Triumphantly Dirty (Non-Clean) Eaters

linka411

I guess I'm not overly "clean" either. I try to eat a little better than I used to, but I almost always fit in a 100 calorie pack of oreos at night for my sweet tooth or some sweet, and friday/weekend night dinners are almost always takeout or restaurant food. It's all about planning ahead of time and knowing when to stop for me, even if my brain wants more.

I've lost 4 pounds so far

palmerdanielle

Well, I'm a lot more of a clean eater than how I ate before I started losing, but I'm by no means much of a clean eater now, still eat lots of 'junk' but it's in moderation.
My diary is open, I'm losing no problem. Nothing wrong with clean eating but even though I feel a bit better if I do, I find my slip ups are worse and make me feel worse. When I'm losing and able to have treats in my day, I'm way more likely to stick to it!

AsianSuperfly

Flexible dieter here checking in for the bump....oh btw I am in deed a success story. My ticker doesn't tell my story.

MrsCZM138

In for triumphantly dirty.. oh, and I don't eat clean either.

40lbs down in 6 months mostly by diet change and not much exercise (what can I say, I'm a bad girl)

lizzyclatworthy

I am smashing it eating filth! (not just weight loss, I am stronger and fitter)

I was taking little containers of chicken and salad into uni for lunch until one day it dawned on me that they sell pizza by the slice (it's not that common where I live so your options are pay for a whole pizza or have none) now every day I am in uni I have pizza for lunch... I sat an extra module for a certificate and a week of pizza lunches!

I love salad and veggies as long as they are accompanying something delicious

I am more choosy about what crap I eat. I would rather wait to eat a favorite chocolate bar than eat a substandard one just because it's what is in front of me at the time.

I also enjoy destroying a roast chicken from the rotisserie whilst still in the car park... one day they will release cctv of a wild woman-beast with chicken bones hanging out of her mouth with a public safety announcement

Riffraft1960

No where near a success story, but I have lost 7lbs in my first 3 weeks. I do not eat anywhere near "Clean", however I am doing light cardio 3 to 5 times a week. I am just counting calories

Typically a 44oz Diet Mt. Dew with a fiber 90 bar in the morning. A Frozen dinner with cereal bar for lunch. A bag of some kind of chips for an afternoon snack. Then whatever for dinner. The last two nights it has be 3 tacos from taco bell since the Diamondbacks scored 6 runs and you get them free with a purchase of a large drink. I don't think taco bell qualifies as clean :laugh:

In my previous times of losing weight by eating a particular way, I found that I couldn't stick to it. I am convinced that best way to lose weight is a mathematical formula calories in minus calories out. Now once I lose the weight I want I might actually work on toning myself and might adjust types of food to provide building blocks.

jehavin

Oh the irony of reading this thread from the start and s5eeing the people like "oh, I eat what I want and I've already lost 30 lbs in (x amount of time)" then looking down to their ticker to see that they have *currently* only lost 5lbs (aka gained some back) or have been inactive for over 6 months. Obviously "eating dirty" can work, too, but for some, that cockiness comes back to bite them in the butt.

P.S. I eat fairly dirty and have lost 50lbs but have definitely identified foods that are on a "once a month or else I will backslide" basis. Permanently.

MrsCZM138

Oh the irony of reading this thread from the start and s5eeing the people like "oh, I eat what I want and I've already lost 30 lbs in (x amount of time)" then looking down to their ticker to see that they have *currently* only lost 5lbs (aka gained some back) or have been inactive for over 6 months. Obviously "eating dirty" can work, too, but for some, that cockiness comes back to bite them in the butt.

P.S. I eat fairly dirty and have lost 50lbs but have definitely identified foods that are on a "once a month or else I will backslide" basis. Permanently.

To be fair, I'd venture to guess lots of the "clean" eating people out there didn't make it long either or gained some back. The vast majority of people who sign up on MFP don't make it long no matter what they do. I'd love to see some real stats from the site like total number of members, members who've logged more than 4 weeks, etc.

