For those who say you don't need to count calories
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DietPrada
Posts: 1,171 Member
I have been around the traps for a while. I've been strict keto for over 4 years. I've learned all the lessons about how much protein, the effects of fibre and artificial sweeteners etc. I've lost 85lbs. But I've still had to work the calories. I track every single day. Some days I have as many as 40g of carbs now, but I went for a long period of not losing any weight on my usual 1700 cals a day. It's not until I reduced my target to 1450 that I've started losing again. 3kg in the last month (more than I've lost for the whole year).
Early last year I had surgery and relaxed my eating for about 3 months. I know from experience I was still under 20-30g of carbs a day, I only ate keto foods (plenty of meat and bacon and dairy and such) but I was still over on calories. Bare in mind I didn't eat like a pig, I just ate without being restrictive and weighing and tracking everything. The end result was 14kg gain in 3 months. It took me the rest of the year and then some to get it off again.
I still get annoyed when people jump up and down and say you don't need to worry about calories. I left a facebook group because of it. SOME people are lucky enough to be able to naturally eat at a calorie deficit due to reduced hunger, but for those of us who have spent a lifetime overeating and overweight it's not that simple. The number one reason people fail on a LC diet is because someone has told them they don't need to count calories, so they haven't, and they don't lose any weight. Keto is not magic, people. It is a wonderful way of eating, it is liberating to not obsess about food all the time and have control over your hunger, it's great that it reduces inflammation and has other health affects for many people, but it's still not magic.
Early last year I had surgery and relaxed my eating for about 3 months. I know from experience I was still under 20-30g of carbs a day, I only ate keto foods (plenty of meat and bacon and dairy and such) but I was still over on calories. Bare in mind I didn't eat like a pig, I just ate without being restrictive and weighing and tracking everything. The end result was 14kg gain in 3 months. It took me the rest of the year and then some to get it off again.
I still get annoyed when people jump up and down and say you don't need to worry about calories. I left a facebook group because of it. SOME people are lucky enough to be able to naturally eat at a calorie deficit due to reduced hunger, but for those of us who have spent a lifetime overeating and overweight it's not that simple. The number one reason people fail on a LC diet is because someone has told them they don't need to count calories, so they haven't, and they don't lose any weight. Keto is not magic, people. It is a wonderful way of eating, it is liberating to not obsess about food all the time and have control over your hunger, it's great that it reduces inflammation and has other health affects for many people, but it's still not magic.
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Hm. I guess it also is the combination of what you eat. I count carbs, aim max 20g. Then protein between 70 and 100g. Fat just happens. I don't eat buttersticks. Only pure fat is on veggies and in coffee. Worst calorie wise was 1700 I ended up. Mostly I am between 1200 and 1500 max..So I don't look at calories anymore. Ofcause if I would see I would go too high I would pay more attention. But with my makros I don't get there.0
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@EbonyDahlia I get where you're coming from. On his website, Dr. Andreas Eenfeldt says many times, "Eat when you are hungry, until you are satisfied." Sounds simple, right? You eat low carb, high fat foods when you're hungry, and stop eating when you're not hungry any more.
Unfortunately, a lifetime of bad eating habits has led to me feeling "satisfied" only when my stomach is so full I can't fit in another bite. Portion size? Whatever is in the container, even if the label says there are "4 servings" in it. I'm struggling to re-train my brain to understand the difference between "stuffed" and "no longer hungry." I'm trying to convince my stomach that it doesn't need more than a normal portion size to feel okay.
So yeah, calories matter greatly for some of us. Others don't need to track so closely, but I do. I'm hoping someday I'll be in the group that doesn't need to.4 -
MyriiStorm wrote: »@EbonyDahlia I get where you're coming from. On his website, Dr. Andreas Eenfeldt says many times, "Eat when you are hungry, until you are satisfied." Sounds simple, right? You eat low carb, high fat foods when you're hungry, and stop eating when you're not hungry any more.
Unfortunately, a lifetime of bad eating habits has led to me feeling "satisfied" only when my stomach is so full I can't fit in another bite. Portion size? Whatever is in the container, even if the label says there are "4 servings" in it. I'm struggling to re-train my brain to understand the difference between "stuffed" and "no longer hungry." I'm trying to convince my stomach that it doesn't need more than a normal portion size to feel okay.
So yeah, calories matter greatly for some of us. Others don't need to track so closely, but I do. I'm hoping someday I'll be in the group that doesn't need to.
That's me too. Just now, FINALLY, after almost 3 YEARS being low-carb, I'm finally starting to feel a little of it (actual satiety with normal amounts of food) here and there. but it's still not consistent enough to turn myself loose. Calories count a lot for me personally. Enough that I have to watch them like a hawk, the sneaky *kitten*.2 -
I've modified to "eat until you are not hungry." We are conditioned by many generations of not always having enough easily available food to eat any excess that is available today as a reserve for needed calories tomorrow. Also I never eat directly from a container which contains more than I am planning to eat now.2
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Great post! There is always an issue when someone projects what works for them onto others. Everyone needs to find there own path down the road. The basics are there, 20g or less carbs, protein for LBM and fat to fill in the gap.
Also, I'm one that has to track intake or I will steadily gain regardless of way of eating.1 -
No need to get annoyed. I'm currently not counting calories and I've been losing every week and my clothes are looser. When that stops I'll re-evaluate by counting again for a time but I'm never going to be a life-long calorie counter. If counting calories works for you, great. It causes unnecessary stress for me so I'll pass. To each their own. There is no rule that we must all do the same thing to achieve results.0
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KeithF6250 wrote: »I've modified to "eat until you are not hungry." We are conditioned by many generations of not always having enough easily available food to eat any excess that is available today as a reserve for needed calories tomorrow. Also I never eat directly from a container which contains more than I am planning to eat now.
This is mainly what I do. I eat until I'm comfortable. At first I wanted that stuffed feeling and I usually compensated with something like raw cauliflower. Now stuffed no longer feels comfortable.0 -
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Even those who've said they don't track calories (above) have still stated they're eating at a deficit - which I guess is the point I was making. It is very easy to eat over a calorie deficit with a high fat diet. So anyone saying calories don't matter is giving false advice. Whether you track them closely or you're lucky enough to "naturally" eat at a deficit, it matters.0
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