Does it matter what you eat if you're still meeting your calorie goal for the day?

2»

Replies

  • greenlizard72
    greenlizard72 Posts: 76 Member
    Nope I've lost 31 pounds eating out almost every day, and indulging in sweets as well. All that is needed is eating at a caloric deficit.

    I think everyone agrees with that Lesscookies1. It should be ok to say, once we agree that eating in a caloric deficit is 100% required to lose weight, that there are other aspects of losing weight worthy of discussion.
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    OP if what you are eating puts you at caloric deficit while giving you adequate nutrition to be long-term sustainable and keeping you satisfied in terms of hunger then that is really all you need. Doesn't matter at all if there are hot-dogs in there.

    Longer answer would be that if over time you find yourself struggling to stay satisfied and not feel hungry or you are not getting enough nutrition then the first things you might want to cast a critical eye on in your diet are those things that are high calorie and low satiety which tends to be the "junk" foods.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited November 2017
    mph323 wrote: »
    mph323 wrote: »
    There are no "bad" foods - unless of course they make you sick (or are holding you up at gunpoint). Weight loss is caused by eating fewer calories than you expend. Are you getting your protein and fat minimums? Getting in all your macro and micro nutrients? Do you feel good? If so, it sounds like you found a way of eating that's sustainable for you - congratulations! That's a really good indicator you'll be successful!

    <blink> What on earth would cause someone to woo this???

    Why is this woo? mph323 states CICO is the way to lose weight. The he/she goes on to ask about macro and micro nutrients in a way that supports CICO. Are we so CICOized that we aren't allowed to talk about other health concepts? Macro-nutrients are real things and from what I have researched, can have their ratio adjusted to align with and support individual bodies and goals.

    There always seems to be this CICO is all mentality and when people of good will ask sincere questions, it should be ok to have a dialog that extends past CICO without puritan responses. Sorry if this seems overkill on the reply, but I see so much of this when browsing the threads.

    I saw the woos and didn't think they were coming from someone who is pro CICO, although I guess only the mods or the powers that be know. More woo those giving the kind of advice that is considered not woo to protest the woo button?

    (In other words, I think stevencloser is likely correct.)

    Eh, oh well.

    Anyway, lots of good advice in this thread.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,843 Member
    mph323 wrote: »
    mph323 wrote: »
    There are no "bad" foods - unless of course they make you sick (or are holding you up at gunpoint). Weight loss is caused by eating fewer calories than you expend. Are you getting your protein and fat minimums? Getting in all your macro and micro nutrients? Do you feel good? If so, it sounds like you found a way of eating that's sustainable for you - congratulations! That's a really good indicator you'll be successful!

    <blink> What on earth would cause someone to woo this???

    Woo was purposefully given two official meanings: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10570889/new-community-reaction-woo#latest

    There was a lengthy discussion about changing this:
    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10598644/get-rid-of-the-woo-button/p1
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,843 Member
    Think of calories like a budget. I give you $1000 dollars to buy a wardrobe. You go to the store and you know you should focus on tops, pants, and a few accessories. But you walk by the accessories and find purses, scarves, handbags, before you know it- you have spent 600 dollars and don't have the stuff you actually need. You'll have a hard time being clothed if you waste your money all on "extras."

    Similarly, diet. "Healthy" foods are a good bang for your buck. They make you feel fuller, provide fiber, and good micro nutrients. Your calorie count can get quite low if you make sure everything you eat is value packed with good stuff per calorie.

    Agreed. I couldn't possibly feel full if I spent a lot of my calorie budget on hyper-palatable foods.

    I do still eat pizza, but I have less than I used to, and have it with a large salad. I've been meaning to make pigs-in-a-blanket, and would pair this with broccoli.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    For health it's good to eat a variety of foods. For weight loss, the only thing that matters is a calorie deficit.
  • JaxxieKat
    JaxxieKat Posts: 427 Member
    There are no bad foods. Now, you may be eating more calories than you think. Make sure you use a kitchen scale to weight your non-liquid foods. You'd be amazed at how calories add up when you either eyeball your portions or use measuring scoops.

    My biggest thing is that, while there are no bad foods, there are foods you can eat more of and consume fewer calories. A lot of us on here are volume eaters. I like calorie dense meals that are also huge, just comprised of lower calorie foods, because that's way more satiating to me than eating smaller portions that are calorie dense, if that makes sense.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,455 Member
    Nope I've lost 31 pounds eating out almost every day, and indulging in sweets as well. All that is needed is eating at a caloric deficit.

    I think everyone agrees with that Lesscookies1. It should be ok to say, once we agree that eating in a caloric deficit is 100% required to lose weight, that there are other aspects of losing weight worthy of discussion.

    But given that the OP specifically asked if it is ok to include what they describe as "bad foods" or if it will hurt their progress, then I'm not sure it's safe to say that everyone knows it's ok to eat any food as long as you're in a deficit and you'll still lose weight.

    With so much misinformation about diet and weight loss and in particular a trend toward demonizing certain foods or ingredients, and/or promoting the completely arbitrary "clean eating" approach, it's helpful to let posters who believe they MUST eat exclusively "healthy" foods in order to be successful that that simply isn't the case.

    And please note that many, many posters add the caveat that while a calorie deficit is the only requirement for weight loss and you can achieve this eating any foods you like, that eating a balanced diet that focuses on nutrition is important for overall health. That said, chiming in with examples of things that many of us eat regularly and still lose weight is probably good affirmation for the OP.