help! counting cals vs. not counting cals

Oompa_Loompa
Oompa_Loompa Posts: 1,099 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I've been trying to decide this for weeks now. When I first signed up for this website and lost 20 pounds, I hard core counted every calorie and feel like I had way more will power then what I lack of now.
Now, I feel like when I count my calories, I just obsess over how many calories I have left for the day and how am I going to eat dinner with only 100 cals left!? And then I get frustrated and feel like EF it. I'll start fresh tomorrow....except tomorrow is the same thing. So then I tried to not count calories and all I do is fret over how I don't know how many calories I've eaten and what I have left. Bottom line, either way all I'm thinking about all day is how hungry I am and what or what I cant eat.

What are other peoples oppinions and what works for them? Can you still loose weight without counting calories?

Replies

  • pteryndactyl
    pteryndactyl Posts: 303 Member
    Maybe pre-plan your meals so it's not a battle throughout the day?
  • dandandee
    dandandee Posts: 301 Member
    Maybe pre-plan your meals so it's not a battle throughout the day?

    ^agreed. I don't pre-plan very often, but when I do (or at least have a general idea of what I'll eat) I split the calories throughout the day a lot better than otherwise. which leads to me not going over.

    In the end it's what you feel comfortable with. If you think you can go without counting, then go without counting. but not if it's stressing you out how you don't know how much you're eating.
  • GODfidence
    GODfidence Posts: 249 Member
    I would suggest not counting calories for a week.
    Weigh yourself first thing in the morning, then for the next week
    Eat when your HUNGRY and try to make Good food choices and weigh yourself again
    Next week. Most likely won't gain too much or maybe even lose because you won't be obsessing..
    I have the same problem.
  • hiyomi
    hiyomi Posts: 906 Member
    I pre plan my meals the day before and if I decide to not eat that, then I don't! :D As long as its not way over board on calories lol Even then sometimes....
  • JessHealthKick
    JessHealthKick Posts: 800 Member
    Maybe pre-plan your meals so it's not a battle throughout the day?

    second that

    I do that most days, weekends I am more slack as I eat out a little. Weekdays I only eat home-cooked food so can pre-plan each meal and not only look at calories, but also protein/carb/fat counts as well.

    What calorie goal were you aiming for? I think perhaps if you eat like normal and log that to get an idea of what you are at now, you can gradually cut back. I used to eat around 2000+ (had a lot of sweet breads) however I went gluten free and cut back to 1200 + eating exercise calories at first. This was hard, but then I got used to it in a matter of about a month. I now eat 1400+ eat back exercise calories. You can look at my diary if you want :) (March isn't logged very well as I was travelling, but February is a good example).

    Remember that you can still have what you love, but you have to listen to your body and make the right changes. Keeping really hydrated, getting rid of junk food from your house etc make an enormous difference!

    Jess

    edit: I have hypothyroid, so eating at 1400 or even 1200 doesn't really make me lose weight. If you normally eat at say 2500 and cut down to 1750 that will make an enormous difference for you! Don't expect the predictions of MFP to be correct. I was on 1200 for weeks and should have lost a lot and I lost barely anything! Luckily I don't want to lose too much
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    I count calories - when I started I counted them to make sure I didn't eat too much....but now I count them to make sure I eat ENOUGH! :tongue:

    I track to make sure I'm getting the right amount of fuel to get me through my day, all my activities, exercise, etc. And I want to make sure I'm hitting my targets for my macros, carbs/fat.protein every day as well. I log breakfast, then usually figure out what I'm making for dinner, and log that. That helps me plan my lunch a little better, focusing on a higher protein meal if I need it, and helps me figure out what to snack on in the afternoon.

    If you are legitimately hungry all day long, so much that you're often down to only 100 calories left at dinner time, maybe your calorie goal is too low? You said you lost weight before, have you recalculated your numbers since the loss? If your body has changed, likely your calorie needs have as well.

