There will always be haters unfortunately and perhaps the Journo was triggered and that's why they wrote about it being triggering. I've not used Alfred but I've read about it and it definitely promotes improving eating habits as opposed to the many diets out there which cut out food groups, label foods as good and bad and just outright shame people for eating.
One of the biggest contributors to mental health when it comes to dieting is shame and the labelling of foods as good and bad. To quote my sister who is a dietician "there is no good and bad food, there is every day food and sometimes food".
Often it's not even what we eat, it's how much we are eating. Common comments when people are on diets is they can't believe how much they're eating (because you bulk your meals up with salad and veggies).
Coming from the sport of weightlifting, it's not healthy and athletes go to pretty drastic measure to cut weight for competition. Body builders don't compete super regularly during the year either because that requires them to go on very strict boring diets for at least 3 months prior which is not sustainable.
"there is no good and bad food, there is every day food and sometimes food" - this is exactly what we teach our girls and "weight cutting" is a stain on global sport.
absolutely! I'm excited about not having to weigh myself for a while! When I started competing I never did, but then found myself flirting with the maximum limit so I had to, then I sat over weight so had to weigh myself further out from competition to ensure I'd make it. Cutting out foods or knowing you "can't" eat certain foods is terrible for psychological health. As soon as you are know you can't have it, you want to eat it, which I believe leads to binging, so it's best to moderate the treats than to ban yourself from eating them. The only usefulness of the diet programs that eliminate everything is to determine whether you're eating or drinking it because you want it or because you've built the habit. EG: drinking a coffee every morning, do I want the coffee or am I having it because when I wake up, I get dressed and go and make a coffee. But mindful eating can achieve the same result. Understanding that, I could eat that chocolate, vs, if I eat the fruit and yoghurt I'll be full for longer vs, I need energy so I'm going to have the fruit, yoghurt and the chocolate haha.
I can never stick to diet plans and whatever happened to everything in moderation?! But I totally get figuring what moderation looks like is bloody hard, and for me it required keep a food diary (which also makes me mindful of what I'm eating) and is something I've been doing for 8 years now and highly recommend doing even for one month even if its just using pen and pad and not tracking calories. The education I got from doing it helped me play my best and was why I was able to plan for a long as did.
I've never done a diet plan, except when cutting for competition :). I eat what I want, but my sport helps me make better choices. Like I could have the waffles for breakfast but the eggs on toast will fuel my body better.
I like the concept of Alfred because it promotes mindful eating and is the best concept on the market to date (and people such as yourself, Sam and Brent are living proof) it's not a fad, mindful eating is sustainable. Diets are shame and guilt inducing. (I got a Distinction on the uni assignment I used Alfred for, but no feedback so not sure what I needed to do to get a HD)
I am really sorry to hear of the journalist getting so angry - totally inappropriate, a journalist is meant to question and challenge objectively. If they are so emotionally involved in the subject they should not be reporting on it. I am disappointed that a journalist would jump to conclusions through their own lens rather than actually seek to understand, not very professional I am sorry to say.
You have gone to great lengths to make Alfred about healthy eating. I am one of those Alfred users who use Alfred to make sure I eat enough and get enough protein. I totally understand the limitations you are putting around Alfred users to ensure that it is used wisely and that the goals of Alfred are not misunderstood. Even the fact that you have to work so hard to do that makes me sad as we should all be adults able to make our own decisions about how we manage our health and, as someone said below, just scroll on by if something does not appeal to us.
Keep the faith Ben, I feel there are more people supporting you and can be helped by what you are doing than the naysayers.
No need to be sorry Anne-Marie as this type of commentary is inevitable because Alfred's position on calories is slightly nuanced. Therefore people will jump to conclusions about it based on their experiences of the past which says more about them then me. Catch up soon!
I don’t like the ocean, it’s salty, sandy and full of sharks. To me, it’s a gross, uncomfortable death trap. Some people love the ocean. For them it’s a place of peace, solitude and relaxation. Good for them.
If I bagged everyone on Twitter who posted pictures of themselves at the beach, I’d never get anything done, and I’d be exposing my insecurities to the world.
It’s much easier for me to quietly go about my day, let people do what works for them and just kinda... not go into the ocean...
