eating plain baked potatos bad?

  • I'm sticking to a 1000 calorie diet with 60 minutes of taebo and 25 minutes of yoga/pilates a day..

    I was on atkins once and have been paranoid of carbs ever since..
    Now, the problem.. I LOVE potatos..
    I could pretty much eat them with or as a meal, plain, (baked) all day when im hungry, and its filling for me..
    Are the carbs in the potatos, say I have 3 servings a day ( 3 potatos) going to hurt me or my weight loss? even if i stay in or under the 1000 calorie routine daily?

    I've been brainwashed. will potatos, or eating them stall my goals and weight loss? help!
  • Let's put it this way: There are far more nutritious ways of spending your limited calories. White potatoe has a rather high GI, and really doesn't have the kind of vitamins and minerals that you'd find in the same amount of calories of a broccoli and carrots mix.
  • See - thats why I know I could never do Atkins. I too have to have my potato and pasta! If you do eat potatos and dont want the butter, I put salsa or even ketcup on mine. (like french fries) - I dont know if thats high carbs or not. Life just aint worth living sometimes if we cant enjoy some of the things we love
  • Well, I don't see it as an Atkins thing. Many successful dieters, who have nothing to do with Atkins, foreswear potato and pasta. My wife and I get about 55% calories from carbohydrates, but hardly ever have potato or pasta, and just about NEVER have any bread. There just are too many other things we absolutely need for health, and we're not willing to go back to working on the farm every day to burn the calories necessary to burn off the comparatively nutrition-poor potato and pasta and bread that we'd end up eating if we didn't just cut them off.

    Everyone is different, of course, but my wife and I agree that life isn't worth living if we can't live it healthy, if we can't feel vital and active and strong and fit. We truly feel that nothing tastes as good as being thin feels. YMMV.

    Great quote by Roosevelt there, BTW!!!
  • Something that may hurt your goals more than potatoes might be the 1000 calorie limit, particularly with that much exercise. Your body is programmed to reduce or increase the need for calories based on activity level vs caloric intake. If you don't eat enough, your body will go into starvation mode, to conserve its reserves. You'll burn fewer calories per hour than you would if you were eating more. Your body may even burn muscle for fuel instead of the fat.

    At one time, they recommended a minimum of 1200 calories per day for weight loss, but many doctors and dietitians now recommend at least 1500 per day to lose weight safely and effectively. Cutting down too much will also increase your chances of gaining the weight back. This type of dieting is common among those that experience yo-yo dieting. Consuming too few calories and/or rapid weight loss can also increase your chances of gallstones.

    During my more active periods, with roughly the same amount of exercise you are getting, I consume between 1600 and 2000 calories per day, and still maintain a safe and regular fat loss. It's easier to stick too, you have more options, and it helps energy levels. It's usually much healthier because you ensure you get all of your nutrients. And there's room for potatoes I do well with carbs such as potatoes and bagels, but not everyone does. You need to find what works for you, yet is still healthy and balanced, without hurting your health overall, and please consult your physician for recommendations. You may have specific health concerns that require more or less than others..
  • I haven't seen any research supporting a 1500 calorie threshold and from my experience, that sounds like nothing less than a cop-out by doctors trying to cover their tail (from malpractice suits), without regard for what's best for the patient. Some people fall into the category whereby 1200 calories per day is their maintenance level within their healthy-weight range, and while I would never recommend less than that without medical supervision, clearly the body isn't programmed for folks that short to eat more calories than that.

    Starvation mode is like a greased pig until you spend a good bit of time trying to understand it. There isn't much scientific foundation for even asserting its existence, and although many of us experienced it, there are other patterns that can be seen in such experiences that are more likely candidates for the cause than low calorie diet. Among the most promising is the combination of low-protein consumption and high cardiovascular activity. There is little doubt that this causes muscle catabolization, and as such would be a very likely reason for the body to try to cut back on calorie expenditure. (As Suzanne pointed out, it also makes it much harder to keep any weight lost off long-term.) Many folks feel that the remedy is to eat enough protein, and do significant resistence training along with some cardiovascular training.
  • I don't know if I'd eat 3 of any one specific thing a day for good health... but hey, that's just me.

    I say "bah humbug" to everyone who tells you not to eat potatoes, rice, bread, pasta. The key is just moderation and making sure you eat MORE veggies and protein that those carbs... but again, that's just me.
  • Good point: If you can manage to fit in empty calories you enjoy along with all the nutritious stuff you need, then there really is no reason to avoid the empty calories. It only is an issue when you're overweight and/or otherwise trying to lose weight and having difficulty.
  • One thing you need to think about is the possibility of Diabetes. Is anybody in your family diabetic? If so, and if you have been overweight longterm, then you are more predisposed to getting diabetes. If this is you, then you might want to not overdo it on potatoes or white bread. They have very high GI values and will keep your pancreas pumping! Do you like sweet potatoes as well? They have a lower GI value (more fiber).