are carbs or calories more important when losing weight?

3v0l1s0m3

I keep seeing keto stuff, that carbs are awful but then again.. until recently I always heard that calories were more important. which do you believe and why?

MikePTY

Carbs don't actually matter at all, except for they have calories. The number of calories is what is important, period. Some people find that they feel fuller when they eat less carbs, so it may help them lose weight, but others don't have the same experience. I have eaten plenty of carbs and lost weight.

nutmegoreo

Calories. Macros can influence satiety, but calories have to be lower than you are burning to lose weight. It's how the body works.

Hollis100

I'm a vegetarian. Sometimes I eat 150 to 200 carbs a day (vegetables, legumes and fruit). I've had absolutely no problems losing weight. If carbs were so bad, vegetarians and vegans would never lose weight.

Calories are what matter for weight loss.

AnnPT77

Calories, because I lost around 50 pounds in less than a year by controlling those, but giving no heed to carb intake (while eating around 150g of them every single day). And I've stayed at a healthy weight for about 4 years since, eating more like 200g carbs every day, but managing my calorie level.

For some people, carbs affect cravings or appetite. Some people find that if they eat too few, their energy level tanks. And some people need to manage them because of a medical condition. Other than things like that, carbs don't matter.

For managing weight, calories always matter. Strategies other than calorie counting can result in weight loss, but it happens because those other strategies make it easier for a particular person to control their calorie intake/expenditure without counting.

NorthCascades

Calories because I lost 70 pounds counting them and eating all the carbs I wanted (within my calorie budget).

Shortgirlrunning

Calories!

Low carb helps some people feel more satisfied and therefore it’s easier for them to eat fewer calories. But they aren’t losing weight by just cutting carbs and not being in a calorie deficit, it’s just a way of eating that makes it easier for them to stay in a calorie deficit.

Personally, I love my carbs way too much to do keto/low carb. I’ve lost 50 lbs really without paying much attention to my macros.

ElizabethKalmbach

CALORIES are more important for weight loss. CARBS are important to reduce the chance of violence occurring at random intervals while I am in deficit. (I don't do well on a low carb diet, but I can lose weight easily by restricting calories.)

PAV8888

Your long-term energy balance determines the long-term trend of your weight.

The types of foods that you eat, their macros such as carbs, fat, and protein. Other attributes such as the amount of fibre and vitamins and nutrients that they have. All these things may determine how healthy, happy, and hungry you get for any given level of calories.

The biggest part, the base of the pyramid, is the calories that you consume.

unstableunicorn

If your diet is 100% carbs and your calories are in a deficit you will still lose weigh. The anti-carb notion comes from lack of self control.

missysippy930

Calories.
Losing weight is all about eating less calories than your body burns. ALWAYS!

fitom80

Additionaly to what was already said by others. There are simple/fast carbs (sugar, fructose) you should avoid to eat esp. SOLE(causing fast insuline rise and fall, eating them as part of complex meal or just after is much better) Preffer slow/complex carbs in general.
Carbs deficit in longer term may affect hormone ballance esp. by woman. The best way to go is cal deficit and ballanced macros. (esp. in long term)

nighthawk584

I lost my first 50 lbs on 100 carbs or less a day, miserable, tired, hangry all the time!
I lost my next 32 lbs and counting on 150-250 carbs a day, happy, full of energy, and satiated MOST of the time.
My protein and fats have stayed basically the same.
I used to buy into the whole low carb is the answer to losing weight. My Doctor even told me this but never once explained to me that staying within a calorie deficit is the ONLY thing that matters when losing weight.

ReenieHJ

The carb hype, I feel, is grossly over rated unless one carb leads to another and another and....I'm sugar and carb addicted so need to be very careful knowing what will trigger bingeing and what won't. So I'll stick with the majority and say calories are most important.

filster132

Calories matter in the end. People who are on keto use it just as a tool to lose weight. However, keto is not the only tool to lose weight, some people do fasting and there are many more ways to lose weight. The only certainty in life is you eat less calories than your body burns, you will lose weight. What matters for each individual is knowing what will help them achieve that goal. For some it can be keto. You can still do keto and gain weight if you eat more than your body burns.

Machka9

Calories.

SuziQ113

Calories. It's not a belief. I have tried my share of the "latest" diet trends and have found time and time again these diets work for the short-term, but do not work for me over the long term. The only way I have been successful over a long period is concentrating on calories. I agree with many macros do count and higher-quality calories lead to being more satisfied with my meals and feeling better overall.

Of course, if there are underlying medical issues one must follow the diet suggested by their doctor/dietitian.


Machka - I am not stalking you! It seems we are interested in the same type of posts - LOL!

snickerscharlie

Carbs have been the devil-du-jour for a while, now. Stick around long enough and the woo-pendulum will swing back around to fats being evil again.

Bottom line? Calories rule for weight management. As far as macros go, the only one I specifically try to target is protein. The rest fall where they may within the day.

HoneyBadger302

Calories are king.

Macros can certainly play a role - for example, I tend to feel much more satiated, and less hungry between meals, if I eat a little lower carb, higher protein and fat. Thing is, right after a meal, I may actually NOT feel as full, but my hunger takes a lot longer to hit, so by the end of the day, I am finding it much easier to stay in my calorie range.

I enjoy carbs though, and some days I let myself have more than "normal" just to keep myself satisfied - I just find it a bit harder to stay in my calorie range on those days and sometimes just choose to eat at maintenance that day.

Some people do not find fats satiating - I don't find them filling, but the protein/fat combo does seem to keep me more satiated. Does not work that way for everyone.

Trick with carbs in general, however, is to weigh them carefully. A "serving" is often quite a bit smaller than one would like to think!

LyndaBSS

3v0l1s0m3 wrote: »

I keep seeing keto stuff, that carbs are awful but then again.. until recently I always heard that calories were more important. which do you believe and why?

In order to lose weight, you need to be in a calorie deficit. That’s all. That’s it.

Your body needs carbs. They are not the devil. I eat lots of carbs in my diet and I’m doing great with losing weight.

In fact, I chose not to do keto just because it eliminated too many of my favorite foods. It would not have been sustainable for me.

lgfrie

Anticarbism is approaching cult status. Atkins on steroids. How did so many people get all tangled up in a superstition this clearly ridiculous?

There is nothing wrong with carbs. The only thing that matters for weight loss is calories. As some clever person on MFP put it not too long ago, if you took your cat to the vet and the vet said she's too fat and needs to lose weight, you wouldn't put it on a low carb diet; you'd just feed it less food. Common sense is a good thing.