Calories

[niadainud]

Inspired by another threat (but not a TAAT).

The impression I get from MN is that it is unusual to more or less eat a bit (or a lot) of whatever you fancy, and not to count calories for every meal.

I have never counted calories in my life, snack every day, and frequently eat biscuits, etc. I'm 50ish, about 8.5 stone, size 8ish. If I think I've put on a few pounds I'll cut back on said biscuits and maybe skip the occasional meal or stop eating earlier in the evening, but otherwise I don't even think about it other than a general awareness of trying to eat vaguely healthy meals.

I appreciate I'm probably quite fortunate, but I am genuinely astonished if it's really the case that everyone else is tallying up everything that passes their lips and weighing up whether it takes them over a particular number. Or is that actually just on Mumsnet and not in real life?

So AIBU to ask whether most people closely monitor what they eat on a daily basis, meal by meal?

It's so funny, I said to my husband this morning, "can you imagine, there are people out there who just eat mostly what they want, don't count calories, don't spend hours a day thinking about every single thing that passes their lips. Imagine that!"
And here you are!

Do you not speak with other women in real life?

You are in your fifties and this is new information?

Seriously? Most menopausal women talk incessantly about their fucked up metabolism/diets/attempts to exercise because it’s almost impossible to stay slim as you get older. I can’t imagine how this has escaped your notice.

I am very envious that you eat to live and have no food noise. It’s not that unusual, but yes you are the fortunate minority. Go celebrate!

Lucky you! Through not counting calories (and some medical issues) i got to 20st! Would be lovely not to worry about it.
Currently 3st down. Tracking all my food in take. HTHs!

Seriously? Are you a troll? Believe me I’d love to be in one of the people who never has to think about my calories and could just eat what I wanted without an immediate 10lb weight gain.

Great effort @niadainud 😁

Honestly no, this isn't a topic of conversation that comes up regularly with friends or female family members, even though we're often eating when we meet.

My mum weighs about the same as me (although she's a bit shorter) and never counts calories or weighs portions (at least not for the purpose of dieting), although she eats very healthily and will cut down on sugar and carbs if she thinks she has gained a bit.

Yes, seriously. I promise I hadn't realised it was so commonplace to think about the calories of everything and track them every day. I am genuinely surprised. It's not the case in my family or, to my knowledge, amongst most of my friends.

I was the same - until I hit late 40’s menopause. Calorie counting is the least of my worries - just looking at calories is enough to have me bursting out of my clothes.

All I can say is you are very lucky. And I say this as someone who naturally sits on the slim side. I still have to be aware of calories and what I eat because I can and do gain weight if I’m not careful.

Good luck with the continued weight loss - three stone is impressive!

Okay - so I realise this is going to sound like I'm trolling and I'm genuinely not - do people usually, for example, weigh out pasta? If I have spaghetti, I would put about a third of the packet (500g, not 1kg!) in the pan as that's what I need to feel full (but not stuffed). Is this, um, very peculiar?

Obviously the only people (by and large) who talk about this on MN are the people who are calorie counting or on some kind of disciplined eating.

Mostly the people who just eat stuff, stay a healthy weight and don’t worry about it don’t post.

It isn’t ‘MN thing’ as if everyone has a uni-mind and a shared metabolism .

I’ve never counted a calorie in my life. I’m 40 and on mounjaro so probably should have done at some point but I just really enjoy food.
Still not counting calories now, just making sure I eat from across all food groups and reducing things that aren’t good for me. Not cutting them out entirely if I want them but not eating biscuits every day (mostly because I just don’t really fancy them at all).

Yes, I realised it was to some extent self-selecting.

That can't be true? How do they know if they have met their macros if they don't keep a check. They'll get scurvy or ricketts or both

I have an idea how many calories are in food, but I don't do any sort of daily total. And the reason I'm fat is I eat too much chocolate and love crisps.

Their whats?

Crisps are excellent. Except M&S have stopped making my favourite type (hand-cooked prawn cocktail).

Meet your macros 😂 it’s called eating a balanced diet and people managed to do it before there were tracking apps.

Ah. Yes, indeed. Thanks.

I don’t count calories, I can’t see the point. If I gain weight, I cut out a few cakes or biscuits. Seems to work as I’ve been the same weight since school.

I should add, I don’t really eat anything other than fresh food. No real UPF’s. I expect my body can regulate itself. The cakes and biscuits are homemade.

Calorie counting, hasn’t that been debunked anyway?

So if you never discuss weight or calorie counting with family or friends - how do you know they’re not doing it? Why would your mum be weighing portions out otherwise?

Look at the number of active threads and how many are about this very topic. It’s a MN obsession.

Is say the vast majority of women are not like you, op

But good for you, it sounds healthy

My mum might weigh portions to, for example, get the ratio of couscous to water correct, or because she's feeding eight people and doesn't want to accidentally massively over- or under-cater.

I don't know none of my friends are doing it I guess, but certainly none of them refer to it when choosing what to eat in a restaurant for example.

No, I don’t think everyone counts calories @niadainud . I’ve just done a headcount of 5 friends. 2 formerly had EDs and are still very slender so hopefully they don’t count their calories . One is like you, naturally slender and loses weight without any effort if she feels she’s getting heavier. Two are overweight, both of whom eat very healthily, one of them may count calories in a loose way but I think is just conscious of calorie dense foods and not eating too much.

I counted calories for a brief period some years ago and thought I would go mad, I thought about food non- stop and actually gained weight. I’m trying to drop a few extra kg that I put on in the last few years (menopause and prescription medication) but atm am keeping my blood sugar levels low, eating fairly low carb, avoiding UPFs and having a shorter eating window. Calorie counting definitely isn’t the way for me.