Author Topic: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)  (Read 2963 times)

Nick_Miller

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Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« on: January 23, 2018, 01:57:15 PM »
Well since Jan 3, I've lot 12 lbs eating mostly a Mediterranean diet. It's apparently the "in" thing now, but it's almost recommended by AMA, Mayo Clinic, etc., etc.,

I feel like I get plenty of foods that I love, especially olives, whole grain naan/pita pockets, baked/steamed fish, veggies, legumes, nuts, lots of berries, hummus, greek yogurt, salads, some red wine, etc. I don't feel like I'm missing anything.

It's a much lighter way to eat: goodbye, fried stuff, heavy desserts with refined sugar, red meat, and endless high glycemic carbs like crackers and white bread.

Usually when I try to eat clean, I end up craving junk within a few days, but I feel very strong on this plan 3 weeks into it. And I have buy-in from my family, partially because I am doing most of the cooking and letting my oldest be my assistant chef. Last night we made baked cod with panko breading, squash/zucchini, and basmati rice. Used olive oil with fish/veggies. It was the bomb.

Anyone else discover this recently?

boarder42

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #1 on: January 23, 2018, 02:04:48 PM »
sounds good - i follow the 4 hour body diet to lose weight this sounds like it could add back in some things i really like to maintain once i hit my goal weight.

LifeHappens

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #2 on: January 23, 2018, 02:09:17 PM »
I'm vegetarian and we eat like this quite a lot. I do like to mix in other flavor palettes, like Mexican and Japanese, but many of the ingredients cross over. It's a sustainable long term way of eating that doesn't feel like a deprivation diet.

Chippewa

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #3 on: January 23, 2018, 02:09:49 PM »
I made a spreadsheet tracker for this diet and the MIND diet (very similar). I would like to stick to it, but have not. But I like all food in it.

Will come back and post tracker.

Nick_Miller

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #4 on: January 23, 2018, 02:12:48 PM »
Boarder 42, I think it would be excellent for maintaining a healthy weight. A lot of it is that you're just eating fewer calories period than the standard American diet. So it's mostly math but since it allows for so many satisfying and creative dishes, I think it would make for a great long term plan.

LifeHappens, I second the "doesn't feel like deprivation" statement. Heck, I am really looking forward to dinner these days! I never feel bloated or ridiculously full or anything.
« Last Edit: January 23, 2018, 02:14:32 PM by Nick_Miller »

Chippewa

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« Last Edit: January 23, 2018, 02:29:13 PM by Chippewa »

partgypsy

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #6 on: January 23, 2018, 02:26:47 PM »
Not recently. My Dad is from Greece (Mom is American) and so my whole life ate a combination of Greek food, and the traditional American diet. No, I don't eat perfectly, but I my diet is closer to a Mediterranean diet than most Americans. My diet to me feels totally unrestricted, yet I've never had to worry about my weight or any health factors (I have high HDL, low blood pressure, etc). The guy I'm currently seeing is originally from Morocco, and when he prepares meals it is similar, so if anything I'm eating more of those foods. And the food is delicious!  I also love Mexican food, which also tastes great and is not meat heavy either, and Italian food (I like both southern Italian dishes and northern Italian dishes - which are not so healthy but taste so good!).
« Last Edit: January 23, 2018, 02:39:30 PM by partgypsy »

ketchup

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #7 on: January 23, 2018, 02:52:48 PM »
It's a much lighter way to eat: goodbye, fried stuff, heavy desserts with refined sugar, red meat, and endless high glycemic carbs like crackers and white bread.
Boarder 42, I think it would be excellent for maintaining a healthy weight. A lot of it is that you're just eating fewer calories period than the standard American diet. So it's mostly math but since it allows for so many satisfying and creative dishes, I think it would make for a great long term plan.

LifeHappens, I second the "doesn't feel like deprivation" statement. Heck, I am really looking forward to dinner these days! I never feel bloated or ridiculously full or anything.
GF and I have over the last ~5 years settled into eating what I'll call "vegetable-heavy paleo diet with intermittent fasting" so not exactly what you're doing, but the bold things are really the keys everyone can agree on. 

No/less sugar, less starch, no bullshit oils (canola/corn/soy/etc) or things fried in said bullshit oils, lots of vegetables, satiating, delicious, nutrient-dense food.  From there, it's up to you on where you want to be on the Keto-Paleo-Mediterranean-Vegetarian-Vegan spectrum (and where you dial in your personal calorie count/guesstimate), but I think everyone can agree on the solid base here.

