Myth or not a myth?
catsbfit
Posts: 41 Member
Hello!:), im starting my weight loss journey, just need help and guidance really, soo ive been googling soo much lately on what i can eat, and i came across you can eat whatever you like but dont go over your daily calorie, my calorie daily to loose weight is 1,200 so can i still eat fries, chocolate , pizza as long as i dont go over 1,200? Will i still loose weight? im not very active i will walk sometimes, plus i dont like healthy foods such as salads i hate them so id find it very hard.
I will track my food on here before eating them.
Thank you!
I will track my food on here before eating them.
Thank you!
8
Replies
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You can lose weight eating whatever you want as long as you stay in your calorie goal. You may run into hunger issues so you need to be prepared to experiment and, not to worry, you won't be forced to eat salads.12
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As long as 1200 cals puts you in a calorie deficit, then yes you'll lose weight.
However, it can be hard to sustain the type of diet you mentioned (fries, chocolate, pizza) because the quantity of food will end up being pretty small/low. Also, consider overall health/nutrition...29 -
It's rather the opposite that is a myth, that you can't lose unless all you eat is "healthy foods", with the accompanying, mandatory vagueness of what constitutes healthy foods.
In reality, you lose weight when you over time take in fewer calories than you burn. Where your calories come from, does not change this fact.
But it is pretty likely that you don't get enough nutrients to keep you energized and satisfied and healthy, if all you eat is 1200 calories of junk food.
It is also pretty likely that you like, and eat, foods that aren't typically classified as junk food.
In reality, there are no healthy (or unhealthy) foods, there are diets that are more or less healthy for any given individual. A healthy diet is balanced and varied. You can, and should, eat food you like. When you think about what you want to eat, you take many different factors into consideration - not only taste and mouthfeel, or how eating the food will make you feel physically, but also price, ethical values, and social norms.14 -
The salad police will come to your house and force you to eat a salad every day.
But seriously, eat what you like in smaller amounts. Nutrition is important for overall health so experiment with different "healthy" foods and learn to prepare them in ways you do like. Since you specified salads, I'm assuming it's vegetables you aren't fond of.
I can't eat most raw veggies so traditional salads are out for me. But I love roasted vegetables or a stir fry or a gazillion other ways of cooking them.
Start with staying at your calorie goal and then start looking at your nutrition. Don't try to take on too much all at once.11 -
Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.109
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And please don't listen to this.dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.67 -
Not a myth. However, you shouldn't be basing your diet entirely around those things, especially because it can make 1200 calories go fast.
Nobody ever said you have to eat salads, either (not that eating salads automatically makes you thin...I've always loved them, even when I was almost 250 pounds...mostly because the toppings I chose were high calorie). Eat nutrient dense foods that you do enjoy, experiment with cooking them, and work a treat in if you can. Also determine if 1200 is an appropriate goal for your size...you may find things easier if you have more calories to work with.9 -
Yeah, i have 1,004 calories left to eat and my dinner will be 465 calories i still have alot to mess with haha!2
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dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.
100% false.28 -
Yes. You can eat whatever you want so long as it fits your calorie goal. You will probably find that you will have to experiment with what leaves you feeling sated. For some people higher protein foods leave them feeling full for hours, for others it's higher carb foods like pasta. 1200 calories a day isn't much to work with when you like calorie dense foods though. Not to say you're stuck eating salad forever. But you might want to experiment with preparing fruits and veggies in different ways. You might find some you like. Having lower calorie foods on the side with your more calorie dense faves can make the 1200 mark easier to hit. Like a slice of pizza and a side salad, or fried chicken and some green beans for example. Also if you find 1200 hard to hit with the foods you like to eat, look at slowing down the rate of loss. I'm assuming you may have set your loss to 2lbs a week? If you change it to 1lbs or .5lbs a week, your loss rate will be slower, but you will have more room to eat the foods you love.4
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dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.
I suspect there's a lot more to this story than is being told...24 -
dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.
When people report things like this, it typically comes down to unrealistic expectations or logging inaccuracies. It's highly unlikely that your body processes energy in a way that is different than the rest of the human race.
Humans lose weight in a calorie deficit. Some people find it easier to lose weight when they limit carbohydrates because it either helps control their appetite or limits the range of foods they're eating. There is also some water weight loss associated with low carbohydrate diets that can make people think that weight loss is happening more rapidly or efficiently than it does with other styles of eating. But these people are still losing weight the way the rest of us do . . . through a calorie deficit.30 -
Not a myth. However, you shouldn't be basing your diet entirely around those things, especially because it can make 1200 calories go fast.
Nobody ever said you have to eat salads, either (not that eating salads automatically makes you thin...I've always loved them, even when I was almost 250 pounds...mostly because the toppings I chose were high calorie). Eat nutrient dense foods that you do enjoy, experiment with cooking them, and work a treat in if you can. Also determine if 1200 is an appropriate goal for your size...you may find things easier if you have more calories to work with.
^^^That's a good post read that one!7 -
dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.
You should submit your body for science to study. The sooner the better.23 -
dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.
I suspect there's a lot more to this story than is being told...
I suspect he stayed under his calorie goal a smidge over a couple of weeks and saw just normal fluctuation. Got freaked out that he hadn't seen significant movement in those two weeks and went very low carb ("Once I started counting my carbs..." ). He immediately lost 5 pounds or more because of glycogen/water loss and thought it was really fat. So now he thinks CICO is bullpucky and carbs are evil.
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dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.
cowpoo (BS). mre than likely you were more ACCURATELY logging and weighing ALL your food and not omitting/taking shortcuts/ or 'forgetting' to log something. Same goes for people who decide to incrase their calorie allowance. They are being more honest about what they are eating, and therefore, ACTUALLY eating at a deficit.
