Not counting calories.

MysteriousDreamer
MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.



Edit for the OP:

I don't wan to track calories because maybe after 16 years of having anorexia and bulimia I do not want numbers to rule my life.
Or when I do track calories, it consumes my thoughts? I become obsessive?

It may work for you, but for me it doesn't.
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Replies

  • defauIt
    defauIt Posts: 118 Member
    This is called intuitive eating. I'm sure there are groups for it on here that you can join.

    Not many follow this type of diet plan, because that's how most of us got fat in the first place. Still, I hope it works for you and I wish you the best of luck with it.
  • MysteriousDreamer
    MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
    This is called intuitive eating. I'm sure there are groups for it on here that you can join.

    Not many follow this type of diet plan, because that's how most of us got fat in the first place. Still, I hope it works for you and I wish you the best of luck with it.

    I don't think they got fat following it, I think they got fat because they lost touch with their bodies.
  • tryanother
    tryanother Posts: 36 Member
    This is called intuitive eating. I'm sure there are groups for it on here that you can join.

    Not many follow this type of diet plan, because that's how most of us got fat in the first place. Still, I hope it works for you and I wish you the best of luck with it.

    I agree... My biggest challenge was studying portion sizes. Your intuition might tell you that 2 cups of cereal is great for breakfast, when realistically, it is not.
  • Hybrice
    Hybrice Posts: 117 Member
    I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

    I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.

    This is nonsense, it has been proven that it's calorific content that matters, not nutritional value, case in-point - a professor lost 27 pounds eating nothing but sweets at a calorie deficit in order to prove that it's calories that dictate weight loss, not nutrition.

    Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/

    No matter how good your intuition may be, it will never match up to a simple scale and quantifying your intake.
  • MysteriousDreamer
    MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
    I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

    I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.

    This is nonsense, it has been proven that it's calorific content that matters, not nutritional value, case in-point - a professor lost 27 pounds eating nothing but sweets at a calorie deficit in order to prove that it's calories that dictate weight loss, not nutrition.

    Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/

    No matter how good your intuition may be, it will never match up to a simple scale and quantifying your intake.

    He might have lost weight but how about is health later? How was his energy? What would happen if he did that long term? There is more to life than tracking everything you eat.

    Foods affect our bodies in different ways and go through different metabolic pathways. Not only that, but the foods we eat can directly affect the hormones that regulate when and how much we eat. Therefore, the types of foods we base our diet around are just as important as the amount of calories we are eating.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

    I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.

    This is nonsense, it has been proven that it's calorific content that matters, not nutritional value, case in-point - a professor lost 27 pounds eating nothing but sweets at a calorie deficit in order to prove that it's calories that dictate weight loss, not nutrition.

    Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/

    No matter how good your intuition may be, it will never match up to a simple scale and quantifying your intake.

    He might have lost weight but how about is health later? How was his energy? What would happen if he did that long term? There is more to life than tracking everything you eat.

    Foods affect our bodies in different ways and go through different metabolic pathways. Not only that, but the foods we eat can directly affect the hormones that regulate when and how much we eat. Therefore, the types of foods we base our diet around are just as important as the amount of calories we are eating.

    His health markers got better actually which comes from losing weight....

    And yes there is more to life than tracking that is why it's such a small part of life...but helps me liive the life I want.

    And as for quality vs quantity...not for weight loss...I can hit my macros eating processed foods, fast food etc if I so choose...and lose weight...it takes some planning but eh.

    Hence the reason the 80/20 rule is a good one....

    btw my diary is logged for most of the week...took all of 10mins..yesterday. Tweaks will take about 2mins a day when needed.
  • Leana93412
    Leana93412 Posts: 162
    I'm doing intuitive eating. Because I'm tired of counting. And want to set healthy habits I can maintain for life.

    Its become too much of a numbers game for me lately.
  • bev_erley
    bev_erley Posts: 3 Member
    im also trying this....i dont want to religiously count calories or weigh portions it can become obsessive and all u do is focus on food and dieting.... of course u need to learn roughly what a portion size is but then use common sense....i want to do something i can maintain long term

    i got fat by over eating lots of the wrong foods at the wrong times for the wrong reasons... i wasnt intuitively making errors i knew what i was doing was bad but kinda hid in denial

    if it doesnt work then i may have to resort to counting etc
  • Patttience
    Patttience Posts: 975 Member
    Mysterious and bev come and join us at 3fc pals group. We have just started our group. I do hunger and satiety ratings which is a kind of Intuitive eating. I know a fair bit about it. And can show you the system i've learnt and find useful.

    Others in our group know it too.

    I've just stopped with the calorie counting - i do it sometimes but mostly i prefer not to.

