I could never give up

Angall08

I could never give up the tasty delicious junk foods and chocolates/sweets and the occasional fast food. I would not have the strength and devotion to go on a strict diet. I still watch my calorie intake drink lots of water and exercise. But who agrees with me??

middlehaitch

Well so long as you are hitting decent nutritional goals and your calorie intake is where you want it to be there is no need to give up eating what you like.

MFP is more about reasonable calorie goals with good nutrition that is maintainable long term, rather than strict unsustainable diets.

Personally, I gave up nothing, lost the weight and have been maintaining for years, but have no problem when someone has to restrict certain foods or their eating window to achieve their goal.

We all do what works for us, not what others think should work for us.

Cheers, h.

missh1967

I wouldn't say I've given them up, but I have scaled them way, way, way back.

Francl27

I'm with you OP, but I have to be really careful not to overdo it or I gain weight, sadly! I see people who have pastries or cake every day and it boggles my mind a little, I would never be able to fit that in without being hungry all the time.

JeromeBarry1

I agree, you could never give up tasty delicious junk and fast food.

I had an Arby's turkey gyro (fast food) and Blue Bell Milk Chocolate ice cream (tasty delicious junk) yesterday and this morning weighed less than I did yesterday morning. That's just an anecdote, but it does illustrate that moderation is the only change you need to make. It's the hardest one, too.

I had pizza, too.

quiksylver296

missh1967 wrote: »

I wouldn't say I've given them up, but I have scaled them way, way, way back.

this

PrincessMel72

Definitely won't give up my favorite foods - I just eat less of them!

stealthq

I wouldn't say never - if it were critical to my health then I'd probably have sufficient motivation. To lose weight when I know I can do it healthily in other ways? Nope. No need, ergo no motivation. Plenty of need to scale back portions and/or frequency of high cal foods in general.

JPotamus

I love pizza, cake, and ice-cream. I won't be giving them up either. I just eat less of them.

carolineb81

fast food ive completely given up as since eating 'real' food it tastes so bad to me. I love cakes and chocolate but cant have too much as have gluten and lactose intolerance

grammageegee

Everything in moderation!

WVWalkerFriend

Why do you need people to agree with you? You might be surprised what you could "never" give up when faced with certain conditions. I'm not saying you have or will have those conditions but "never" is a long time.

DamieBird

I don't consider any food 'off-limits'. but I find that the longer I'm actively paying attention to what I'm eating and how it fits into my goals, the less I want the fast food or the junk food or the candy. I still have Valentine candy both at home and on my desk at work and it just . . . . sits there (except for a couple of days a month, lol).
I can have it if I want, but it doesn't tempt me as much as it used to. I'd never swear off it, entirely, but I'm realizing that I don't need to, anyway.

nvmomketo

Water. Essential fats and proteins.

I used to say that I could never give up sweets but I finally discovered that what I actually meant was, while I am still eating them, I crave them. Once I gave them up, the cravings were diminished.

CSARdiver

I look at it as a trade off. I am limiting my intake of high calorie food to hit fitness goals. I'll never completely eliminate these foods as such rigid plans are rarely effective.

inertiastrength

I also have scaled way back but like you, don't see myself abstaining indefinitely.

Jolenepiche

My life without the occasional pizza would be very sad!

AnnPT77

I mostly don't find junk and fast foods tasty or delicious.

But I got fat mostly eating things other than those. I haven't changed what I eat, so much as I've changed portions and proportions (i.e., what fraction of my eating certain things are).

I'd argue that nutrition is important, but beyond that, think that everyone should find an overall way of eating that healthfully balances nutrition, satiation, and tastiness for them. No one else need agree with their formula.

If, for you, tastiness includes junk foods and fast foods, go for it.

irxproductions

I love fast food!

Believe it or not, I lost 60 pounds using MyFitnessPal and didn't change the foods in my diet. I knew that if I took on completely different eating habits by changing my diet, I probably wouldn't stick with it, and would just gain all the weight back. The key for me was to carefully track quantity, portion sizes, and frequency.

I also made subtle changes that make a huge difference. For instance, if I need a quick meal and stop by fast food, I'll pick up a single Double Bacon Cheeseburger from Burger King (370 cal), but skip the fries and soda, opting for water (or a diet soda, if I'd like). Another quick tip at BK: the Whopper Jr. is about 250 calories if you tell them to hold the mayo.

At Taco Bell, the regular (non-Supreme) Crunchy Tacos are only 170 calories and the regular Soft Tacos are only 188, and that's with cheese. Cut out the cheese and they're even less.

Just a few more tips:

1. Forgo the cheese. A single slice of cheddar carries about 80 calories. If you go to a Subway-type restaurant, they'll put 2-4 slices of that on a sandwich. 320 calories in cheese?! Yikes!

2. Substitute the mayo. Low-fat mayo is only 15 calories per tablespoon (Hellman's is my example here). I'll have Jimmy John's hold the mayo on my carryout, and then put my own on at home. Plus, on a sandwich, I can't tell the taste difference between full-flavor and low-fat. I was able to get a Jimmy John's Gargantuan, their biggest sandwich, reduced from 1,200 calories to around 800 by skipping the cheese, dressing, and full-fat mayo (adding my low-fat at home). Of course, at 800 calories, it's my biggest meal for the day.

If you keep your eye on the calories and make slight adjustments, you can still eat fast food and lose weight, too!