5 people who lost over 50 pounds share their diets before and after
Small, sustainable dietary changes can lead to substantial weight loss over time.
Five people who lost weight shared how they changed their diets.
Most focused on portion control, calorie counting, and incorporating whole foods.
It's rare to lose fat without changing your eating habits — after all, a calorie deficit (consuming less energy than you burn) is the only way to lose weight.
However, you don't need punishing diets or to cut out all your favorite foods.
For many people, small tweaks like focusing on protein and eating smaller portions make big differences.
Five people — each of whom lost between 50 and 200 pounds — told Business Insider how their diets changed.
Less fast food
Clark Valery, an assistant manager at a pharmacy chain in New York, lost 140 pounds by cutting down on fast food and cutting portion sizes.
Before he lost weight, a typical meal could be two Big Macs, 20 chicken nuggets, two large fries, and a soda from McDonald's, or eight tacos from a Mexican restaurant. "The portions could've fed four people," he said.
To lose weight, Valery ate meals like scrambled eggs on a whole-grain English muffin with a small piece of sausage, or grilled chicken with salad or vegetables.
Lower-calorie swaps
Maria Kirkeland, a teacher from Norway, lost 159 pounds in two years by counting calories and making some small changes to her diet. For example, she replaced the salami and cheese on her bread with cottage cheese and low-sugar jam and started making her own salads with less dressing than those in her work canteen.
For dinner, Kirkeland started eating leaner cuts of meat and opting for boiled or baked potatoes over fries. "They're not very calorically dense, they're very filling, they're very satiating, and they're so nutrient-rich. I love potatoes. I eat them for almost every dinner I have," Kirkeland said.
Easy, whole-food meals
Leah Mancuso, a photographer in Scottsdale, Arizona, hates cooking but still made changes to her diet to help her lose 200 pounds. Before losing weight, Mancuso mostly ate drive-thru meals and frozen food, but she's developed new staple meals like cottage-cheese bowls and chicken with potatoes.
"I try to eat mostly at least minimally processed foods, but also make it very, very easy because I don't like cooking," Mancuso told Business Insider.
Substantial lunches, light dinners
Betsy Grunch, a neurosurgeon from the outskirts of Atlanta, lost 50 pounds when she quit fad dieting and educated herself about nutrition. Before losing weight, she regularly ate fast food, such as pizza or Chick-fil-A, and had energy-dense drinks like sodas and frappuccinos.
Now, she intermittently fasts by skipping breakfast, then she eats a large, high-protein lunch and a light dinner. Grunch focuses on whole foods and protein, with carbs in moderation, she said.
Meal prep
Benji Xavier, a content creator from New Jersey, lost 100 pounds by making healthier versions of his favorite meals. Xavier used to eat a lot of fast food because it was convenient. To lose weight, he meal prepped on Sundays so he had healthy dishes ready to go during the week.
Xavier focused on high-volume, high-protein meals such as turkey and eggplant lasagna, or chicken-fajita-stuffed bell peppers.
Read the original article on Business Insider