    I am also into cooking and eating whole foods.
  • JoanLovell
    JoanLovell Posts: 127 Member
    My experience was the same as yours for many years (I'm 65 now) - and believe me, if your heavy, appearance starts to go seriously downhill after 60. After many successive obsessive diets with long periods of gains in between I had an epiphany --- I was really despondent and angry with myself about the trend and finally accepted the fact that there's only one road out of this mess, and it's called diet an exercise. AND I accepted the fact that it might take a long time, but hey, if I'm two pounds lighter in three weeks, I'm a lot happier than if I were a pound heavier. I'm talking about a much deeper kind of acceptance than I ever experienced before.

    If not recording food and calories works for you -- maybe you can measure by how your clothes fit - or just knowing that you're eating healthy food - you're a better woman than I, for sure. I've tried it and it didn't take long for me to start "forgetting" about the "one not-so-healthy" thing I snacked on or "treated" myself to and things go south from there.

    For me - record keeping is key - not that I don't indulge myself or go over my calorie goal - but staying honest so I can keep it in mind and maybe stay on board better the next day. I hope to be doing this the rest of my life. My career was in research - much of it nutrition oriented and, it's just a fact - people who keep records do better and keep weight off over the long haul. I have interviewed many people who've kept records for years after losing large amounts of weight and they have succeeded.

    So I would suggest - especially since this is working for you now - to see how it works out in, say, 6 months. Most of us are emotional eaters and a lot of those emotions live underground. A kind of amnesia can take over and there you go down a path to more bad feelings about yourself and a sense of failure.

    If you can stick with intuitive eating - more power to you. Certainly getting away from obsession is vitally important! :smile:
  • MysteriousDreamer
    MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
    im also trying this....i dont want to religiously count calories or weigh portions it can become obsessive and all u do is focus on food and dieting.... of course u need to learn roughly what a portion size is but then use common sense....i want to do something i can maintain long term

    i got fat by over eating lots of the wrong foods at the wrong times for the wrong reasons... i wasnt intuitively making errors i knew what i was doing was bad but kinda hid in denial

    if it doesnt work then i may have to resort to counting etc

    The same for me too.
  • msf74
    msf74 Posts: 3,498 Member
    I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

    I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.

    This is nonsense, it has been proven that it's calorific content that matters, not nutritional value, case in-point - a professor lost 27 pounds eating nothing but sweets at a calorie deficit in order to prove that it's calories that dictate weight loss, not nutrition.

    Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/

    No matter how good your intuition may be, it will never match up to a simple scale and quantifying your intake.

    Of course calorie balance is the final determinant of whether weight is lost, gained or stay the same. However, while calories count you don't need to count calories to be successful (ie log them manually.)

    The focus on nutritious, minimally processed / refined foods is simply a tool to help prevent over eating because they tend to provide better satiety and greater volume for less calories and therefore makes exceeding your TDEE less likely. This is a hardly a controversial approach. Most diet structures,whether they involve calorie counting or not, make similar recommendations. Where does the OP say she will be eliminating other food items rather than just minimising them?

    Your final statement is reckless however. The best programme is one which suits the individuals needs, preferences and lifestyle, aligns with their goals whilst imposing the least psychological cost. For some that may be calorie counting, for some mindful or intuitive eating.
  • MysteriousDreamer
    MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
    I'm doing intuitive eating. Because I'm tired of counting. And want to set healthy habits I can maintain for life.

    Its become too much of a numbers game for me lately.

    Again the same for me I want to focus on the quality of food :)
  • kessler4130
    kessler4130 Posts: 150 Member
    Good luck with that, at the end of the day, nutrition is a numbers game. I intuitively want a doughnut right now, the numbers tell me my body is a liar.
  • Leonidas_meets_Spartacus
    Leonidas_meets_Spartacus Posts: 6,198 Member
    I don't do intuitive eating but I don't count calories. I track them after the fact, but I will eat if I am hungry and stop when I am not.
  • XLMACX
    XLMACX Posts: 346 Member
    Hi, I’m really thinking of doing this but doing 5.2 so only log calories 2 days out of the 7 I have a OCD with diets in general and im truly fed up of counting I did weight watchers before this so in total for 4 and half years I have been counting points and calories. Obviously with all this dieting experience I know what a sensible portion is I know not to eat too many carbs and how to eat a balanced diet, I think I get too obsessed with numbers eat things for sake of it sometimes stress out if im 20calroies over some days its driving me mad and this is probably why im not at my ideal weight because I see the numbers go over a little then self-sabotage myself by eating more because I feel a failure! so im going to give this a go feel free to add me people!
  • Nojoke81
    Nojoke81 Posts: 131
    Best of luck doing it this way.