AlysonG2

Anything I can fit into my calories is fair game. I have a glass of hot chocolate with lots of marshmallows every night before bed. Today I had ramen noodles for lunch and will have fettuccine Alfredo for dinner. I have cheese fries from Chili's at least once a week. I make pizza at least once a week. Chocolate chip pancakes, onion rings and diet coke floats from Sonic, I could go on forever. I think I'm doing ok, I'm still sane, and this is something I can easily do for the rest of my life. Find what works for you.

jehavin

Oh the irony of reading this thread from the start and s5eeing the people like "oh, I eat what I want and I've already lost 30 lbs in (x amount of time)" then looking down to their ticker to see that they have *currently* only lost 5lbs (aka gained some back) or have been inactive for over 6 months. Obviously "eating dirty" can work, too, but for some, that cockiness comes back to bite them in the butt.

P.S. I eat fairly dirty and have lost 50lbs but have definitely identified foods that are on a "once a month or else I will backslide" basis. Permanently.

To be fair, I'd venture to guess lots of the "clean" eating people out there didn't make it long either or gained some back. The vast majority of people who sign up on MFP don't make it long no matter what they do. I'd love to see some real stats from the site like total number of members, members who've logged more than 4 weeks, etc.

Good point I meant to add that the same is true for most of the restrictive dieting threads, too, (ex: VLC, green coffee extract) but in my experience, if a person just "takes smaller portions" of the foods that used to make them overweight, then eventually those portions start creeping up again. However, if a person commits to IIFYM, then you are actually aware of the amount of calories in those "dirty foods" that will then help you curb it. I guess my point is that dirty eating can be done in a smart way or a dumb way, but if a person goes into it all cocky then they won't succeed. Plus, this thread is full of people who *have* succeeded in losing and keeping off weight eating "dirty." Very inspiring as long as the newcomers realize that they still have to count calories and exercise consistent self-control. I personally save most of my "dirty foods" for a weekly cheat day, go balls to the wall and then get back on the wagon the next day but sometimes the "I eat ice cream/poptarts every day" crowd makes it seem like if a person isn't eating "dirty" foods every day, they are depriving themselves. I am actually pretty encouraged to see how many 80/20 people responded here.

MrsCZM138

Oh the irony of reading this thread from the start and s5eeing the people like "oh, I eat what I want and I've already lost 30 lbs in (x amount of time)" then looking down to their ticker to see that they have *currently* only lost 5lbs (aka gained some back) or have been inactive for over 6 months. Obviously "eating dirty" can work, too, but for some, that cockiness comes back to bite them in the butt.

P.S. I eat fairly dirty and have lost 50lbs but have definitely identified foods that are on a "once a month or else I will backslide" basis. Permanently.

To be fair, I'd venture to guess lots of the "clean" eating people out there didn't make it long either or gained some back. The vast majority of people who sign up on MFP don't make it long no matter what they do. I'd love to see some real stats from the site like total number of members, members who've logged more than 4 weeks, etc.

Good point I meant to add that the same is true for most of the restrictive dieting threads, too, (ex: VLC, green coffee extract) but in my experience, if a person just "takes smaller portions" of the foods that used to make them overweight, then eventually those portions start creeping up again. However, if a person commits to IIFYM, then you are actually aware of the amount of calories in those "dirty foods" that will then help you curb it. I guess my point is that dirty eating can be done in a smart way or a dumb way, but if a person goes into it all cocky then they won't succeed. Plus, this thread is full of people who *have* succeeded in losing and keeping off weight eating "dirty." Very inspiring as long as the newcomers realize that they still have to count calories and exercise consistent self-control. I personally save most of my "dirty foods" for a weekly cheat day, go balls to the wall and then get back on the wagon the next day but sometimes the "I eat ice cream/poptarts every day" crowd makes it seem like if a person isn't eating "dirty" foods every day, they are depriving themselves. I am actually pretty encouraged to see how many 80/20 people responded here.

No, no. I'm with you. Two pop tarts is like 440 calories. That's a third of most people's day- ya know, all those loves who can't eat more than 1200 cal/day (don't get me started). It makes you wonder if the rest of the day is lettuce and pickles or if they're not really counting properly and just down sizing portions.

jehavin

Lol. True story. I guess I am too stingy for daily poptarts. I save those calories for my weekend apple fritters. To each his/her own as long as they are being honest with themselves

Zekela

My diary looks like something from the movie 'Elf' and I still pay attention to getting all the vitamins and minerals plus macros to sustain my physical activity.

MrsCZM138

Lol. True story. I guess I am too stingy for daily poptarts. I save those calories for my weekend apple fritters. To each his/her own as long as they are being honest with themselves

jehavin

omg! that is so me, lol! I guess I'm "dirtier" than I original thought....