Financial.Velociraptor

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #8 on: January 23, 2018, 06:22:28 PM »
I've been doing more vegetable matter w/olive oil and substituting fish where I used to go for chicken, beef, or pork.  The scale thanks me.  Not really showing up in my waistline yet but I'm hopeful.

J Boogie

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #9 on: January 24, 2018, 07:59:21 AM »
My wife and I (and our 18 month old son) eat like this.

She's Nicaraguan but Italian on her Dad's side. Her Mom is all about Mediterranean cuisine as well. We have beef maybe twice a month.

I do find it very delicious.

On a side note, she recently lost her job (which she didn't like all that much anyways), and it's given her more time and energy to spend in the kitchen (and with our son) which she is loving and so am I. She's really good at building flavor. I've got her beat in the knife skills dept but she has that innate sense of flavor she must get from her family.

We also use a pressure cooker all the time, which is a popular way to cook on here.

We buy tons of organic as well - I know some people say that it's BS, but I for one am very skeptical of all the produce and especially meat that is sold, and anything labeled organic subjects itself to increased scrutiny/higher standards from the USDA. I'd rather pay more for organic knowing that.




Just Joe

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #10 on: January 24, 2018, 09:04:40 AM »
So if a person wanted to go somewhere for recipes - where would you suggest? Any specific search terms?

boarder42

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #11 on: January 24, 2018, 09:32:23 AM »
yeah the meat part is my problem - thats why i like four hour body - meat beans and veggies - i can eat beef and pork etc.  though i do like the dairy additions of this diet.  may just mix em up and see how it goes.

Nick_Miller

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #12 on: January 24, 2018, 09:47:55 AM »
@Just Joe , to be honest I went old school and bought a big fat magazine with tons of recipes. I like seeing the big colorful pictures, and I like having the recipes in a book instead of written on notecards. I despise needing to consult my phone each time for a recipe when I'm busy. Plus the pages are  big and easy to read, and I have old eyes. And it encourages the family members to flip through it and dog ear pages they want us to try.

But yeah you could google mediterranean recipes and get millions of hits. I usually pair the terms with "cheap" or "easy" or "weeknight."


Samuel

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #13 on: January 24, 2018, 09:58:56 AM »
I'm subconsciously perhaps 75% of the way to being on the Mediterranean diet. It pretty naturally aligns with my favorite flavors and ingredients.

I really should learn more and make it official.

katsiki

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #14 on: January 24, 2018, 10:27:59 AM »
We eat a lot like this already.  Trying to get healthy so will look into this more.

Great topic

wenchsenior

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #15 on: January 24, 2018, 11:18:31 AM »
I'm subconsciously perhaps 75% of the way to being on the Mediterranean diet. It pretty naturally aligns with my favorite flavors and ingredients.

I really should learn more and make it official.

We naturally eat this way most of the time as well, I eat this way probably 75% of the time, husband ~60-70% depending on whether he's under my influence.  We already don't eat much in the way of 'white carbs', sugar, dairy, or red meat and have primarily used olive oil for decades.  If I can just pump up our bean and fruit quotient, cut down a bit on eggs, and eat a few more fish/veg based dinners per week (I really have to get more into sardines/anchovies, etc), we'll essentially be there. 

We've never done this diet for weight loss...but adopted it ~15 years ago to keep my blood sugar stable and because it aligns well with our natural preferences.  But I actually struggle to maintain my weight at a healthy point, despite active efforts to gain weight.  I doubt the diet is the reason I tend to run underweight (my weight seems only partially affected by my caloric intake) but it probably doesn't help when I start to slip down the scale, because then I have to glop extra olive oil or nut oil on all my food, which is kind of unappetizing.  My husband has maintained a healthy weight into his mid 50s and would likely lose the 5 lbs or so he'd like to if he would just give up his carbs (he tends to eat crappier carbs for breakfast and also likes beer rather than wine with dinner).

SilveradoBojangles

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #16 on: January 24, 2018, 11:37:49 AM »
We mostly eat this way, and have had no problem maintaining healthy weights and cholesterol levels on it. We only eat meat once or twice a week, and tend to have fish a couple of times a week. Lots of veggies, whole grains, beans, and nuts, and a bit of dairy (plain greek yogurt, half and half in my coffee, occasional cheese). We eat very little added sugar, and I usually use olive oil as my main source of fat. We do eat tofu and soy proteins as well.

