Cutting Calories Myths

Because some people don't understand basic science. That the only way you can lose weight is to burn more than you eat.....

Because people tend to find it easier to blame other factors than to take personal responsibility. So if they say that calorie counting doesn't work, they've given themselves a free pass for not working at it, or being imperfect.

"Cutting calories", taking in less calories than your body burns, is literally the only way to lose weight through diet. There is no other way. Every diet out there is just some method of taking in less calories than you burn. Even the most out there diets, albeit sometimes begrudgingly, admit that you can only lose weight if you are in a calorie deficit.

As far as "counting calories", which is the process of creating a calorie deficit by measuring the amount of calories in your food intake vs. the estimated number of calories you burn, the process certainly has detractors. I have a couple of theories. My primary one is that it is hard to make money on calorie counting. There's no fancy diet supplements to sell, no multi-level marketing meal replacements, etc. MFP pretty much has the market on calorie counting. So if someone wants to make money selling a diet, they need something different and more complicated. And to do that, they have to tear down calorie counting.

It's detractors also take potential pitfalls of calorie counting, and exaggerate them to extremes to discredit it. For example, a person could underestimate the amount of calories they are eating, or overestimate their exercise. Maybe they don't log everyday or count every meal. Maybe they have trouble sticking with it long term. These are all legitimate potential struggles that someone could have. But just because they exist does not mean that calorie counting is not overall an effective strategy.

Lastly, I think probably the main reason why people discredit calorie counting is because they are looking for a quick fix. And while calorie counting is effective, it is not quick. It is a slow and steady weight loss method. It can take many months, even years, for someone to get to their goal weight, and a lot of people just don't have the patience for it. They count for 2 weeks, lose 3 pounds, and then give up because they want the rapid weight loss promised to them by diet ads. They don't want to work for it. They want to do something for a couple of months and be done with it. That's usually not a very good way to lose weight. But it is attractive to people who really don't want to try that hard.

The millions and millions of pounds lost collectively by members of this site is a testament to the effectiveness of calorie counting. It is not the only way to lose weight, and some people may have success using other methods that cut calories without counting them. But overall, I think calorie counting is the most effective long term strategy there is.

Where do you guys keep hearing that a caloric deficit doesn't work? I've never heard anyone say that in my entire life.

dpandolfo0928 wrote: »

Why am I seeing all over the place that cutting calories doesn't work?

Because those people are trying to sell you something.

Because it's not sexy and there is no pseudoscience or magic formula involved.

Go keto, cut out all carbs... you lose weight from eating less calories

Go vegan/ vegetarian, cut out meat and/ or dairy... you lose weight from eating less calories

Doesn't matter whether you count them or not, you lose weight from eating less of them.