Am i normal, or lucky?

HMonsterX

I haven't cut anything at all out of my diet.
I don't eat breakfast.
i have 3/4 of my daily calories after 7pm.
I "eat" aspartame
I drink soda.
I don't look at carbs or fat.
I don't eat clean.
I eat wheat.

I just exercise 6 times a week, and watch my calories.

And losing this weight has been a breeze. Am i just lucky that sooooo many things often spouted on these boards don't affect me...or am i just normal, and people are making this losing weight stuff too complicated?

1grammie

You didn't tell your age. When I was younger I could lose weight with very little effort. As I aged it has become more and more difficult. Sounds like you are very active and have a high metabolism making weight loss much easier.

dmpizza

If you truly exercise 6 days a week and watch your calories then you are disciplined, but I wouldn't say lucky.
It is true some people don't see results they are happy with, so in that sense you are lucky.

deathstarclock

I'd be more concerned with your internal health.

Amo_Angelus

No, you're normal. Eat less than you use and you will still loose weight.

Most of the crap spouted by dieters is just that. Crap.

No carbs = faster weight loss, ketosis, ill health
No soda = soda has salt which makes you retain water so cutting it out will cut out a lot of sodium in your diet...but the moment you drink it again, you gain it right back. It's equivelent to shrink wrap basically.
Shrink Wrap = wrapping yourself in shrink wrap which makes you weat out water weight...the moment you drink it comes right back on :P
No Weat....I don't even know what that one's about

They're fads and ridiculous. If you have a genuine non diet reason for cutting them out, it's all gravy, doing it just to diet is ridiculous and a lot of the time I wonder if these people should get their heads looked at. But hey, Some celebrity has said it's worked for them, and it's easier than getting off your *kitten* and burning the calories...so no wonder they're popular.

twinsanity

I don't think it has anything to do with luck. It sound like your body make-up makes it easier for you to lose weight. Sounds like maybe you have a higher metabolism than some. For others, especially those with quite a bit of weight to lose, I don't think it's about them making it more difficult than it has to be, either; it's just a lot of weight they have to lose, which often times means a bigger lifestyle change is necessary for them than is necessary for you. Each person is different, and their body make-up makes losing weight different for everyone, too.

realme56

Losing weight is always easier for guys than women. You are cutting down more than cutting out which is easier than the restrictive stuff people do here. I went with no diet soda for a while but I like it and something will kill you so I am keeping my diet soda ;-)
The stress of your care giving may affect your weight loss more than you realize as well. Wish you the best.

aliciagetshealthy

It is nice that losing the weight has been easy for you, as long as you understand that being thin does not equal being healthy.

HMonsterX

The stress of your care giving may affect your weight loss more than you realize as well. Wish you the best.

I've sometimes thought of this. It's one of the reasons I'm doing this now, before things get really bad...

It is nice that losing the weight has been easy for you, as long as you understand that being thin does not equal being healthy.

I never intend to be "healthy", as due to my palette i would never be able to maintain it. It's about getting healthIER for me. I'm rather be healthier 100% of the time, then healthy for 50%, and end up falling off and regaining the weight the rest of the time.

The reason i ask is that I keep seeing new people being told to cut this, cut that, dont eat this, etc. All they might want is to shed the fat. If that is the case, then keep it simple. If you want to become a super athlete, THEN you look more deeply at actually cutting stuff.

Sezmo83

I wanted to "diet" in a way I could maintain for the rest of my life. Cutting out foods I genuinely enjoy was simply not an option because I'd just end up falling off the wagon, bingeing on them and never getting back on track. I don't want to be one of these people who refuses things because they're "bad", if I eat out or it's a special occasion I don't want to be worrying about what I can and can't have, that takes all the joy out of it for me.

So...I eat full fat cheese, drink full fat milk, have the odd slice of cake or bottle of soda. I've cut nothing completely out of my diet although I do check my portion size and eat things in moderation. As long as I make good choices most of the time I don't see a problem with it. And to be honest, if I cut out everything I've seen people advised to cut out I'd be living on fresh air and water!

HMonsterX

And to be honest, if I cut out everything I've seen people advised to cut out I'd be living on fresh air and water!

NOOO!! You can't do that! The air is polluted, and water is dangerous with too much or too little!

alyssamiller77

I'm going to agree with the person that said it's not luck it's discipline. Now I'm sure there are exceptions to this, but so many of the people that I've seen complaining about not being able to lose weight on this forum have some pretty clear issues when you look at their diary. Either they're not exercising enough, or they're having far too many days where they don't stay within their calorie goals and in some cases I've even seen where it was pretty clear that they either over-estimated their calorie burn or under-estimated calories in some of the things they logged.

I'm 34 and active. I workout 7 days a week. I do strength training 5 of those days. All I've done is lower my calories and I had no problem dropping close to 30 pounds in just over 2 months. Now I wasn't very over-weight to begin with and my goal was 26 pounds, so according to everything I've read it should have been harder for me to lose and get to my goal than a more overweight person. But I was committed, logged faithfully every day (except when on vacation but even then I ate good and exercised so still lost weight) I follow my workout regimen religiously and the results have been very successful. Much like you I didn't give up anything, I didn't get into any of these "don't eat after 8:00PM" or "Diet drinks with Aspartame make you fat" because I didn't find those to be sustainable for me. So I've become a believer in the concept that when it's all said and done, calories in versus calories out is what really matters for weight management.