You make some really good points - including acknowledging that nutrition is not just all about calories - but tbh it’s something I personally think is still important to know, regardless of how you’re using them. It’s one piece of the puzzle, but at least knowing how calorie dense some foods might be, for example, is a good start for some who have no experience with tracking what they’re putting into their bodies. I am a typical binge eater and definitely indulge a little too often in the ‘sometimes food’ category, but being aware of that is at least part of the journey to eating more mindfully. Like has been mentioned, haters gonna hate - but keep doing what you’re doing and don’t worry about defending yourself against that sort of criticism. Your work and words are helping people and that bloody counts!
Thanks Mim and the more I think about it, understanding calories is the best STARTING point for someone who wants to understand nutrition more and make some small sustainable changes.
Take no notice. You do not need to defend yourself. There will always be people who disagree with you, especially with nutrition - a complex topic that noone has the answer to.
A bit of context - there is new research article floating around linking monitoring of food to disordered eating - the article has mobilised a lot of keyboard warriors in the last few weeks. CORRELATION DOES NOT EQUAL CAUSATION - monitoring food intake does not cause disordered eating, it's just a behaviour that is common among people with disordered eating. It is an interesting bit of research, but it is being interpreted poorly by everyone
Cheers Norrie and I agree. Correlation does not equal causation and there's a group of people out there who are trying to discredit calories simply because they've had a bad experience with them in the past and want to deny the facts. What do you reckon?
All excellent points Ben - clarifies your goals and reasoning behind Alfred. Besides - it's a huge year for Rugby - who wouldn't want to write more about that?
Echoing the sentiment of others... there will always be people who are triggered by certain things, and I'm sure paying attention to calories is very helpful for others and some people feel "attacked" when told to limit calories.
You have good intent and a positive purpose for what you're doing, so stay the course!
I do find it interesting that the journalist was angry - surely it should be about capturing the information and presenting it for the reader, rather than becoming so emotionally invested?
And yes I'd like to read more rugby stuff too - I'm quite excited about the possibilities for this year and beyond!
There will always be haters unfortunately and perhaps the Journo was triggered and that's why they wrote about it being triggering. I've not used Alfred but I've read about it and it definitely promotes improving eating habits as opposed to the many diets out there which cut out food groups, label foods as good and bad and just outright shame people for eating.
One of the biggest contributors to mental health when it comes to dieting is shame and the labelling of foods as good and bad. To quote my sister who is a dietician "there is no good and bad food, there is every day food and sometimes food".
Often it's not even what we eat, it's how much we are eating. Common comments when people are on diets is they can't believe how much they're eating (because you bulk your meals up with salad and veggies).
Coming from the sport of weightlifting, it's not healthy and athletes go to pretty drastic measure to cut weight for competition. Body builders don't compete super regularly during the year either because that requires them to go on very strict boring diets for at least 3 months prior which is not sustainable.
"there is no good and bad food, there is every day food and sometimes food" - this is exactly what we teach our girls and "weight cutting" is a stain on global sport.
absolutely! I'm excited about not having to weigh myself for a while! When I started competing I never did, but then found myself flirting with the maximum limit so I had to, then I sat over weight so had to weigh myself further out from competition to ensure I'd make it. Cutting out foods or knowing you "can't" eat certain foods is terrible for psychological health. As soon as you are know you can't have it, you want to eat it, which I believe leads to binging, so it's best to moderate the treats than to ban yourself from eating them. The only usefulness of the diet programs that eliminate everything is to determine whether you're eating or drinking it because you want it or because you've built the habit. EG: drinking a coffee every morning, do I want the coffee or am I having it because when I wake up, I get dressed and go and make a coffee. But mindful eating can achieve the same result. Understanding that, I could eat that chocolate, vs, if I eat the fruit and yoghurt I'll be full for longer vs, I need energy so I'm going to have the fruit, yoghurt and the chocolate haha.
I can never stick to diet plans and whatever happened to everything in moderation?! But I totally get figuring what moderation looks like is bloody hard, and for me it required keep a food diary (which also makes me mindful of what I'm eating) and is something I've been doing for 8 years now and highly recommend doing even for one month even if its just using pen and pad and not tracking calories. The education I got from doing it helped me play my best and was why I was able to plan for a long as did.
I've never done a diet plan, except when cutting for competition :). I eat what I want, but my sport helps me make better choices. Like I could have the waffles for breakfast but the eggs on toast will fuel my body better.