    I know personally that I won't achieve an optimal physique without knowing PRECISELY what I'm putting into my body.

    Though you may be able to argue that after some years of calorie counting you will gain an intuition on the caloric content of foods that you purchase and eat. However even subconscious awareness can be considered a form of calorie counting.
  • MysteriousMerlin
    MysteriousMerlin Posts: 2,270 Member
    I keep track of my macros now, but I counted just carbs previously and lost 50lbs.
    Edit: And when I stopped caring, put 38lbs of that right back on.

    I think you just find what works for you, and if you don't need or want to count calories, then don't do it.

    I don't follow just my calories, I also try to hit my fiber & protein goal, and my diary helps me keep my saturated fat and sodium levels under control. I find it a very useful tool, especially when planning an evening out.

    Edit 2: :flowerforyou: for having a similiar user name
  • Hybrice
    Hybrice Posts: 117 Member
    I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

    I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.

    This is nonsense, it has been proven that it's calorific content that matters, not nutritional value, case in-point - a professor lost 27 pounds eating nothing but sweets at a calorie deficit in order to prove that it's calories that dictate weight loss, not nutrition.

    Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/

    No matter how good your intuition may be, it will never match up to a simple scale and quantifying your intake.

    Of course calorie balance is the final determinant of whether weight is lost, gained or stay the same. However, while calories count you don't need to count calories to be successful (ie log them manually.)

    The focus on nutritious, minimally processed / refined foods is simply a tool to help prevent over eating because they tend to provide better satiety and greater volume for less calories and therefore makes exceeding your TDEE less likely. This is a hardly a controversial approach. Most diet structures,whether they involve calorie counting or not, make similar recommendations. Where does the OP say she will be eliminating other food items rather than just minimising them?

    Your final statement is reckless however. The best programme is one which suits the individuals needs, preferences and lifestyle, aligns with their goals whilst imposing the least psychological cost. For some that may be calorie counting, for some mindful or intuitive eating.

    You went a long way about telling me I'm right, but thanks for that lol.

    Reckless eh? Never heard of a guy using scales to count his food intake described as reckless before, badass over here.
  • Dewymorning
    Dewymorning Posts: 762 Member
    I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

    I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.

    Hi, I have decided to try intuitive eating, but will still be logging all the food I eat.

    My goal is to get away from thinking "How many calories do I have left?" and instead go for "How hungry do I feel?" and see how it goes.

    You can add me as a friend if this sounds like what you want, but if you don't want to because I will still be logging than that is fine as well.
  • MysteriousDreamer
    MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
    No one asked why I didn't want to log my calories, maybe if you knew why you would support me.

    Maybe after 16 years of having anorexia and bulimia I do not want numbers to rule my life.
    Or when I do track calories, it consumes my thoughts? I become obsessive?

    It may work for you, but for me it doesn't.
  • MysteriousDreamer
    MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
    I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

    I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.

    Hi, I have decided to try intuitive eating, but will still be logging all the food I eat.

    My goal is to get away from thinking "How many calories do I have left?" and instead go for "How hungry do I feel?" and see how it goes.

    You can add me as a friend if this sounds like what you want, but if you don't want to because I will still be logging than that is fine as well.

    I added you :)
  • msf74
    msf74 Posts: 3,498 Member
    I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

    I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.

    This is nonsense, it has been proven that it's calorific content that matters, not nutritional value, case in-point - a professor lost 27 pounds eating nothing but sweets at a calorie deficit in order to prove that it's calories that dictate weight loss, not nutrition.

    Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/

    No matter how good your intuition may be, it will never match up to a simple scale and quantifying your intake.

    Of course calorie balance is the final determinant of whether weight is lost, gained or stay the same. However, while calories count you don't need to count calories to be successful (ie log them manually.)

    The focus on nutritious, minimally processed / refined foods is simply a tool to help prevent over eating because they tend to provide better satiety and greater volume for less calories and therefore makes exceeding your TDEE less likely. This is a hardly a controversial approach. Most diet structures,whether they involve calorie counting or not, make similar recommendations. Where does the OP say she will be eliminating other food items rather than just minimising them?

    Your final statement is reckless however. The best programme is one which suits the individuals needs, preferences and lifestyle, aligns with their goals whilst imposing the least psychological cost. For some that may be calorie counting, for some mindful or intuitive eating.

    You went a long way about telling me I'm right, but thanks for that lol.

    Reckless eh? Never heard of a guy using scales to count his food intake described as reckless before, badass over here.

    Errrr, that's Mr Badass thank you...

    It is reckless because your suggestion was an alternative method could "never match up" to a scale and calorie counting and is therefore by implication inferior. That's untrue because it doesn't account for the psychological reactions some people can have to this method of weight loss which could make it unsuitable (or even very unsuitable if it lead to an ED).

