Calorie counting. Does it work for you?

It does work if you are really consistent and don't try to lose weight too fast. If you are too aggressive in your weight loss, you'll feel deprived, and you'll be a lot more likely to cheat or quit entirely. You can also lose muscle, which is counter-productive. Logging everything you eat keeps you mindful of the choices you are making. You learn to think about which foods you really want and which are not worth the extra calories.

I lost 50 pounds in 2015, calorie counting with MFP, at age 59 (and while hypothyroid, if that matters - I think it doesn't ), and have stayed at a healthy weight for 4+ years since, still calorie counting. That, after 3+ decades of obesity previously. I didn't much change my exercise routine, because I was already quite active while obese - though I didn't start being routinely active until I was in my mid-40s, after cancer treatment.

So, yes, calorie counting can work. Calorie counting is a skill that takes practice and refinement, at first. Invest the time and effort, get the results.

P.S. I don't believe in "shocking my body". I believe in manageably changing eating habits while getting good nutrition and the right number of calories of food I enjoy eating (including some treats), and - if starting from inactive - gradually increasing exercise in a sensible way to get stronger and fitter without becoming burned out or over-fatigued. There's a common myth that we need to eat in some miserable restrictive way , avoiding deliciousness, to lose weight; and exercise in unpleasant and exhausting ways to get fit. I don't think that's true at all. YMMV.

Best wishes for finding a sustainable path toward your health and fitness goals!

rainbow198 wrote: »

Knowing approximately how many calories I'm consuming everyday absolutely works for me.

I lost over 80 pounds and 6 dress sizes. Next month will be 7 years since I've kept it off without any weight regain.

Not only that but calorie counting combined with planning out my meals, I can literally eat whatever I want.

Plus I never followed any diets or had any restrictions.

This has worked well for me during weight loss and maintenance mode.

Good luck

My experience is quite similar. I lost over 80 pounds and have been in maintenance for over 2 years. I never restricted anything but calories and I pretty much eat whatever I want as long as it fits into my calorie goal.

Good luck with your weight loss.

Yes mate, counting calories is 100% the way to go. Just make sure you are well under your calories required to function each day according to you TDEE and you should see results pretty quickly. I lost 21 pounds in 10 weeks as an example, that included walking daily (for work) and running three/four times a week and eating around 1700-2300 calories a day with one cheat day a week on the saturday.

Yes! Counting calories works for me but unfortunately sometimes I underestimate what I intake vs what I put out. (Metabolism slows after 32 apparently). I've just completed week 2 of the original Insanity series (for the umpteenth time). Hoping I can actually correctly and faithfully follow the program to the end this time! Good luck.

MFP is a tool. If you learn how to use and you are completely honest with yourself (log everything accurately), it will work. You have to have patience and you have to understand it is a process. The initial settings may not work and may need to be adjusted. Once you are setup and using MFP for 4-6 weeks check your progress. If you are losing at the target rate you are set. If you are not, make the adjustment.

For me I lost 50 pounds over the first 2 years of using MFP. I've maintained that weight for the past 3. This year I decided to drop another 10 for athletic performance reasons and I'm down 6 already (about .4 to .5 pounds per week).

The main thing MFP did for me at first was highlight some of the high calorie choices I was making. It made it obvious where I could cut out extra calories and not change my diet drastically. It also allowed me to sometimes fit those high calorie foods in my diet since I knew pretty much how many calories I was eating and burning. It also taught me how to eat without counting (I am not consistent any longer - at least until this year when I wanted to drop more).

TLDR: Yes, it works.

Good luck.

Calorie counting WORKS! Several years ago, I decided it was time to finally lose those extra 20 pounds, and for about the first 10 pounds, all I did was count and cut calories. It wasn't until probably the last 10 pounds that I decided I wanted to add some form of exercise that I could do even after the 20 pounds were gone.

Then I gained half of the weight back... A couple years ago, I thought I could just try to lose that weight without counting calories, and that went nowhere.

Now I'm counting and cutting calories again, and it's slow and steady but working!

Good luck to us all!