Carelton, if you have not done so, you should definitely pick up "The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted and the Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss and Long-Term Health" by the Campbells. I have yet to finish the entire book, but it is a very shocking informative read.

Currently Reading: papers on commodity futures trading

I'll look to get it.

Did they mention The China Study in the documentary "Forks over Knives"?

It's not just the sugar in cereal. Check the salt content too, it's pretty amazing. Also, the serving size is usually 1-1.25 cups, which is hardly anything.

Thank god I don't eat cereal. I drink soda from time to time though.

As with carleton, it took me a while to understand what the hell I was eating, but I started reading the forums on bodybuilding.com and for a while (when I REALLY cared) I cut my bf% in half.

As for what I'm reading. R.A. Salvatore's Neverwinter book 2. I'm a Forgotten Realms junkie. So sue me.

I do well with a 1/4 cup of granola with some greek yogurt and an apple. Then followed by a cup of coffee or tea with no cream or sugar in it.

This, minus the coffee. Greek yogurt is awesome. I sometimes put some honey in mine.

Man, all of my adult life until about 6 months ago, I ate more cereal than anything. Seriously. I'd have 4-5 boxes on top of my fridge on any given day. I ate it when I didn't feel like cooking...which was pretty much always. I had a bowl of cereal at least once a day for years. I didn't use little bowls either.

I AM ACTUALLY SURPRISED THAT I AM NOT AS BIG AS A HOUSE.

I used to fool myself by buying organic cookies. Pfffft. My body didn't care. Treated them like any other cookie.

I haven't bought a bag of cookies or a box of cereal in about 6 months or more.

I do a half cup of granola, a cup of fat free milk, one hard boiled egg, and water as my beverage. i think I should add one piece of wheat toast.

Plus the pro biotics in greek yogurt helps prevent catching bronchitis or pneumonia from extended rides out in the cold.

For real, man. What sucks is that now I know I should cut out all of the bull**** but sometimes it's hard to cut out things cold turkey. Might break down and binge eat. Luckily soda and alcohol is almost gone from my life, and I'm introducing a lot more healthy options now that I really want to be in shape to ride at the velodrome.

I think Kimchi has the some pro biotics that is in yogurt to do the same thing. Thank god I grew up with kimchi in the household! lol

Greek yogurt is awesome, but calorie dense. My wife eats the strawberry/honey variant and, if my memory at work serves me correctly, it was somewhere near 450 calories per 1/2 cup.

I do plain with a bit of honey.

My current weakness: Kartofflsalat, vegetarian veggie soup and the banana pudding at Jason's Deli. It's cheap, fills me up and, while I know it's not amazingly healthy, a good choice when I'm on the go. My staple diet if all else fails: Hold yo' breathe - bean and cheese burrito, fresco still, grilled from Taco Bell. It's sadly 100 times healthier than most people think and tastes pretty good with hot sauce. Also, I've been able to master eating one while out on 30+ milers knowing that I can always trust to find a Taco Bell.

Fresco is the only option if eating at Taco Bell. I work at Carls Jr. and ony my lunch brake(<-- really? too much time on bfssfg), I make a low carb (replace bun with lettuce) bbq chicken and jalepeno sandwich lol.

But even then, it's not hard to eat healthier (not healthiest). Just make sure you don't intake too many calories, and eat food that have a lot of protein, eat a little less carbs, and way less fat. There are so many good ass alternatives compared to KFC double downs, pizza, cereal, in and out burger, lasagna, and mac n cheese. (<-- I used to live off of mnc)

Things that I eat a lot of:

low fat milk, eggs, salmon and tuna, rice, vegetables, cottage cheese, bread, nuts & seeds, greek yogurt (sometimes), whey and casein protein shakes, fruits, etc..

I'll tell you, man, cutting high doses of sugar out of my diet was harder than cutting booze. Seriously.

It takes about 10-14 days to get over the hump. Here are some tips for others trying the same:
1) Give away or throw away all of the bad food in your home. Go grocery shopping and only buy the stuff that you intend to eat, because if it's in your house, you'll eat it.
2) Beware of hidden sugars like ketchup and white bread.
3) Log your food. It's REALLY easy now with apps like MyFitnessPal (android, iphone, and web). This will show you how bad stuff really is. My croissant from the coffee shop every morning may as well have been fudge.
4) Understand that you WILL have strong cravings and you may feel lethargic at times. Deal with it. And if you ever give in, don't binge...just have a little.
5) After the 2 weeks, your taste buds will be more sensitive to mildly sweet things. Grape Nuts used to taste like rocks to me. Now it tastes pretty good, even without sugar.
6) Understand that Carbohydrates = Sugar. Your body will do the conversion for you.

So... I'm interested now. What are some things that I shouldn't be eating, no matter what? (specific foods) And what should I start eating more of every day?

Hell yeah! I remember seeing a list similar to that on bodybuilding.com.

1) Log your food. Maybe log what you ate today or what a typical meal for you might be. Right there you'll see what's going on.
2) Generally, most people eat too many simple carbohydrates.
3) Eat more protein. Eat more complex carbohydrates. Fat isn't as bad as carbs are. (This is controversial, I know. But, it stands to reason based on what I've read and experienced.)
4) You don't have to go all Atkins or Keto. Just be aware of how much sugar and carbs in general you are consuming.

Ditch the milk, bread and limit the rice and you're kicking ass.

I find it easier to try and introduce healthier foods and actually eat it than to never eat typically labeled unhealthy food.

things that you cut out, no matter what: fried potatoes (french fries), mostly everything fried, fast foods, cookies, candy, soda.

also add potatoes/sweet potatoes to my food list that i eat.

I think Carleton should give us a Eat Like a Roadie and Profit Thread, thread:p

I drink milk for calcium and I already limit the amount of bread and rice I eat. It helps me get through my day especially when I'm weight training!

Thanks for the motivation and advice though!

No problem on the advise and motivation. I found that milk had some odd side-effects on me. I broke out heavily whenever I drank it regularly. Cheese, on the other hand, kicks my butt. I swear that I know better than to eat it and yet, every time I get a chance at some nice foreign-grade cheese - I suffer the consequences.

Tortillas down here are the killer. These aren't your garden-variety grocery store brand - oh hell no. Down here yo buy them raw and fry them yourselves. The problem is, they're deadly. So we've eliminated them from our diet and try to only use spinach-grain tortillas for sandwiches and stuff. I use 'health nut' bread for my veggie burgers along with a super cheddar that's so bold it knocks your socks off. Add in butter lettuce, 2 slices of fresh tomato; jalapenos and habanjero mustard and you got an amazing burger - that's burgerfree.

+1 on cutting down on sugar. best thing i ever did. although now if i lapse and have a brownie/donut at work i feel like crap the rest of the day. "sweet" to me means having an apple or mango.

i'm big on Northern Italian cooking. one course w/ meat, then a dish with two to four -fresh- veggie ingredients, maybe w/ pasta (make your own if you have the time), a good olive oil and some shavings of quality cheese. about a fist-sized serving per course.

I love rice so much. Much more than bread, and that says a lot :( FWIW the last year and a half I have pretty much been buying only veggies and rice to cook for myself. Unfortunately, since moving my routine has been thrown out and I find it harder to make food so I have been buying a lot of spaghetti. I would replace rice with quinoa but I cant get it in large enough quantities to be practicaln

My diet is so bad now. I eat as much as I want, when I want. I gained 5 lbs since this semester started.

Or maybe my legs gained 5 lbs of muscle. Who knows. :)

#college