Stop calorie counting for my sanity?

munggbean · February 2014

This is the first time ive started a thread but I feel lost and would like some advice. I`ve lost 30 pounds since last spring at first i wasnt counting calories and just started to choose healthier options and and work out and i did notice weight loss but then i found mfp and started counting calories and with the help of tracking the weight just started to come off even faster. But as i came close to a weight I was comfortable with i became obssesed with food and calories and was scared to go over 1300 calories. I deprived my body and around winter break binges started to happen and they still do even worse now. I want to say ive gained 15 pounds back in the past 2 months[not sure if it real fat, some water weight, or even some food left in my stomach still from binges...oh and my binges usually but me between 1500-2000] I know that might not seem bad but I just want to gain control over myself because i hate that i wake up and go straight to the fridge then I calorie count and end up feeling bad.

I want to lose that weight Ive gained but now I want to do this without counting calories but Im scared to leave...
I know I rambled on a bit but have any of you been obssesed with this and tried to stop? How did you feel if you did stop? Did you still lose weight?

I really appreciate any help, thanks

one more question do you think if i stopped counting and just ate when im hungry and ate healthy and stopped restricting my binges would stop?

Overcomer68 · February 2014

I stopped focusing on calories months ago and have had success losing weight. I just started using MFP this month to record my weight monthly, but signed up last year. I do Weigh Down at Home. It's free.

Krecob · February 2014

I started using the "stop eating once you no longer feel hungry method, not until you feel stuffed or food is gone" and it has helped me a lot. I use small plates for dinner and whenever I go out to eat I ask for a box as soon as I get the food and package half away. Along with drinking water ALOT these are some of the things I use to help me.

fallingtrees · February 2014

What have you learned from counting calories? You probably know what packs calories and what doesn't. You know what your portion sizes should look like. You know how much exercise it takes to balance your food intake.

Maybe you could just keep a journal, minus the obsessive calorie counting, weigh yourself once a week, see what happens.

I'm counting now, as a temporary measure, but can't do it forever. I've had success in the past with one basic rule: I eat more of what my body needs, and less of what it doesn't. And get moving for at least 30 minutes at least 5 times a week.

I forgot the basic rule for a while, and that is why I'm back to counting calories.

osmith1999 · February 2014

Another approach is to adopt healthy patterns for eating. You'd have healthy options for each meal. For example: I try to eat fruit for breakfast, salad for lunch, and a small serving of meat (optional) with vegetables for dinner, fruit or a small amount of nuts for snacks, limited healthy carbs (brown rice, oatmeal, beans etc.). You could experiment with meal options that give you the approximate amount of calories for the day and then just use those options instead of counting calories.

runitskat · February 2014

I stopped counting calories when I began to fear them. It wasn't healthy for me to keep going down that road and was leading into bad territory. It's been about 6 months since I stopped and while I haven't lost any more weight, I don't look at food as being bad anymore. I just eat when I'm hungry and allow myself to eat something if I'm craving it. Counting calories was good for me since it taught me how many calories are in things so now I can just sort of mentally keep up with it but in a much healthier way. I seem to be intuitively eating at maintenance and I'm happy with that for the moment.

munggbean · February 2014

Thank you guys for all the help. I'm going to try this out for a couple of weeks to see what happens. My binges are usually carb drivenand I think its because I've restricted them A LOT (no sweets no bread no pasta no rice no oatmeal) and then just threw them back in when I hit maintenance so I'm not going to go crazy restricting and try some different "good" carbs in at least 1-2 meals and just use what Ive learned from here

deksgrl · February 2014

You could try setting a reasonable calorie goal with a small deficit (to lose half a pound a week). Then eat whatever you want within that goal. This way you won't feel deprived, and will still be at a deficit to lose weight. Of course you can eat a whole lot more volume of "healthier" foods than "junk" food, but as you know, it is the number of calories you are eating that determines weight. I can understand that the calorie counting can get obsessive, but you really don't know how much you are eating unless you are counting.

WBB55 · February 2014

Maybe you could just keep a journal, minus the obsessive calorie counting, weigh yourself once a week, see what happens.

^^I like the sound of this for you.

I think sometimes people lose their way when they stop tracking. You don't have to count each and every calorie. But just by writing down what you ate, you stay away from mindless eating and mindless binging.

You're not alone. A lot of people share your experience. Good luck

tavenne323 · February 2014

I've mostly stopped counting calories now that I only have 10 lbs to go. But about once a week I'll count and measure everything. Sometimes that 1 T of PB...turns into an estimated 2T... Doing it once a week or so, keeps me sane but also keeps me in check.

tweetetina · February 2014

If you've counted calories to lose weight, you've likely learned the types and approximate amounts of foods to eat daily so try to just follow what seems logical without counting calories and see how that goes. Also remember that your daily calorie intake to maintain weight is going to be higher than the 1300 you did to lose it so adjust accordingly so you don't feel deprived and tempted to binge eventually.

Noamsh · February 2014

A couple of months ago I had the same problem, I didn't binge but I got very restrictive and obsessive, and was overall depressed and tired of counting calories and just didn't want to do it anymore because of how I was because of it.
My solution was to stop counting for a couple of days. I ate like I always eat and didn't do anything different, but I think that just not knowing exactly how many calories I consumed for a couple of days helped me.
It might work the same for you too. =]

gelendestrasse · February 2014

I try not to get OCD about the calories but since I try to limit carbs MFP gives me a good gauge of that. I've never been one for weighing portions so my calorie count is a bit GIGO anyway. It's really the old "eat less, and exercise" deal, really. After that it's whatever works for you.

