Why counting calories indefinitely perceived as bad thing?

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Replies

  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,048 Member
    Tanie98 wrote: »
    Have you been looked weird for counting calories?

    Have you been looked at weird for weight yo-yo or gaining it all back? I guess that is the choice for some of us.

  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 5,958 Member
    ahoy_m8 wrote: »
    Tanie98 wrote: »
    Have you been looked weird for counting calories?

    Have you been looked at weird for weight yo-yo or gaining it all back? I guess that is the choice for some of us.

    At the end of the day you have to make yourself happy. If someone else thinks that's weird that's not your problem, that's their problem...
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    There are people that are going to judge and question the things you do no matter what.

    Do what you need to do and ignore the rest.
  • elmusho1989
    elmusho1989 Posts: 321 Member
    I think people losing only a little weight might not see the point as its inconvenient. When I fully lose all 38 pounds you better believe I'll be counting for a long time to maintain. No chance I'll undo the hard work!
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    I've said it elsewhere but I'll share it here again.

    I expect I'll need to keep using this app or some other means of counting calories basically forever. I've used this app on and off over the past 10 years, and when I stop using it, I start gaining weight again. Would it be nice if, once I reach GW (whatever that turns out to be), my brain magically learns what "enough" food looks like and I can eat that much and stop? Heck yeah it would, that would be awesome. But I feel like if that's a thing my brain were capable of, I would never have gotten to be as heavy as I have been, and am. Fortunately or unfortunately, when the scale finally shows a number I'm happy with, I will still need to eat food and it will still have calories, so I won't be "done" thinking about that, but I do want to be "done" riding the rollercoaster of weight loss and regain. So I'll need to pivot from one set of goals (loss) to another (maintenance).

    I think there is something to be said about discipline vs obsession as @ahoy_m8 noted, but the line for me comes when I start worrying about individual calories - cutting a Pop Tart in precisely two identical halves and weighing them, transferring crumbs back and forth to get to exactly X grams so that it's only X calories so I stay in budget. Or making value judgments about myself based on calories I do or don't consume or burn, letting the number in my MFP widget dictate how I feel about myself. That's obsession, that's disorder, I'm not going back to that.

    Kind of like weighing the spoon used to dish food out that will be licked, but then not weighing the plate afterwards that was not licked clean.

    I've done another method to the poptart method you mentioned - just figured between 2 days I'm eating the whole serving - so what applies to each day not a big deal in the scheme of things. One day will have a partial serving if there was a big difference to total weight and servings per package. Like bread rolls on 3 days. I'll write on the bag the total weight to use on the last day.
  • clh72569
    clh72569 Posts: 280 Member
    I will count forever. I did go a little overboard for a while. I wanted to bring my food scale to restaurants. I was told I would look like a drug dealer, pulling my scale from my purse.
  • cupcakesandproteinshakes
    cupcakesandproteinshakes Posts: 1,091 Member
    A subset of calorie counters have EDs but not all of us!
    I managed to develop anorexia in my teens without ever counting calories. I consider myself ED free for decades and I count calories kind of lazily these days.

    As long as I feel ok and not obsessed or unhappy or driven or whatever I’m gonna carry on. No hard and fast rules about this stuff for me
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,757 Member

    I agree though, for some reason people think it is an obsessive behavior and does come with some negative connotations. I don't feel this way, but others certainly do.

    When I wanted to lose weight, and I counted religiously directly in front of coworkers, family, and friends. The accountability far outweighed any thought of being judged.


    To follow up on some other comments....I am conscious of calories but do not log religiously anymore. I have a staple of foods/meals and meal timing that works for me without having to overthink things. This took a few months to figure out.

    There are times daily where I need to make decision in real time and knowing about calories and how many I need to maintain or lose has been beneficial. I have a reward ritual that when I leave the gym I grab an ice cream from McDonalds. The shamrock shake caught my eye and after ordering it I found out it was almost 700 calories (their regular cone is less than 300cals). I know consuming it would put me way over my calorie limit so I had 1/3 or it and put the rest in the freezer for today or the next time I want some minty glory!

    Counting calories made me aware of what I was eating, and has taught me to make better choices and substitute, avoid or limit where possible. I realize this is not for everyone, especially if they struggle with accountability or self control. What my total for yesterday was, I do not know but I am certain it didn't hurt my progress and required very little extra thought and/or misery in my life.
  • NVintage
    NVintage Posts: 1,463 Member
    edited March 2021
    I weigh myself every day right now because I'm at the upper limit of what I want to weigh, and what I think is healthy. I usually don't weigh or count calories, so when I go back to a more active lifestyle I'll probably just stick to trying to eat healthy. I do want to keep the meal planning habits I've picked up, though!