Do I have to eat 100% clean to lose weight?

kyleekay10

SideSteel said it better than I did. Not surprised. :flowerforyou:

royaldrea

SideSteel said it better than I did. Not surprised. :flowerforyou:

No, you both answered perfectly, much obliged . And thanks for the calculator! Gonna check it out after I get off.

tonynguyen75

If you don't eat clean, you're likely to get tape worms.

Always wash your food.

ryry_

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Lost almost 30 pounds post partum, eating pizza, wings, Ice cream and chicken alfredo. I just ate a calorie deficit.

Blessed with good genetics, therefore your arguement is invalid. Or so I'm told

jofjltncb6

In...

...to catch up later...

...maybe.

billsica

TL;Eating ice cream

highervibes

yes, it's necessary to eat 100% squeaky clean. Especially if you want abs.

Sabine_Stroehm

Thanks to all who answered, very helpful and much appreciated!

One more stupid question and then I won't bother anyone else about this - IIFYM practitioners generally stick within a particular calorie goal, right? You would have to, wouldn't you? Otherwise you could have 7K calories of food that fit perfectly within your macros, but you'd be eating way over what you burn.

I only ask because at the beginning of the thread I got the impression from some of the responses that calorie counting wasn't necessary for IIFYM, but I gave it some more thought and figured that it couldn't be so. Or maybe my conclusion is wrong...

People who are practicing IIFYM/flexible dieting are doing the following things, generally:

1) Tracking calories and macronutrients and attempting to hit those targets. Those targets will vary depending on goals, preferences, individual needs, etc.
2) Eating a diet consisting of mostly nutrient dense foods.
3) Usually allowing a small portion of discretionary calories such that, once nutrient needs are met (micro and macro), said discretionary intake can be filled with whatever the dieter prefers.

The reason you weren't sure, is because most people don't have the first clue about the above, and continually think that flexible dieting is something entirely different, such as eating junk food all day.

Very well put.

TallGlassOfQuirky

*looks at ticker*
*looks at candy wrapper *

No. You don't have to eat clean to lose weight

Sarauk2sf

Thanks to all who answered, very helpful and much appreciated!

One more stupid question and then I won't bother anyone else about this - IIFYM practitioners generally stick within a particular calorie goal, right? You would have to, wouldn't you? Otherwise you could have 7K calories of food that fit perfectly within your macros, but you'd be eating way over what you burn.

I only ask because at the beginning of the thread I got the impression from some of the responses that calorie counting wasn't necessary for IIFYM, but I gave it some more thought and figured that it couldn't be so. Or maybe my conclusion is wrong...

People who are practicing IIFYM/flexible dieting are doing the following things, generally:

1) Tracking calories and macronutrients and attempting to hit those targets. Those targets will vary depending on goals, preferences, individual needs, etc.
2) Eating a diet consisting of mostly nutrient dense foods.
3) Usually allowing a small portion of discretionary calories such that, once nutrient needs are met (micro and macro), said discretionary intake can be filled with whatever the dieter prefers.

The reason you weren't sure, is because most people don't have the first clue about the above, and continually think that flexible dieting is something entirely different, such as eating junk food all day.

DYEL??

Also, what ^^he said.

Basically, you set your macros in a way that they also give you the caloric intake suitable to your goals.

EHisCDN

The short answer is no. A calorie deficit will cause weight loss, regardless of what you eat. For me personally I still eat some "junk" (although I'm trying to get out of the habit of labelling food as good or bad, it's just food!) but I find "healthy" foods leave me feeling more satisfied, and in general I feel better for eating them. I also happen to love to cook so making healthy foods at home is no problem. And I love veggies!

starvinkevin

Thanks for the input guys. I guess the consensus is you can lose weight eating junk but its not optimal for health. Anyway I got another confirmation this is true - I lost 2.2 lbs from yesterday morning and 1.6 lbs from my lowest point last week. I ate junk food for about half my meals every day but I made sure to track them accurately and burn off the excess through cardio. I think I'll just keep doing what I'm doing as eating healthy all the time is unsustainable for me.

devil_in_a_blue_dress

Thanks for the input guys. I guess the consensus is you can lose weight eating junk but its not optimal for health. Anyway I got another confirmation this is true - I lost 2.2 lbs from yesterday morning and 1.6 lbs from my lowest point last week. I ate junk food for about half my meals every day but I made sure to track them accurately and burn off the excess through cardio. I think I'll just keep doing what I'm doing as eating healthy all the time is unsustainable for me.

I will tell the honest truth about my weight loss -- I ate a lot of "junk" food. All kinds from candy/chips to lunch meat/canned soups to fast food to soda. I lost about 40 pounds. I fluctuate up and down 5 pounds -- I have kept it off for about 10 years now. With time, I started eating more "clean" it was a completely natural progression for, my taste buds changed . I still eat lunch meat, McDonald's and drink pop though -- just less now. I never thought of them as "bad". For the longest time, I never worked out either. Then I found myself wanting to. All of these changes came easier because they were spread out and didn't feel terrible and forced.

You will find success in doing what you find to be sustainable and you will have success. How anyone else achieves their goals is basically irrelevant. Good luck to you.

Myhaloslipped

You do not have to eat 100% clean however just creating a calorie deficit will not help your goal. The timing of when you eat bad food can be helpful to your cause. Look into carb backloading. It is a fun way to lose get lean and eat what you want

^not this.

Rai007

No
but when u have less to eat you want to eat good to stay satisfied and fuller
with that said u can still trade junk with clean
a calorie is a calorie
your macros will be fine but micros i dont think
(aldo i am no science student to know about macros/micros)