Started MFP today- do you eat whatever you want within your calorie limit? How much have you lost?

I lost 48 lbs. I didn't give up anything but reduced it all to stay within calorie deficit to lose. By reducing, it meant I didn't consume what I normally would of in a day. But spread it out over a few days. Example - a chocolate bar was eaten in thirds instead of all at once. Same with much of the other higher-cal stuff.

I found reducing my beer intake to one or two bottles per week versus one or two nightly was one of the largest bangs for the buck of calorie reductions - not to mention all the snacks that used to go with it.

Back to maintenance now but am still careful. Tracking closely and honestly was helpful for me. I never used a kitchen scale, etc... all "eyeballed" in reduced portion sizes. For me it worked, for others it may not. Everyone has a different opinion on this and ultimately does what works best for them.

I pay attention to getting enough protein fir the day (try to at least meet my goal at minimum) and avoiding excessive fat and carbohydrates (try not to go over my goal - a maximum).

But first order priority is not going over my calories. Whether I do well in my macro goals or not, I don't have much trouble fitting in food I like a lot, like chocolates and cookies and whatnot.

Some days i'd rather just eat whatever I fancy (usually sweets and so-called junk food) and use my calories for that, other days I might eat mostly nutritous fare.

Basically I eat what I want and what works for me to best adhere to my calorie goal.

I've lost 110+ and in that time have logged every day for almost 1.5 years. I don't do cheat days or whatever, but I do try to be flexible so I don't get sick of being in a deficit.

Pretty much, yeah. 48 pounds lost. Now, because a lot of the foods I like are high calorie, low nutrient, I have made changes beyond just lowering the amount I eat. I've basically found a consistent breakfast that I like, a list of restaurants near my work that have meals I like under a certain calorie amount, and that leaves me with a majority of my calories at night. So, if we go out for dinner, I'm ok. And even within that, I'm able to add a lot of the foods I like to eat, just less of them. Makes things easier because I don't feel like I'm depriving myself of anything, so I don't have many urges to eat too much.

I had a crappy diet.

No. I don't just eat less of a crappy diet.

I have added vegetables and some occasional fruit to replace doughnuts and brownies.

Other than that it just eating a deficit for my activity level.

No fad diets or anything special.

I don't eat everything I want to because I am still in the weight-loss mode. I live alone (really with 3 cats) so I can eat whatever I want. I'm just so hard-core on my weight loss. I have lost 50 lbs since March (blood pressure was insanely high so the doctor put me on a low-sodium diet). I have no food restrictions other than sodium.

I have joined a gym for some weightlifting and I do a lot of cardio. At least 4 miles of walking a day at a fairly fast pace (I'm up to a little over 4.1 mph).

I do watch/record what I eat. I'm getting better about watching my Carbs/Fats/Proteins as well as sodium and sugars.

I don't do any special diet.

I have lost 40 since February. Don't really deny myself anything, just work it into my day. Eating more fruits and veggies and learning to substitute high calorie items (Greek yogurt instead of mayo). Walking in treadmill for excercise. Good luck, it's hard, but so worth it

I definitely eat the foods I want within my calorie limit, was able to lose ~30 lbs and am successfully maintaining. In addition to using moderation to keep eating the foods I like (and continuing to drink wine), I learned through this process how adding more nutrient dense foods help fill me up and keep me satisfied for longer, enabling me to still have room for treats. I eat more protein and vegetables than I did before, but I would definitely not say that I am restricting carbohydrates, I have just figured out what works well and keeps me full longer, within my calorie budget.

I've been using MFP for 1 month & have lost 12.4 lbs. I am very happy with my rate of weight loss & I've only been able to keep it up because I eat what I want.

Let me explain this a little more. Do I have cake, cookies, & french fries all day? No! Do I eat carrots, lettuce, & celery all day? No! I basically eat the same foods that I would normally eat, only in moderation. I weigh out most things i eat so that I know I'm eating correct serving sizes. I didn't rush out & buy "diet foods", fat free this & low calorie that. I like food & want to enjoy it, I'd rather eat less if something that tastes yummy than more of something that I can barely swallow.

I have eliminated sodas, but that's the only thing I've given up. I'd rather eat my calories instead of drink them so that was fairly easy to do. I still eat white bread & white rice. I've tried wheat bread & brown rice & I just don't like it. I'm not going to waste calories on food that I don't enjoy just because it's the "better" option.

Calories in/ calories out.. it really is just that simple. If you want to eat 1200 calories a day in chocolate then eat it. Will you still lose weight? Yes! Will you be hungry & feel sick? Yes!

It's your journey, spend the calories on whatever foods you want. Stay within your calorie goal & the weight loss will follow.

After 3 months, I'm down 17 pounds and I do eat as I please so long as it fits my calorie budget. One thing I found is consistently logging food has changed some of my eating preferences. Calculating how much of a serving the 5 potato chips or handful of peanuts I grabbed got tedious fast so I swapped those kinds of foods for things that are easier to track.