You lost weight & have maintained it. Did you focus on healthier foods or just restrict calories????

NVintage

I messed up my stomach taking anti inflammatory medicines, and now trying no added sugars, just low fat lactose free dairy, and less gluten until my stomach gets better. I'm not enjoying it at all! I think it takes a lot of skill to make a healthy diet taste as good as an unhealthy one...

ninerbuff

I've always been active. I just had to eat smaller portions since I already ate a good mixture of good/high calorie foods and "junk food".

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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NVintage

I think it's good if a bit of junk food here and there helps you adhere to healthy foods 80-90% of the time. As long as a once a month $5 Pizza Hut pizza won't turn into a once a week $5 pizza, and then an every other day pizza treat!:D

AnnofB

I concentrate on both... restricting calories and trying to eat in a healthier manner. Though sometimes my concentration on healthier eats comes up short. I'm not a good cook. I think it really helps to eat more home cooked food because of the control it gives you. I have found some main dishes that are prepackaged and just need a little work to get them to the table and add vegetables to that. What ever is easy, that's what I do.

"You never regret the salad you ate." Just a take on "You never regret the workout you did." There are days when I don't want a salad, (mainly cause it's labor intensive, and yes I am pretty lazy.) But after it's done, I always think "That sure was good." Now if someone were to make the salad for me, I'd be having one every day... hmm, I AM pretty lazy! I have learned not to trust my feelings. If I think I'm hungry, I check my calories. If I have had my allotment for the day, I think "Ok, I have had enough calories to keep me going and I shouldn't be hungry. Therefore, I'm going to ignore this feeling. Feelings aren't always correct.

Reached my goal in 2012 and been maintaining since. Fluctuated a bit but found something here that helped with that... someone posted they give themselves a 3 lb leeway. One they hit 3 pounds above, they go back eating fewer calories. Sounds so simple. Yet, for decades I would ignore the very real number on my scale, regain and start the whole process over again. Not any more.

Congratulations on getting to maintenance! You will figure it out and it will become second nature.

cwolfman13

NVintage wrote: »

I messed up my stomach taking anti inflammatory medicines, and now trying no added sugars, just low fat lactose free dairy, and less gluten until my stomach gets better. I'm not enjoying it at all! I think it takes a lot of skill to make a healthy diet taste as good as an unhealthy one...

Understanding that you're trying to work out a gut issue...but there's nothing inherently unhealthy about either dairy or gluten, and even sugar isn't the devil...massively over consuming sugar isn't good, but there's whole big area between eating endless amounts of sugar and none.

I think there is also a misconception that healthy eating has to be bland and boring...plain chicken breast, steamed broccoli, endless salads...basically if it tastes good, it must not be healthy. I love to cook and learned to cook in my early 20s because I was a broke college kid and couldn't afford to take my dates out that often and they found my cooking skills impressive. You can make all kinds of delicious and also highly nutritious meals using a wide variety of herbs, spices, and sauces/marinades. Last night I grilled some boneless/skinless chicken thighs (I don't do breasts...like ever) in a yogurt marinade and a variety of Indian spices with sautéed zucchini and summer squash. It was absolutely fantastic and nutritious...and much better tasting than fast food or frankly most anything I could get even at a nice restaurant.

As to the original question, I don't see it as a black and white, this or that issue. Meeting one's nutritional requirements happens on a broad spectrum...I tend to look at nutrition in the context of the totality of one's overall diet. It's really not about the minutia of this one particular meal or that particular meal. Context of the whole matters.

My diet previous to losing weight wasn't particularly bad, nor was it particularly good. I cooked a lot as I have since I was in my early 20s, but I also ate lunch out everyday...usually Popeye's fried chicken 2-3x per week or Taco Bell 2-3x per week and occasionally I'd mix it up with a greasy burger from a local FF chain here called Blake's. When I got onto my weight loss plan I started brown bagging my lunch everyday and using my lunch hour to ride my bike or otherwise get some exercise. That was probably the biggest change in my diet...the other being that my diet was rather lacking in fruits and veg so I made efforts to eat more of those things.

In the context of my diet as a whole, eating fried chicken 2-3x per week or otherwise eating fast food for lunch every single day wasn't particularly good or healthy...I still eat my Popeye's, but it's maybe once or twice per month these days. I love pizza and Friday evenings are typically reserved for pizza and a movie...and it isn't Pizza Hut, it's good pizza from a local pizzeria in my village. As a whole, I'd say my diet has dramatically improved, leaving plenty of room for those things that maybe aren't so "healthy" but I enjoy them. Given my overall nutrition, those things are now largely immaterial to the whole of my diet.

wunderkindking

I replied earlier in the thread but this reply made me think of what is probably, actually, the biggest change in my diet:

It has improved, but it has improved largely in terms of the fact that I used to eat a lot more 'junk' because it was convenient, rather than I particularly loved it. I STILL do the unhealthy stuff, but now that it is less frequent and in smaller quantities I am more likely to save it for what I really want and really, really like.

