eat what you want within calories or do you restrict?

missataylor22
missataylor22 Posts: 25 Member
in Food and Nutrition
hi there :)
i was just wondering which way some of you go, do you cut out all bad things and eat purely clean, or do you look at your calories for the day and say right i fancy cake today, so il cut down my dinner and lunch portion so i can have it?
iv lost 30 pounds eating the latter way, if i want cake i eat it, but i usually stay within my calories (this does not include my exercise calories).
i was just wondering if anyone found a difference in weight loss or whether aslong as you stay inside your calories it doesnt matter what you eat, aslong as its not fast food all the time obvs!
the inspitation comes from an episode of supersise v super skinny where all he ate was haribos and he was super skinny so he had loads of calories in sugar but nothing else. thats what makes me think aslong as your calories are in control cutting things out isnt always neccesary.
thanks in advance :)
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Replies

  • sophiathedss
    sophiathedss Posts: 97 Member
    I have tried it both ways...I prefer eating clean because of a wheat intolerance and allergies. I severely restrict both sugar and wheat/grains.....it makes me feel better, BUT if I want something..I do make allowances for it within my own guidelines. No sugar no white stuff...and within my calories. I agree depriving myself makes me a little nuts, but eating whatever I want causes a trigger or chain reaction..but that is just ME....good luck on your journey! :flowerforyou:


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  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
    I try to eat a lot of fruit and veggies, things with high protein and low-ish cals. I try to get my minimum protein (1gram per bound of lean body mass) first, stay around my calorie goal second. That's it.
  • gnarlynoodle
    gnarlynoodle Posts: 99 Member
    I try to eat well a majority of the time but I definitely have a few treats each week. If I don't have a few things in moderation I'll binge and I'll binge HARD. I always went from one extreme of eating horribly to eating totally clean in the past with no cheats and it never ended well. Now, if I want a treat or a beer I have it. I just don't do it every day/night. I've lost far more weight than I ever did before so I'd say it's working.
  • jenbridges
    jenbridges Posts: 213 Member
    i try to eat healthy (doing better than i did before mfp!) but i don't deprive myself IF it will fit into my day.
  • Zichu
    Zichu Posts: 542 Member
    I think I remember that Supersize vs Superskinny episode. I enjoy watching these kinds of programs, it allows me to see what I'm doing and what could happen if I were to eating certain foods, not eating enough, eating too much and so on.

    I wouldn't suggest living off sweets like that guy did, but if you fancy some Haribos, a bit of Chocolate or even some Cake. Have some, why deprive yourself of something you will enjoy if it's not going to make you happy? Is it healthy to eat a lot of junk food? No. Is it healthy feeling depressed because you are restricting yourself? I would of thought so.

    Live your life healthy, but make sure it's a happy life as well.


    Like today for instance, I filled in my meals for the day and made a few adjustments. I managed to fit in a nice homemade hot cocoa which was about 230 calories. Would of been less if I used Skim, but we didn't have enough for two, so I went with Whole Milk. I enjoyed it and it it had an equal amount of macronutrients.
  • Phaedra2014
    Phaedra2014 Posts: 1,254 Member
    I could stick within my calories and eat just whatever but then I have to deal with low energy levels, spikes in insulin, feeling hungry all the time, acid reflux, and malnutrition. Sure, the weight will come off if I expend more calories than I consume but I won't feel healthy and I won't be doing my body good.

    My choice was to eliminate as much processed foods as possible, cook from scratch, get in lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains (cut out gluten), fish etc.

