Your opinion on popular diet plans, please

Find the macro ratio you perform best on, stick with that, eating what you want. Worked for me (full progress pics in my profile).

I haven't done atkins personally, but I'm currently doing a keto diet which is essentially severely reducing your carb intake and eating a lot of fat (healthy fats) and protein. I mean, I could lose weight with a simple caloric deficit but I have to say, after only a week trying it, I feel really energised and positive, so if that stuff is important to you, I would give it a bit of research and try it out! Not only is ketosis fantastic for weight loss, it has a lot of other great effects.

If you're not losing weight, it's because you're eating more calories than you think, and it's too much to create a calorie deficit. All the whizbang diets are really just calorie deficits dressed up in pretty clown suits. They try to obfuscate that fact, but it's really all it is. They exist to make money for the people who created them, and that's it.

Just log everything you eat as accurately as you can, and make sure you're not overestimating your daily calorie expenditure. If you've got your numbers right, you'll lose weight. If you don't lose weight, you don't have your numbers right. That's really all there is to it.

Im just using MFP with daily exercise. I try not to get into a routine if doing the same exercise everyday. I may do cardio one day andsstrength exercise the next.. but don't limit yourself.. if you can only run for 50 yards today, try to run. 80 yards tomorrow

Sorry about all the typos, I'm on my cell!

If you're not losing weight, it's because you're eating more calories than you think, and it's too much to create a calorie deficit. All the whizbang diets are really just calorie deficits dressed up in pretty clown suits. They try to obfuscate that fact, but it's really all it is. They exist to make money for the people who created them, and that's it.

Just log everything you eat as accurately as you can, and make sure you're not overestimating your daily calorie expenditure. If you've got your numbers right, you'll lose weight. If you don't lose weight, you don't have your numbers right. That's really all there is to it.

What she said^^ For example, if your maintenance/tdee is 2000 cal and all you eat is 1800 cal of Reeses Pieces every day, you will lose fat on a constant basis. Obviously it's not the healthiest thing to do.. and most of those brand name diets aren't healthy either. They deprive you of essential macro and micronutrients. Eat your carbs, fats and proteins. If you're at a caloric deficit, you will lose weight. Calories are just a measurement of energy. If your body expends more energy than it consumes, it will use ALL of what you ate as energy no matter what it was and will then go to back up sources; fat stores being the first.

The only time carbs and fats will cause you to gain weight/store fat, is if you're at a caloric surplus, consuming more energy than you expend. If you're at a caloric surplus, protein will cause your body to store fat as well.

The problem with "diets" is they usually aren't sustainable, which is why most people end up back where they started. Just eat what you want and make sure you count your intake and expenditure properly. If you hit a plateau, at least one of your counts is off.
You could be underestimating your caloric intake and/or you could be overestimating your energy expenditure. Just gradually reduce your caloric intake until you break the plateau.

My main question is: Is this sustainable? Can I eat this way for life?

In 2001-2002 I lost 60 lbs. on the Carb Addicts Diet, and in subsequent years I gained almost all of it back. That eating style was not sustainable for me; neither was the amount of exercise I was doing. In addition, my stress responses hadn't changed.

This time around I'm focused on eating the same way during maintenance as I have eaten to reduce. For me, that means a lot of fresh produce in place of processed foods. The only change during maintenance will be allowing myself more calories, while keeping track so that I don't overdo. The same goes for exercise, which is much more moderate than it had been before. Finally, I've focused on changing my stress responses so that they don't drive me toward emotional eating.

I've also taken the weight off slowly, aiming for (and in actuality losing slightly more than) a half-pound per week. That way, I have not felt deprived. Instead, I've made weight loss and fitness as easy on myself as possible.

If you're not losing weight, it's because you're eating more calories than you think, and it's too much to create a calorie deficit. All the whizbang diets are really just calorie deficits dressed up in pretty clown suits. They try to obfuscate that fact, but it's really all it is. They exist to make money for the people who created them, and that's it.

Just log everything you eat as accurately as you can, and make sure you're not overestimating your daily calorie expenditure. If you've got your numbers right, you'll lose weight. If you don't lose weight, you don't have your numbers right. That's really all there is to it.

I couldn't have said this better. Over the past ~8 years I've tried LA Weight Loss, the Sugar Buster Diet, South Beach Diet, 5:2/IF, the list goes on. And every time I lost weight sure, but the way I ate, how much I ate, and what I denied myself wasn't sustainable and it meant that when I fell off the wagon I fell hard. I would eventually feel trapped by my diet, because that's all it was; a diet. A short term means to drop weight instead of a permanent change of perspective.

This time around I'm not denying myself. A great example is this weekend where I went on a women's retreat. I ate what I wanted for the most part and logged all of it. I went over by approx 500 calories both days, but even so that isn't going to ruin my progress. Since this isn't about restricting myself I'm not punishing myself for enjoying good food and good friends. When I start my Sunday I'll get back to focusing on my macros and staying as close to my caloric goal as I can. I'll find time to exercise and I'll drink lots of water and that's it. That's all I do and have done since August and I've lost 18 lbs so far.

I jokingly tell my friends it's the ELMM diet. Eat Less, Move More. And it's something I can see myself doing for the rest of my life which is far more sustainable than anything else I have ever tried.

If you are plateauing consider changing up your workout routine and see if that helps. Like someone else said, look at your macros and see what ratio and percentages are best for you and aim to achieve that (I work to have my macros as close as possible over a week's period versus daily as it makes it less restrictive for me). If you haven't yet look up for BMR and TDEE. Far too many people eat below their BMR and then ask why their weight loss stalled. I'm guilty of it myself. I hope your able to break through your plateu soon!

Find the macro ratio you perform best on, stick with that, eating what you want.

So this. Diets don't last which is why the failure rate is 90% after one completes it. Lifestyle is what one needs to follow for life, not some temporary weight loss plan.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

If you're not losing weight, it's because you're eating more calories than you think, and it's too much to create a calorie deficit. All the whizbang diets are really just calorie deficits dressed up in pretty clown suits. They try to obfuscate that fact, but it's really all it is. They exist to make money for the people who created them, and that's it.

Just log everything you eat as accurately as you can, and make sure you're not overestimating your daily calorie expenditure. If you've got your numbers right, you'll lose weight. If you don't lose weight, you don't have your numbers right. That's really all there is to it.

What she said^^ For example, if your maintenance/tdee is 2000 cal and all you eat is 1800 cal of Reeses Pieces every day, you will lose fat on a constant basis. Obviously it's not the healthiest thing to do.. and most of those brand name diets aren't healthy either. They deprive you of essential macro and micronutrients. Eat your carbs, fats and proteins. If you're at a caloric deficit, you will lose weight. Calories are just a measurement of energy. If your body expends more energy than it consumes, it will use ALL of what you ate as energy no matter what it was and will then go to back up sources; fat stores being the first.

The only time carbs and fats will cause you to gain weight/store fat, is if you're at a caloric surplus, consuming more energy than you expend. If you're at a caloric surplus, protein will cause your body to store fat as well.

The problem with "diets" is they usually aren't sustainable, which is why most people end up back where they started. Just eat what you want and make sure you count your intake and expenditure properly. If you hit a plateau, at least one of your counts is off.
You could be underestimating your caloric intake and/or you could be overestimating your energy expenditure. Just gradually reduce your caloric intake until you break the plateau.

This is all true-- provided you don't have some sort of medical problem that changes the way your body works. Get your thyroid tested, etc.