Are you really losing weight by counting calories?

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  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,306 Member
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    yes silly
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
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    Just count calories! Easy peasy. There's no secret to it. Work out to be able to eat more and to help your body be healthier.
  • mariah_papaya
    mariah_papaya Posts: 39 Member
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    Yes - and even more importantly, I feel like counting calories and tracking nutrients has made me aware of the QUALITY of fuel I am putting in my body. Keeping at 1200/day is hard, but when I make good choices (high protein, avoiding carbs, wheat, sugar, dairy) then I don't even feel hungry even at such a low calorie intake. On the other hand, if I have a sugary breakfast, the blood sugar spike has me starving by lunch time, and the cycle of badness starts there!
  • Gemz321
    Gemz321 Posts: 64
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    Yes its working for me. I try and have some treats now and again as it helps me stay on track, but they are still within my calories for the day. If I am really hungry one day, I try and exercise more to compensate.
    Start weight: 210 lbs
    Current weight: 173 lbs
  • krissy_krossy
    krissy_krossy Posts: 307 Member
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    Are you really losing weight by just counting calories and exercise?
    Yes

    Is counting your calories teaching you to make better decision?
    Yes, I've found out many foods I thought were low calorie/sugar/sodium were definitely not.

    What are you doing to make sure you stay under your calories?
    Weighing food, recording, pre-planning meals, and exercise.

    If you don't mind please also tell me you start weight and current weight from when you started counting your calories?
    Officially:
    Beg. of Jan- 189
    Now- 171
    The first several pounds were water though, I'm sure.
  • nsblue
    nsblue Posts: 331 Member
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    I had lost 170 pounds just by following a 1500 cal diabetic diet... the plan was by counting food choices not calories... then at 430 i started logging and counting my cals at 1200 ...fine tuned what i ate and started walking...in nine months i lost almost 200 pounds.
    logging your calories makes u realize the amount of calories a food has...and makes u plan your meals so u are able to get in your protein and other essential foods to make it healthier you. I used my time learning exactly what foods I needed and could fit in to be healthy...every one is different n we all must do what is best for ourselves.
    Mindless eating as well as portioning can cause you not to lose weight. logging your cals can keep u on track and honest...that is if you are honest with yourself in logging and portioning.
  • WinnerVictorious
    WinnerVictorious Posts: 4,735 Member
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    no. i'm losing weight via magic.
  • kingofcrunk
    kingofcrunk Posts: 372 Member
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    I have lost 86 lbs by simply counting calories and exercising. That is all there is to it. The simplest thing I've ever done - I don't knnow why I didn't do it earlier and save myself the trouble of having to lose so much!
  • kelly101386
    kelly101386 Posts: 389 Member
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    I tried weight watchers, slim fast and other sorts of fads.

    Since counting calories and moderate exercise, the only pounds I lose are from my body and not my pocket!

    It definitely works!
  • 05kilos2015
    05kilos2015 Posts: 11 Member
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    Like that philosophy. I'm hoping its that simple. K
  • jonswife0206
    jonswife0206 Posts: 125 Member
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    Yes.yes.yes. I figured how many calories I need and stick to them every day.I make better food choices and not rely on calories alone though. I want to be healthy and a balanced diet is important. I log what I eat and exercise daily.This makes me accountable and also a steadier way to keep the weight coming off. I started at 285 and am now at 239.6 as of this morning.
  • RunningMannn
    RunningMannn Posts: 135
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    I'm just curious....OTHER THAN watching calories, how do you think one would lose weight?

    There are many ways to lose weight...When I did the body4 life program. I ate protein and carbs in every meal. Five meals a day. I didn't look at calories. I just wanted to know how man fat grams were in the food I ate..It worked, but I didn't have the discipline to eat only healthy foods every day...
    Whether you were counting them or not, it was still a caloric deficit that caused the weight loss, though.

    It was some intense training for the most part. Short workouts but max out when doing cardio and weights. I couldn't tell you if I ate 1500 calories or 2500. It was just healthy foods except one day a week. On that day I could eat anything I wanted. And took full advantage of it..
  • Makeda1211
    Makeda1211 Posts: 134 Member
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    Definitely, counting calories and exercise is the way to go. You become accountable for the food you put in your mouth when you count your calories. I started at 277 and am now at 251 since Thanksgiving. I can't even tell you how many inches I have lost either.

