Forbidden Foods That Will Kill Your Weight Loss
* This post may contain affiliate links or sponsored content. *
Psychologically, what happens when someone tells you that you can’t have something? You immediately start thinking about how much you want it, don’t you?
What if someone tells you that you can’t do something? That becomes the very thing you want to do, doesn’t it?
Are there foods not to eat while losing weight? It’s probably rooted in our sin nature, but the human mind tends to want what it’s told it can’t have. Food is no exception. That plays a large role in why so many diets fail. Once you put a food on the forbidden list, it becomes even more of a temptation than it already was.
That’s a reason the Weight Watchers Points system is so effective. It puts the control back in the user’s hands. You want that chocolate treat? You can have it. You just have to count the Points for it. Want a soda? Go ahead. Just make sure you count the points.
That was a radical shift in thinking for me when I was on Weight Watchers many years ago. To go from thinking, “I can’t have a Coke” to thinking, “I could have a Coke, but I don’t want to waste the Points on it” was huge.
You don’t have to be on Weight Watchers to have that mindset. It’s counterproductive to think of foods as “good” and “bad.” My mantra is “moderation, not depravation.” I can eat whatever I want – it’s just that some foods need to be eaten in moderation.
“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. – 1 Corinthians 10:23
I drink sweet tea every day – once at lunch and once at dinner. If I had told myself three years ago that I could never have sweet tea again, I’d have quit before I started. I allow myself one refill because I drink it with my cup as crammed full of crushed ice as I can get it. I sweeten it with real sugar. I believe that artificial sweeteners do more harm than good, so I’d rather have the real thing in smaller amounts.
I used to buy a 24-pack of Cokes every week. Seriously. I never buy Coke anymore. I drink it at my sister’s house when we eat dinner over there and occasionally when we go out to eat, but I don’t keep it in the house. I didn’t quit cold-turkey, though. I cut down to one Coke at lunch and sweet tea at dinner until I decided to just switch to tea for both meals.
When I packed to go to the Savvy Blogging Summit last weekend, I stuck some granola bars in my bag and I stopped on the drive down to pick up a six-pack of bottled water. I’m used to drinking about 96 ounces of water a day, so I wanted to have that and something somewhat healthy to snack on.
That being said, I knew I wasn’t going to stress over the calorie content of my meals. The food was good, y’all! Not healthy good – yummy good. I told a couple of people that I was going to ask Brian to hide the scale from me this week so that I couldn’t look at it until I’d been back to my regular eating and exercise for a week.
I didn’t. I weighed Monday. Surprisingly, it wasn’t too bad. I don’t think I’m going to look again until next week, though.
Most of the meals at Savvy were served either buffet- or family-style. That means that I could take a little taste of everything – including desserts. And, I did. I don’t think, for the most part, that I went overboard, but I did eat a little of most everything. (Except the tiramisu. Yuck! I’m not a fan of coffee or desserts soaked in it.)
It’s funny how my tastes have changed after nearly 3 years of changing my eating habits. By the time I headed home Saturday night, if I could have found a healthy place to eat, I would have stopped there. As it was, I figured my standard Chick-Fil-A grilled sandwich and side salad was about as healthy as I could get.
I woke up at 3:30 Sunday morning very ill. I spent the next three hours moaning and groaning and wishing that my stomach would quit rolling. I took a pill that I haven’t had to take in well over two years – prescription meds that relax my gut when I’m on the verge of becoming violently ill.
The rich, yummy foods may have been good, but three days’ worth of them and very little water – yeah, I took it, but I didn’t drink much of it – left me very ill and dehydrated.
My stomach wasn’t up to breakfast Sunday morning, but I ate a big salad with grilled chicken for lunch.
Sunday night, I fixed a pot of chili for the family. Chili is a fairly healthy food if you use lean meat. It’s something that I usually eat. Not this week! I fixed myself the healthiest thing I could think of from what we had on hand – grilled salmon, baked sweet potato, and roasted broccoli. And, I drank about a gallon of water.
For those of you who are at the beginning of your weight-loss journey and are struggling to change your eating habits, I say this to encourage you. Those habits will change, if you don’t give up. They’ll change and you’ll find yourself with a physical need for healthy foods.
It does get better. It does get easier. The more you make better food choices, the more you want better food choices.
Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. – Galatians 6:9
So, what are those forbidden foods that will kill your diet? Anything that you put on the forbidden list. Anything that you’re going to want because you think you can’t have it.
You know the things that you should eat only in moderation. I think I’ve had a total of two Krispy Kreme doughnuts in the last three years. I love them, but I know I need to eat them in some serious moderation because they’re such a temptation to me, but I wouldn’t beat myself up if I decided to have one.
Cut yourself some slack and give your body a chance to adjust. Eat the things you enjoy in moderation, but give your palette a chance to learn to enjoy new things. And, don’t beat yourself up if you overindulge from time to time. I mean, don’t make excuses for it so that you’re never holding yourself accountable and don’t quit, but don’t be merciless with yourself either.
There was a time when eating like I did this past weekend would have been a signal to let the free-for-all continue. Now, though, I knew it was time to get right back to healthy eating. More than that, my body was screaming at me to get back to my (new) regular eating habits.
