Who eats what they want (within a certain calorie deficit of course), and still looses?

ndargy1977

Who eats what they want (within a certain calorie deficit of course), and still looses?

I've been yoyo'ing for almost 2 years and I'm done. When I say yoyo'ing, I mean between.....Low Carb/High Fat, No Carb, Separating Carbs and Fat (while only eating certain carbs). NONE of it has worked for me.

To be honest, this has been very stressful and I'm done. I'm eating what I want, when I want and how I want. All within reason of course.

I NEED to log my food. It's soooooo important for ME as it's amazing how quickly the calories can add up! Will I log forever?? Hopefully not, hopefully some day I will be at my goal and be able to "eye" things....

I recently started working with a trainer who set up my calories and macros. We also have workouts to follow, which is HUGE for me. I'm clueless when left to my own devices.

Eat at a deficit + Exercise = helping to achieve my goals

I'm going to be 50 this year.....And I'm having spaghetti for dinner!! Ha!

Thanks for "listening"

Redordeadhead

Everyone. Cause that's how weight loss works ;-)

ndargy1977

@Redordeadhead haha!! true!! My mind has been in a different place for a while....glad to be back to reality

Katiebear_81

Yeah. I count my macros for performance reasons, but otherwise, I mostly eat what I like.

tinkerbellang83

I am doing IIFYM which is essentially what you're asking about, I've lost around 35lbs.

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fitoverfortymom

There's a bunch of us filthy animals over here: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10498878/looking-for-friends-who-dont-eat-clean-and-healthy.

kgirlhart

I've lost ~76 pounds eating what I wanted and staying at my calorie goal and I am at maintenance now. I eat spaghetti at least once a week. I'll be 50 next week. Just stick to your calorie goal. You can do it!

sarabia81

I eat what I want I count my calories for the most part and make sure I exercise at least 4-5 times a week .... okay 4 times a week All in moderation

JenHuedy

Yup. Lost 90 pounds. And maintaining over 2 years.

I started out eating my usual stuff, just smaller portions. I figured out pretty quickly that I could get more food for my calories if I ate more of stuff like veggies and fruits and less of things like potatoes or pasta. I still eat those things, just in much smaller portions or less often. I still eat cookies and candy, but I don't waste those calories on "meh" treats like grocery store snack cakes or cheap chocolates when bakery cupcakes and gourmet chocolates are about the same calories.

Eating at a deficit is the ONLY way to lose weight. How you eat to get that deficit is up to you, so find a way that works for your lifestyle and taste preferences.

DomesticKat

I've lost 55 pounds and counting by eating what I want. I'm losing weight eating the exact same stuff I ate while gaining. Sure, I'm more creative about meal preparation and more thoughtful about what is satiating and nutritious, but I villainize nothing. You figure it out as you go along. I ate a donut with my coffee and Greek yogurt this morning. I wouldn't have made it to this point otherwise.

Tacklewasher

Cut out pop (soda) and that's about it. Cut down on chips, so I have one serving (on the scale, 50g) instead of a family sized bag. More protein and more fruits and veggies, but I'll have real pizza on occasion.

Down ~130lbs in under 2 yrs.

dianaeatworld

I eat whatever I want but I weigh out my food to portion size and stay within my limits. We're having pizza for dinner tonight. So far I've lost 22 lbs since January.

mbaker566

I did and it worked. however i feel better when i eat healthy since i am limiting the amount of calories i am eating. more bang for the buck.
however, i am currently eating doritos

mph323

I lost 50 lbs over 18 months and am currently maintaining eating anything I want in appropriate amounts. When I first started on this site I had very poor diet and exercise habits and gradually gravitated toward more nutrient dense foods and more activity as I went along and my life got less hectic. There was no difference in my rate of loss from start to finish as long as I stuck to my calorie goals.

CarvedTones

I did yoyo failures in the past with restrictive crash diets that ended at goal and then failed at natural eating. This time I have lost over 60 pounds while eating what I want (at least for the last half; I started my old way) and I am maintaining by eating what I want but still tracking and keeping to a calorie goal.

Silentpadna

Yep. I eat what I want. The only difference is that I manage it. To do that I weigh, plan and adjust. Just like any other budget. I demonize nothing - except for foods I already didn't like.

Coca-Cola was my primary vice. It's no longer a vice. I have one every couple of weeks or so. Sometimes I'll have several over a week, but I manage it now. It's not the devil. Carbs aren't the devil. Chocolate chip cookies almost every day. The only target is minimum protein. The rest falls where it falls so that I get within 100 +/- my goal.

janejellyroll

Me: I eat lots of vegetables, whole grains, beans, and fruit, but I also drink just about every day and regularly eat things like candy, fried food, pizza, processed faux meats, and white bread. I'm currently maintaining, but I lost 40+ pounds exactly as one would expect given the size of my deficit.

