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Easily Lose Weight Without Counting Calories
In this very website, I have plenty of articles on both sides of the counting calorie conundrum.
(if you want to read those they are at the end of this Blog for your further reading pleasure).
Personally, I am not in favour of counting calories, nor am I against it.
The decision to choose to count calories or not simply comes down to the behaviour patterns and previous dieting history of the person who is trying to figure out whether or not is a good idea to count calories or not.
The list of people who shouldn't be counting calories is:
Anyone who has an eating disorder
Anyone who is a perfectionist
Anyone who suffers with food guilt
Anyone who refuses to eat because it will take them “above their calorie limit”
Anyone who has a history of yo-yo dieting and diet clubs.
If you are in one of those cohorts of people and you are still actively trying to lose weight, then you are in the right place.
If you are not in one of those cohorts of people, but still want to learn more about losing weight…then you are in the right place as well.
Basically…if you are trying to find out more about losing weight…
As always, thank you for being here, and I can’t wait to help you figure this crazy journey out.
Before we progress, you need to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight. This means consuming fewer calories than your metabolism is burning each day, and that can be achieved both through counting calories and without counting calories.
If you need more information on Calorie Deficits then head here.
Table of contents for Easily Lose Weight Without Counting Calories:
Is Calorie Counting the best way to lose weight?
How to be in a Calorie Deficit without counting calories
Signs that you are in a Calorie Deficit
Really Simple Solutions
Is Calorie Counting the Best way to lose weight?
Calorie counting does work.
This study (1) took a cohort of people and found that there was a correlation between consistent trackers and weight loss outcomes:
“Only consistent trackers had significant weight loss (-9.99 pounds), following a linear relationship with consistent loss throughout the year. In addition, the weight loss trend for the rare and inconsistent trackers followed a nonlinear path, with the holidays slowing weight loss and the onset of summer increasing weight loss. These results show the importance of frequent dietary tracking for consistent long-term weight loss success”
But as I mentioned in my introduction if you match any of the cohorts I spoke about, then these results will not be accessible to you.
The other thing I would say is this: calorie counting is the quickest way to know if you are in a calorie deficit. You simply get immediate feedback on what you are eating and provided you have done your calorie calculations correctly, you will know whether or not you are indeed taking the steps to lose weight each day.
If you want to do your calorie calculations then get my calorie calculator sent to your inbox right now.
If you aren’t able to, or just don’t want to count calories, then I will lay out for you exactly how to lose weight within that.
But you will have to meet me half way with regards to the process.
You will need patience.
The only way to know if you are losing weight, for sure, without counting calories, is through consistent work on the process I will outline below, and then comparing month to month at markers that will indicate weight loss - a topic we will get onto later in this blog post.
How to be in a Calorie Deficit without Counting Calories
Over my decade in the fitness industry, I have made many many mistakes. One of those mistakes was asking clients who were contra-indicated to count calories.
In fact, now I am older and wiser, I would argue the vast majority of the people I work with, mainly people just like you, who really want to lose weight, but might also have a very fragile relationship with food, with the scale, with their body image and are low on self-esteem, do not need to count calories.
I am now far less likely to ask a client to count calories when working on their weight loss - and the results I get are just as effective. If not more so, because my clients aren’t reliant on the control that calorie counting gives them, and don’t have to learn to regress.
We go slower to start with, building strong proper foundations, so that they are empowered to be able to stay at a weight that suits them for their whole lives.
In fact, I would also argue, that most people who count calories, lose weight, and then stop counting calories are far more likely to regain their weight, then have to go back to calorie counting to lose it again…and they repeat this process all of their lives.
Also please remember body weight will always fluctuate. It is not a static thing, and in each different phase and aspect of your life different body weights will emerge - and that is ok.
Losing weight without counting calories is possible, but it requires a combination of diet and lifestyle changes to help us make sure that we are getting you into a calorie deficit.
Here are a few tips to help you get started, backed by scientific research.
Let’s start with your dietary changes:
PORTION CONTROL
Portion control is your best friend when it comes to organising your diet into a calorie deficit.
