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Can You Still Lose Weight Eating Anything You Want if You Burn More Calories Than You Take In?

It is possible to lose weight by eating unhealthy foods if you burn more calories than you take in. However, unhealthy diets can cause nutrient deficiencies and drag you down. Eating a poor diet also makes it more difficult to control your calorie intake for effective weight loss, because unhealthy foods are generally high in calories.

  1. Creating Calorie Deficits

    • Losing weight at a safe pace means burning off 500 to 1,000 more calories than you take in, which leads to shedding 1 to 2 pounds weekly, notes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Therefore, if you eat 2,000 calories a day of whatever you want, burning 2,500 calories daily will help you shed 1 pound per week. If you eat 2,000 a day and burn 3,000 calories daily you’ll lose about 2 pounds in a week.

    Considerations for Exercise

    • Eating as many calories as you want during weight loss means you may have to spend a significant amount of time at the gym. According to Harvard Health Publications, a 155-pound person would need to exercise on an elliptical trainer for 90 minutes to burn 1,000 calories, and walk at a pace of 4 miles per hour for three hours to expend 1,000 calories. Many people with busy schedules don’t have a three-hour allotment of time to designate for exercise.

    Benefits of Healthy Eating

    • In addition to meeting your daily nutrient needs, healthy eating can help you feel less hungry, which is beneficial for weight loss. For example, protein and fiber both help increase satiety. In addition, protein actually increases your body’s calorie expenditure, according to a study published in 2009 in the “Journal of Nutrition.” Protein-rich foods include lean meats, fish, poultry, eggs, low-fat dairy foods, seitan and soy products. High-fiber foods are fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Nuts, seeds and legumes are rich in both protein and fiber.

    Calorie Recommendations

    • Low-calorie diets are often effective for weight loss, regardless of what you’re eating. Diets that contain 1,000 to 1,600 calories daily are appropriate for many women, while most men lose weight eating 1,200 to 1,600 calories a day, notes the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Active men may require more than 1,600 calories a day to lose weight at a safe rate of 1 to 2 pounds weekly. The University of Washington recommends overweight and obese adults eat 10 calories for each pound of their desirable body weight daily, which is equivalent to 1,200 calories a day to achieve a goal weight of 120 pounds.

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