I like the concept of Alfred because it promotes mindful eating and is the best concept on the market to date (and people such as yourself, Sam and Brent are living proof) it's not a fad, mindful eating is sustainable. Diets are shame and guilt inducing. (I got a Distinction on the uni assignment I used Alfred for, but no feedback so not sure what I needed to do to get a HD)
Couldn't agree more re diets and sorry we couldn't help you get an HD!
hahah thanks Ben, I highly doubt Alfred is responsible for my grade, probably more the execution of the assessment haha. I'm still happy with a D
I am really sorry to hear of the journalist getting so angry - totally inappropriate, a journalist is meant to question and challenge objectively. If they are so emotionally involved in the subject they should not be reporting on it. I am disappointed that a journalist would jump to conclusions through their own lens rather than actually seek to understand, not very professional I am sorry to say.
You have gone to great lengths to make Alfred about healthy eating. I am one of those Alfred users who use Alfred to make sure I eat enough and get enough protein. I totally understand the limitations you are putting around Alfred users to ensure that it is used wisely and that the goals of Alfred are not misunderstood. Even the fact that you have to work so hard to do that makes me sad as we should all be adults able to make our own decisions about how we manage our health and, as someone said below, just scroll on by if something does not appeal to us.
Keep the faith Ben, I feel there are more people supporting you and can be helped by what you are doing than the naysayers.
No need to be sorry Anne-Marie as this type of commentary is inevitable because Alfred's position on calories is slightly nuanced. Therefore people will jump to conclusions about it based on their experiences of the past which says more about them then me. Catch up soon!
I don’t like the ocean, it’s salty, sandy and full of sharks. To me, it’s a gross, uncomfortable death trap. Some people love the ocean. For them it’s a place of peace, solitude and relaxation. Good for them.
If I bagged everyone on Twitter who posted pictures of themselves at the beach, I’d never get anything done, and I’d be exposing my insecurities to the world.
It’s much easier for me to quietly go about my day, let people do what works for them and just kinda... not go into the ocean...
100%
Love ya mate, Alfred is a gamechanger for me and a lot of people. Once more people realise that it's going to the moon!
Love ya too mate!
You make some really good points - including acknowledging that nutrition is not just all about calories - but tbh it’s something I personally think is still important to know, regardless of how you’re using them. It’s one piece of the puzzle, but at least knowing how calorie dense some foods might be, for example, is a good start for some who have no experience with tracking what they’re putting into their bodies. I am a typical binge eater and definitely indulge a little too often in the ‘sometimes food’ category, but being aware of that is at least part of the journey to eating more mindfully. Like has been mentioned, haters gonna hate - but keep doing what you’re doing and don’t worry about defending yourself against that sort of criticism. Your work and words are helping people and that bloody counts!
Thanks Mim and the more I think about it, understanding calories is the best STARTING point for someone who wants to understand nutrition more and make some small sustainable changes.
Keep up the great work Ben.
Take no notice. You do not need to defend yourself. There will always be people who disagree with you, especially with nutrition - a complex topic that noone has the answer to.
A bit of context - there is new research article floating around linking monitoring of food to disordered eating - the article has mobilised a lot of keyboard warriors in the last few weeks. CORRELATION DOES NOT EQUAL CAUSATION - monitoring food intake does not cause disordered eating, it's just a behaviour that is common among people with disordered eating. It is an interesting bit of research, but it is being interpreted poorly by everyone
Cheers Norrie and I agree. Correlation does not equal causation and there's a group of people out there who are trying to discredit calories simply because they've had a bad experience with them in the past and want to deny the facts. What do you reckon?
All excellent points Ben - clarifies your goals and reasoning behind Alfred. Besides - it's a huge year for Rugby - who wouldn't want to write more about that?
Huge year indeed! CMON WALLABIES!!!
Echoing the sentiment of others... there will always be people who are triggered by certain things, and I'm sure paying attention to calories is very helpful for others and some people feel "attacked" when told to limit calories.
You have good intent and a positive purpose for what you're doing, so stay the course!
I do find it interesting that the journalist was angry - surely it should be about capturing the information and presenting it for the reader, rather than becoming so emotionally invested?
And yes I'd like to read more rugby stuff too - I'm quite excited about the possibilities for this year and beyond!