just counting calories?

salty134

Hiya. Seen some great posts on here. Has anyone lost weight just through counting calories. (I know exercise will help massively) but just wondered if calorie counting could be enough to lose weight? ? Keep up the good work all

jkwolly

Think of it super simply:
Weight loss is based off a calorie deficit.
Exercising is for your overall body health.

Can you use exercise as a means to create a larger deficit? Sure! Just find what works best for you to stay under your goal!

JennieMaeK

I credit my 60 lbs lost so far to counting calories. Do I exercise? You bet, it keeps me sane and is good for my health. But it's knowing what I'm eating that's dropped the weight.

chanell84

I lost 70 lbs in the last year from mostly counting calories and eating in a deficit... I did walk some but not enough to say that it contributed much. Eating in a deficit is really the key!

20months

I credit calorie counting for a 192# loss in 20 month's. I don't think I would have ever accomplished it without counting calories.

grinning_chick

I can count on two hands the number of times I've walked further than around the grocery store shopping since July. I've lost 35 lbs between then and now. First by following recommended portion sizes and currently by counting calories and shooting to be within a 200 calorie spread of my highly sedentary BMR calculator guesstimated burn more often than not. This will change as my weight changes but for now, it's working.

I do enjoy some physical activity, but I won't be restarting the sort of intermittent (0-3 times a week) non-gym physical activity I enjoy until I'm under 200 lbs. Personal preference.

DanBGVa

I can only add my opinion to this thread and please take it for what it is worth my opinion only.

You can loose weight by cutting only calories but it does not do your body allot of good long term. From what I am learning you also need to build lean muscle to sustain weight loss and keep your metabolic rates up. 6 healthy meals a day are highly important for weight loss and to curbing cravings (especially late night snacking - that was a biggie for me).

Watching your calories is only a small part of this process. It has been different this time for me, mainly because my focus and viewpoint are finally different....

So I think exercise is essential even if it is just walking everyday. You don't have to be a gym rat. It has finally been drilled into me I must change how I think about food and how I think about my life around food and moving every day, I need to get out and move as well and change my relationship with food. Sometimes I get sick of hearing it but it is really true for me.

I wish you luck! But never every give up we can all get to where we want to be! :-)

villazorkrys13

It's more on the eating habit, though i will recommend exercise to keep your body firmed

jennifer_417

Yep.

IILikeToMoveItMoveIt

I'm lazy and rarely do consistent anything and have lost 66 lbs counting calories. It works. When I do get exercise, I don't count it towards my food allotment. I just log it for reference. I exercise for fitness and count calories to loose weight. Now that I'm getting close to gw, I want to do more strength training in anticipation of maintenance and to get ahead on recomp. My calorie allotment gets smaller the less I weigh, so eventually I COULD add in exercise to eat more but you don't HAVE to exercise to loose weight...

MissElectricEyeliner

54lbs down counting calories, never exercised.

dutchandkiwi

There are a fair few threads of people in the success stories that lost just through counting calories which is what CICO is about really. A number of people have to do it that way due tomorrow physical restrictions I recall one thread from a lady that was wheelchair bound and a veteran that had lost a leg.

Just counting calories and no excessive will mean that weight loss could be harder as excersise will help to create a bigger deficit. Also excersise will help with respect to shaping/toning etc. but it is not a requirement to loose the weight
And excersise can be just something as walking. No requirement to running, gym or other high intensity training if that is not your cup of tea.

LaceyBirds

I've lost 64 pounds counting calories and, with the exception of light walking for a month and a half during the summer, no exercise - I am very sedentary. I am 60 years old. I eat three meals a day. I was pre-diabetic for five years prior to this weight loss - I am no longer pre-diabetic. I was on two meds for high blood pressure - one was discontinued after my most recent doctor's visit. I am on medication for high cholesterol; all those levels were down and my doctor said he will probably take me off of them on my next check-up in four months, and probably also take me off of the other blood pressure medicine.

So, the answer to your question for me, and many others, is yes.

HfxJMac

I lost 65 lbs, over the course of 6 months, mostly through counting calories. And I started walking, which earned me more calories, but the math really is simple - a calorie deficit leads to weight loss. Good luck.

cwolfman13

yes...but exercise will make things all that much easier given that you can eat more with regular exercise and accomplish the same goals. also, regular exercise is highly beneficial to your overall health and well being.

kmleaf

I hate exercise. I know it would be good for me but I hate it and I have lost weight without breaking a sweat even once. Will I choose to exercise in the future? Probably. I have lost 91 lbs since April and I feel fabulous.

Timshel_

salty134 wrote: »

... just wondered if calorie counting could be enough to lose weight? ?

Exercise is more about health than weight loss.

Exercise helps but counting calories *is* where the majority of people lose weight.

The standard is having a calorie deficit of 500 calories per day, every day each week to lose one pound of weight. For most that is an hour or more of exercise. For me, cutting our soda and making different choices in food alone achieved the same.

GreenValli

Salty,

As I get older I realize that I need to exercise to lose the extra weight I have. It would just take too, too, long otherwise now, especially since I have lost 65 pounds in the last 5 years.

Everyone is different though, and men do lose faster and easier.

amandapierce0515

I have ONLY counted calories and stayed within my limits. And I have now lost 51 pounds in about 5 months. It is possible.

corbinskiii

Weight loss is mostly diet. Exercise helps your fitness but isn't necessary to drop pounds.

salty134

Cheers for all the advise and replies. Keep up the good work and hope I stick too it!!

shadowconn

I only count calories. I do not exercise. I may eventually exercise, but I'll need to be very close to my goal weight before I even attempt it. Exercise does terrible things to my appetite. If I burn 600, I'll eat 1200 or worse, and I end up fat/fit. Now, if I lose it all THEN exercise. Not so bad cause I'm already skinny.

arditarose

It's not just "enough"...being in a calorie deficit, and counting calories to help you do so is HOW YOU LOSE WEIGHT.

Garthweightlosspal

salty134 wrote: »

Hiya. Seen some great posts on here. Has anyone lost weight just through counting calories. (I know exercise will help massively) but just wondered if calorie counting could be enough to lose weight? ? Keep up the good work all

I've lost 31 pounds so far calorie counting alone, and I live a pretty sedentary lifestyle at the moment.

woznube7

Needed to read this, was becoming discouraged. Have to do better with calories!! Thanks for sharing!!

RBracken34

67 lbs down... with an extremely sedentary lifestyle and calorie counting only... I only recently started climbing the stairs and being a teeny bit more active overall, but only because I feel enough energy to do it.

srujana_kanneganti

I hate exercise lol. I lost around 30 pounds on just counting. (5'7" SW: 180 lb)

After that I had to incorporate a little exercise to get things moving. Mostly just more walking. Treadmill here and there.

Now (at 135 lb) I exercise/lift 2-3 times a week, since my last 10 are becoming harder to lose on just a deficit due to a smaller BMR... But hey, it's good for me I guess.