Have you lost weight by ditching certain foods?

Yes, but mostly because I just ate too many calories of said food.

Ditching a particular food, or foods, is not by itself a panacea. If doing that causes you to lose weight, that only means that you've created a necessary deficit to lose weight.

Now for me, getting rid of regular soda (for the most part), which I was drinking the equivalent of about 6 cans per day, was a massively huge step. I would also actively look to eat foods that made the Coke taste even better - which only blew up my intake even more. It was very much like an addiction. I might drink a can of Coca Cola once or twice a week now, but after unlearning a bunch of crap, I am more in tune with CICO and I know when I can handle a treat now and then. It's freeing to know that I don't have to ditch a particular food if I am mindful of what goes in and what my calorie target is. I'm also aware enough to be very careful about the soda thing. It's always been the thing that, if I falter, I falter hard.

Bottom line: whatever the mechanism is, you'll lose weight by creating a deficit. If you can't create a deficit without ditching a particular thing, then ditch that thing. Ultimately, however, it's just math. Energy supplied and energy consumed.

No, I haven't cut out any foods.

Sadly, I've had to ditch alcohol for health reason. I do miss that good glass of red wine with dinner on occasion, but it is what it is... no point in whining about it.

Did it help my weight-loss? Maybe. I stopped before I joined MFP and I've been dry for nearly 1.5 years now. I did lose, but wasn't very successful at keeping those losses (with or without booze). It probably makes it easier to stick to my deficit since my 'one glass of wine' = 2-3 servings

Otherwise, there's foods I only have very rarely now (homemade Gorgonzola pizza for example) because those 800-900 cals per serving are pretty hard to fit in. I eat less pasta since my idea of a serving and the reality don't quite coincide, so again, I usually have a serving that satisfies me on days where I can fit it in.

cmacphee3 wrote: »

I read an interesting article that said some people are moderators and some people are abstainers. Basically for people who are able to eat moderate amounts of foods they crave, it works best for them NOT to cut out any foods (unless medically necessary) because doing so could lead to binging. In people like me however, we tend to be pretty all or nothing when it comes to foods we crave. I know that if I have ONE bite of chocolate or cake or sweets, then I will end up eating as much as I possible can. I have tried many times to eat certain things in moderation, and it just does not work for me. The only way I can be successful is to cut out those particular junk foods completely. Sometimes I feel like I'll be ok if I let myself have some for Christmas or my birthday, and usually that leads to weeks of being off track because it is so hard for me to stop eating them again once I start. So yes, everyone will keep preaching moderation, but understand that if that does not work for you, you aren't alone.

100% this. This describes me so well!

Less meat, eggs, butter, cheese, cooking oil, nuts.

I ditched sugary drinks, candy and other sugary treats, and heavily refined grains. I went low CRAP. I ADDED lots of whole plant foods. I ADDED lots of nutrient dense foods. I try to focus on what I added rather than what I ditched.

I was trying to think of what I have specifically cut out, but everything falls more in line with the idea that I'm actively choosing not to have it. I'm allowed to, and I consider it, but ultimately choose not to.

Except alcohol. Hubs and I were getting a little too habitual about our nightly booze, so we're conducting a "habit reset" experiment. No alcohol yet this year, but next month, we'll add it back at social events. I suspect it'll still be a rare occurrence because it sure has been nice to save all of my calories for food.

That's not how weight loss works. Weight loss is all about calorie deficit.

100lbs down by including sugar/carbs and fat in my diet.