One thing I that Covert Bailey says that I like: "There are no good foods or bad foods." It's all in how you use them. You *need* fat and carbs to survive.

One theory you could look into is the glycemic index: http://www.glycemicindex.com/

The idea is that you want to eat carbs that will not spike your blood sugar level. I think. It's been a while since I read about it.

As for "good" carbs vs. "bad carbs," the question is, do you want instant energy, or do you want long-term nutrition? If you're starting to feel the shakes on a long ride, sugar is the fastest way to get some energy back into your body. On the other hand, when you're sitting at your desk all day, you probably want to go for complex carbs that take longer to digest and don't spike your blood sugar.

Good fat vs. bad fat -- there are different theories. Again, you need fat to survive. The RDA for fat is around 50g a day, but you can survive on a lot less than that. I personally shoot for 40g; really aggressive diets might go for 30g. I personally don't watch calories at all; that may or may not be a good thing.

You do need certain amounts of fat, and the omega fatty acids in salmon, for example, have extra health benefits. But that doesn't mean you need a ton of fat. And I'm pretty sure that almost everyone thinks that unsaturated fats are better for you than saturated -- but that doesn't mean that you should be loading up on unsaturated, either!

Have you tried eating many small meals rather than two or three big ones? Some people say that this boosts your metabolism. I don't know about that, but I am less cranky eating little things constantly than I am having three meals. Also, if you eat small meals all the time, your stomach will get used to small meals, and even when you pig out, you'll get full faster.