    It really depends on what makes you feel energetic and healthy.
  • Spanaval
    Spanaval Posts: 1,200 Member
    I eat everything, in moderation. There wouldn't be much point to all this if I got all fit and skinny, but turned into a raging *itch for lack of cookies/cake in my diet.
  • aldale
    aldale Posts: 118 Member
    I eat what I want as long as I stay under my calorie goal. That being said, I do try to eat fruits, veggies, and lean meats. My husband is a big hunter so we eat lots of deer meat. I live far from a grocery store and I tend to eat more processed foods when I have not been to the grocery store in a while. I notice that when I eat more of the junk foods, I tend to hold more water because I swell and the scale is not nice. I am still losing weight overall though so it is working.
  • dvnjustina
    dvnjustina Posts: 114 Member
    I've been eating mostly clean for some time before I officially went on a diet. The only thing I restrict is my portion size, which isn't easy. I love to eat.
  • Brengild
    Brengild Posts: 127
    I'm not super strict, leaving allowances for the occasional treat. That being said, I find if I am eating healthy, clean food, I can eat more of it! If I have a healthy snack the portion is going to be bigger than a high sugar of high fat one.
  • noweightfisherj
    noweightfisherj Posts: 220 Member
    You can eat anything you want as long as you are on a calorie deficit daily. You will lose weight.
  • TaintedVampyre
    TaintedVampyre Posts: 1,428 Member
    I think I opt for a little on both. I'll restrict myself more often than eat what I want unless I'm going through a big craving of something.
  • Jellyphant
    Jellyphant Posts: 1,400 Member
    I've tried both ways and still don't lose anything. haha. I'm clearly doing something wrong.
  • SelkieDiver
    SelkieDiver Posts: 260 Member
    I try to eat good healthy food 90% of the time. If I want a little something salty, or chocolaty or sweet (or PIZZA!) I try to keep it within my calories and/or do some extra exercise to cover the calories.
  • pastryari
    pastryari Posts: 8,646 Member
    I eat what I want, I'm just smarter about how I do it now. This isn't a 30 day thing, it's something I need to keep up for the rest of my life. I'm not going to give up pizza, chinese food, burritos, ice cream, etc for the rest of my life.
  • KaleidoscopeEyes1056
    KaleidoscopeEyes1056 Posts: 2,996 Member
    I usually try to do a sexy combination of the two. I certainly eat healthier with more fruits and veggies and more lean protein, but if I want pizza, I'll have pizza. If that means I have to eat salad for another meal to fit it in, whatever, it's worth it.
  • PeopleAreStrange
    PeopleAreStrange Posts: 20
    I think the occasional treat goes a long way & keeps you fixed on your ultimate goal. If you deprive yourself too much,you will end up losing your way,bingeing & giving up x
  • sharleengc
    sharleengc Posts: 792 Member
    Overall, I eat healthier because healthier things have fewer calories. Ex. we don't by ground beef anymore, we buy ground turkey.

    But, I pretty much eat what I want because my opinion of whats yummy has changed. Like, I used to be able to inhale a bag of chips and now they just don't really taste good or satisfy.

    I do, however have some type of sugar ever day because I have a HUGE sweet tooth...but I get frozen yogurt and have exactly a serving (2 if I have enough calories) or I buy skinny cow candy...

    So, I guess I eat what I want but my tastes have changed too
  • kimad
    kimad Posts: 3,010 Member
    Hey, I only eat 1300 cals a day so I have to make pretty good food choices to get enough in my day. I do eat snacks though, but I always make sure to stay in my calorie goal. I have always taken Friday 'off' from logging so that would be the day I would indulge in a craving, etc. That being said, I don't go to a function or bday party and deprive myself, it's all about moderation :)
  • Elen_Sia
    Elen_Sia Posts: 638 Member
    Your overall goals determine what you eat, I guess. I don't have food restrictions but I don't eat everything I want even if they fit my calorie allowance because I'm in the process of building lean muscle mass and trying to reach 18% body fat.
  • mattness09
    mattness09 Posts: 18 Member
    Moderation is the best lifestyle choice to make when it comes to food. Don't deprive yourself, but indulge once in a while. You don't have to cut out calories if you don't splurge if you exercise that day and burn it off.
  • chivalryder
    chivalryder Posts: 4,391 Member
    Right now, I'm doing an elimination diet to figure out what food allergies I have (they run in the family). That means no junk food AT ALL (no chocolate, dairy, sugars, anything processed, no table salt, must eat all organic, etc etc etc). It's working out well so far. Not even allowed frozen or canned foods! My diet consists of about 80-90% fresh fruit, veggies and nuts. I just started, so I'm putting together a collection of recipes, so I'll actually get to cook something and eat something a bit yummier. :P
  • wally1uk
    wally1uk Posts: 120
    If your limited to 1500 cals per day, you have to be sensible...you can't go eating all the crap you used to otherwise your gonna be over in a meal or two. So you're forced to eat a little more healthily just to make sure you get enough to eat all day to make sure your satisfied...otherwise, your just gonna fail and end up snacking all the time.