GotShellica

I lost 75lbs eating extremely dirty (fast food several times a week), smoking a pack a day, drinking nothing but coffee, Diet Mt. Dew, and sugar free Red Bull and doing little exercise beyond walking and hiking. Kept it off until I quit smoking (10lb gain) and got pregnant with mini-me (60lb gain).

I'm here now to lose the baby weight and I am definitely still a dirty eater. I'm better than I used to be simply because my circumstances are different: I'm married with a family and we like to cook at home so I eat out less by default. I'm also training really hard because somewhere along the way I got addicted to exercise and I enjoy my new found strength and endurance. Because I'm training hard, I find staying hydrated to be more important so I've curbed my diet soda habit quite a bit (but still have a can or so daily and more on rest days).

Honestly I think the all or nothing mentality is completely terrible for anyone, and especially for someone who is struggling to lose weight to begin with. I mean look at the threads around here... someone who didn't know better would instantly think they MUST eat clean and MUST lift heavy and MUST watch their macros and MUST MUST MUST eat TDEE or they will go into starvation mode immediately and gain 100lbs. Yes, optimal health is an excellent goal and something all of us should be aware of, but for someone who has a tremendous amount of weight to lose, all it does is cause confusion and discouragement. Fix your calories FIRST, then worry about building on that with other healthy habits.

MrsCZM138

omg! that is so me, lol! I guess I'm "dirtier" than I original thought....

Nothing wrong with that! :drinker:

ashCHB

I eat whatever the heck I feel like at the moment; I just keep it in moderation & make sure to log what I eat.

In college, I got up to 145 (doesn't sound like much, but at my height it's a BMI of 30.3) by being a Cafeteria Cake connoisseur who sat around studying all the time. I did graduate cum laude, though, so I guess that was my reward...

After graduation, I changed my eating habits to moderation & I got a very active job. I lost 25 pounds (bringing me down to a BMI of 25.1). Then I changed jobs so I sit at a desk now, and I gained a good chunk of it back, which is why I'm back here now. :-p

I'm continuing to eat whatever the heck I want, but logging it makes all the difference. But cake.... Mmmmm, cake...

stacibuk

I lost 75lbs eating extremely dirty (fast food several times a week), smoking a pack a day, drinking nothing but coffee, Diet Mt. Dew, and sugar free Red Bull and doing little exercise beyond walking and hiking. Kept it off until I quit smoking (10lb gain) and got pregnant with mini-me (60lb gain).

I'm here now to lose the baby weight and I am definitely still a dirty eater. I'm better than I used to be simply because my circumstances are different: I'm married with a family and we like to cook at home so I eat out less by default. I'm also training really hard because somewhere along the way I got addicted to exercise and I enjoy my new found strength and endurance. Because I'm training hard, I find staying hydrated to be more important so I've curbed my diet soda habit quite a bit (but still have a can or so daily and more on rest days).

Honestly I think the all or nothing mentality is completely terrible for anyone, and especially for someone who is struggling to lose weight to begin with. I mean look at the threads around here... someone who didn't know better would instantly think they MUST eat clean and MUST lift heavy and MUST watch their macros and MUST MUST MUST eat TDEE or they will go into starvation mode immediately and gain 100lbs. Yes, optimal health is an excellent goal and something all of us should be aware of, but for someone who has a tremendous amount of weight to lose, all it does is cause confusion and discouragement. Fix your calories FIRST, then worry about building on that with other healthy habits.

You gained the weight back which is not great. So I wouldn't preach too much.

MelsAuntie

If I haven't dropped it on the floor, it's clean.

GotShellica

You gained the weight back which is not great. So I wouldn't preach too much.

I gained the weight back because I took pregnancy as an excuse to eat whatever I wanted in whatever quantity I wanted. I know EXACTLY what I did wrong and it has absolutely nothing to do with eating "dirty" and everything to do with eating too many calories.

I'm down 32lbs from my post-pregnancy weight, and I am down 7lbs since I started tracking seriously on MFP a few weeks ago. Physically I am in better shape than I was when I was at my goal weight. What I am doing is working for me, and I am living, breathing proof that calories in/calories out works, regardless of what you are eating. But hey, if you don't believe me, by all means continue to let your weight loss tracker sit at zero pounds lost while mine continues to drop.