    I started with the MFP standard 1200 daily goal, hated it, was hangry all the time (angry from being so hungry!), tweaked my settings and got myself more calories for the day. I went to 1300, then 1400, managed to get up to maybe 1500 - and then I found a wonderful thread titled In Place Of A Road Map. Through the info there, I calculated my BMR and my TDEE, and found that I could and should be eating around 1800 calories a day. Best. News. EVER! Changed my settings here at MFP, set my daily goal to 1800, and stopped being hungry all the time. And tired, and feeling week in workouts, etc. And I lost weight. Even better, I lost FAT. I dropped another pant size, I lost inches. I didn't even gain any weight over the holidays, and I enjoyed all the goodies!

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/937712-in-place-of-a-road-map-ver-3-0

    Read it, run your numbers, make sure you follow all the steps - you don't have to be hungry all the time to lose weight.
  • terridyment
    terridyment Posts: 52 Member
    I preplan a day ahead sometimes for the entire week. For me it makes life so much easier and grocery shopping a breeze!!!
  • rduhlir
    rduhlir Posts: 3,550 Member
    If you are legitimately hungry all day long, so much that you're often down to only 100 calories left at dinner time, maybe your calorie goal is too low? You said you lost weight before, have you recalculated your numbers since the loss? If your body has changed, likely your calorie needs have as well.

    This is worth repeating.
  • ktsmom430
    ktsmom430 Posts: 1,100 Member
    Ditto pre plan your meals and snacks.
    I cook on weekends and freeze individual protions for the week. It really works for me.
    and......................................I am a procrastinator, always told myself that I will start over tomorrow after blowing it by the end of the day. My starting over tomorrow lasted decades. You have an awesome tool in MFP, wish it was around 30 years ago. I wasted a lot of time.
  • wannabpiper
    wannabpiper Posts: 402 Member
    I've always stressed out like that, too, and found that it's got nothing to do with hunger or satiety. It's a problem where I have anxiety when I know there's a limit to what I can have. If I know that my favorite nail polish color is being discontinued, I'll buy three bottles and worry about what I'll do when they run out.

    The solution for me is to journal whatever is on my mind when this happens. For some reason, and I'm not a big proponent of the touchy-feely stuff, but it works. And believe me, I journal stupid stuff and it works to stop me from feeling out of control. Maybe journaling will help you?
  • trdepalo
    trdepalo Posts: 106
    I dunno I'm still in the middle of it but here what I - did I counted calories strictly every day for about 8 months (I was at a point I could eyeball about how much I was eating because I was eating the same things over and over) and I too became obsessed with eating all of my calories and hitting certain macros and becoming very obsessed and very bored with food. Recently went on a vacation and couldn't count for a whole week which ended up breaking my three month plateau. I took it as a sign, and I am continuing not counting and eating "intuitively" or whatever and it seems to be working okay. Whenever I worry about how much I am eating though I look at the food before I eat it and estimate how much in my head it is probably around - for example if I want a lighter breakfast because I know I am going out later I just imagine about how much I would have calculated for a breakfast in the past, say 200 calories, and try to recreate it (here, two hard boiled eggs and a plum). I find that trusting my instincts mixed with a mental double check occasionally (or you could just log a single meal if its reassuring) might work in the long run... and if things ever start to get out of control MFP is always here to help pull back in the reigns.
  • BobOki
    BobOki Posts: 245 Member
    Plan better, and get more cals per meal by starting Lean Gains.
  • paulbuxton
    paulbuxton Posts: 12 Member
    I count my calories but not too religiously. MFP is great because it has a really good food database which helps quite a lot, and barcode scanning is really handy.
    If you are finding it difficult to hit your goal on a regular basis then you maybe need to reevaluate your calorie goal.
    The other thing to do is to look at where are you calories being spent, and perhaps make some adjustments to the meals you eat? If you are finding yourself constantly hungry then you perhaps need to keep a store of healthy and filling foods to snack on between meals.
  • DaniellBBFitness
    DaniellBBFitness Posts: 4
    Stop driving yourself crazy with the calorie counting. Make it easy on yourself! Look at the food you are eating. What do you eat mostly?
  • clewliss
    clewliss Posts: 640 Member
    I personally don't count calories! I eat a nice breakfast, a smaller lunch, a snack (usually fruit) and then portion control at dinner! So far I've lost at least 1lb/week which is exactly what I'm after :) I think you find what works for your body! I did try counting calories and it drove me up the wall, so I listen to my body. If I'm hungry I eat something small, if not I don't eat...period. Good luck to you!

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