overeating low density foods

passionvegan · **Posted:** Thu May 31, 2012 5:49 am

i overeat low density food but not high density food like popcorn

jay kaye · **Posted:** Thu May 31, 2012 8:59 am

passionvegan wrote:

i overeat low density food but not high density food like popcorn

Is there a question here?

Overeating almost any food is not good. But is is hard (impossible) to over eat some foods.

j

ETeSelle · **Joined:** Tue Jan 02, 2007 11:09 am **Posts:** 4994

What do you mean by low density? Low in CALORIE density? Nutritional density? What?

And what do you mean by "overeat"?

passionvegan · **Posted:** Thu May 31, 2012 4:38 pm

I will eat one of these 3 for lunch or dinner

1. 4-5 cups brown rice with a 1-2 pounds steamed veggies

2. 2 cups Erewhon corn flakes plus small amount rice noodles mixe with 1/2 cup dried veggies

3. 1/4 cup unpopped popcorn, 1 cup Erewhon brown rice cereal, 1/2 can pumpkin mixed with 1/2 cup dried spinach and large red pepper

The volume of food with the rice causes me severe heartburn but the higher density meals leave me satisfied and comfortable

according to Jeff the calorie density of your meals should be around 450 but my preference seems to be much higher - over 1000.

I should mention my BMI stays between 18.7-19.2

I should mention that my BMI is 18.8-19.4

serenity · **Posted:** Thu May 31, 2012 7:08 pm

With a BME of about 19, you don't need to lose weight. Clearly your appetite is accurately aligned with your needs. So....still don't understand what your point is.

passionvegan · **Posted:** Fri Jun 01, 2012 4:30 am

Does that mean it is okay to eat a diet that has an average calorie density of about 1000? For long-term health and nutrition do i need to lower the calorie density of my food choices as Jeff suggests - your answer implies if my BMI is good and i am satiated with my meals than my diet is a good plan for me?
Thanks for any additional replies - i was a bit confused about the MWL food list since I was not trying to lose weight.

ETeSelle · **Joined:** Tue Jan 02, 2007 11:09 am **Posts:** 4994

You can more or less eat as much as you want of whole foods low in calorie density. Do you have an eating disorder?

Vegan Hunter · **Posted:** Fri Jun 01, 2012 9:05 am

I don't think it is possible to over eat low calorie dense foods, such as potatoes, vegetables.

TerriT · **Posted:** Fri Jun 01, 2012 9:20 am

passionvegan wrote:

according to Jeff the calorie density of your meals should be around 450 but my preference seems to be much higher - over 1000.

Are you sure that the meals you've described have a calorie density that's over 1000? Your first meal, for example, can't be that high, because whole grains average 450-500 cal/lb while vegetables are around 100 cal/lb. So "4-5 cups brown rice with a 1-2 pounds steamed veggies" doesn't have a calorie density above 1000.

Perhaps you're confusing calorie density with the total number of calories per meal?

See this post from Jeff's forum on calorie density:

viewtopic.php?t=6032

Quote:

These are averages

Fresh Veggies are around 100 cal/lb
Fresh Fruits around 250-300 cal/lb
Starchy Veggies/Intact Whole Grains around 450-500 cal/lb
Legumes around 550-600 cal/lb
Processed Grains (even if their Whole grain) around 1200-1500 cal/lb
Nuts/Seeds around 2800 cal/lb
Oils around 4000 cal/lb

What they found is if the calorie density of the food is below 400 calories per pound, no matter how much they eat, they all lost weight.

Between 600-800 calories per pound, with some moderate exercise, they all lost weight.

Between 800-1200 calories per pound, people gained weight, except for those with very high activity levels

Over 1200 calories per pound, everyone gained weight.

passionvegan · **Posted:** Fri Jun 01, 2012 3:38 pm

Thanks for the great replies and advice. No i was i do not have a eating disorder. I think read too many blogs about cereal and popcorn as occasional items not staple items. I guess that is more of a MWL need to lose weight if you want/need to?

passionvegan · **Posted:** Fri Jun 01, 2012 6:42 pm

All the advice recommends low density foods instead of cereal or popcorn. I guess my question is cereal/popcorn as nutritious as rice/corn on a daily basis?

Here is the quote from Jeff about dry cereals and his suggesrion to really limit them or avoid them. I have them everday mostly because I work on a military base and need to eat non-perishable food because I do not have access to a fridge or microwave.

Quote:

You can also see the problem with many of the "low fat" diets that focused on processed whole grains, like whole wheat bread, crackers, dry cereals. At 1200-1500 calories per pound, if they become a large part of the diet, they can raise the overall calorie density and make it much easier to overeat on calories and easy to gain weight and/or not lose weight, even with a higher activity level. Hence the principles of the MWL program is to avoid those foods, or really limit them.

Thanks again

TerriT · **Posted:** Sun Jun 03, 2012 11:09 am

Since your BMI is in a healthy range I wouldn't think you need to worry about eating dry cereals, popcorn etc as part of your normal diet. If your weight were to start to creep up (if your lifestyle changed and you weren't as active, for example) then it might be something you'd need to look at. But it doesn't sound like you're overeating, since you're at a healthy weight, you're just eating the amount you need to meet your needs.

passionvegan · **Posted:** Sun Jun 03, 2012 6:51 pm

Wow thanks Terri for your advice. I feel so much more confident that my health will stay good eating the McDougall way I was just not sure i was correctly following his guidelines - you validated thst I am. Cheers Lisa

passionvegan · **Posted:** Tue Jun 12, 2012 5:11 am

Okay i experimented with density/satisfaction between brown rice and dry cereal.
My dilemma is I eat 2 cups of erewhon corn flakes and feel satisfied but if I eat brown rice I will need to consume 4-5 cups to feel satisfied. Erewhon said the cereal is whole grain but it is processed. Any advice?

Should I worry that my diet is not nutriously sound? Recommendations from dieticians/medical experts to replace healthy processed foods and replace with whole grains?

My cravings have lessened following a Mary mini approach of eating the same foods/starch everyday.
My energy, weight and satisfaction is great but I am still anxious about not eating the healthiest form of the starch.
;-)

Help

passionvegan · **Posted:** Fri Jun 29, 2012 4:48 pm

I finally figured out why I tend to overeat on the low density food. Texture of food has always been a satisfying quality for me and I tend to like dry textures. I overeat the rice because it is not as satisfying to me as dried veggies or cereal.

Not sure what to do about that - I think nothing because as TerriT said as long as I am at a good weight I am giving my body what it needs. Thanks TerriT

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