Rilke

I'd be more concerned with your internal health.

+1

alyssamiller77

I wanted to "diet" in a way I could maintain for the rest of my life. Cutting out foods I genuinely enjoy was simply not an option because I'd just end up falling off the wagon, bingeing on them and never getting back on track. I don't want to be one of these people who refuses things because they're "bad", if I eat out or it's a special occasion I don't want to be worrying about what I can and can't have, that takes all the joy out of it for me.

So...I eat full fat cheese, drink full fat milk, have the odd slice of cake or bottle of soda. I've cut nothing completely out of my diet although I do check my portion size and eat things in moderation. As long as I make good choices most of the time I don't see a problem with it. And to be honest, if I cut out everything I've seen people advised to cut out I'd be living on fresh air and water!

^^ This - I've been preaching this since I joined MFP. In fact I even wrote a blog post on the topic. It is sooooooo important that you make a lifestyle change that can be permanent. Giving up foods you love will never be a permanent change that you can sustain. Instead you have to learn how to fit those calorie dense foods into your overall diet in a healthy manner. THAT is the most important concept in losing weight as far as i'm concerned.

kmcrey87

You're normal! I didn't change my diet at all while I was losing weight. I just ate in moderation some of my favorite high calories treats and busted my *kitten* at the gym. You're obviously accurately tracking your calories too, which helps a ton!

Congrats on the weight loss and figuring out what works for you!

scagneti

Honestly, when you're a higher weight, any real change should result in weight loss. If my British math is right, you were like 285 pounds when you started. At that weight, any regular movement and any limit of calories is going to result in a loss. It's just plain science.

The challenge will be when you're within a healthy weight and want to lose vanity pounds.

javamonster

I wanted to "diet" in a way I could maintain for the rest of my life. Cutting out foods I genuinely enjoy was simply not an option because I'd just end up falling off the wagon, bingeing on them and never getting back on track. I don't want to be one of these people who refuses things because they're "bad", if I eat out or it's a special occasion I don't want to be worrying about what I can and can't have, that takes all the joy out of it for me.

So...I eat full fat cheese, drink full fat milk, have the odd slice of cake or bottle of soda. I've cut nothing completely out of my diet although I do check my portion size and eat things in moderation. As long as I make good choices most of the time I don't see a problem with it. And to be honest, if I cut out everything I've seen people advised to cut out I'd be living on fresh air and water!

^^ This - I've been preaching this since I joined MFP. In fact I even wrote a blog post on the topic. It is sooooooo important that you make a lifestyle change that can be permanent. Giving up foods you love will never be a permanent change that you can sustain. Instead you have to learn how to fit those calorie dense foods into your overall diet in a healthy manner. THAT is the most important concept in losing weight as far as i'm concerned.

Agreed. And I am female, 44, more than likely in that pre-menopausal state in which everyone deems it so hard to lose weight. Okay so I didn't have a lot to lose, but all I did was start exercising again and tracked my calories. Didn't give up chocolate; didn't give up ice cream, just curtailed my consumption of both. I do eat pretty healthy otherwise.

tigersword

I haven't cut anything at all out of my diet.
I don't eat breakfast.
i have 3/4 of my daily calories after 7pm.
I "eat" aspartame
I drink soda.
I don't look at carbs or fat.
I don't eat clean.
I eat wheat.

I just exercise 6 times a week, and watch my calories.

And losing this weight has been a breeze. Am i just lucky that sooooo many things often spouted on these boards don't affect me...or am i just normal, and people are making this losing weight stuff too complicated?

I'm the same way, 48 pounds down, and I even EAT AT RESTAURANTS regularly. :noway: :laugh:

Unless you have a metabolic health issue, there is no reason you can't lose weight and be healthy by simply monitoring your portion size and eating the right amount of calories. Human beings have evolved over hundreds of thousands of years eating such a widely varied diet that there is no one correct way to eat that is healthier than other. Some societies evolved eating strictly vegetarian, others evolved eating mostly carnivorous, and still others evolved with various plants and grains. A healthy human body has absolutely no issue digesting and utilizing anything.

Espressocycle

Eat less, move more. It really is that simple.

ronda_gettinghealthy

I haven't cut anything at all out of my diet.
I don't eat breakfast.
i have 3/4 of my daily calories after 7pm.
I "eat" aspartame
I drink soda.
I don't look at carbs or fat.
I don't eat clean.
I eat wheat.

I just exercise 6 times a week, and watch my calories.

And losing this weight has been a breeze. Am i just lucky that sooooo many things often spouted on these boards don't affect me...or am i just normal, and people are making this losing weight stuff too complicated?

absolutely you are losing a great amount of wt....come talk to me in 2 -3 years and lets talk HEALTH....I can lose wt on a complete fast for 40 days....is that good for me????? probably not....if your goal is health....you are probably not doing the best for you body...but you will have to find these things out for yourself...

LilMissFoodie

I'd be more concerned with your internal health.

I sometimes wonder when I see many, many quotes like this - usually about pedantic elements of diet - whether you would describe obsessing over every aspect of your diet as 'internally healthy'.