This diet vs. That diet --- Which one is better?

I don't ever use the word "diet" it's just not in my vocabulary. When I started my journey, I knew it was a change in my lifestyle and I was going to eat healthy for the rest of my life. I don't ever tell myself I can't have something. If I want chocolate, I eat chocolate. If I want Coldstone, I go there and get a kids size. Everything in moderation. Logging everything, portion control, and snacks. It's a way of life. It's the best way to go.

No matter what approach you use, it really all boils down to having a calorie defecit. I used to get frustrated when people told me that but after years of trying many fad diets I came to realize that this was a fact. I lost a ton of weight on low carb, but guess what, I was eating really low calories because I just wasn't hungry. I did an all juice/fruit diet for a while, I lost weight...again because I had a calorie defecit. I've done the prepackaged meals...calorie defecit. This time i'm making a lifestyle change to make better choices 80% of the time and it's working. Slowly, but I think this time it will stay off because I can live like this forever. I've learned that I don't need to deny myself anything as long as I burn more than I consume. For me, if I feel like I'm getting a little carried away with cravings, I tend to do a day of low carb eating because it balances me out but it doesn't mean I'm never eating bread again. You have to find what works best for you, but in the end just remember to keep a defecit (weekly) and you'll lose weight.

I like what you said about not being on a "diet" thanks a tons to all of you! Also about the chocolate/coldstone thing? At first did you aviod your cravings to teach yourself that it's bad first or how did you go about sweets in the beginning? I don't like chocolate but other sweets.. mmm.

I'll also agree with the not calling whatever choice you make a diet. As I used in my first post, the common term a lot of folks around here like is a lifestyle change since we're in this for the long haul.

And to answer this question, in the beginning I limited my amount of treats and didn't really do any cheats until I had reached my first weight goal. I used low cal, pre-packaged, processed desserts to get my sweet fix because it helped me at the time and didn't hinder my weight loss or my overall journey. Things like the little packs of Hostess snack cakes or Skinny Cow bars were my usual go-tos.

Once I hit that first weight goal and begin to loosen the reigns a bit and explore other ways of going about things I started moving away from the packaged foods and doing more things from scratch and appreciating occasional treats of really nice stuff like locally made ice creams or dark chocolates. And also being able to understand that even if I went over my calories in a day to have a larger treat or a nice meal, it wasn't going to ruin everything that I had lost and worked for to that point.

Eventually I also added in working out and seeing the benefits from that both in my body and the ability to eat some more calories each day and continuing to move forward with discovering even more delicious things I could allow in to my normal eating (not just sugar treats, but meals out and things like that).

If you try to do make a ton of changes all at once it can be really overwhelming, so just start slowly, make a few changes (e.g. eating fewer calories, getting more sleep) , get comfortable, then make a few more (e.g. working out, making more of your own meals), and so on. Doing it that way can also help you avoid or minimize plateaus as well since you keep adding in new ways to make yourself healthier along the way, the body doesn't just settle into a set pattern.

Q: Which is better?
A: The one you will stick to long term

Q: What works for you?
A: Eating healthy food most of the time and only when hungry. Trying not to overeat except on occasions. Exercising regularly. I don't stress over macros but eat moderate fat, moderate protein and moderate carbs (if averaged over time). I do not fear grains, but stick to whole grains as much as possible. I don't have a name for my diet, but of the diets I have read about it most closely resembles the Mediterranean Diet.

^^This! So many people are hunting for a quick and easy diet and if they cant stick with it, then they move on to another one. Anytime someone mentions how well a "diet" works I am one who says anyone can lose weight on a diet but it is all about how long they will keep it off. The weightloss tool that works for me is one that I can stick with the rest of my life and not only helps me lose weight but keep it off.

For me -
1 - stick to my calorie goal
2 - make sure those calories are healthy and nutritious
3 - hit those macros to the best of my ability
4 - exercise, cardio and strength training

I don't put heavy restrictions on myself or eliminate entire food groups. Everything in moderation and most important - I treat myself everyday with something sinful but under 150 calories.

Depends 100% on you. What your body responds to, what type of food you'll prefer to eat, how strict you want to be, if you want to diet now and then learn to just moderate later, if you want to just adapt a lifestyle change now and eat that way on a continued basis, etc. etc.

There's no one answer for everybody, if there were, life would be a whole lot easier.

Unfortunately, the only way to find out what is going to be best for you is to try different things. But remember that your body needs time to adapt, adjust, and settle in with a dietary change, so don't try something, give it two weeks and decide it not working and you need to try something else. Give any new thing you do about a month to two months to really see how it feels and how your body is going to react in the longer term of things.

I agree with this...except that I think you need more than 2 weeks to find if something is working...if you feel the changes you are making are making you generally happier, healthier, and you feel good...try for at least 6 weeks. I feel like two weeks is too short to see true results reflective of your progression.

For me, I am doing clean eating. I didn't set out to eat that way, I decided I wanted to incorporate more fruits and veggies into my diet...then I decided I wanted to try to eliminate all foods that I have not prepared myself. I figured I wasn't the first one to come up with this idea, and stumbled upon clean eating. I love it, because I feel like I can truly eat anything I want...I have just chagned what I want! I don't really want any sweet things, so I didn't have a problem giving up sugar and sodas. It is hard to eat a 100% clean diet with a busy work schedule, husband with a crazier schedule, and a toddler. I would say that I eat clean 80% of the time, and try to make smart choices when I am not eating clean. My favorite resources are thegraciouspantry.com and clean eating magazine.

I have found that everyones idea of a successful diet is different...you have to find out what options line up with what you are willing to do in order to achieve your goals. If you have no interest in breads and pastas, then low-carb might be a great choice...but if you are like me and live for carbs, its going to make you break out into a cold sweat! (and yes, I do make my own pasta and bread!).

What has been working for me is just tracking my food on MFP, increasing my protein, fruits, and veggies, and exercising regularly. I refuse to be on any special diet where somebody writes a book and then tells me what to eat every day.