Processed foods?

I stopped processed foods and lost 40lbs w/exercise and felt so much better, but I support whatever you do!! ; )

For sure it's possible! But as mentioned, I think a lot of them have more calories/sodium/other ingredients than clean foods you prepare yourself. I eat quite a few processed foods, and you can definitely incorporate them into your diet.

When I was younger, I could just cut calories and lose, but after about 35 that didn't work for me anymore. If I want to lose weight consistently, I have to stick with less processed foods. If I just focus on counting calories, I either don't lose or I lose very slowly. Counting calories is a lot of work to me if I'm not getting good results so I count carbs as well - helps keep me away from the processed stuff.

You can lose weight eating nothing but crap food like Hamburger Helper, McDonalds and Subway for every meal, breakfast through dinner. Will you be healthy? No, but you will weigh less. Just because you lose weight doesn't mean you are healthy.

Even before losing weight I was an avid label reader and generally avoided unnatural ingredients, cooked most things from scratch, etc. This still works for me but I recognize that it isn't for everyone and we all have different lives, different priorities and different obligations. My advice is to eat as many real foods as you possibly can, e.g. foods that don't have an ingredient list like produce, meats, etc. It isn't an all or nothing thing- make changes that can reasonably fit into your life. If you used to eat hamburger Helper 3x week, cut it back to one and make your own meat with a spice mixture the other 2x a week instead of relying on boxed stuff. If you used to eat lunch meats every day on a sandwich, cut it back to a couple of times a week.

I am leery of any fitness guru with an all or nothing approach (as in you must eat paleo! You must eat clean! you must drink protein shakes! you must avoid carbs!). I am especially leery of the people on MFP who have embraced a certain eating style (like paleo or Atkins) and now deems everyone else unhealthy who doesn't eat like them. Us former fatties tend to suddenly think we are expert once we find something that works for us. :laugh:

Baby steps are key, as well as making changes you will stick with in the long run.

When I first started out, I switched from eating almost everything processed, to eating nothing processed. Lost 10 lbs in a week, and 17 lbs in a month.

Then I started eating some processed foods again. I stayed under my calorie limit, but gained 7 lbs back.

Now, I've gone back to eating purely "clean" foods, and I'm back down to the full 17 lbs again.

That's all I've got to say on the matter!

You don't have to give up all processed foods, but as you do, you will feel SO much better! I generally eat clean, and almost never eat out. This past weekend I had too much processed food, and even though I stayed within my calorie range, I feel so sluggish and bloated. Its gross! I can't wait to feel better in a few days after I'm back to my normal way of eating!

I mainly eat whole food. Fruits, veggies, protein, legumes, some grains, seeds, heathly oils and nuts. I also use whey protein. Once a week I have a meal where I eat whatever I want. I feel great, lose weight. Now, if I eat a bunch of processed, sugary food a few meals in a row I'm bloated and feel crappy. It's hard to say, this is bad, this is good. You need to find out what works for you.

http://www.wannabebig.com/diet-and-nutrition/the-dirt-on-clean-eating/

this x9000

Yes... its calories in and caloires out. I eat alot of processed foods but I workout and do both cardio and weights too.

What motivates me is a twix candy bar, reeses peanut butter cup, or little debbies snack cake at the end of the day.

What does it for you?

I noticed that when i ate a lot of processed foods and was under calorie and was working out i didnt lose anything at all. So one week i hate a lot more fresh fruits and veggies and leaner meat and it helped. I didnt realize how much sodium was in them. I cut down on some of my processed foods and have been at a plateau for a lil over a month, im am currently doing a detox for 9 days to shake things up a bit. Will i cut them out completly no, but i will not eat as much of them and start incorporating more cleaner eating. feel free to add me if you like, we will see how my detox goes and if it helps get me past this plateau.

I avoid as much processed food as possible. This allows me to eat a lot more. Like last night, I had an enormous bowl of couscous, green beans, peas, corn, and shrimp. It was delicious, filling, and only 500 calories. It was the same for the chipotle chicken and rice I made a few days ago. The chicken and biscuits I'll be eating tonight only has 350 calories. We eat really well, most dinners aren't too difficult to make, and I never have to worry about staying within my calorie goal.

Yes you can lose weight.

However, eating less processed foods is far healthier.

Start eliminating processed food systematically, not all at once where you will feel deprived and fall off the wagon.

Surely you can make some small changes that won't leave you feeling anxious?

I agree with this. Make slow gradual changes. One thing at a time. I found once I started tracking and keeping to my calorie limit I started to eat cleaner just so I could eat more. Doing too much at once could mean failure and you don't want to do that. Best way to start is to start logging what you eat now. You'll see where you need to make changes.

For example if I make my own pizza at home I can keep the calories down and eat 1.5 x what I would of a processed pizza. maybe even double.

Cutting back on processed foods worked out for me (along with using a caloric deficit tetc). Experiment and figure out what works for you.

You absolutely can lose while you are eating processed foods but there are some MAJOR drawbacks and I think you'd find it harder to lean towards processed food than to avoid it. "Cleaner" foods tend to give you more bang for your buck- they provide more fuel for your body per calorie than fake cheese sauce and processed meat with fewer detrimental elements- such as sodium or transfat. That's really why so many people rely on them as the cornerstone for losing weight- it's just more filling to eat peanut butter oatmeal that Smacks cereal.

I agree with the posters that suggest you work your way towards it. Use MFP to guide your calories. Use your brain to guide your choices as to what those calories are.

Don't listen to Jillian Michaels; at least not exclusively. Personalities like that are created to sell you product. They will give you basic, surface information so as to give generic advice that will mostly work for most people- not the full info you need to make the right choices for you and your life specifically.

^^^This.