The answer? You would eat like a child, if the child had no parents forcing them to eat their vegetables. No limits. No restrictions. No vegetables and a whole lot of grease and sugar. Simply put, you would eat solely for pleasure. Basically, it would look like Peter Pan’s diet on Neverland island. That’s what I’m thinking.
Side note: how cool would it be to FLY!?! (which is THE ultimate superpower and if I’m ever on a game show and that’s a question you’re asked about me – “What is Lindsay’s favorite super power?” – the answer is flying. And eating lots of junk food with zero consequences.)
Anyway, here is what I would eat if I were Peter Pan, in no particular order (and I had to limit myself to only 8 because I ran out of time):
1. Breyer’s Oreo ice cream
2. Ghirardelli Brownies with Reese Chips mixed in
3. Cracklin’ Oat Bran with whole milk
4. California Pizza Kitchen’s BBQ Chicken Pizza
5. Mamaw Dot’s Coconut Cake with Google Gaggle
No picture. Just close your eyes and imagine a freshly baked slice of coconut cake slathered in a vanilla boiled custard. My mamaw makes it every year for our Christmas Eve dinner and it is HIGHLY coveted by anyone who tastes it. Mouth watering right now!
6. Sour Patch Watermelon candies
7. Anything from Outback Steakhouse
8. Reese’s Eggs
Honorable Mentions:
- Chicken Sandwich and Onion Rings from Burger King
- Wendy’s French Fries dipped in a Frosty
- Dunkaroos with Chocolate Frosting
- Banquet Chicken Pot Pie
———-
I’d love to be able to tell you that I’d be ok eating all of these foods all day long. That I’m secure enough with my body to gorge on junk food. But that’d be wrong on multiple levels. First, and most importantly, I really actually like the way I FEEL when I eat healthy foods. My energy levels, my digestion, my skin, the way that healthy foods fuel my workouts. All of those reasons are enough for me to continue eating a 80/20 diet plan.
But…. I don’t think any food should be off limits. I eat all of those foods I listed out and will continue to do so when I’m old and gray. I think there’s a (small) place for these types of foods in a healthy lifestyle – file these under “Foods That Nourish My Inner Fat Kid.”
QUESTION: Let your inner fat kid out. What would you eat if calories and nutrition didn’t matter??
splendid…lindsay
Who invented fries-in-a-frosty? that bring back memories …. I might live on Honey Bunches of Oats if I didn’t need a more balanced diet. Maybe if I added a sliced banana it would come pretty close?
Cracklin Oat Bran I LOVE THEE
I love this! Cracklin Oat Bran is too funny, my grandparents always have that in their house as treats for their dog. When I would visit when I was younger I would sit in the floor and eat the entire box with their dog. Thanks for bringing up such a fun memory. I would eat a lot more Blue Bell pistachio ice cream and homemade cookies! I would probably keep a lot of my eats the same though, I have finally found what foods get along with my stomach and want to keep it happy.
This is really funny! I would totally go to town on ice cream :) Probably stock up on every flavor of Ben & Jerry’s
OMG. I heart you. I would eat a big honkin’ bowl of Cracklin’ Oat Bran for breakfast every freaking day!
LOVE cracklin oat bran! I only ever have it at my dads. I would eat that and gooey underdone brownies and probably some cheesecake too. All dessert foods, grease and salt don’t do it for me like sweets! Maybe we should declare one day eat whatever you want day. One day won’t kill anyone!
Homemade peanut butter eggs. The peanut butter to chocolate ratio is out of this world. Oh and sometimes they have coconut too. Life can’t get better.
you had my heart at wendy’s frosty! yummmmm and anything that combines chocolate and peanut butter
LOL! I was not reading, just looking at pictures, and I had to go back! I thought She did not eat ALL THAT in the same day! Cute post! I love cupcakes, chocolate, chewy sour things… not so much on greasy foods. Cheetos and PIZZA… I could go on. Have a great day!
Haha, I love this tribute to our “inner fat kid” – thanks for this post!
