I'm counting calories... what seems pretty easy so far. And basically I'm eating what I want, just making sure I stay within my calories. But I still don't find that I'm eating a ton of "health food". I'm not eating terrible, clearly, since I have to stay within my calorie range. But I'm also not eating a chicken breast, with steamed broccoli and brown rice everyday.

I'm still cooking for my family, and eating what we have as a family... usually casseroles or meat with veggies and salads... soup in the crockpot... that kind of stuff. I'm just portioning my foods so they fit into my calorie range. And I'm finding lower calorie/fat substitutions for the food I do make. Of course I'm not eating all of my calories in junk, but I'm not making drastic changes in what we're eating either. I eat "better", but not "perfect". But I do feel hungry occasionally...

I'm just wondering if this all needs to be a huge drastic change in everything we're eating in order to succeed at this in the long run... Or if just watching calories as a number is most important??? Of course trying to be healthier is my main goal.

I think with healthier foods it's so much easier. They're more filling and generally more crave-controlling. But healthy food is not necessarily (although it can suit some people) plain, austere chicken breast, brown rice and broccoli! I don't know about forcing a big change if your heart isn't in it. But keep an open mind and keep trying new things. A lot of people find over time that they lose a taste for foods they thought they couldn't live without. Lots of us started eating one way, and over time have continued to refine - both getting healthier and more satisfying/personally suited to the individual.

So yeah, I mostly eat what I want - but what I want has really, really changed. I've made a lot of changes without forcing them, because I give myself time find it in my heart to make the change, rather than feeling like I *should.*

I agree with Julie. Healthier foods seem to fill me up for longer. I eat low calorie healthy foods that I can eat in large volumes. It seems to be working for me so far.

Im on day 7 and had the same questions. Thanks for bringing it up!

I have been having pretty healthy meals and then slipping in something I want everyonce in a while as long as it fits in my calories. I have found in the past and trying to be 100% on all my meals that my cravings get out of control and I end up binging. So far, Im still losing weight and still satisfied.

Good luck! =)

I think it depends on the person- some of us can "get away" with eating more carbs or more meat or whatever it is because the way our bodies are.

I can't eat a lot of junk personally. I also stay away from white carbs like bread and pasta and potato.

Generally I like cooking and cooking at home is MUCH healthier overall than eating out- so I'd say you are probably cooking healthier than you realize

I eat what I crave, I just make sure it fits in the calorie budget. I have changed some things, like switched white rice for brown, white bread and pasta for whole wheat. But generally, I still enjoy the foods I want, just in moderation. I do pay close attention to my protein to carbs ratio though, because I've found that I lose more if my protein intake is higher and my carb lower. But thats just me.

If you are still losing weight with the plan you are using, then by all means, keep doing what you are doing. If nothing else, if your weight loss stalls, you can always play around with changing what you are eating to shake things up.

For me, all those 'little changes' make huge differences. Finding a fiber filled bread with 30 less calories then the other breads makes me excited. I eat what i want, and just tweak things. Also, I've found that it helps a lot to make sure my dinner consists of 3 different things. Before, I'd make lasagna but nothing to go with it so id eat a crap load of it, now ill make sure i have a fruit and a veggie to go with it .

And i don't deny my cravings. As I think someone else said, I've tried to cut out all that 'bad' stuff i love, but i just ended up snapping and binging like a crazy person, haha. Just gotta make sure it can fit in my calories for the day.

I also eat what I want, but I WANT healthy foods I think it was very important that I restrict certain foods while counting calories. That allowed my body to "re-train" itself to begin craving - yes CRAVING healthy things. If I had continued to eat certain foods, I'm not sure that I would have lost my taste/desire for them.

It is a blessing to actually prefer healthy foods to "junk". Every single restriction has be soooo worth it!

I pretty much eat what I want, within my calorie range. As others have said, what I want has changed quite a bit over the past 9 months. But seriously? Sometimes what I REALLY want is to dive headfirst into a bag of M&Ms, or to eat a bag of chips with dip. Unlike others, those things don't make me sick or sound disgusting; even after all this time, I am pretty sure I could polish off a bag of Ruffles and a container of dip.

So I no longer "eat what I want" in the sense that I used to, when I was eating like an unsupervised 10 year old who had been given free reign in the snack cabinet. But I don't try to get a carb/fat/protien balance. I might lose faster if I did, but I don't. Dinner just now was 2 scrambled eggs with a mini-bagel (100 cals) and some low-fat cream cheese. I'm full and will probably eat a nice ripe pear later on for my snack. There's probaby nothing really "balanced" about that, but I can live with that.

Yes and no. Like Layri, I WANT healthy foods. I love salads, I just can't pile on the dressing and croutons, but I can pile on different veggies on it which is good too. I also love having oatmeal for breakfast, it's my favorite thing to have in the morning and I crave it the night before!

I still want foods that aren't healthy though, and I try not to have them although the cravings win sometimes. I want to break away from the foods that made me fat. I rather just not eat them. If I don't eat them for a long time, I will stop craving them. Maybe one day when I have better control of portions I will have a FEW M&Ms (and I do mean a few!), a few chips with a little dip or salsa.. but right now I know I can't control myself with those foods, so I don't have them.

Yes, I eat whatever I want with the only "plan" trying to get recommended servings of fruit, veg, and dairy which automatically keeps my calories in the range I want.

I started out eating the same things I always did, with smaller portions to fit my calorie range. That always worked, but it got to the point where I started to experiment with those healthier foods in order to be able to eat MORE, if that makes any sense. Just like I recently told my husband...it's crazy how much more you can eat when you're eating healthier stuff. I'm full longer now than I was when I started.

I've never stopped eating my favorite things, such as spaghetti, lasagna or even hamburgers and fries. I've just found healthier ways to prepare them.

I eat everything! I eat all day long the only thing I have changed is what I eat all day long I used to eat hamburgers ,hotdogs , chips and lots of fried food yuck!
then I decided that I would just change what I ate to high fiber foods,fruits and vegi's and modifiy how I cook to a lower fat and calorie version and so far I have lost 20lbs as of yesterday in 4 weeks and my BMI has dropped 3 pts.I also discovered I have energy to burn and I found so marinades this weekend that will make a log taste fantastic but it does help that I love vegi's