Who has lost weight NOT eating clean?

PepperWorm

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there is so much wrong with this that it hurts. I can't even... I just.. I'm done with this thread.

LOL! Agree to the max.

tinylightsbelow

I'm a vegetarian and I like vegetables, so I eat healthy things anyway. But I still have crisps and chocolate. I just make sure I count the calories and don't go over. I think if I completely cut out food I enjoyed I wouldn't motivated at all.

This. I'm a vegan so I eat lots of veggies and fruit because, well, yum! But I also eat things like Luna bars and burritos at Moe's. I think the idea of whole foods in abundance + processed food in moderation has been working very well for me.

swhiteism

I don't eat clean if my understanding of that definition is correct (nothing processed, everything "fresh", "whole"), but I eat healthy/low cal. Pretty much everything in my house is the low calorie/light counterpart. I do have a cheat meal about once a week and if I have room for a cookie in my calories for the day, yep, I'm going to eat one. But I don't understand how people eat that way everyday, though. A burger and fry at McDonald's is like half my calories for the day and I would just end up being hungry again in an hour. But if I eat a piece of salmon, some egg whites and half an avocado, it's still yummy, I am satisfied and I have plenty of calories left for the rest of the day. If some people can manage to have whatever they want and still lose weight, more power to them. But that just wouldn't work for me. I have found healthy foods that I love, still have a treat here and there, and don't feel deprived or like I'm missing out on anything. This is something I know I can do for the rest of my life.

KathleenC12

Another one raises hand: carbs, some desserts, martinis. Do avoid processed and fast foods but am not averse to a pint and a bag of chips after big workout. My family and friends hardly realize I'm eating to lose. I just eat to my allowed cals and log absolutely everything.

stardust2k4

I actually lost my first 70-80 pounds not eating clean. I just ate the right portions and exercised a hell of a lot.

I did kind of 'take a break' for about 2 years and am now making an effort to eat clean to lose the rest of my weight.

It's totally doable without eating clean, but I feel for someone such as myself-who feels that I am addicted to processed foods, it is necessary for me to stay away from them altogether. It's too easy to turn 'one' into 'two'.

louisegibbs85

I eat McDonalds, takeaway, chocolate and still lose weight lol ... all balanced of course. I'll have a happy meal instead of large big Mac meal, I'll order kids meal for takeaway and not have all the sides and deserts I used to have . . Instead of three chocolate bars il have a curly wurley and a cup of tea. I rarely crave things or overly binge because I have a little bit of what I fancy every day ... 66lbs down I'd say it works for me

36jessica

If you don't have any health issues that keep your from eating what you want, then do it. Just make sure you're getting enough vitamins and essential minerals. I've never really understood what 'eating clean' means anyway considering everyone seems to have their very own expert opinion on the subject. As for me, I just feel healthier and more energetic when I eat less bread/pasta/sweets and more meat/fish/veg...however, I love red wine and pizza...I just gotta factor it in

vingogly

I had to google clean eating to find out what it is ... the first thing I saw in the results was words to the effect: you can't lose weight unless you do this. Yeah, I've never heard that before.

I've lost large amounts of weight several times in my life, and it's never been with clean eating. Clean eating is yet another magic solution .... "do thou these things, and all manner of things will be well" I guarantee you: 10-15 years from now, you'll ask someone about clean eating, and they'll respond "huh?".

Why hasn't it stuck permanently for me before? Simply ... I didn't change my relationship to food, and make a permanent lifestyle change. Truth is, reduce your input and increase your activity level, and you'll lose weight at a safe rate ... no, you won't lose 4-5 pounds a week (except water weight at first) but that's a safe and reliable way to do it. Took me about a year to lose 50 pounds and I've kept it off ... all without eating "clean". I make healthier choices, but not always; i monitor my hunger/satiety cues; and I keep track of my weight so I can adjust things if I start putting on weight again.

emilydorsett

Hahahaha, total bull****. I eat whatever the hell I want, usually eat chocolate 5 times a week, pancakes, bacon, A LOT of fat and in a few months I've lost 15kg. Those who "eat clean" are missing out and obsessive over vitamins and stuff, it sucks to be in that mindset.

