Flugel - I share your pain. For a long time I would count calories and it was extremely difficult and didn't scale well - you can't know the total number of calories of every food you eat.

My 'solution' was to learn how many of each food group I am supposed to eat and then counted food groups instead of calories. It's far easier to remember how many fruits or grains you eat in a day than to count calories.

The best part is that food groups are now a part of my life. When I make a grocery list I think to myself 'What grains do I need, what fruits, what veggies.' rather than, 'I feel like Dorritos'. Now I completely avoid the aisles in the grocery store that don't contain real food groups (junk food) or the frozen food section that contains pre-processed boxes of stuff.

When I pack my lunch in the morning I have five piles, one for each food group. A vegetable pile with 1-2 veggies, next it is a fruit pile with at least 1 fruit, then a dairy pile with 1-2 servings of cheese or yogurt, a meat pile (hummus, peanut butter, leftover chicken, etc.) and finally a grain pile with 3-5 grains (cheerios to triscuits).

A search for Food Pyramid or the USDA government website can provide more details about eating your food groups.

Why is this stickied? :S

Duly noted! I'm attempting to revamp my nutrition guidelines, thanks for the post!

Thank you for posting this. I had no idea. I am new to this and I am really trying to put forth an effort and make this happen. So thanks again. Very insightful.

thanks for posting that... it helps to have a reminder every once in awhile.

This thread is very helpful, thanks!!

thanks for the post!.I will practice follow. ^_^

explain please. I'm very happy with the nutritional benefits I get from the acai berry. you can't drink it plain (tastes like dirt) so a blend of juices and their specific benefits is spam to you? 100% natural organic blend. help me understand you, I HAVE lost 5.5 pounds and my metabolism IS faster.

appreciate details from you...............

Thank you for this thread. I went through a complete physical and now I'm ready to drop 30 lbs. So many things are going on at my age , 47. Perimenopause is a killer. The emotions, craving, fatigue...it all slows down the weight loss . But I'm working on it.

Anyway, this gives me a good base. Thanks.

Nate'sgamma

Thanks for the post!!

Great post and tips! Will try it out soon!^^

This is such a hard topic to describe in one posting!

Leigh definitely has the right idea.

A good thing I tell my patients is to count good nutrition on one hand.

Thumb-Fruits and Veggies
Index-Lean Protein
Middle-Whole Grains
Ring-Low fat dairy
Pinky-Moderation

This seems to make it really simple.

My theory is that nutrition has to be PERSONALIZED to everyones lifestyle, food preferences, culture etc.

Although all sound nutrition advice can work for anyone, personalizing it makes it actually happen.

I love this advice, its so helpful.

Thanks. (:

thanks for these tips.

maybe it's just me but I like to keep things simple. I have a really hard time remembering or just get stressed out worrying ill forget all of these rules that are out there... instead I try to just stick to Canadas food guide to healthy eating (I'm Canadian obviously), try to stick to correct portions and keep most of what i eat as natural as possible.