Why Counting Calories?

It's like finances. Without counting every penny, I don't care how smart you are, you don't know things about your money and how it is being spent. People that balance their accounts and track every penny spent know very well where their money goes, and they immediately notice when bills don't seem right or their balance is off, or if a medical bill is wrong. Other people that don't track typically don't really know where their money is going and they are surprised when they dig in. I had a friend that discovered she had been paying for some kind of subscription for over a year without being aware of what it was. They were just taking money out of her account every month. She had no idea.

Food tracking is the same. Once you start tracking, you become aware of what you are eating and how it impacts you. One of the very first things that happen to people when they are new is they are completely shocked with how much they actually consume. The next thing is they are shocked at how many calories various foods have in them, like peanut butter, as an example. Even if someone is against tracking their food, I ask people that start dieting to at least do it for one month. 4 simple weeks, just to get a handle on it.

Oh, this really makes sense as to why calorie tracking has become easy for me! I just started tracking my finances 1 year ago and I have made leaps and bounds with my spending and saving! I agree that calorie tracking is basically the same idea.

I've noticed that a lot of the magic weight loss pills also come with a "recommended diet" to maximize your results. That "diet" is essentially the same thing we're doing here, CICO, but in a pretty package with some slick marketing.

Same thing with Weight Watchers, Bernstein, etc. You're just paying someone to do your work for you - they are calorie restricting, ergo, you will lose weight (if you're doing it right). Which is fine and dandy, except these programs are set up for repeat business, so they're never going to actually teach you how to take proper care of yourself for the long term.

In the end, if you follow the directions on the pill bottle and follow the WW and Bernstein plans, you will lose weight, because they are essentially CICO. The difference is that you're paying out the wazoo for it, when you can do it yourself for free with a bit of work and effort. Plus, by doing it yourself, you're setting yourself up for long term success by having an understanding of how you're treating your body, instead of just blindly doing what someone else tells you to do while handing over your hard-earned cash. You'll have similar results, but be broke.

Utimately I think most peope will start with the quick-fixes, pills, fads, etc. first because most of us would rather take the easy way, and let's face it, the marketing is pretty effective. This type of marketing, along with food package labelling (oh look, I can eat a whole pack of twizzlers because they're fat free, wahoooo!), drives me nuts. I think false marketing is a big contributor to the obesity epidemic.

Sorry for ranting....this topic hit a nerve with me.

I am not trying to stir the water, really.

Thing is, I've ran into several websites, ads, messages and people everywhere who are either:

- Burning out every nerve at the gym and not eating
- Eating so bad and not moving at all they are reaching the point of no return
- Doing every single diet they see
- Waiting for magical solutions

Doctors are calling me, telling me to go to X or Y diet, to take N or M pill or shake and to do whatever they saw on tv (they even suggested surgery since I was 15). The internet is loaded with tips and tricks to lose weight and all against CICO.

So, how would you tell someone who gives you the magical solution that counting calories is better?

I explain to them that - like everything else in the universe - our bodies operate based on certain laws of physics. Our body uses fuel for energy, much like a car. When you use up all of your fuel, your body switches to its reserves (body fat and muscle). So even though eating a varied diet with a healthy balance of carbs, fats and proteins for your lifestyle is ideal; if we're strictly talking weight loss, it's as simple as CICO. Even if you eat nothing but refined, table sugar for your source of calories, you WILL lose weight if you give your body less fuel than it needs. You just have to find out how many calories your body needs (everybody's metabolism is a bit different) to stay at its current weight, and eat LESS than that on a regular basis.

If I told people my gas tank will stay full forever if I fill it just once with premium gas, they would look at me like I was crazy. . . because that's not physically possible. . . but if you try to tell somebody they'll never be fat if they only eat "healthy" foods, no matter how much of it they consume, they will nod and agree that that makes perfect sense. Physics. PHYSICS ALL AROUND!

Because whatever they are doing, they are all essentially doing the exact same thing: calorie deficit.

Sure there are a zillion and one ways to do it...but why do the fads when simple works just as well?

Eat less, move more. It's not rocket science after all

Simple Answer: If there was a magical solution, there would be no overweight people.

Great response! If those pills worked, everyone would be in line for them. If that fad diet worked, everyone would eat it. There is no easy way out, not even surgery is a quick fix. It's all work and effort, but rewarding when you finally apply yourself. I know, I have been through the wringer with it all. Pills are a new addiction and fads are just that, fads. If you can eat 7 pounds of bacon a day, something is wrong, even if it has results.

I never tried any of the "magical" solutions, because none of them make logical sense to me and generally if something sounds too good or easy to be true, it is. It's the same reason I don't fritter away my money in get rich quick schemes.

Calorie counting makes logical and scientific sense and MFP fits with my personal enjoyment in tracking things and interacting with Internet forums. It's not the only way to lose weight sensibly--most can eat fewer calories and burn more without being so precise with the tracking, I did that once before--but for me this makes it more fun, since I like data crunching.