Why are people still counting calories when it doesn’t work

[Ifyoubelieveyouwill]

Just that really. I don’t understand why people are still counting calories when the science shows it doesn’t work and makes you gain more weight in the long term. As a 20 year yo-yo dieter I’m proof calorie counting leads to obesity over time.

Now the scientific evidence is conclusive that it’s the nutritional quality of food that matters for weight loss. Not the calories in/ calories out equation. I wonder why diets like WW and Noom are still so popular.

Have people just missed the memo? Not being goady, I’m just wondering whether people feel the short term weight loss is worth it.

Calorie counting does work, just like intermittent fasting and low carbing. But regardless of the number of calories, the trick is to pick the healthier option, every time. E.g. a salad with protein over a sandwich, strawberries rather than chocolate cake and cream. Steak over a battered fish. To ensure those foods keep you feeling fuller for longer.

I think the OP is getting an unnecessary pasting, and she's been very gracious in the face of some very unpleasant responses (like the one saying she was babbling).

Reducing calories does make you lose weight. However, calorie counting is difficult to sustain forever, as many people have said already. Calorie counting involves weighing/measuring food, recording and restricting portions or ingredients. It's not really something you can do by eye - which is why the NHS talks about how your plate should look, and uses easy comparisons like a piece of meat no bigger than a pack of playing cards or whatever. It's very difficult to do it when you eat out, or at a friend's house where you can't see what went into the food.

There are also a number of people saying that they calorie count when they notice themselves putting on weight, lose a bit, then stop counting until the next time. That in itself is proof that calorie counting isn't sustainable - every person who has said that is coming on and off calorie counting, and their daily diet in between times is causing weight gain. In some people this will be extreme yo-yoing, and in others it will only be a few pounds up or down. The OP is trying to make the point that this is not effortless weight maintenance - hence why she said that calorie counting doesn't work.

The holy grail is a daily diet that doesn't cause weight gain. We all know effortlessly thin people who have the balance right, and the ones that I know aren't counting anything or cutting food groups. However, they also don't eat a lot of processed shite and tend to choose nutritious food because they like it and they know it's good for you.

I'm currently losing weight (8lbs in 8 weeks) by drastically reducing sugar and processed foods. I've also reduced wheat, but I'm still eating some - it's just that a lot of wheat products also have sugar, like biscuits/cake etc, and others are very processed, like supermarket bread. I'm not fasting, and I'm eating carbs in the form of rice, potatoes, oats, vegetables, fruit etc, so I'm not in ketosis. I'm eating full-fat dairy, fish, eggs, meat etc. I don't count anything, and I don't fast or not snack if I'm hungry or anything - although I'm naturally not that hungry because I'm not having sugar highs and lows.

I don't yet know how sustainable this will be, but it feels easy - I'm just thinking about whether something's sugary/very processed or not, not wondering how many grams of cheese are on a baked potato.

@Ifyoubelieveyouwill

So personally, I decided not to count calories and eat what I want to feel full from a healthy list of foods. I haven’t eaten any ultra processed food. I don’t stop eating due to will power, but because I feel full and satisfied.

I have lost nearly a stone in 1 month and I will continue eating this way for life as it’s so easy doesn’t require me to really think much about food. SW and WW (calorie counting) left me thinking about food all the time, which I now realise led me to a diet- overeating cycle. I wasn’t even over eating that much, just eating the wrong foods.

It’s quite a revelation not calorie counting for me (I appreciate that lots of you guys want to/ enjoy counting calories and we’re all different!)

That's how slim people with no food hang ups eat. If you can achieve it after a lifetime of yo-yo dieting then that is incredible and all power to you. Seriously, it's amazing.

But most people who have struggled do need to count calories to help them stay on track

Of course it works, because it is the only way to ensure you are in a calorie deficit. Of course if you do not change your habits after you've lost weight through it, you'll put it back on. Making sure you know how much calories you can eat to maintain your weight afterwards is key.
A calorie deficit is the only way to lose weight.

But for lots of overweight/ obese people the process of calorie counting does not work and leads to long term weight gain. While they restrict calories, they lose weight. But they fall off the wagon.

This is the opposite to your point??

So they do work, but people find it hard to maintain having lost the weight?

That's a different problem

Interested to hear from lots of you who experience otherwise, as I’ve been baffled as to why people are still counting calories knowing what we do now about nutritional science.

I don’t think I know anyone who diets who has kept the weight off long term.

My MFP progress chart since I started just over 2 years ago.
I now know how many calories the food in any particular meal will be, and what a certain weight of a particular food looks like, so I don't need to weigh every portion anymore, though I still weigh some things.

I thought calories are calories? Sometimes I have a small lunch and save the rest of my calories for a whole tub of cookie dough ice cream as a treat when the kids are in bed. All whilst still loosing weight. By doing this once a week or so it's not made me feel like I'm dieting at all!

For anyone curious in the science showing that not all calories have the same effect on your body and weight, this accessible and entertaining film is a good place to start:

m.youtube.com/watch?v=Bhwlyop7fKs

@tigertreats low carb might be the pop consensus on MN but I wouldn’t say it’s the scientific consensus.

@Ifyoubelieveyouwill I think you need to change your mindset in order to be able to develop a better relationship with food. I say this as someone who was morbidly obese for many years.

Even the way you talk about it is interesting-you cannot have a short-term approach to losing weight. It has to be a life-long approach, and that's why very low calorie diets or those that restrict or entirely remove certain food groups do not work.