I'm not going to the grocery store to get the brownie I mentioned in my previous post. It's not worth it. If I really want a brownie I'm going to the bakery and getting the really good one. It is more expensive both in money and calories, but since I'm not buying the kinda crappy one and eating three of them the overall cost (calories and money) is less, and the enjoyment is higher. It also means 'brownie' is a lower percentage of my overall diet.

Or I buy the low cal ice creams and bars, but I only use them to throw/blend into my coffee. If I'm gonna eat ice cream I'm still getting the premium stuff. Just... not as often.

Olafiina

I genuinely enjoy "healthy" food, I'll often choose to have carrot soup instead of chips just because I love it. But I'm not going to feel guilty for having ice cream several nights out of the week either since I know it fits into my day calorie wise as well. Basically I just go with what I like and fit in "fun" stuff with the aim of 1600-1800 calories on average, It's good enough I suppose.

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nossmf

A combination of diet and portion control. I still have my daily soda, just 12oz instead of 20oz, or two cookies instead of four. If I'm still hungry, that's where my diet change kicks in; thanks to my wife's insistence, I have added vegetables into my regimen, at first to be a "good role model for the kids" and later when I realized I actually have begun to enjoy the taste more as an adult than I did as a kid.

In summary: same treats as before (just half sized), add vegetables. Other than that, I only have two daily dietary goals: eat enough protein, and overall calories at or below maintenance total. Otherwise I allow myself to eat whatever...pizza, fried chicken, hamburgers, etc. Just not typically the same day, as it's hard to meet calorie and protein goals if I do.

NVintage

I've been losing weight, (the last 5 pounds) without even trying since starting a gluten free experiment for my stomach issues. (I think I messed it up taking some anti-inflammatory pills). I wouldn't advise it if you're able to eat wheat with no problem because bread is high in fiber and usually fortified with iron and folic acid, etc. However, if there is any intolerance it can really help! I'm just going to keep limiting gluten for a month or so and then slowly try incorporating it back into my diet a little.

J72FIT

NVintage wrote: »

I know exercise is a huge part of maintaining weight loss, but how have you had to change your diet? Do you eat less the same foods or did you focus on eating healthier, more nutritious foods?

Both...

dwayneb2020

Yes it's routine and boring but have always been an advocate of moderation in everything. I just make sure I have a diet that is varied and includes a fair share of fresh vegetables and fruits. Moderate portions. But also a fair share of carbs, and a modest number of sugary treats. Eat out (or takeout) one meal a week or so.

I tracked calories for so long (years) here on FitnessPal during weight loss that I can estimate the calories of any meal without looking anything up or logging. Every once in awhile I will tally the actual calories and it's always 1800 - 2000, and that intake has maintained weight for a couple of years now.

mjglantz

Over the time I was losing weight my diet changed (not on a diet...just changed the way I eat) to focus on more of a plant-based way of eating. Now I eat pretty much the way I have for over 7 years which is pretty healthy for about 80% of my meals/snacks. Except for some health reasons, no food is off limits although many are moderated. Still track my food every day because it works; basically second nature now.

nxd10

I always ate healthy. I snacked in smaller portions. I upped my daily exercise.

greylover31

For me, nothing is off limits. It’s about portion control and calorie restriction when necessary. I have come to love many vegetarian meals and eat lots of fruit! Caloric density is a measure I try to use which I learned during my year using Noom. I definitely treat myself WAY less than I used to but don’t remove any food I love just because it’s not “healthy”. I do not exercise obsessively. Walking as many steps as possible each day is my focus.

csplatt

to me these go hand in hand because if i don’t focus on healthy foods, my calorie allotment is used up more quickly each day. so i keep counting calories just upping to maintenance

wunderkindking

Oh, hey, I am now maintaining it rather than still trying to lose a bit more. That's going well and, yeah, my diet is better than obese, but I'm sitting here eating a chocolate chip cookie today and ate cheese cake yesterday and Arby's Tuesday so I'd say definitely just calories for me.

7sorok

I've been always eating healthy during the day, but evenings - that's another story. I'm a sweets addict and like any other addict have to use my willpower to stay away from them. I can't eat 1 healthy sweet snack in the evening (cakes, cookies, candies) - I will eat them all. So I have to stay away from them completely. But, I have my own snacks that are very satisfying for me - a piece of dark chocolate and a toasted carb balance tortilla every evening. I can have this every evening for month at the time and not get sick of it, but like every addict I go into binging faze once in a while and then, I'm putting on pounds.

BTW, I keep my intake at 1200 cal - can't have more - I'm very short. Right now I'm coming off my binging, thank G-d, and I feel great and positive.

azuki

i just eat whatever i want to eat at 1800 range (leaning more on non processed foods) no exercise unless i feel like it. been doing this for yrs, still 111lb 7%bf 5’4’’. dugg burger is amazing btw