This Instagram Nutrition Blogger Is Busting Myths About Healthy and Unhealthy Foods

Lucy Mountains side-by-side comparisons have earned her thousands of followers

lucy mountain nutrition

Calories aren't the end-all measurement of a food's impact on your health. That doesn't mean you can go to McDonald's and devour a triple cheeseburger guilt-free, but it does mean there are surprising similarities in the number of calories contained in foods of vastly different nutritional values. One nutrition blogger, Lucy Mountain, has created an Instagram account devoted to pointing out these overlaps, and her page has gained over 89,000 followers as a result.

Mountain's goal with the account, per Business Insider, is to redefine what constitutes a "healthy" or "unhealthy" snack. For example, she points out in one post how a handful of almonds contains the same amount of calories as a handful of sugary candy.


"Although I’m fully aware that a handful of almonds contains lots of wonderful nutrients that would keep me fuller for longer, some days (no matter whether I’m looking to gain, maintain or lose weight) I’ll choose to eat sweets or a chocolate bar as a snack," she writes in the caption. "Why? Because when the majority of my diet has consisted of well-balanced food that’s full of micronutrients, I have no issue eating something that's less so just because I love the taste of it."

Certainly, there's nothing wrong with having the occasional "unhealthy" snack, so long as you avoid eating it in excess, and your diet is balanced out with everyday foods like vegetables, fruit, lean protein, fish, and whole grains. Moderation is key, and it comes from diligently monitoring your intake of those occasional guilty pleasures.

The 12-Minute Kettlebell Calorie Burner:

But even when you're eating what you feel is a healthy meal, calories can still arrive from unexpected sources. Here's one comparison from Mountain that may surprise you.


The two plates look exactly the same, don't they? That's because they nearly are.

"The only differences are the percentage of fat in the meat and the oil used to cook it," says Mountain. And yet, it accounts for almost 200 extra calories. (Need help understanding the ins and outs of cooking oil? Here are some essential tips to upgrade your diet.)

So, while Mountain's advice shouldn't necessarily be taken as a recommendation for you to sneak in an extra snack, it can help you think more critically about your caloric consumption and its sources. And once you're ready to chow down, outfit your home with these 20 items that will turn your kitchen into a muscle factory.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
More From Nutrition