    There is no one true way.
  • MysteriousDreamer
    MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
    I am looking for other friends and/or groups who people do not count calories. For me it becomes to obsessive amd I felt for me I wasn't trusting my body. I want to learn to trust my intuition. Today is day three, and I feel great. I'm eating foods for the nutritonal value not the calorie value.

    I'm looking for people who do the same, or want to do the same so we can support each other.

    This is nonsense, it has been proven that it's calorific content that matters, not nutritional value, case in-point - a professor lost 27 pounds eating nothing but sweets at a calorie deficit in order to prove that it's calories that dictate weight loss, not nutrition.

    Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/

    No matter how good your intuition may be, it will never match up to a simple scale and quantifying your intake.

    Of course calorie balance is the final determinant of whether weight is lost, gained or stay the same. However, while calories count you don't need to count calories to be successful (ie log them manually.)

    The focus on nutritious, minimally processed / refined foods is simply a tool to help prevent over eating because they tend to provide better satiety and greater volume for less calories and therefore makes exceeding your TDEE less likely. This is a hardly a controversial approach. Most diet structures,whether they involve calorie counting or not, make similar recommendations. Where does the OP say she will be eliminating other food items rather than just minimising them?

    Your final statement is reckless however. The best programme is one which suits the individuals needs, preferences and lifestyle, aligns with their goals whilst imposing the least psychological cost. For some that may be calorie counting, for some mindful or intuitive eating.

    You went a long way about telling me I'm right, but thanks for that lol.

    Reckless eh? Never heard of a guy using scales to count his food intake described as reckless before, badass over here.

    Errrr, that's Mr Badass thank you...

    It is reckless because your suggestion was an alternative method could "never match up" to a scale and calorie counting and is therefore by implication inferior. That's untrue because it doesn't account for the psychological reactions some people can have to this method of weight loss which could make it unsuitable (or even very unsuitable if it lead to an ED).

    There is no one true way.

    You are right there is no true way. My life won't be ruled by numbers again :)
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    After two years of calorie counting religiously and reaching goal for the past 4 or 5 weeks I have stopped logging. I was getting fed up with it and saying I eat the same things pretty much all the time I KNOW I'm ok, plus I've lost a bit more weight since then :-D. It might not work for everyone, but its certainly working for me :)

    wishing you all the best.
  • mamadon
    mamadon Posts: 1,422 Member
    My body "intuitively" told me to eventually gain 120 pounds lol. I think it can work fine for some people who are not severely obese, but for some of us, I guess we need the assistance of a site like this to count calories. I also still weigh and measure all my food even though I probably know what most sizes look like by now. I wish I could just know how much to eat, but I dont think its in my future. I need the control counting calories gives me.
  • MysteriousDreamer
    MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
    No one asked why I didn't want to log my calories, maybe if you knew why you would support me.

    Maybe after 16 years of having anorexia and bulimia I do not want numbers to rule my life.
    Or when I do track calories, it consumes my thoughts? I become obsessive?

    It may work for you, but for me it doesn't.
  • MysteriousDreamer
    MysteriousDreamer Posts: 96 Member
    My body "intuitively" told me to eventually gain 120 pounds lol. I think it can work fine for some people who are not severely obese, but for some of us, I guess we need the assistance of a site like this to count calories. I also still weigh and measure all my food even though I probably know what most sizes look like by now. I wish I could just know how much to eat, but I dont think its in my future. I need the control counting calories gives me.

    I still need to learn to do it, like anything it is a skill to learn.
  • Dewymorning
    Dewymorning Posts: 762 Member
    No one asked why I didn't want to log my calories, maybe if you knew why you would support me.

    Maybe after 16 years of having anorexia and bulimia I do not want numbers to rule my life.
    Or when I do track calories, it consumes my thoughts? I become obsessive?

    It may work for you, but for me it doesn't.

    Many eating disorder specialists recommend not tracking calories.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    No one asked why I didn't want to log my calories, maybe if you knew why you would support me.

    Maybe after 16 years of having anorexia and bulimia I do not want numbers to rule my life.
    Or when I do track calories, it consumes my thoughts? I become obsessive?

    It may work for you, but for me it doesn't.

    I hope you don't mind, but I edited your first post. A large portion will read the first post and jump to conclusions. Hopefully the edits will limit that.


    I wish you the best. As much as I would hate to say it, there probably isn't a whole lot of people who take this approach on this board since it's a calorie counting website. Yes, it's a fitness website but based around the science of calorie counting. I know for me, the only way to guarantee weight loss is calorie counting. I know I can sustain weight without counting but rarely lose.

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