I’d go to town on cake (preferably German chocolate cake, carrot cake, or any yellow vanilla-esque cake with lots of vanilla frosting – shout out to frosting flowers/roses!), ice cream with that cake, maybe some hot fudge brownie sundaes, cheeseburgers & fries, Cooler Ranch Doritos, and supreme pizza (pan crust all the way)!
Alas, if only my body’s surface area wouldn’t increase 10-fold and my stomach & brain wouldn’t completely shut down after consuming all these gems, haha.
And, definitely flying is the best super power out there!
i wish i could “like” this comment because you listed off literally ALL my favorite things!
Thank you! You have good taste – I consider this to be a very fine-tuned list :P
I second the Reese’s egg! And chocolate chip cookie dough, Justin’s chocolate hazelnut butter mixed with coconut butter (melted), brownie corners right out of the oven, Wendy’s spicy chicken sandwiches (I also wouldn’t have any food intolerance, right?), chocolate malts, and french fries. I have always wished that we could pick a couple of foods that would be consequence-free…like a special little treat from God. Maybe in heaven? ;)
Cake ’till I die.
Oh goodness! This post made me have some cravings haha! I have to add that the foods also wouldn’t make me feel like total crapola from eating them. One would definitely be chocolate chip cookies..and the cookie dough of course! Also, mike and ike’s! They are my all-time favorite candy!!
Are we the same person? Brownies aren’t brownies without Reese’s chips mixed in. [Unless they happen to be topped with Paula Deen’s Caramel Pecan topping of course.] And Sour Watermelons were my lifesaver when I was teaching swimming in the summers and needed a quick jolt of sugar in between classes. (Not the healthiest jolt, but delicious nonetheless.) And let’s not even begin on the french fries and Frosties…
Peanut Butter M&Ms. In the freezer. YUM!
Or really just any ice cream at all. A big bowl of one scoop from every container in the freezer at Kroger. Wow. My stomach would HATE me. (Although Lactaid would watch their stock rise.)
This is a fun post!
To be honest though, I eat what I want when I want it! This means I tend to eat stuff that makes me feel good–lots of veggies, protein, etc. But ALSO I eat treats every day–chips, fro yo, chocolate. This works for me! But the treats tend to usually be in small amounts. Because I eat this way, I never feel deprived or like I NEED any treats or even in large amounts.
HOWEVER, if I ate whatever & I didn’t feel like crap later on, then I would probably eat more ice cream, lots more salt & vinegar chips (I LOVE those) oh & Lime tortilla chips. More mini cadbury eggs. A lot more pizza-both the ‘healthier’ kind & a bit of the super cheesy kinds. TONS of sweet potato fries (the ‘real’ kinds from restaurants). Lots more turkey burgers & really loaded salads from restaurants (those with lots of chicken, fruits, veggies, nuts, and yogurt type dressings but in large amounts. Mmmmm!) And lots of super salty soups. YES! Oh and of course, tons more Swiss chocolate than I already eat. HAH :)
p.s. love the cracklin oat bran. That stuff is like crack I think!
LOVE this Lindsay and yes flying would be my super power too! As far as foods go I would pig out on: Chipotle Burrito with all the toppings; Dairy Queen Blizzard with chocolate ice cream and Reese’s peanut butter cups; CAKE (any kind as long as it has LOTS of frosting); pizza with anything or everything on it; and of course a big juicy burger with lots of unhealthy toppings and a side of fries please. Done and DONE! XOXO
I totally agree, it’s more about how I’d feel if I actually ate like that on a regular basis. My guess? I’d have no energy to do anything and would sit around like a bump on a log the whole day. No matter how delicious the food is, no one wants to feel like that all the time! 80/20 for sure.
Oh man. Grilled cheeses, onion rings, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms, CPK Thai Chicken Pizza, Kit Kats, and Cold Stone. And Doritos. I’m waving my Inner Fat Kid flag loud and proud!
I’m with ya on that Oreo ice cream – huge weakness! Fun idea :)
I demand the recipe to Mamaw’s cake!! OMG!!
oh man! i’ll have to ask for it – i don’t know if she’ll let it out of her sight! ;)
I would like a Reese’s Egg please!!! Oh my, inner fat girl… COMING OUT!!