    It's very easy to get in the calories when you are eating junk but its a whole different story when you are eating clean.

    Just a thought.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    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.

    Yup...given you inputs, MFP will give you a calorie goal...that goal has a built in caloric deficit from your maintenance level of calories. When you meet that goal, you lose weight plain and simple. Of course, there's a little more to it than that...you do need to weigh and measure your foods and ingredients to get accurate calorie counts on what you are consuming...so provided you are doing that and your calorie consumption is accurate, you will lose weight.

    20 Lbs since October...I lost some before I found MFP...MFP has made my tracking that much easier. Along the way I've learned to make better nutritional decisions. When i first started I wasn't working out at all...no need to workout for weight loss, just a calorie deficit...but I started feeling so much better I had to get out there and get active again. Now I workout 5-6 days per week , cardio and weight training. It's all I can do to let myself have some rest for my body to repair at this point. But I do it for fitness...my calorie goals are for weight loss.
  • Hiskhaleesi
    Hiskhaleesi Posts: 53 Member
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    Are you really losing weight by just counting calories and exercise?
    :drinker: 17 pounds down in under a month!

    Is counting your calories teaching you to make better decision?
    :laugh: For the most part. Take tonight for example... family will be eating velveeta shells and cheese, I will be eating veggies.


    What are you doing to make sure you stay under your calories?
    :smokin: I stalk MFP relentlessly. also I've learned what my commonly eaten foods are worth, calorie wise

    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.
    :embarassed: 243 January 16th
    :tongue: 226 Today
  • bookworm_847
    bookworm_847 Posts: 1,903 Member
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    I'm just curious....OTHER THAN watching calories, how do you think one would lose weight?

    Some people have lost weight by eating intuitively...nothing is off limits, they eat only when hungry and stop when satisfied. I have a friend who lost (and has kept off) close to 75 pounds this way. Me, I am never satisfied so I could not do that. :laugh:

    I used to work with a lady who would eat whatever she wanted, but only half of whatever it was. She lost a lot of weight. I didn't have much luck when I tried that approach, lol.

    I've lost about 10 lbs. in 6 weeks just counting calories and exercising 5-6 times a week for 40-60 minutes each (depending on how much energy and time before work I have). I noticed a lot of bad habits right off the bat when I started this, and logging everything has helped me to be a lot more aware of what I'm eating. I started at 183 and am now at 172.6.
  • AggieFan2011
    AggieFan2011 Posts: 551 Member
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    Yes I am. I typically do cardio 5-6 days a week. I've slacked on my strength training the past couple of months, but I plan on getting back on that wagon after this first round of exams and papers is finished. I do think that counting calories and logging everything I eat has helped me to make better choices. I won't say that I always make good choices, but I log the bad days too because it helps me see where I went wrong and it allows me to fix those mistakes. I started using MFP at the very end of October this past year and I have currently lost 21.5 pounds. I've done this simply by counting and logging my calories and exercise. I also have started eating healthier foods and adding a lot more fruit and veggies into my diet which has helped I'm sure, but ultimately I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I am simply watching what I eat more and being way more active than I used to be. I promise if you commit to logging and actually follow through you will see results. Good luck! :smile:
  • peruna
    peruna Posts: 1 Member
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    well. it's not working for me. eating 1200 a day, exercising. in 6 weeks I havent lost a thing.
  • Andrew_peter
    Andrew_peter Posts: 94 Member
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    Working good here, 23 lbs lost since ealy Jan through mostly diet and hitting the weights again; just starting to get into the groove of significant daily cardio too which is doing wonders for overall sense of wellingbeing and daily energy!! Next step is to focus on actually eating healthier as the crap foods I eat haven't changed, just the portions.

    Started 288 lbs and down to 265 now.
  • RunningMannn
    RunningMannn Posts: 135
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    well. it's not working for me. eating 1200 a day, exercising. in 6 weeks I havent lost a thing.

    your probably not eating enough...

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