't need it on the walk so it went in the cupboard. I cut it in half and half it over 2 days as an afternoon treat.

ThriftyTraveller

BEAT_THE_DEBT wrote: »

Hi is it just me or is there sometimes a conflict. I am trying to lose weight and eat accordingly to do so but sometimes the money saver in me takes over for example I have a sausage roll in the freezer that I will prob have for lunch to use up rather than buy a healthy lunch. We go to mils on a Sunday for roast as it saves us money. Anyone else find this?

Hi,

Sorry, this is my first contribution so I hope I'm doing this right! I'd definitely say it can be challenging. I have found this issue too especially when making a switch from just buying the cheapest thing to actually being really careful about what I eat. Here's what I learnt (maybe it's helpful for you too).

Sorry for stating the obvious but the best way to make sure you don't put yourself up for temptation is not to buy those fatty foods. The more I cooked from scratch the healthier my meals were and the more opportunities I had to save money on ingredients. Yes, you can buy ready-made meals for really cheap but if you buy for example a huge bag of lentils or rice, you will be able to save money on each meal ultimately. A lot of it is also when you eat not what you eat. If you have something naughty, make sure you're not having it for dinner after 8 pm but rather for lunch or breakfast so your body has time through the day to metabolise. As far as saving money on groceries, there was a good article on the Bidvine company blog (sorry can't post links) on how to make sure you don't get ripped off when you're shopping for groceries!