And it is really tasty! For example, last night i made a soba noodle salad (noodles made of buckwheat) with purple cabbage carrots, and komatsuna (a relative of bok choy), tofu, and a ginger-tahini dressing, and it was so crunchy and refreshing. Tonight it's fish tacos (corn tortillas, white fish, cabbage, pico de gallo), and tomorrow it's a farro salad with arugula, roasted butternut squash, and a mint-lemon-olive oil dressing. Friday is a splurge night, so pork chops, mash potatoes, and a green salad with beets, goat cheese, and walnuts. Also, it was my birthday recently so we've been sharing a slice of carrot cake in the evenings, and it is so good.

Just Joe

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #17 on: January 24, 2018, 12:15:27 PM »
@Just Joe , to be honest I went old school and bought a big fat magazine with tons of recipes. I like seeing the big colorful pictures, and I like having the recipes in a book instead of written on notecards. I despise needing to consult my phone each time for a recipe when I'm busy. Plus the pages are  big and easy to read, and I have old eyes. And it encourages the family members to flip through it and dog ear pages they want us to try.

But yeah you could google mediterranean recipes and get millions of hits. I usually pair the terms with "cheap" or "easy" or "weeknight."

Thank you Nick. I had sort of forgotten about magazines. ;)

boarder42

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #18 on: January 24, 2018, 12:24:16 PM »
We mostly eat this way, and have had no problem maintaining healthy weights and cholesterol levels on it. We only eat meat once or twice a week, and tend to have fish a couple of times a week. Lots of veggies, whole grains, beans, and nuts, and a bit of dairy (plain greek yogurt, half and half in my coffee, occasional cheese). We eat very little added sugar, and I usually use olive oil as my main source of fat. We do eat tofu and soy proteins as well.

And it is really tasty! For example, last night i made a soba noodle salad (noodles made of buckwheat) with purple cabbage carrots, and komatsuna (a relative of bok choy), tofu, and a ginger-tahini dressing, and it was so crunchy and refreshing. Tonight it's fish tacos (corn tortillas, white fish, cabbage, pico de gallo), and tomorrow it's a farro salad with arugula, roasted butternut squash, and a mint-lemon-olive oil dressing. Friday is a splurge night, so pork chops, mash potatoes, and a green salad with beets, goat cheese, and walnuts. Also, it was my birthday recently so we've been sharing a slice of carrot cake in the evenings, and it is so good.

fish is meat just an FYI

partgypsy

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #19 on: January 24, 2018, 01:00:04 PM »
We mostly eat this way, and have had no problem maintaining healthy weights and cholesterol levels on it. We only eat meat once or twice a week, and tend to have fish a couple of times a week. Lots of veggies, whole grains, beans, and nuts, and a bit of dairy (plain greek yogurt, half and half in my coffee, occasional cheese). We eat very little added sugar, and I usually use olive oil as my main source of fat. We do eat tofu and soy proteins as well.

And it is really tasty! For example, last night i made a soba noodle salad (noodles made of buckwheat) with purple cabbage carrots, and komatsuna (a relative of bok choy), tofu, and a ginger-tahini dressing, and it was so crunchy and refreshing. Tonight it's fish tacos (corn tortillas, white fish, cabbage, pico de gallo), and tomorrow it's a farro salad with arugula, roasted butternut squash, and a mint-lemon-olive oil dressing. Friday is a splurge night, so pork chops, mash potatoes, and a green salad with beets, goat cheese, and walnuts. Also, it was my birthday recently so we've been sharing a slice of carrot cake in the evenings, and it is so good.

fish is meat just an FYI

Depends on what definition you use. Even the dictionary definition states "flesh of animal especially that of a mammal"
Cuisines and religions distinguish beef/pork/lamb, from poultry, from fish. Also fish from other sea foods.   
« Last Edit: January 24, 2018, 01:02:52 PM by partgypsy »

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Re: Anyone eating a Mediterranean diet? (I'm loving it)
« Reply #20 on: January 24, 2018, 01:21:55 PM »
I live in Italy so should eat this diet but probably don't.  Most modern Italians don't eat the Meditteranean diet anymore.  They love junk food here, tons of store bought cookies and cakes, nutella, sodas, too much meat.  Italy has the highest childhood obesity rate in Europe.

That said, for the past year we've been eating a lot less meat that we used to and we've never been into soda and store bought crackers, chips etc.  So we end up cooking a lot of legumes in the pressure cooker which is very Mediterranean diet-ish.  Also tons of pasta with various sauces and big salads. Another healthy thing that we got from the Italian grandmas is lots of cooked greens during the winter (collard greens, beet greens, broccolini, chicory etc.) And I usually have a glass of red wine every night (and no more than that).

 

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