Only caring about calories?

We are not all on here to lose weight, many are here to treat health conditions or descrease risks, fitness or sporting goals or gain size. It's Myfitnesspal not Mydietpal.

I want to be healthy, so while I do watch the calories as a basis for weight loss, I really want to eat healthy, quality foods and use Myfitnesspal so log and keep up with what I am putting in my body. I guess you can lose weight eating packaged food if you stay under your calorie count, but from what I can tell, you get to eat LESS food that way. Healthy foods, fresh vegetables and fruits, allow you to actually fill up while losing weight. At least this it what works for me. To each his/her own.

I want to be healthy, so while I do watch the calories as a basis for weight loss, I really want to eat healthy, quality foods and use Myfitnesspal so log and keep up with what I am putting in my body. I guess you can lose weight eating packaged food if you stay under your calorie count, but from what I can tell, you get to eat LESS food that way. Healthy foods, fresh vegetables and fruits, allow you to actually fill up while losing weight. At least this it what works for me. To each his/her own.

I guess it depends on where you're at too. With the small amount of weight you want to lose, quality becomes more important. For me, just losing the 100 pounds I still have to go would do wonders for my health, no matter what I ate to lose it.

I care about both. Some foods are high in calorie but low in nutritional contents to meet daily needs. So, I have to watch what I eat as well as the caloric content in food. For example, I have been maintaining my caloric needs but my sodium intake was high. I checked my blood pressure and I was pre hypertensive... I weigh 125lbs, exercise freak, excellent heart and blood sugar level but pre hypertensive! This is definitely not good since this will lead to strokes and the likes. What good is it, watching calories only when you may die from bad eating? Not good, might as well eat whatever I want, enjoy and die happy... lol. Therefore, I think it's essential to watch what you eat.
Also, you should know your nutritional and caloric needs. MFP is just a suggestion. For example, I do not agree with eating 1200 cals a day. That just sets one up for binge eating when off the diet. I think it should be a life long change. And, sometimes mfp may tell you that this is what you need but in fact it isn't! For example, I'm always over my daily sugar intake. ALWAYS! However, I have a tendancy of low blood sugar level. If I cut my sugar level according to what mfp suggests, I'd end up deficient.

I am really trying to pay more attention to what I eat, not just the calories. Especially the sodium. It makes me feel gross and bloated, so I try to stay under the recommended amount set for me. It seems to work for me. I find it is easier to make healthier choices as I go along. I never used to be much of a label reader, but I read them now automatically.

I think many people find that when they count calories they end up leaning towards healthier foods because you get so much more bang for your buck. I care about both and constantly check my nutrient reports to see if I am consistently deficient in anything. When one doughnut has the same amount of calories as a nice big turkey sandwich, I'll take the turkey sandwich 9 times out of 10.

This. I eat plenty of processed and some junk foods still, but have learned to limit them. That high calorie doughnut just isn't going to keep me as full as the turkey sandwich. I hate being hungry!

When I was losing weight, I was less concerned about my macros/mircros. Now that I'm trying to put some weight back on in muscle, it's a little trickier, so I monitor everything from calories, protein, carbs, fats, etc.

Coming from the size I once was, 316, were I to completely void foods I liked I might fall into a serious binge, as I have seen many others done. I don't deprive myself but the holidays are over and my goal is more serious, the foods I eat are generally tracked by cals alone but I also watch my fat/protein/sugars.

I should also mention that while losing on WW, when I paid close attention to my food choices, I tended to lose more. The exact number of points didn't seem to matter as much, within a reasonable range, of course.

I do believe that the only way to lose weight is make sure calories in < calories out, but I also believe that choices within that framework affect the rate and effectiveness of weight loss. And choices definitely affect how full you feel!

I think there's a mix of people. Lots of people who are trying to "eat clean" and lots of people concerned about the kinds of things they eat, not just the calorie counts. There are people concerned with their carb intake, or sugar intake, or people concerned with sodium, fat, etc..

There are some people on MFP trying to gain weight too, because they are underweight or just want more muscle. I think for people who are really obese, or who are starting out after a long time, their primary goal may be the calorie deficit, and that's not unreasonable.

So you'll find all kinds of people here!

Nah, I focus on the bigger picture. I don't just want to be slim, but to be healthy with a nice physique. Simply focusing on calories will definitely help you lose weight, but you will not be as healthy internally

Counting calories is tough to start, and it's a great way for beginners to get into this lifestyle change thing.

It's true that there's a lot more to being healthy than just losing weight. Counting calories helps you lose weight, so it's a definite starting place for someone who's not great at dieting and making healthy choices. Once you're pretty good at counting calories, it's a good idea to step up your game and make some changes in other directions too, but nobody here is making anyone do anything.

If all you care about is calories, that's your business. Maybe that's all you can stick to. I can respect that. Anything is better than nothing. Some folks don't really give a crap about being perfect with their diet (or even pretty awesome). They just wanna lose weight. That's their business. Step up offa their grills.

Let's not discourage these folks by scaring them off with 50 new lifestyle change suggestions, okay?

I'm proud of you, calorie counters!

I care about the calories.. but I also care about the protein, fiber, carbs, sodium and now trying to work more on my sugar intake... that's a tough one since most my sugar comes from fruit. :ohwell:

I think we are all here to get to our different goals. I would say at the beginning of my weight loss journey It was just about calories to me. ALL I cared about was being under my calorie goal. Once I got used to that and managed it well I started caring about my activity level. I started exercising. After quite a while I became used to being an active person who ate under her calorie goal. Then as time went on I started to care about how much protein I was eating, got used to getting lots of protein while exercising and being under calorie goal. Then I tracked Carbs too. Then I tried to get more fruits and veggies. Then I started adding juiced veggies into my diet. Then I tried to eliminate most animal products from my diet.

If you approached me at the beginning of all this and told me "You are going to be an exercising Vegan who juices, eats low carbs and high protein and stays under 1,200 calories a day." I would have told you to F*** off. It's all about small changes over long periods of time and I think most people just start off with being under their calorie goal, but the healthier they become, the better they feel, the more they chase that healthy feeling.

At least, this has been my experience. If you try to fix EVERYTHING at once, you will get overwhelmed and quit.