[ratheart]

Okay, this may be a stupid question, but I'm basically asking if I can gain weight on fruit.
In order to stop the frequent bouts of hunger I get, I eat fruit. I eat lots of fruit. Thing is, fruit has calories - of course fruit has calories. A banana, according to google, has about 100 calories. But so can a cookie. It doesn't cognitively gel with me that eating several bananas and several cookies can have the same outcome, even though it seems like the logical conclusion.
Am I not helping myself sating my hunger with fruit? (and vegetables, but mostly fruit.) I'm talking like... a banana, an apple or two, and several clementines (I love clementines) a day.

[walking2lose]

Yeah, you're on the right track. Fruit is yummy and is packed with nutrients, but it's also sweet and has lots of sugar, and yes, calories. Keep your fruit servings moderate and you may see the weight come off better.

[seagirl]

I think a different question to ask might be - why are you so hungry? Are you eating enough protein? Enough healthy fats? Enough whole grains. We are supposed to be eating a balanced diet, so maybe look at the other things you are eating to see if those can be changed to be more satisfying so you aren't needing so much fruit.

[beerab]

I have insulin resistance and fruit is just not my friend. So it would definitely hurt my weight loss.

I agree are you getting in enough protein and fat? I would try to fill your snacks with veggies and protein. Some cauliflower with a bit of ranch IMO is better than a banana because it's got lots of fiber in it to keep you full. Or a hard boiled egg packs in a ton of protein. Some celery with peanut butter, etc.

[walking2lose]

Originally Posted by seagirl

I think a different question to ask might be - why are you so hungry? Are you eating enough protein? Enough healthy fats? Enough whole grains. We are supposed to be eating a balanced diet, so maybe look at the other things you are eating to see if those can be changed to be more satisfying so you aren't needing so much fruit.

+1!!!!!!!!!

[Trazey34]

I had to cool it on the fruit about 1/2 way through, as I was eating all the 'candy' fruits, like pineapple and watermelon and I could eat a TON of the stuff LOL and you're right - it has calories!

I never found that fruit really curbed my hunger or filled me up for that long. My "go to" fixer was always a big scoop of cottage cheese, the regular 2% kind as there's about a 10 calorie difference between it and the 1% and it tastes so much more decadent! It's creamy and a bit salty and filling!

[Flamethrower]

A banana might have the same amount of calories as a cookie, but wouldn't you rather that 100 calories came from a banana, which also has a lot of potassium and other things your body needs, than a cookie which is full of refined sugars and additives and other crap? Remember, it's not just about the number of calories, it's also about where those calories are coming from.

You shouldn't eat too much fruit, no, because it does contain sugar. But you still need some sugars an it's better to get them from fruit than sweets. The fruits that're the worst to have are probably dried fruits like raisins because they're extremely sugary, and lots of companies might add sugar to them.

If you're trying to keep hunger at bay for longer, you need a good combination of carbs and protein. I gues even if the sugar is natural sugar, it can still create that "sugar rush" which makes you feel full and energetic for a short time but low right after.

[Shmead]

It doesn't sound like you are eating a crazy amount of fruit: I could gain weight on fruit, but I can graze through a couple pounds of grapes in an afternoon, seriously. It's hard to see if something is a potential problem without seeing the rest of your diet.

[kaplods]

I've gained and stalled on fruit. I've even stalled on a fruit and veggie fast (fruit and non-starchy veggies only, no proteins or high protein grains/veggies, no grains, no fats or avocados (I didn't say it was a healthy or balanced diet).

If I don't restrict carbs significantly, I feel rabidly hungry 24/7, and that includes carbs from fruit. Eating processed carbs produces a more intense hunger, but even overeating fruits fires up my appetite.

I use an exchange plan, and I have liberal alottment of fruits and vegetables, but I do have to enforce a limit or I will overeat. For veggies my minimum is 4 and my maximum is 8 veggies exchanges (each exchange is about 1 cup of raw or 1/2 cup cooked for most veggies), and for fruit my minimum is 3 and my maximum is 4 fruit exchanges (each exchange varies per fruit. Most apples are 2 - 3 fruit exchanges, but 1 1/4 cups of strawberries is 1 exchange. You can guess which I try to eat more often).

[krampus]

You can gain weight on anything as long as you eat enough calories. Fruit is good, but it's good because it's sweet and carby.

I've found that having some cherry/grape tomatoes (which are technically fruit, but lower sugar/calories) and a piece of Laughing Cow/Babybel/individual portion cheese is a very filling snack. Combining the saltiness of the cheese with the sweet juiciness of the tomatoes makes them seem sweeter and more dessert-y. It balances out to approx. the same calories as fruit and keeps me fuller longer.

[pattynelson]

Doesn't fruit contain a lot of sugar? surely thats not good.

[JOLINA]

I planted a lot of fruit trees, grape vines and berry bushes for their health benefits.
Fruit does contain calories.
I count my calories, so I always add in those calories.

Always keep fruit in your daily menu. Fruit is not just carbs and sugar.
You can find out the health remedies of your favorite fruits by searching in the internet.
I make juice and freeze it.

I drink 10 ounces every day. About 150 calories.

Pears contain an acid that staves off Dementia and Altzheimers. My blackberries and purple grapes have anthocyanins that keep strokes away. They thin the blood a little.
Niagara grape juice gives me a lot of energy.


My elderberry extract is loaded with anti-virals that keeps colds and flu at bay.
Blackberries and bilberries keep my night vision sharp.

I eat one banana every day for the potassium so I don't get muscle spasms or a charlie horse.
The banana has 100 calories.
So I take in 250 calories in fruit every day.
The health aspects of fruit are too great to remove them from my diet.

I grow strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, mulberries, elderberries, cranberries, pears, peaches, apples, apricots, currants, and grapes.
Berries are essential to the health of your heart and blood vessels.
Fruit helps to keep your blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol within normal range.

With fruit selling for more than $1 per pound I am better off growing my own.
Just one tree produces over 100 pounds of fruit.
A grape vine produces 100 pounds. I give my extra fruit away to the church members.

Gardening is a lot of exercize, which helps keep me healthy too.
Making juice is a lot of work and even more exercize.

:

I lost over 25 pounds last year...and this year I hope to lose 50!
Best of luck on your dieting!

[Shmead]

Originally Posted by pattynelson

Doesn't fruit contain a lot of sugar? surely thats not good.

It's all relative. Fruit has a lot of sugar compared to vegetables, or lean meat. It has very little sugar, gram for gram, when compared to candy or baked goods or soda, or even (arguably) white bread.

[thinner]

yeah our bodies need the things in fruit. there's debate about even natural fructose. but i've read enough that i believe we need the antioxidants (organic if you can buy it) in fruit and alot more than the RDA. but, fruit will spike your sugar and crash if you do eat too much of it at a time. i had to back off from eating so much sweet fruit like peaches in the mornings. i can eat apples no problem. slow digesting, lots of fiber. apples and bananas seem to fill me up more than some other things.