Briargrey · February 2014

You could always remind yourself and change the mindset that calories are evil. Count them for AWARENESS and not to fear them. If you have a good daily calorie goal with deficit, there is nothing wrong about counting. If you just can't get your mindset into the right way of thinking about calorie counting, but you can be successful other ways that are good for you -- go for it. I'm guessing that for some people, they may just get successful to a point with whatever method they use and then find a way to sabotage it ('fear' of counting calories leading to eating too little leading to fear of eating too little leading to bingeing, etc) - switching methods may work for someone like this, or it may be necessary to figure out what the actual psychological barrier is and fixing that. Again, NOT saying this is the OP or anyone here, just saying that for me the solution seems to be fixing the issues of getting too restrictive or too obsessive or too fearful internally rather than trying a new method that may or may not work because it may not fix the underlying issues.

DavidSTC · February 2014

There's a lot of good advice here already. I'll just say that what helps for me is knowing when I can actually eat more during a given day. I have my default calorie goal set to lose a half a pound a week. I'm losing more than that. But, what's been great is that by counting calories, I know on a given day that i can have some ice cream or a beer in the evening and I'm still meeting my goal, losing weight and keeping myself sane. Without counting calories, I don't know if I'd have that extra treat that makes me happy.

But, if you want to get away from counting calories, I agree with everyone who suggests you at least track what you eat, and stick to healthier options as much as possible ... with a small treat here and there. You could have those small treats on particularly active days. Those are the days I'm more likely to "afford" a treat.

myurav · February 2014

I can empathize a lot with this - in the past, when I ate more than I "should" or had "bad foods", I didn't want to log it. But I started to change my mentality around. Remember, your body logs in every bite you eat, whether you record it or not.

For me, the change consisted of thinking of MFP as a way for me to see how I'm eating and to reflect on some habits if I hit a plateau. I go over cals maybe once a week but it's stopped bothering me because I go with what my body is telling me. If I'm hungry, I'll eat something. MFP has become more of a guide as opposed to hard and fast rules because I couldn't deal with the stress. FYI, my net cals are set at 1600, usually eat around 1700-2000+ depending on my exercise level.

The results? I'm much happier, and have logged in almost every day, including on vacation and work trips. Maybe you should step back and think about why you are stressing out so much. If you need some time off logging, then do it! Come back to it when you're ready, with a mindset that emphasizes flexibility.

Feel free to add me as a friend!

jknightoz · February 2014

I have stopped counting 3 times since beginning my weight loss journey. Two of the three times coincided with a reduction/elimination of my exercise. Those two times I gained back about 10-15 lbs. The third time, I kept up my exercise and just made the same healthy food choices, but not obsessing over the calories. I didn't gain back weight, but I stopped losing weight. I am back to counting and exercising so I can keep losing weight. However, I find that I don't need to count all day. If I track just breakfast, and maybe my first snack of the day, it starts me off in the right mindset for the day and I remain conscious of my food decisions throughout the entire day.

edryer123 · February 2014

take a break from counting and logging the calories. I had to when I got obsessive about my calories. It wasn't healthy anymore. I am back to logging consistently, but I don't remember to log every single scrap. Also, reduce don't elminate a food group. that is what causes the binges. (been there and done that too) You have the knowledge from logging to know the portion sizes now. You know the tricks. Just take a deep breath and hit reset. Good luck!

HiKaren · February 2014

You could always remind yourself and change the mindset that calories are evil. Count them for AWARENESS and not to fear them. If you have a good daily calorie goal with deficit, there is nothing wrong about counting. If you just can't get your mindset into the right way of thinking about calorie counting, but you can be successful other ways that are good for you -- go for it. I'm guessing that for some people, they may just get successful to a point with whatever method they use and then find a way to sabotage it ('fear' of counting calories leading to eating too little leading to fear of eating too little leading to bingeing, etc) - switching methods may work for someone like this, or it may be necessary to figure out what the actual psychological barrier is and fixing that. Again, NOT saying this is the OP or anyone here, just saying that for me the solution seems to be fixing the issues of getting too restrictive or too obsessive or too fearful internally rather than trying a new method that may or may not work because it may not fix the underlying issues.

Good way to look at it.

CorlissaEats · February 2014

You've been on 1300 calories for a year and you are starting to binge eat? Without knowing anything about your personal stats- I would guess that your body is hungry! When you are on a low calorie diet for too long, I do find that my ability to resist is weakened. I wasn't super low for too long, but as soon as I upped my calories to a reasonable amount I stopped struggling. Maybe its time to increase for a period of time, let your body regroup physically and mentally. You might gain some weight if you have destryed your metabolism, but for me eating more/enough did not slow down my progress one bit it actually restarted it.

I find calorie counting empowering. I like the data it gives me. If you find it make you obsessive or anything else, then you need to evaluate for yourself whether its worth it.

Francl27 · February 2014

If it's easier for you to try and eat cleaner without counting calories, by all means, do that! I can't do it and that's why I count calories, but everyone is different.

Stop calorie counting for my sanity?

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