Are you really losing weight by counting calories?
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Ah, the simplicity of this statement and you are so right. Thanks. I'm living by it. Kathryn0
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The pictures tell the story. Well done. I like your philosophy, logging for the rest of your life. Why not? Just like cleaning your teeth. If it becomes a habit, it should work. Kathryn(Sydney, Australia).0
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I am surprised at how much I was taking in. Calories are lurking where you don't expect. Most appetizers are packed with them, Look at what a shake has in it. Or fries. Once you know these things, you can make smarter choices.0
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Yes. What other way is there to do it? If caloric intake is less than caloric expenditure, you lose weight - simple as that.I want to know the truth lol.. Are you really losing weight by just counting calories and exercise?
Setting a sensible goal, logging my caloric intake and sticking to it (for the most part, anyways).What are you doing to make sure you stay under your calories?
I've lost 45 lbs. and over 12% bodyfat. I'm actually about 2 lbs. below my goal weight, but want to lose about 4-5% more bodyfat and then put on some muscle (via a bulk cycle) to come back up to goal weight.If you don't mind please also tell me you start weight and current weight from when you started counting your calories?0 -
I want to know the truth lol.. Are you really losing weight by just counting calories and exercise? Is counting your calories teaching you to make better decision? What are you doing to make sure you stay under your calories? If you don't mind please also tell me you start weight and current weight from when you started counting your calories? I am just a little curious.
Yes but also with exercise... what goes in must come out (exercise wise)0 -
Yep counting & exercise as well here. My ticker says it all. I got to that weight in 7 months. Counting & exercise. No cheat days, no rest days & sure as hell no slacking off & making any excuses.0
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Yes. lost near 3 stone in around 6 months.
Check my blog on here for a bit of info if you are struggling to make progress
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Exercise and eating right is the way to do it. Don't trust some magic pill or starving yourself. I count my calories and check labels carefully now. I won't go near a frozen pizza these days. Why have a bite of a pizza when I can have an entire chicken breast for the same calories? (Obviousy the chicken is lower in fat.)
My starting weight was 230. My current weight is 175. It has taken a year. I did slack off for a while. January 1, 2013 I weighed 202 pounds. So being serious about what I'm doing, I've lost over 25 pounds in 4 months.0 -
I have tried all sorts of diets and healthy eating programmes - weight watchers, slimming world and the eat well plate as recommended by the NHS in the UK would lose a bit of weight but not much. Since I started counting calories I have lost over 14lbs - 4 since starting to use this website a few weeks ago. The reason I think it is working is that I am now thinking about how many calories I should eat each day and making better choices. This combined with 7 exercise sessions a week is having the desired effect.0
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Well, not really. I lost 80 lbs before I joined MFP and started counting calories. I continued to lose at about the same rate while I was counting them, and recently decided to stop. I was getting really preoccupied by numbers instead of just eating healthily. I've continued to lose weight at the same rate. So counting calories hasn't been that amazing for me, but for some people it really helps keep them on course.0
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No I am doing the 5/2 diet that suits me fine as I can still have a social life and be very strict on the 2 days I need to be. It might not suit everybody but I find it easier than counting calories. Comes off slow just about 1lb per week and I am happy that way.0
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Yes counting calories and exercise. I was 333 at Feb 28th I,m 297 now. I'm not actually finding it that difficult. Sorry I always feel guilty when I tell people I.m not finding it that hard. I,m aiming for a fitness level near what I was 10 years ago0
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Absolutely. It is pretty basic, calories in, calories out.
I have learned a lot about nutrition, portion size, and making good choices regarding food
Began exercising in Oct 2012 after 100# loss and knees improved enough to make exercising less painful. Now I am exercising daily at least 1 hour and I have had a fit bit for 2 months and it motivates me even more to move.
290 March 12, 2012
148 April 1, 2013
It works. Simple as that.0 -
A few years ago, I lost about 30 pounds and got back to my skinniest (Junior High) weight by counting my calories. I also did lots of Tae Bo! I made exercise a habit. It definitely helped me to make better choices. I got pretty good at estimating how many calories were in what- although I always double-checked to be sure. I gained all of it back and more when I stopped exercising and especially when my eating habits went back to my "normal". I'm giving it another go and am hoping I will have as much luck as I did before when I was consistent and stuck with it. Good luck to you!0
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I've lost 8lbs so far by counting calories and gentle exercise, I walk for at least 30 mins a day pushing a double buggy. Not much fun checking every bit of food for calorie amounts, but got to lose this baby weight so sticking to it
SW was 135
CW is 1270 -
I honestly don't know why counting calories gets such a bad rap! Why wouldn't you keep track of how much you're eating? The total amount of calories you eat in a daily basis is extremely important when you're dieting, so naturally you should actually keep track.
When I count calories it forces me to look at what I've eaten on a given day and cut back if I'm eating too much. You can overeat if you're not keeping track of what you're eating and how much you're eating. I think that it's just too much effort for some people, but you don't need to actually pull out a calculator and count them up.