MizzEngelChen

I eat what I want. Now in summer it's ice cream almost every day and I also eat at restaurants quite often. Of course, I haven't done it so much during my 1200 cal/day phase but now that I have more cals to spare I don't see why I should restrict myself since my body is still changing in the way I want it to =o)

kimmianne89

At first, just being in a calorie deficit is enough. But personally, now i'm 6- 10lbs from my goal, it doesn't work like that anymore.

So I think, to lose weight and just be in the healthy range, nice and normal.. Just being in a deficit works.
But if you want to make the most of what you got, eating clean will make you healthier and look healthier. You're not going to get abs even if you workout a lot if you are eating *kitten* food everyday. IMO

Context is important. You can eat some less nutritious foods here and there in the day and still get abs and still be healthy - the diet as a whole matters, not the individual foods. My ice cream is not clean but I can assure you, it is not ****.

Thats what I was getting at, you can eat not so healthy foods, but if every meal is rubbish, you wouldn't get very far. I don't exactly eat clean by any means but I try to eat healthier more nutritious foods, and get better results than if I just stayed within my calorie allowance eating bad food.

edit: I am not meaning having ice cream/chocolate once a day, or a take away every so often etc, I am meaning, very low protein intake because every single meal is processed foods with very little nutritional content. But saying this, I take back my original comment on the most part because I was talking from personal experience and then I remembered I have PCOS where sugary or processed foods affect weight quite drastically. A normal healthy person is most likely different.

riveroflight

I highly recommend eating fruits and veggies, for huge differences in overall well-being and actually *feeling* better as opposed to just looking better. That said, no it is not strictly necessary for losing weight.

CM9178

I've lost 43 lbs so far, eating whatever I want, in moderation, and less calories than I am burning. I try to make better choices, and I'm definitely eating much healthier overall than I used to, but I certainly don't eat clean by any means. I don't want to feel like I'm on a diet, and eating clean would definitely feel that way to me.

aimforhealthy

I've lost 34 lbs in the last 8 months, about a pound a week (more on average, because I stopped tracking and went on a 2-week vacation in September and put on a few pounds). I've never eaten clean. In fact, one of those months I lived in a hotel waiting for my apartment to be remodeled for 3 weeks, and I ate fast food and candy EVERY DAY, and still lost nearly 7 lbs that month.

There are, in fact, days I feel like eating nothing but donuts... still lose weight every week. Eat candy and drink soda at least a few times a week... still lose weight every week. Why? Because I budget it into my calories every day.

No effect on my allergies, well-being, energy, etc. either. In fact, my bloodwork has improved and so has my insomnia.

Allup2Me78

I am so happy to come across this post. I just had a rant today on my page about this because I have sooooo many people telling me that I eat too many carbs or I eat too much processed food or I need to back up on this or that and I am like..I thought it was mainly about calories. Now, I do watch sodium only because I have high blood pressure & trying to keep up with the processed this and that & the carb this and that is just sooo stressful! I do eat as healthy as I can when I can but sometimes I am short on $$$ and I have to eat what I can.

Allup2Me78

same here

i dont eat "clean", but im eating "cleaner" than before.

Allup2Me78

if any of you have a problem where your macros go in red on carbs or fats, do you just ignore it? I have that problem ALOT In carbs!

losinglbs1654

Back in 2011 (between October and December) I dropped 25 pounds just by eating less. I was still eating whatever the hell I wanted, including Mcdonalds up to twice a week! I was walking a few times a week for 40 minutes. That's literally all I did and the weight seemed to fly off. I've gained some of it back because I got lazy but yeah I certainly wasn't eating clean.

lisa35120

I have lost weight, and still eat fast food, pizza, doughnuts, and soda pretty often.. it's all about eating smaller portions and staying at your calorie limit! Right now I'm really just focusing on getting into an exercise routine and adjusting to smaller portion sizes, and then I'll work on eating cleaner later on.