Can you lose weight without counting calories?

[jimjamjoo]

I desperately need to lose some weight. In the past, I have tried counting calories and it just becomes my entire personality. I get obsessed with food and therefore feel hungry all the time. I don’t like this approach.

My question is, has anyone found a way of losing weight without counting calories?

I’ve found that counting calories is the most effective way to do it

but I’ve used other means to lose weight as well in the past m

2 slices of butter and margarine for breakfast and lunch

then standard meal which varies - do pizza 1 night of week and low cal pasta another night etc etc

I'm doing intermittent fasting...started on 18/6, but I'm a bit less fussed about it now. I've lost 16kg since I started in May.
It works for me because I'm simply having a coffee and several cups of tea in the morning (yeah, not really fasting) and then a school lunch at about half past 1, dinner by 6pm at the latest.

Yes… I would say yes but you need a good understanding of what is high and low calorie, and what is a reasonable / modest portion.

I lost 3 stone by adjusting to a healthier diet, stopping snacking, reducing portions of carbs and cutting alcohol. Upped the veg on my plate.

Yes, but I’ve never been overweight.

Sometimes I just like to drop a bit.

I am quite happy to eat very little for a short time/fast for 24 hours every week or just eat very low carb, low calorie options. I don’t have ‘food noise’ I will often forget to eat if I’m busy.

I think it’s harder if you are used to eating very large portions/have stretched your stomach or have always relied on packaged food as it’s harder to eyeball a suitable portion.

Yes.

Paul McKenna.

Mindful eating.

And exercise.

I’ve seen people do well with fasting but I am
running around after my kids from 6.30 so I just don’t think I’d be a ale to manage it

Yes, keto. But that also becomes your personality!

This is what I was hoping to hear. That’s a fantastic achievement! Well done. Do you snack on any fruit and veg? Think I need to try your approach before the calorie counting method

Yes, just don't eat too much and focus on eating veg and pulses.

I don’t count calories. If I feel over full I know I’ve eaten too much. If I feel hungry for a while I’ll lose weight. I also lose my appetite when stressed. I also exercise a lot. I intuitively know how much to eat and maintain the same (healthy) weight pretty much. I have no idea how many calories I eat, I use my hunger as a gauge.

Yes, just eat real food to fill you up:

• protein,
• vegetables
• boiled rice (egg fried if you prefer)
• Pasta
• potato
• salad
• soup
• baked crisps instead of fried

Cut back on

• lots of oil
• sugary stuff
• bread
• wine

and add more exercise. Even if it’s just walking

No. The human body’s energy is calculated in calories. Your daily intake to gain/maintain/lose is calculated in calories. Not in fat, not in protein, not in syns or red and green. So you need to know your calorie intake. Then you need to work out the best way to onboard your calories, eg high protein low carb.

Yes you can lose weight without counting calories. Have a look at Slimpod. I have lost 8kg in the past year with no calorie counting when using Slimpod. It hasn’t been fast, but it has been easy and sustainable and I’ve made a big difference to my fitness, body fat % etc.

People have been dieting (reducing intake) for WAY longer than us knowing a thing about calories!

@ElfAndSafetyBoredthanks that’s useful. Think I mostly eat like that but wine is the killer.

Once you know the approximate calories of your meals, then yes, you can lose weight without calorie counting.

However, this is easier when you mainly eat just 3 meals a day with no snacking inbetween. If you are a snacker, then calorie counting is needed because most people underestimate how many calories they consume when grazing throughout the day.

I have never counted calories or weighed myself. I have no idea how many calories are in certain foods, of course I get the vibe that a big piece of chocolate cake is likely to have more than an apple but no idea how that compares. I do were a fitness watch which tells me a number it thinks I’ve burned but it doesn’t relate to anything in my real life in any way.

I have changed my shape/lost inches and therefore weight a few times whenever I’ve needed to without counting anything.

But no idea how much I weigh or how many calories that equates to.

It gets a lot of hate on here, but Slimming World does work. My whole adult life I've yo-yo'd between 9st and 11st, sometimes losing it with calorie counting and sometimes SW. I hate having to measure out every tiny thing when counting calories, and I have dreadful "food noise". I find it much easier to do SW, I'm never hungry or faffing about with the scales when I'm cooking. It's definitely my preferred method.

Not for me, I started logging my normal diet over 2 weeks, worked out my average daily intake and reduced it by 500 per day.
paid attention to portion sizes and focussed on whole foods, lean protein, veg, once I was in the habit of what I should have and my stomach had shrunk it was easier to continue losing without counting every single thing but I keep a rough tally.
it’s been very slow especially as I’ve had a couple of holidays in between where I gained quite a lot but overall I’ve lost 1.5st in 5 months. Just another 4 to go.

I've lost over three stone by removing white flour, sugar, white rice and potatoes from my diet.
I also drink far more water than I previously did.
I eat as much fruit, veg, meat, nuts, dairy etc as I want.
No calorie counting or portion control at all.

@Boo2U2I used to do SW but I found there were lots of UPF things they recommend and I also couldn’t get on board with unlimited pasta being okay but an avocado being the worst thing in the world 😂

Yes, most ways of losing weight work if you can stick to them. It's sticking to them that's the problem. I've quite lost quite a bit of weight a few times, never by calorie counting. I lost weight on a low fat diet (twice) and on a low carb diet (also twice). Fell off the wagon. I've given up dieting now, and interestingly I am at the slimmer end of my normal weight range.

I did count calories and it worked but how about cutting out one thing without the counting. For example, having a roast dinner with everything apart from the Yorkshire pudding, having burgers without the bun etc. You’d be reducing calories without the counting.

Vodka and Diet Coke?

In the past I’ve lost weight by initially working out what a calorie deficit would be, then having several options of breakfast , lunch and dinner that fit this. Then only eating this.
got a bit boring, but worked and I didn’t have to ‘count’ calories every day.
example -

breakfast is a package of oat so simple (it’s pre measured so no faffing, just 1 packet)

lunch is 1 small tin tuna, handful of cherry tomato’s and other crunchy veg, 2 corn cakes.

dinner is a chicken breast, a small sweet potato, half the plate is either veg or salad.

no snacks other than crunchy veg (have this pre chopped in the fridge)

alcohol only on one night per week, few glasses wine max.

treats on one night per week, pre portioned (like 1 small bag crisps or bar of chocolate).

it might help to work out where your calories are coming from , big meals or biscuits or picking at kids leftovers etc. then try and eliminate this and just stick to your pre planned meals.