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JaydedMiss

literally everyone who loses weight. Some choose to eat donuts others broccoli. Their choice.

iWishMyNameWasRebel

I don't follow any kind of food group restriction or WOE. Over the years, I've done them all, from keto to Whole30 to WW-style to IF and everything in-between. The thing I wind up sticking with is eating for nutrition and taste following CICO. I do put forth more effort to eat more protein but that's mainly because of the strength training.

jennifer_417

*raises hand* Of course, I can't eat whatever I want, whenever I want, because then I wouldn't meet my calorie goal.

saragd012

I always save room for treats I enjoy, and I wont eat things that I don't like. Sometimes I do compromise of course, like yes I want my own darn chocolate cake but I know in the end I'd be satisfied with splitting a slice instead. I have friends and workout partners who are all about the no-sugar life, but I'd be miserable without my daily chocolate and a delicious dark craft beer once or twice a week. Absolutely not worth it for me.

dutchandkiwi

When I started I stopped eating added sugar for 3 months. That was to break a habit and it worked.
Other than that I simply ate within my deficit limit what I wanted (and built in the occasional mainentance period for psychological reasons).
I lost all the weight I wanted I don't know my exact starting weight but I think it is in the region of 25kg. that way. Have been in maintenance for 6 months now at BMI 22

1theresamcvean

I do. All macros. Healthy things, treats, wine, cake (not that often) - just until I reach my calorie limits and feel full. I love variety and hate restriction.

Johnd2000

I eat pizzas, burgers, fries, cakes etc. I just never eat as much of them as I’d like. I’m completely in control of my calories and weight.

Snowflake1968

That is all I do, I haven't deprived myself of anything because I feel I would just be setting myself up to fail. I just make try very hard to stay within my calorie goal each day. Over the last 2 weeks I have been successful all but 2 days.

bduanemyfitness

I am just starting (just over 3 months in) so time will tell.

But, I have not dramatically changed what I eat on a day to day basis. I typically have a slice of pizza for my lunch when at work (convenience) and that has not changed. I do more carefully choose the type of pizza (veggie vs lots of meat) but no huge change. Small change is to usually choose fruit over a cookie. But I still have a cookie probably one day each week.

The only big change is I have stopped eating ice cream. Sadly, I can eat a pint without blinking. SO I figured I would just eliminate that from my choices for a while.

The big change has been in portion control. Funny how a "bowl" of cereal/granola is really 2+ servings. So I keep the scale on my counter in the kitchen and measure everything.

I went to a burger place with my son when he was back from college. I looked up their menu and just made sure I logged it (and got a single patty...not two). No big deal.

Still eating mostly the same stuff, just better choices on portion size and frequency.

stanmann571

I'm a relatively loose logger to begin with, and I'm taking a 2 week break(which means REALLY loose) I've got 3 more days, and I'm down another pound.

I've had pizza, Preztels, hotdogs, guac, chips, etc in the last 10 days. I've also had more than a couple days where I pretty much ate my programmed menu and had a snack cake or cookie or muffin.

The day I had pizza, it was little ceasar's and I ended up at an estimated 200 calorie additional deficit(over my normal program)

Francl27

Yes and no. If I ate what I wanted, I'd be hungry all the time and would have a much harder time to keep a deficit. I can make SOME things fit, but my preference being for baked goods - no I can't eat what I want and lose weight.

It doesn't mean that I make myself miserable with my diet and force myself to eat things I don't like - I eat things I like, obviously - but I still have to make better choices - yes, a croissant sounds great for breakfast, but it won't fill me up at all for 400 calories, for example.

In the end, it will depend a lot on what you actually want to eat. It's easier for someone who wants to eat steak than for someone who wants to eat donuts to lose weight, for sure, because at least the steak is filling!

But no, you don't need a low carb diet or whatever the latest fad is - it's all about calories.

WinoGelato

When I started on MFP I quickly realized that if I cut out all the foods I enjoyed in order to lose weight, I would be very unlikely to stick with it. So rather than cutting things out, I focused on what I could add to my lifestyle. More protein, more vegetables, more whole grains, more exercise, more sleep. I found that by doing that, within the context of a moderate calorie deficit - I prioritized the healthy things and had just enough room for the things I love like ice cream, pizza, and wine, in moderation.

I lost the weight I set out to lose (~35 lbs) and have kept it off for several years by eating foods I love in the context of an overall balanced diet.