Breakfast: Krispy Kreme Donuts & Cinnamon Rolls & Apple Cinnamon Pop Tarts! Maybe some pancakes? LMFAO!!!!!!!!!
Lunch: Macaroni & Cheese & White Fluffy French Bread
Dinner: Lets just hit up a bakery! LOL!!!
Man, I haven’t eaten wheat, dairy, gluten, sugar & nuts in 10 years!!! My fat girl hates her life!
I love this post :) I would probably eat pizza and nestle tollhouse chocolate chip cookies and beer-battered french fries. Can’t get enough of those things when I’m tempted!
I really don’t crave junk food anymore. I know it seems weird, but since I was so sick with the foods I was eating and realized I can’t have soy, wheat or dairy, the way I eat now actually makes me feel so good that my real cravings are things that make me feel good. Kabocha squash is a real weakness now! The only time I really longingly think about certain foods is when it reminds me of a time that’s gone by like my grandmothers german chocolate cake, frosties with french fries and cookie dough blizzards. Those were the days…
I still think I would eat quite similarly to what I do as I love all my healthy eats and veggies – genuinely I love the taste of them; but there would also be a lot more of ice cream + chocolate! They’re my weaknesses.
I have to disagree with you said about not eating veggies. I LOVE vegetables and would still eat a ton of them if calories didn’t matter! I pretty much eat what I want- and honestly don’t crave greasy food because it makes my stomach feel like crap.
BUT. If I could eat anything just based on taste (and if it didn’t give me a stomachache after), I’d eat a WHOLE LOT of cereal- Golden Grahams, Multigrain Cheerios, Peanut Butter Puffins and LIFE. With lots of milk.
And then, a lot of really good pizza topped with VEGGIES, fresh, handmade mozarella and lots of sauce. And there would be lots of bread dipped in olive oil too.
I’d also eat Breyer’s vanilla ice cream topped with peanuts and chocolate sauce.
Oh, and beer. Lots of really good craft beer. :)
Watermelon sour patch kids, Reese’s eggs, and a Wendy’s frosty with French fries would definitely be high on my list. I would also probably add in Ben and Jerry’s cinnamon buns ice cream, a humongous Caesar salad with garlic bread, and grilled cheese. Yum. This post is such a great idea!
Breakfast:
My favorite cake donut with strawberry frosting, ok probably 2 of them plus a chocolate milk
Snack:
Panera cinnamon crunch bagel with cream cheese
Lunch:
A big burger and fries with tons of ketchup OR a huge burrito smothered in enchilada sauce and cheese OR a huge plate of nachos all to myself
Snack:
Chips, brownies, cookies
Dinner:
Lasagna with garlic bread
Dessert:
Cheesecake, chocolate chip cookies, and ice cream
Wow this exercise actually makes me feel good that I only choose a few of those items a week/month to indulge in!
Yum to all of the above, can I please sit down & share all of those with you?? I second the Reese’s egg & the Ghiradelli brownies. Add to my “IFK” (inner-fat-kid), anything with cream cheese icing, massive quantities or cheese & crusty french bread & french fries :)
… why don’t we just eat these things? It makes me sad when I see posts like this. I get the sentiment, but I’m tired of everybody glorifying grease, fat, and junk. Just allow yourself to eat whatever you want, whenever you want, and you will probably find that some of this stuff is kind of gross and makes you feel sick when you eat it*, so you don’t crave it like you did when it was forbidden. I think you can eat for pleasure and not have it all be sugar, grease, and junk. That wouldn’t be pleasurable because I’d be sick alllllll the time.
*I spent the month of January trying all these foods that were off limits (including a can of frosting). 1) I didn’t gain weight … I lost it (if I had a candy bar and was full, I didn’t eat “real / clean” food for a meal in addition, like I normally would), 2) I realized a lot of the stuff that I’d forbade years ago was actually quite gross (donuts? some are good, but the day old ones in the office aren’t … also, cheeseburgers, oreos, potato chips … not as good as I had made them out to be.) When oreos were off-limits, I’d binge on them if I allowed myself to have one. But now that everything’s fair game, I might eat an oreo, but I probably won’t.