OP, yes. you can eat what you want. I've lost 100 and am still losing eating what i want. However, you will find that eating a well balanced diet and learning what macro combination works best to keep you satiated will probably last longer (in the whole 'keeping you full' aspect) than making making 'easier' choices like fast food or pizza constantly. I do eat pizza (maybe once a month because, quite honestly, i dont really LIKE it), i have chocolate ALL the time. and plenty of bread (not big on rice and potatoes, but i eat those too - its all just personal preference). Its all in HOW MUCH you eat vs HOW MUCH you burn.17 -
I'm a huge fan of fries, chocolate and pizza, but I can tell you 1200 calories doesn't give you a lot of wiggle room to eat them AND get all your macro and micronutrients. But yes, as others have said, no need to deprive yourself. I've found that if I'm REALLY creative, I can get all my nutrients in with around 900 calories. That leaves 300 calories for treats if I'm trying to hit 1200 (which I do when I'm trying to lose weight). So roughly one candy bar, a slice of pizza or small fry. But you can also look for ways to incorporate treats in lower calorie ways. Like substituting a protein bar for a candy bar, Halo Top for regular ice cream, homemade pizza with low-fat cheese and lean meats/turkey pepperoni, cheese crisps instead of chips, protein pudding/cheesecake, etc.7
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You should also understand that you can start anywhere. You don't have to figure out what a well-rounded diet will mean for you right this minute which is why I mentioned being open to experimentation. Mix in whatever fruits and vegetables you do like eating and jump on in. As time goes on if you need suggestions this forum will be happy to help you find other things you might like or ways of preparing things you don't like in a way you will like them. Come back really soon if you are hungry too often during the day.13
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dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.
Calorie deficit- weight loss
Cutting carbs doesn't mean someone will lose weight. This is misinformation and harmful to this community as newcomers who don't yet know better could end up more confused.25 -
Is someone legit wooing every post out of spite or is it another doesnt know woo is bad thing...18
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Poisonedpawn78 wrote: »Is someone legit wooing every post out of spite or is it another doesnt know woo is bad thing...
It’s probably the low carb poster16 -
catzzm9768 wrote: »Hello!:), im starting my weight loss journey, just need help and guidance really, soo ive been googling soo much lately on what i can eat, and i came across you can eat whatever you like but dont go over your daily calorie, my calorie daily to loose weight is 1,200 so can i still eat fries, chocolate , pizza as long as i dont go over 1,200? Will i still loose weight? im not very active i will walk sometimes, plus i dont like healthy foods such as salads i hate them so id find it very hard.
I will track my food on here before eating them.
Thank you!
Weight management is about calories, not any one particular food. That said, pizza and chocolate and fries and whatnot are pretty calorie dense...it would be pretty easy to hit your calorie target with very little actual food.7 -
If it's only about losing weight, calories in must be less than calories out (CICO). You can eat what you want (IE: taco Bell diet, potato diet, etc). If your goal is long term health, then the quality of food matters.7
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dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.
If you ignored calories how do you know if you ate less or more calories than your allowance.
Edit: if your diary is anything to go by, you were well under in calories and that's why you lost weight, nothing to do with the carbs.23 -
Poisonedpawn78 wrote: »Is someone legit wooing every post out of spite or is it another doesnt know woo is bad thing...
Is this another post asking about how/why people use the woo, or just someone being passive aggressive?
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People are using it to mean they don't "agree" with a post. Have been for months now.Poisonedpawn78 wrote: »Is someone legit wooing every post out of spite or is it another doesnt know woo is bad thing...
They don't care what it is supposed to be used for. I was told so directly in a post.
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catzzm9768 wrote: »Hello!:), im starting my weight loss journey, just need help and guidance really, soo ive been googling soo much lately on what i can eat, and i came across you can eat whatever you like but dont go over your daily calorie, my calorie daily to loose weight is 1,200 so can i still eat fries, chocolate , pizza as long as i dont go over 1,200? Will i still loose weight? im not very active i will walk sometimes, plus i dont like healthy foods such as salads i hate them so id find it very hard.
I will track my food on here before eating them.
Thank you!
Like others have said, sure, you would still lose weight if you only ate 1200 calories a day of those foods. However, it would be hard to stay full on those foods and a diet based around that would not provide optimal nutrition.3 -
What you said is true but that is a misleading statement. You CAN in theory lose weight by eating whatever you want but it if whatever you want is only high calorie junk food then you will be unlikely to stick with your calorie budget.
For me, one birthday tiramisu is over my daily budget. So I can eat that, but I can't eat any other food for the rest of the day. And that cake wont fill me up much. I can drink two of those large pina coladas at the bar and also be over my daily calorie budget not allowing for any other food the rest of the day.
So when people say that you can eat whatever you want, they aren't lying necessarily but if you follow that advice and whatever you want is nothing but junk food, you will probably quickly realize that there aren't enough calories in a day to sustain that way of eating and keep you full/satisfied. Many people end up eating healthier and lower calorie foods because those foods keep them more full throughout the day. I do like healthy food in addition to unhealthy food. I'm still hungry but eating healthier tends to be more filling for me and stay within my calorie budget.9 -
dollarbill181 wrote: »Even though I stayed under my calorie goal my weight would barely budge or go down. Once I started counting my carbs and ignoring calories, i was eating more than I was before and higher calories, but my weight finally started to drop.
I suspect there's a lot more to this story than is being told...
Most people royally suck at eyeballing portions of common starchy foods. This would be my guess.14 -
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