Where are you in your relationship with food? Are there forbidden foods that tempt you more than they should or have you come to terms with the idea of moderation, not deprivation?
Kris Bales is a newly-retired homeschool mom and the quirky, Christ-following, painfully honest founder (and former owner) of Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers. She has a pretty serious addiction to sweet tea and Words with Friends. Kris and her husband of over 30 years are parents to three amazing homeschool grads. They share their home with three dogs, two cats, a ball python, a bearded dragon, and seven birds.
Really great post, Kris! Such a direct, open, and realistic look at making healthy food choices.
Thanks, Sarah!
Love that Kris! So true about changing your food habits! I am finding the healthier choices I make, the more I want to eat “healthy”.
I agree, Mitzi. It’s win-win. Exercise works that way, too — the more active I am, the healthier I want to eat.
I love my sweet tea just as much. That is the one thing I haven’t given up and still make it with real white sugar. I just don’t drink it all day long anymore. I have it for breakfast since I don’t drink coffee. Then I have it with lunch or dinner and occasionally I have a Pepsi. Love your blog.
Thanks, Renee.
What a GREAT post! Forbidden foods/drinks have sabotaged me more times than I can count. When I’ve actually had success in weight loss is when I counted any reduction/moderation of less healthy foods as success. When I only at two cookies instead of ten, I did good! I think that’s the key for me. Nothing is forbidden…just make smart decisions to moderate how much I eat/drink.
I think that is the hardest thing about traveling…the finding a decent balance between eating that makes you feel good and indulging in a little vacation yumminess. I always pay the price. My answer has been to make sure there is a mini fridge and I can bring a “normal” breakfast and drinks and then eat out with caution for lunch and dinner.
Really great post, totally agree with nothing is forbidden but we need to make choices. 🙂
That’s what we did when we went to Disney last year, Barb. We ate breakfast in the room every day and lunch all but one day. We had the same healthy things we would have had at home. Then, I didn’t feel guilty for indulging at dinner. Not even the night I ate that hamburger that was probably every bit of 1200 calories at Planet Hollywood. I was so afraid I was going to have to take one of my pills, but, miraculously, it didn’t make me sick.
Well said. I agree completely on the “forbidden foods”. It really is about learning self control. I can have a cookie. Eating the whole batch of cookies? Not so smart.
I agree with artificial sweetners…they create the same physiological response as sugar…ie, the brain senses something sweet and the pancreas releases insulin….and it leads to weight gain. You are such an inspiration to me….losing weight is hard. I had my endocrinologist call me fat recently, then asked me how my husband felt about my weight. It was demoralizing and depressing.
Ouch. Nice doctor. {sigh}
Thanks for letting us in on your healthy eating journey! You are an inspiration! I am really enjoying reading about your struggles and successes.
Excellent post!!!
In the past I have had success with WW and I think the biggest reason why was I COULD eat anything I wanted…I just didn’t chose to. After a while on it things I normally craved didn’t have the same effect on me.
I was just telling my hubby today that I NEED to get back to WW.
So true! I have enjoyed watching your journey from afar and I’m so glad to see you living as a healthier version of you :).
Great post! What a winning perspective. This mindset could make the difference in being successful.
Very encouraging, since I “indulged” in Pringles on my second day of my diet!! I did change my supper to an omelette, though, for lower calories. Eek! Your journey has inspired me.
Thanks so much for these encouraging posts. Your ideas are so simple, yet so smart. Please keep these posts coming. (I feel like you are my own personal cheerleader/coach). 🙂
Kris,
I have to be really careful and exercise great self-control with ice cream. But, yes, making it forbidden can increase my focus on it. The verse you quoted from 1 Cor. is one I go to on those occasions too. I can eat whatever I want, but is it beneficial? For my body? For my spirit? Good questions. Timely post. Thanks.
Good for you! I think that shift from realizing you can have something to realizing if you have that you can’t have something else is important.
You are 100% right in this regard. I’m learning that even moderation can make me feel just awful. I’ve only had a forbidden list since mid-summer but already I’m at a point where fried foods (I love them), fatty salad dressing and most especially things made with refined sugar (cake doughnuts and french bread baguettes) make me feel just awful about an hour after I eat them…even in moderation (1 or 2 french fries, a couple of tablespoons of creamy salad dressing, a single blueberry doughnut). I think many things on my forbidden list will be eliminated permanently unless I’m willing to feel bad in order to have an occasional treat. I think not.
I’ve had that problem, too. In a way it’s a good thing — you don’t have to worry about wanting to eat something that you know is going to make you violently ill. On the other hand, it makes me a tiny bit sad that I’m never going to be able to enjoy some old favorites again. Considering their calorie count and (lack of) nutritional value, I guess it’s mostly a good thing.
I’m curious what the name of the medication is that you take when you feel stomach problems coming on. I struggle with nausea myself. Anything that can help, right? Maybe my doctor will prescribe the same med for me.
It’s not actually for nausea. It’s for treatment of severe symptoms, like irritable bowel syndrome or diverticulitis.