Although, M&Ms are still frickin’ awesome.
(side note, Lindz, that wasn’t directed at you — it’s a societal note. I’m just tired of everybody putting junk on a pedestal, when we could all enjoy junk whenever we wanted if it wasn’t glorified like we make it … just think of the French! but don’t even get me started about what’s wrong with our food system with the use of corn and sugar and addictive substances in everything … and the fact that fresh produce is hard for low income families).
Okay, seriously, I hope you’re laughing a little when you get done reading this comment … because I am a bit ridiculous (but you know that already).
Oh, but to answer your question … if I was to only eat “play foods” for a day (and magically not feel like I’m going to die after), I’d eat:
Breakfast:
Eggo French Toast waffles + apple cinnamon brummel and brown
maybe a s’mores pop tart
Hot chocolate with marshmallows
Lucky charms (hold the cereal part)\
Snacks:
CHEETOHS … lots of them. In fact, this could make up my entire list.
Lunch:
Velveeta macaroni and cheese
French fries (waffle cut / crinkle cut) with LOTS of ketchup
Chicken strips
Mozzarella sticks or cheese balls
Dinner:
Lou Malnati’s Pizza (a Lou’s) OR a giant pork tenderloin with onion, lettuce, tomato, and lots of mustard
Oh, and crack brownies need to go in there somewhere (google those, and try not to die of sugar shock).
Wait. I forgot to mention that giant reeses loaf, er reeses egg.
Haha I LOVE this. I dont even know what it would be….probably just a gallon of ice cream covered in chocolate and cool whip. MMMMMMMM.
And I would have french fries if I could not only say that the calories wouldn’t matter, but it also wouldn’t upset my stomach. This girl cannot handle fried foods!
me either. fried foods hurt me. bah!
Um, we seriously have the same tastebuds. I’d involve all of these in my list too! Aaand now I’m wanting ice cream, Reese’s Eggs, french fries, and brownies at 8 AM. ;)
Love the Tres Leches and Chili’s Molten Chocolate cake!
Oh my gosh-I could have way too much fun with this. Let’s see-Ice cream every single day, chicken fried steak, donuts, cinnamon rolls, quesadillas, Chinese food, LASAGNA…..I mean really the list could go on for days.
I totally agree with you! I love how my body feels when eating healthy, and as much as I love to give into my cravings, I hate feeling lethargic when I am done! However, if I could eat whatever and still feel healthy, it would be a huge Ghiradelli brownie fresh out of the oven and served a la mode, and a feel dish pizza from Giardano’s or Gino’s with extra cheese!
My mouth is literally salivating haha.
Stopping over form WIAW and I love this idea – how funny. I would consume huge quantities of ice cream, candy, cookies, brownies, and sugar-filled cereal!
Sarah
anythingbetween
I LOVE Cracklin Oat Bran!!
Oh man! Reese’s eggs are my FAVORITE! And we all know I love a little cracklin oat bran on my yogurt from time to time. :)
haha!! I would probably eat some of what I do already because I feel that nut butter is an actual food group and for some reason hummus has become a second addiction…but after that I’d be pizza and cake with lots of frosting!
Cadbury Mini Eggs, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, pizza.
Haha, I love this post!
OMG – I LOVE this idea! I would eat Dunkaroos, for sure! Ben & Jerry’s Late Night Snack, giat bowls of homemade pasta, pizza, chocolate cake, red wine, REESES eggs, Tagalongs, fresh-baked oatmeal chocolate chip cookies… not that I have a sweet tooth or anything… LOL!
honestly Id eat the same stuffs.
CALORIES SCHMALORIES—Id feel like cr*p and be so lethargic I couldnt live my life the way I long to.
“let the inner fat kid out” LOL!!! i would totally eat birthday cake ice cream every meal of the day….
Wendy’s fries in a frosty!!! I had forgotten about that!! Although, I used to order McDonald’s french fries and HAD to dip them in honey. It’s the best.
On my list might be as many home-baked, fresh out of the oven, chocolate chip cookies as I felt like . . . including snagging lots of dough prior to cooking. :)