I know for a fact that if I restricted my calories down to say 1000 a day I would lose weight rapidly. I would then put that weight back on (and more) just as rapidly. It's not sustainable and it wouldn't fix my unhealthy relationship with food. You need to look at why you're overeating in the first place, and start from a point of sustainability. My approach from the very beginning was on how I can lose weight in a sustainable way.

And my first goal wasn't even to lose weight, it was to simply stop gaining weight. So for the first few months my calorie intake was 2200 a day. Once I was comfortable at that level, I reduced the calories to 2000, then 1900, and am now at 1700. And I will not be reducing any further than that as it won't be sustainable for me.

It's not an easy road but it's a very rewarding one.

Just wanted to make something clearer. I’m talking about the PROCESS of calorie counting. Not actually eating fewer calories. I’m talking about the behaviour rather than the biology.

Although I also think there is sufficient evidence to show that not all calories are equal. But my main point is around human behaviour change and not the biological processes.

@booksandhearts yes and no. Yes, you will lose the same amount of weight whether you eat 1200 calories of tomatoes or 1200 calories of cookies. However, not eating enough protein will make your muscle mass reduce, which is obviously not great. This is why when you count calories it's also important to look at your macros and make sure you have enough protein (and fats).

[quote PattyPan]@tigertreats low carb might be the pop consensus on MN but I wouldn’t say it’s the scientific consensus.[/quote]
What’s the scientific consensus?

@Ifyoubelieveyouwill Fair enough. I suppose I'm equating the use of 'The Science' with other posters on other boards who love to tell women they are all wrong. Which is my bad, sorry. TBF, I'm only doing it online and the only thing I've purchased branded has been wraps. Which went mouldy in a day so I haven't bothered again 🤷🏻‍♀️

I just think what you're saying is not that calorie counting doesn't work. It does. It's basic, calories in / calories out. It's people who can't sustain very low calorie diets who yoyo. Those who aim for the middle, with lots of healthy food and a little under consumption who lose weight and keep it off. That's still calorie counting. And by good, I do mean fat and protein, but really, just balance. But the reasons people over eat vary. So it works for some. Other people need therapy. Or rules. Or other methods. The base is calorie control, but in whatever process fits the individual.

[quote Petitefiloute]@booksandhearts yes and no. Yes, you will lose the same amount of weight whether you eat 1200 calories of tomatoes or 1200 calories of cookies. However, not eating enough protein will make your muscle mass reduce, which is obviously not great. This is why when you count calories it's also important to look at your macros and make sure you have enough protein (and fats).[/quote]
Ah good to know, I will keep that in mind thanks!

Cross posted there! Yes. That. So you can't really go on about the science dismissing calorie counting. What you mean is making the most of the calories you should have for weight loss or maintaining.

Worked for me

Calorie counting does work I have done it. Also its what the nhs website recommend. Its about learning how to control what you eat 1 choc bar instead of 2 an so on.

For me being able to no longer think about food has been the best gift I’ve given myself. I lost a stone and a half about 18 months ago. I put on about 5lbs over lockdown and am sitting with a BMI of 23.6. For me to lose the 5lb I need to start fasting again but right now I feel okay.

I never eat until I’m stuffed. I don’t eat sugar. Low carb. Predominantly protein, fat, low carb veggies and dairy. I do not count calories. The last time I had a health MOT a few years back all my results came back as though I was a woman a decade younger. So low carb must be doing something right.

To add anything that requires willpower is not sustainable.

@JonahofArk yep I have figured out why I overate. I ate too many sugary and low quality carbs which made me hungry. Pretty simple really. There’s no Psychological reason. I’m a child of the 80s and was bought up on ultra processed food and treated to sweet things because my parents worked 7 days a week running their own business.

@Ifyoubelieveyouwill

Just wanted to make something clearer. I’m talking about the PROCESS of calorie counting. Not actually eating fewer calories. I’m talking about the behaviour rather than the biology.

Although I also think there is sufficient evidence to show that not all calories are equal. But my main point is around human behaviour change and not the biological processes.

Fair enough OP.

In that case a better thread heading might have been "why are people still counting calories when there are other methods of weight loss which lend themselves more easily to human behaviour?"

I'd have probably agreed with that

Another interesting aspect to why a calorie isn’t a calorie - we burn more calories in the morning due to circadian rhythms nutritionfacts.org/video/eat-more-calories-in-the-morning-than-the-evening/

OP, I'm sorry but I think you've got this wrong. What makes you put weight on is STOPPING the calorie counting once you reached your goal. That's the mistake you make. Of course you will then put the weight back on and more. You are supposed to change lifestyle, not going back to old ways once "done with the diet". Counting calories taught me about my body and my metabolism, and it helped me shift my perspective on all food. After a few months, I didn't specifically count the calories anymore but I knew what foods were good for me and what foods I could eat and not go over the calories my body was used to. So no, I didn't have the pizza followed by snacks as that would have amounted to be 2/3 of all my daily allowance. But not because I did or didn't count calories...

[quote Ifyoubelieveyouwill]@JonahofArk yep I have figured out why I overate. I ate too many sugary and low quality carbs which made me hungry. Pretty simple really. There’s no Psychological reason. I’m a child of the 80s and was bought up on ultra processed food and treated to sweet things because my parents worked 7 days a week running their own business.[/quote]
Agreed. But for insulin sensitive people carbs are absolutely fine. My DP eats carbs quite happily and doesn’t get hungry for more. I on the other hand get incredible munchies if I eat high carb. I’m literally in scavenge mode all day.

I am naturally insulin resistant. If I ate lots of sugar and carbs I would undoubtedly have become diabetic later in life. As it is I have recognised it and I now eat in such a way that I have energy across the day and no longer feel hungry nor do I have the need to stuff myself till I’m full.