Does it really work?

courtmper

I have been logging my food and just when I think I'm getting somewhere the scale goes back up. Does anyone really lose weight just from calorie counting? Feeling discouraged at this point.

EvgeniZyntx

Did you look at the hundreds of success stories?

Machka9

It works ... 25 kg lost.

sijomial

If you aren't losing weight over an extended period of time it's not the method (calorie counting) that is at fault - it's the way you are applying the method.
Either your goal is wrong or you aren't counting accurately enough. It's very, very common to underestimate calorie consumption.

If you want guidance then apart from reading the various sticky threads at the top of each forum you could tell people about yourself and open your food diary.

As this is the Success forum:
My success was in losing the 32lbs of excess weight I carried around with me for twenty years and getting my fitness and body composition to the best it's been since my 20's. In many ways at 56 I'm the healthiest I've been in my entire adult life.

goldthistime

Sorry to hear you are feeling discouraged. If you are following CICO properly it will work. There will be misleading ups and downs on the scales due to water retention or dehydration, but the physics of calories in-calories out will still be going on in the background and will ultimately show up on the scale.

JeromeBarry1

I really lost 45 pounds from calorie counting since January 25. It was really lost 49 pounds Saturday morning but I really had too much sodium Saturday and Sunday so sometimes it's about too much sodium and water.

JeromeBarry1

And I can get the sodium down.

AllonsYtotheTardis

It takes time, sometimes it feels tedious, but it does work. I've lost 80lbs and kept it off.

Remember that a salty meal or water retention from exercise can sometimes mask losses, but that will sort itself out. Don't panic. Don't let the daily fluctuations mess with your head, it's what happens over time that matters.

courtmper

I have seen the success stories I just notice with a lot of them that they use different methods like counting macros and I didn't know if people lost the weight strictly just from calories.

zyxst

Yes. There are even people on here that have lost by counting calories ONLY (no exercise).

mickeygirliegirl

I did it before - strictly counted calories - none of the macro/micro/whatever - and lost about 40 lbs in 5 months and I was always around 1200 calories (never under 1000).

Remember, different things can cause gains - too much sodium, monthly cycles, not enough water, etc. If you are accurately logging calories, and are consuming less calories than what you burn, then you will lose weight. Simple as that.

goldthistime

courtmper wrote: »

I have seen the success stories I just notice with a lot of them that they use different methods like counting macros and I didn't know if people lost the weight strictly just from calories.

Are you inferring that you might need to switch to low carb to get somewhere? Low carb works well because the emphasis on fat and protein keeps most people fuller longer than a carb heavy diet. Personally, I want to lose my weight slowly so I have a small deficit and therefore have room for some starchy carbs and moderate amounts of sugar. On occasion I eat fewer carbs so that I can eat fewer calories without feeling hungry. Gone are the days that I am willing to suffer through a big deficit diet. I even find 2lb/week too difficult. I'm hungry too often and I do things like choose the lowest calorie version of whatever I am eating (like bread), rather than looking for the most accurate one. In other words, I cheat. Could this be contributing to your problem?

LivingtheLeanDream

Counting calories works as long as you are accurately tracking those calories.

If you aren't losing look at how you log. Are you using a food scale? Are you eating back too many exercise calories?

Annahbananas

courtmper wrote: »

I have been logging my food and just when I think I'm getting somewhere the scale goes back up. Does anyone really lose weight just from calorie counting? Feeling discouraged at this point.

I started counting calories on Feb 22 2016. Started to work out 30 minutes a day 3 times a week in March.

So far I've lost 53 pounds. That's just from lowering my calories and walking on a treadmill (not a hardcore workout....just walking). Before I started to count my calories I'm sure I was eating 4500 a day. Now I'm eating 1250 a day...not hungry...just changed the bad foods for the good ones


Some tips:

1. Under the food search window there is a upc camera. When you go grocery shopping scan those bar codes. It'll log them in your inventory and as long as you have a camera, it'll work. This will accurately log your foods you eat.
2. Buy a food scale. Believe me lol. You can get a great one on Amazon for 11 dollars. It's amazing how much your brain over estimates a food portion such as dried pasta.
3. Stop eating salt. This will stop your body from retaining water
4. Drink more water. This will help your kidneys and that, in turn, helps your liver better facilitate the metabolism of fat. Eating too much salt or drinking little water causes your kidneys to not function as well which causes your liver to pick up where the kidneys couldn't; thus slowing down the metabolism of fat burning (this tech helped me break my stall)
5. Stay away from packaged low calorie foods if you can. There's just way too much salt in those lean cuisines and weight watcher packages.

wizzybeth

Yes it works if you do it correctly. That means verifying the weight of your food (use a scale not measuring cups, and digital food scales are cheap! Under $10!) and verifying the nutrition information of the entry you use. It means logging every single thing that goes into your mouth every day with accuracy...including butter and oils and creamer in your coffee. It means not over crediting the number of your exercise calories. When you go out to eat and have no idea of the calories you should over estimate.

This is the only way I can lose weight and still enjoy the foods I love. My third and final round...I've lost about 80 lbs, (40 lbs twice, lol) and am working on losing the same 40 plus another 50 on top of it for the last time. Why did I gain it back you ask?

Because I stopped counting calories.