I have a general idea of how many calories I consume on a daily basis, I don't write down what I eat, but I know how many calories are in what I eat. For example I may eat a breakfast burrito that has 200 calories so I know that for breakfast I consumed 200 calories and I add that to my rough estimate of how much I eat for lunch and dinner.
I've lost 32 lbs. already just by watching how much I eat and I'm going to start to also pay more attention to what I'm eating as well. However, remember that counting calories only helps if you're eating proper foods. If you're just eating a bunch of junk food counting calories doesn't have the same effect it would if you were eating healthier foods.0 -
Yup 0
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103lbs down yep1 it works believe all the hype you want the only way to do it is eat healthy, exercise, cut portion sizes and make sure what you put in is less than you burn.
Doctors tell us the truth might not be what you want to hear but believe me it's the only way that worked for me0 -
Ive never really counted calories until mfp. But, I have a tendancy to eat until I'm not hungry anymore too. I thought I was counting calories, but then my husband jokingly said to me, "why are you measuring it when you are going to have 3 - 4 bowls of cereal regardless..." This is so true for me. I think Im more about fueling my body right to gain optimum results since I'm active. Ive realized that eating better helps me a whole lot physically and mentally. Before mfp, I was eating way too much sodium and sugar and not enough protein. Becoming more aware of what's going in my body is more important than calorie counting.0
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Week 1 of my 'restart' and counting calories and eating clean as possible but also walking as much as possible each day and I have lost 8 lbs. Hodgie x0
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Yes. Since counting calories (I started in January, before that I was just exercising) I have lost 10kgs.0
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i started at 265 and down to 218. i started to get serious januray 1st. it was very hard at first trying to balance things. but i have found what works for me now. i eat generally 1800 calories a day. high protein. and i exercise an hour a day. i do have days where i go over and i do have days i dont get exercise. but i go into everyday as a new day and dont get caught up if i mess up. i do not wear a heart monitor and i dont own a scale to weigh food. but i do watch more of what i eat and read labels. no fad diet or pills here. i eat junk food and fast food. i keep it real. and my progress shows its working....0
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Nope, i'm not. 2 and a half years ago i was 12 stone 5..Now im 9.8... However i have been 9.5 so this weight is my winter coat i seem to be carrying around! I just started calorie counting from this and it doesn't work for me what so ever... i dropped 3 stone by just simply eating healthy and whenever my body was hungry. I will admit when going down the supermarket i will check the contents weather its low in fat/calories. Since however i have used this to count calories, it completely messes me up. I think this defiantly does work... just not for me... im back to eating healthy and exercising every day without the counting and i'm already seeing the differences.
Also i think that some people use calorie counting as a excuse to eat crap food...e.g 'i have 100 calories left, i can eat a cookie'.. when in fact your probably overloading on sugar/fat. If you want a healthy life style, i don't think calorie counting is the way forward.0 -
Yes, I just count the calories, I don't worry about the burn it know it will fall it place & eat right0
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Was 161lbs, never counted calories exactly but cut out junk food, snacks and liquid calories. It came off like anything with I added exercise to the mix.
I dont count calories now and am probably still losing. I personally don't want to keep weighing my food etc. for a long period of time although it is beneficial. I'm going to stick to what works best for me..0 -
I've been on here a while as a member, but I neglected it for months. So, I actually officially started 10 days ago at 128lbs. This morning I weighed in at 123.6. It's really impressive being aware of what calories go in vs. out can do.
And to mention, I've eaten better food for sure, but I haven't cut out the junk completely. I never realized calories were more important to keep track of than other things, I can see my abs coming through where the fat used to be it's seriously amazing.0 -
Counting my calories has opened my eyes to the junk I was eating before. It's amazing how when you see what's really in something your appetite changes.
This ^^^ word to word. Earlier I used to sit down with a pack of shortbread cookies. Since I started tracking 3 weeks ago I've had ONE. I now have Pita chips with Hummus as snack and count them out before hand. I would also recommend getting a food scale. I got one from Amazon for $14 shipped. Earlier I used to ball park my meats, I weigh them now and realized my 3 oz breast is just 2 oz.0 -
I want to know the truth lol.. Are you really losing weight by just counting calories and exercise? Is counting your calories teaching you to make better decision? What are you doing to make sure you stay under your calories? If you don't mind please also tell me you start weight and current weight from when you started counting your calories? I am just a little curious.
I didn't read all the replies but I can answer this easily. I am losing weight by calorie counting but I do believe calorie counting has taught me to make better food choices and it has taught me moderation which is something I severely lacked as an overweight person my whole life. I see my allotted calories as money that I can "spend" each day. If I want a treat I decide whether it is worth it to spend so much on one calorie dense item or to eat much more food for the same amount. Sometimes I do have that treat and sometimes I find a better alternative. It is all about balance, not deprivation. I started at 250 and I am down to 150. My current coal is 145 and my ultimate goal is 1300
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