Pasukaru2

I lost all my weight so far and I'm definetly not a clean eater, altough I eat way better than I used to. Still eat chips, ice cream or dessert every now and then and still losing the weight

ingoiolo

i eat nearly anything i fancy... take a look at my diary if you want

success is relative, but my ticker is going the right way started at the end of August, slowed down a bit since January

leseratte2222

Hello, I just read a really good book by Y. Freedhoff, MD: The Diet Fix.
His goal is to encourage us to live the healthiest life we can live and chocolate is part of it!

airangel59

Like another person (twentyco) posted last May, I too I eat whatever I want, but stay within my calorie goal (1250+ while losing/higher now in maintenance) . Like her, I also HAD a lot to lose (hit goal range on Day #640, 35 days ago) & like twentyco my issue was in part portion control.

If I have to deprive myself and not eat processed food, junk, fast food , chocolates & candy, I'm not going to stick to any plan for any length of time.

I weigh & measure what I eat and plan what I'm eating ahead of time (fast food/eating out etc) , then plan the rest of the day around that meal. I don't have cheat days or cheat meals, I work what I want into my daily diary.

This is what works for me, ymmv. You don't have to eat clean to lose weight.

fervelasco

Obese all my life... all the diets I went on through in 25 years restricted me. I could go one month without cheating, not a single cookie, not even a potato chip... but the first time caved in, I went on a rampage as if to make up for a month of deprivation and went on to eat mindlessly and gained all the weight back and then some. When I learned all about calories and expenditure and all those things, and that calories are calories no matter if it's from healthy food or junk food (just for weight loss purposes, nutrition is a whole different topic), that's what did it for me. I can't cook, I live alone, I buy all my meals. I've lost 106 pounds (48kg) so far eating junk, chocolate, all of it... what matters is the calories, portions. As the weight came off, I found myself eating healthier without even trying... I found this place were for a little less than 2 dollars, I get a homemade meal... I reluctantly tried the steam vegetable once and now I'm hooked... I always include them in my order. I also find myself buying fruits and eating them as fillers for meals.. Let's say I ate 2 slices of pizza... I can't get in something higher than 100 calories, so fruits and vegetables fit in perfectly... I don't even know how this happened... I didn't plan on eating healthier... it just happened. Same thing with exercise.. I didn't do any for the first 10 months of my journey... then, suddenly, I started walking a lot... not as a way to exercise but to get to places. I love to take 2-3 hour long walks now and burn 500-600 calories having fun, listening to music, looking at people, buildings, etc..

This was really a life style change, and it's fully sustainable. I learned how to eat, I can do this for the rest of my life without a problem.

If you're not disciplined and are a lazy couch potato like I am, there's hope. Just acknowledge your weaknesses and find a way around them.

maki53719

bump

butterfli7o

Love this thread!

GBrady43068

I've been here since October, lost 37 pounds thus far, biggest weight I've had yet was last week.

Foods included:
BREAKFASTS, LUNCHES AND DINNERS THIS WEEK INCLUDED: Coffee,tacos (with beef), boxed cold cereal (Cinnamon Toast Crunch), meatloaf, McDonald’s double cheeseburgers, Papa John’s pizza and cheese bread,
SNACKS: Pre-packaged banana bread, “fake Nutella” (Aldi brand chocolate hazelnut spread), Blue Bunny vanilla crunch ice cream bar

In the interests of full disclosure, on the "dirty" days I tended to go with a salad for one of the meals (or a vegetarian option) to help "bank" calories for it. And I also have become way more active than when I started here (training for a 5K now and lifting weights 3 times a week). But it CAN be done...without only eating rabbit food. :laugh:

StaciMarie1974

I *could* eat cleaner, but I just refuse to bother. Is that bad of me? I honestly don't see the reason to clean everything up.

I'm down 25 pounds since Christmas. My personal areas of struggle: fruits and veggies. And water. I have to work at those two areas. I aim for balance, nothing outlawed but some things in small portions.

I eat fast food. I eat frozen food. I eat pasta and potatoes and even cheese. I eat pizza, and lots of it since I work part time at Dominos and get 50% off.

Edited to add: I stop every morning on the way to work and fill up a 64 ounce mug with Coke Zero. Today I've actually had 7 cups of water and have not finished the Zero. Win.