Does it matter where I get my calories from?
 

I am 40 and have 60 lb to lose...I am going to cut straight to my question here...Can I eat basically whatever I want but as long as I stay within my daily calorie allotment I will still lose? In other words (not that I want to do this it's strictly for trying to get across what I mean;) ) If I have a calorie allotment of 1200 calories daily and I eat 1200 calories worth of cheeseburgers and no more than 1200 calories will I still lose the weight I wish to lose?

I feel that the best way for me to lose is keep my calorie counting to as little stress as possible! If I want to eat a Subway sandwich for lunch with baked lays and have that again for dinner I want to know that I am still helping myself get to my goal! :D Hope I have made sense here with what I am trying to ask?

Yes, you will lose weight.

If your goal is strictly weight loss, probably. Although 1200 is awfully low for someone of your size.

Is it sustainable? Is it a long term solution? Is it healthy? Will it give you the energy you need to be active and build muscle? Those are other things to think about.

Yes, you will still lose weight.

Although if you are not making healthy choices, than you may not feel satisfied in the long run. You may end up hungry and out of calories, and nothing makes me crankier and more likely to over eat than being hungry. :)

Lots of vegis help me stay filled up!

For fat weight loss, calories in vs. calories out only really matter as long you have a deficit.

Though, you need to remember if you happen to eat Subway or fast food cheeseburgers, you may be up in (water) weight for a few days due to sodium. I would just recommend avoiding the scale for a while and drinking a little more water to flush it out if you eat sodium-laden food.

Now, I know you said "IF I had a calorie allotment of 1200 calories..." but I am hoping you are bumping it up to at least 1500. If you are exercising, you could eat a couple hundred more calories depending on how much you are working out.

Yes, you will still lose weight. I've never had any forbidden foods during weight loss. Even if I eat less-than-healthy foods, it doesn't affect my rate of weight loss. The advantage of whole, home-cooked, healthy foods is that they usually fill you up more, calorie for calorie, than junk food. But there's absolutely nothing wrong with having occasional meals (or days, or even weeks) in which you put health on the back burner, so to speak.

F.

re:
 

I can't tell you what your body will do, but I can tell you that I have been on around 1200 calories a day since I started. (sometimes more, sometimes less)

I believe that in regards to weight loss a calorie is a calorie no matter where it comes from. I've eaten those calories pretty much all over the place - ice cream, pizza, etc. I'm really not much of a salad person.

That being said I agree that the type of calorie you eat makes a difference in how much MORE you DESIRE to eat. Eating lots of carbs or sugar tends to make you want more carbs and sugar. Eating lots of healthy things with protein helps fill you up more.

I can tell you after about a month or two of not really eating sweets or fast food, I no longer craved them. So if you can give up cheeseburgers for just a month, you might find you no longer crave them.

i agree with free lance momma

this thread is awesome, i'm calorie counting at the moment and was wondering the same thing. I found these amazing ice cream sandwich puddings from morrisons that I have for my pudding as a treat and there under 85 cals. Yay

Sorry, it does make a difference in what you eat. Your body requires certain macronutrients and if it doesn't get them you won't be healthy. You'll also be losing muscle along with fat. A balanced diet is necessary for healthy weight loss.

I agree with most of the posts on here... You will still lose weight regardless of the things you are eating if you stay in your calorie limit... The problem with eating things like cheese burgers to obtain your goal is that it is not healthy. While you may lose weight things like your nutrition, cholesterol, and blood pressure will suffer. So you really have to decide if you want to lose weight and be healthy or just lose weight. The beauty of calorie counting is that you are not restricted so if there is a day you want a cheese burger, you can have one and still lose, nothing really is off limits. For me personally I have chosen not to eat certain things like cheeseburgers because they are trigger foods for me and that spells disaster. LOL I also like to be full so I tend to stay away from those things just so I can eat. I do have to admit though I do love Subway and will make room for it every couple of weeks, it is a killer on the sodium, but well worth it :)

Wow!!! Thank all y'all for the responses!! Y'all are awesome!! I like freelancemamas train of thought and the others that were along the same lines! I actually just used cheeseburgers as an example..I honesly LOVE veggies!! I would choose a big ole portabello mushroom burger over the beef any day ;) but y'all told me what i had hoped you would say and for that THANK YA!!!!! :D