Thinking about not counting calories for a week?

sandyyy712
sandyyy712 Posts: 94
edited December 2024 in Food and Nutrition
I'm thinking about not counting calories or planning my meals for a week and just eating healthy food when I get hungry. Do you think doing this will cause any weight gain if I still workout?

Replies

  • peachyxoxoxo
    peachyxoxoxo Posts: 1,178 Member
    I don't count calories and I'm not gaining weight. If you feel comfortable trusting your body I think you'll be fine :)
  • mrsheu
    mrsheu Posts: 30
    I think this will be a good test as to whether or not this is a lifestyle change for you, or just a fad diet.

    My main goal is to get to the point where I won't need to count calories on a daily basis, and still maintain my weight. However, I'm not there yet at this point. Counting calories has really helped me in learning about portion sizes, and knowing when I'm really hungry, or if I'm just bored and want to eat.

    Last night, I made one of my favorite foods, and was very tempted to get a second helping, but knowing it would put me over my calorie limit, I was able to control myself. The ultimate goal is to get to the point where I can control those urges without regards to my calorie limit.
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    I'm thinking about not counting calories or planning my meals for a week and just eating healthy food when I get hungry. Do you think doing this will cause any weight gain if I still workout?

    Whether or not you will gain weight is entirely dependent on how many calories you eat. I can't guess how many calories you will eat.


    I do think it's a good idea to try it. Aside from it being educational, you'll get a break from tracking food.
  • Captain_Tightpants
    Captain_Tightpants Posts: 2,215 Member
    If you eat over TDEE you'll gain weight. If you eat under you'll lose weight. If you think you can eat under without counting them, no need to count.
  • Peep_chic
    Peep_chic Posts: 369 Member
    Go for it and try it to see if you'll stick to it. I myself stopped logging for 3 days and gained a pound!!! On my case the family was sick. So I ate a few not so healthy foods, including grab and go snacks. I didnt over eat but yet this happened. And no its not water weight.:grumble: Hope you can make it work.
  • EvanKeel
    EvanKeel Posts: 1,903 Member
    I think it's probably a worthwhile experiment regardless of what the result is just because you'll have some idea of the difference counting calories does or doesn't make for you. I'd probably extend the timeframe to 2-3 weeks, though. If you gain a little weight it's not a big deal.
  • CyberEd312
    CyberEd312 Posts: 3,536 Member
    I'm thinking about not counting calories or planning my meals for a week and just eating healthy food when I get hungry. Do you think doing this will cause any weight gain if I still workout?

    Whether or not you will gain weight is entirely dependent on how many calories you eat. I can't guess how many calories you will eat.


    I do think it's a good idea to try it. Aside from it being educational, you'll get a break from tracking food.

    Agreed.... I do this from time to time... I have and still do keep a hand journal in it I write down what I ate but do not figure calories in that journal. It is just a way for me to look back on a week and see what I ate, what effects that weeks meals had on my weightloss, etc.. I only track calories through MFP but do need a break from time to time..
  • carinnaj
    carinnaj Posts: 149
    can't hurt too much to try it.. I dropped almost 5 lbs in 3-4 days of not counting / tracking my calories/food. I went out of town for a few days.. right before we left, my son dumped a glass of soda into my laptop. and I didn't take my scale. so it wasn't by choice , but I didn't really do anything different, and I normally lose .8 lbs or so per week. so I was floored when I got home and got on the scale.
  • _AllieCat_
    _AllieCat_ Posts: 515 Member
    Give it a try. It can't hurt, worst case is you will underestimate how much you're eating and may gain a little bit.

    Why don't you want to track you food? I'm curious.
  • sandyyy712
    sandyyy712 Posts: 94
    Give it a try. It can't hurt, worst case is you will underestimate how much you're eating and may gain a little bit.

    Why don't you want to track you food? I'm curious.

    Mainly I wanna give this a try because I'm just tired of logging. Plus I'm curious to see if I will gain weight by eating food based on its nutritional content rather than the number of calories it has
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