    I treat myself regularly to 'bad' foods, but save it for my two weekly blowout cheat days.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    I went primarily with portion control. As anyone that has seen my diary can attest, I'm a cheeseburger guy. But I did cut out the fries. I swapped my beloved Chicago deep dish pizza for thin crust and saved almost 300 calories on my weekend pizza. The cheese on my tacos got swapped for pico de gallo.

    I did have to drop a few things that I loved because there was just no way to make them work. Pancakes and waffles had to go. There was one other thing, but I can't even remember it now so that's kinda awesome.

    This has worked great for me, but as I get closer to my goal I'll probably have to tighten it up a bit.
  • Naytahlee
    Naytahlee Posts: 53 Member
    I try to eat as clean as possible. Occasionally Im in a situation that I'll end up deviating and eat something less than healthy. I try to pick the less evil options, or just eat a small portion (eating at a friends house or eating out). Other times I'm craving something (chocolate!) so I fit it into my calories. Also I try not to stray more than one meal and not for days in a row. I worked way to hard to break those habits!
  • zaithyr
    zaithyr Posts: 482 Member
    I eat healthy for the most part but I do still eat some less healthy stuff to. I just try to stay within my cals and make sure I'm getting enough nutrition overall. I've never been a fan of extremes or "diet paranoia" where x,y, and z is bad for you and will cause your body to shut down blah blah blah (half of the time it's based on pseudo science and internet conspiracy theories anyway). If you have food sensitivities or you're a diabetic, yes you have to be more careful. Otherwise, a little balance and common sense is the rule I go by.
  • robinkelly25
    robinkelly25 Posts: 88 Member
    I have tried many many diets over the years. When I restrict myself to ONLY eating clean food and having a cheat day once a week or once a month I tend to have cheat DAYS. So, for the past month and a half I have eaten what I've wanted (with moderation) and my weight loss goal was constantly on my mind. I do try to eat healthy the majority of the time and I recently began to get excited when I am able to create a recipe that is both healthy and taste wonderful.
    Although every person who diets does not lose weight the same way I believe that as long as you eat in moderation and don't splurge every chance you get then it's okay. I'm sure that the closer I get to having a healthy BMI that I will not crave the unhealthy fatty foods and be completely content with only eating clean. Good Luck with your journey!
  • sensationallysassyt
    sensationallysassyt Posts: 52
    I eat whatever I want in Moderation~ The more I say I can't have something the more I want it~ Moderation is working for me as I am dropping more inches than weight which is more noticable~ Loving this Feeling~
  • unlocke
    unlocke Posts: 149
    I eat pretty clean and healthy most of the time, but I adjust my day around an occasional indulgence. I just know myself and how I can mindlessly go into a binge (what brought me here in the first place), so I have to be careful and decide beforehand that I will keep my portions under control and not go overboard.
    Also, my tastes have drastically changed since I started my journey. I can't stand fried, greasy foods that coat my mouth in grease, and overly-sweet foods make me sick and light-headed. This stuff used to be my diet staples and I didn't go a day without them. Now I can't stand them and I'd much rather have a piece of fruit or a plate of veggies than something unhealthy.
    Having said that, if I want something like ice cream, I'll choose lowfat frozen yogurt and stick with the small portion. If I want a cookie or cake, I'll make them as "clean" as possible and again, keep the portions under control.
    This is not a diet, it's a lifestyle that I don't plan on ever going back on. So, it's all about what works best for me. You'll need to figure out what will work best for you, and do that. ;)
  • MrsButler82
    MrsButler82 Posts: 6 Member
    Days when I eat crap I am constantly hungry! You can't eat enough to get full when it is high calories. The other night I ate 3 veggie stuffed peppers and I ate 3 of them for under 300 calories! I like to feel full so I go for eating clean!!!!

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