What to eat

jennjensp25

Hi thank you for taking the time to read.
I'm just curious as with a lot of conflicting information online, but does it really matter what you eat as long as you stay within your calorie goals? A lot of sites say don't eat this or that and eat this instead of that, but really does it matter? Exception of junk e.g. crisps n sweets etc.

KarenSmith2018

You could eat mars bars all day and still loose weight if you ate less mars bar calories than you needed to live. Everything can be eaten and drank and you can still loose weight. Some foods are high in calories and not very satisfying in terms of keeping you full, like cakes, donuts, biscuits sweets etc etc so people tend to limit these so they have capacity for a greater range of more filling and satisfying foods that enables them to not feel hungry and keeps them satisfied while eating a calorie deficit.

I don't exclude any of my favourite foods but just make sure I take account for them in my calorie allowance

fr33sia12

You can eat whatever you want, as long as it's within your calorie allowance. Just be mindful of what you're eating as you can have a meal that may take up most of your calorie allowance then you're hungry for most of the day and not able to eat much.

jennjensp25

Hi guys. Thank you for your replies. Your comments are exactly what I was thinking. I don't eat junk foods very often. The odd think twice a week maybe 3 times a week. I just wanted to see other people's opinions as I struggle with my job on what I can eat. Thank you

__TMac__

It depends on your goals. Lower calories (and/or higher exercise) will cause weight loss.

In addition, we all experience different levels of satisfaction with different styles of eating. I like to eat small breakfast, lunch, and snack, and then have a larger dinner. If I combine carbs with protein or fat, I stay full longer. Carbs alone make me hungry. Other people have different preferences.

There are lots of good reasons to also pay attention to the quality of your food (nutrition, digestive health, etc.). When I started, it was helpful psychologically to focus only on calories intake/output. Now that I have that pretty well figured out, I’m also paying attention to fiber, micronutrients, etc. for my long-term health, not weight loss specifically.

toxikon

Strictly in terms of weight loss, you can eat anything as long as you're in a calorie deficit.

In terms of health, you'll probably want a generally well-balanced diet with enough protein for your activity level and a good variety of micronutrients and some healthy fats too.

In terms of satiety, you may find that a 'junk food' only diet leaves you RAVENOUS because the foods are so calorically-dense. So you may want to incorporate more satiating foods into your diet like lean proteins, fresh fruit and veggies.

Seffell

Try not to label foods as bad or good. For example crisps is not junk food. It is fried potatoes. It is normal food. Just eat it in moderation. Try to eat nutritious food for the bigger part of your meals but you can snack/add whatever you want if it fits your calories.

Food is not just to keep us alive. It brings pleasure and is involved in social and cultural events.

hesn92

As far as weight loss goes you could eat Twinkie’s only and still lose weight. However for general health we know it’s best to eat a nicely balanced diet.