Don't feel like you have to finish everything on your plate: It's okay to leave a little bit of food behind, and it can actually be a good thing to listen to your body's hunger and fullness cues. When your mum told you that you must finish your plate, little did she know that when you grow up, this could have a major impact on your relationship with food? It’s not your mum’s fault, but you must understand that you don’t have to finish your plate as an adult.
Focus on the quality of your food, not just the quantity: Rather than trying to eat less of everything, try to fill your plate with a variety of nutritious foods. Start with Protein, and build your plate around that. One of my Five Awesome Rules for Fat Loss Life is to Protein and Veggies at every meal. This will increase fibre and nutrients which will make you feel fuller for longer whilst losing weight.
Be mindful of your snacking: Snacking can add a lot of extra calories to your diet, so it's important to be mindful of what and how much you're eating between meals. The cliche is true, fruits and vegetables are your best friends when it comes to snacking. Try to limit your snacks to two a day between your meals.
Don't be afraid to ask for a to-go box: If you're eating out and the portions are larger than you're used to, don't be afraid to ask for a to-go box and take the rest home for another meal. This is a massive thing in Australia which I had to get used to. In England, you either finish your plate or leave food on there, you hardly ever get a “doggy bag”. But here its quite common practice - and it’s such a good thing to do. It saves on food wastage, it saves you from overeating, and it means you have leftovers for the next day so you are automatically meal prepped.
Don't deprive yourself: It's important to enjoy your food and not feel like you're constantly depriving yourself. If you really want that second serving or dessert, go for it, but try to be mindful of how much you're eating. Remember balance always.
Find what works for you: Everyone is different, so it's important to find what works best for you and your body. Don't be afraid to experiment with different portion sizes and see how you feel.
2. STRUCTURED EATING
The role of structured eating in your diet has astounding benefits from improving your relationship with food as well as helping you get into a calorie deficit.
However, for the purposes of this article, its use is to regulate and stimulate your hunger hormones (2).
By making sure you regulate these hormones (grehlin and leptin) you will be able to avoid the classic “hangry” feeling and therefore not end up eating everything in sight when you get the opportunity to.
By eating in a structured way, your body will no longer guess when it will and will not be fed, and therefore having a much more regular diet will decrease your overall calories not just during the day, but also over the weeks as well.
This study (3) also concluded:
“While no one eating occasion contributes more than any other to excess adiposity, eating more often than three times a day may play a role in overweight and obesity in both younger and older persons”
The structure you need to stick to is:
Breakfast.
Lunch.
Dinner.
Two snacks.
Each meal must fit on one plate.
You should also eat uninterrupted and participate as much as possible in the making and creating of the food.
The other thing to remember with structured eating is that it requires mindful eating as well. This will help you pay attention to your body's hunger and fullness cues, and eat only when you are hungry and stop when you are satisfied. Avoid distractions like TV or phone while eating, as these can cause you to eat more than you need (4). Mindful eating has been shown to be effective for weight loss and the prevention of weight gain (5).
3. WATER INTAKE
Another one of my five awesome rules for fat loss life is the promotion of trying to drink 3 litres of water a day. This can be a shock to the system, to begin with, but build up slowly and you will be on also remember it is a purposefully high target, because if you fall short you are still covered.
Drinking enough water can help you feel full and satisfied, thus helping your hunger cues be quelled, and helping to keep you in a calorie deficit. I always suggest to clients on the Strong and Confident Program to work towards trying to drink 3 litres a day.
A study of 50 adults found that those who drank 375ml or 500 ml of water before a meal lost significantly more weight than those who did not (6).
Now let’s look at some physical changes you might need to make:
SLEEP
The more I write about fitness, the more I am realising that sleep features in every aspect of your fitness journey. Not just for weight loss, but for performance as well.
You have to get enough sleep. However, I am not ignorant of the fact that if you have a young family that simply will not be possible. I appreciate that, and if that is you, then be aware of the impact of sleep, but don’t get stressed about the fact you can’t access enough sleep; just be aware that when things settle down, you should think about addressing this part of your life.
If you are reading this, and you don’t have a young family or a medical reason that you can’t get enough sleep, and you aren’t getting enough sleep then you need to get enough sleep.
Adequate sleep is essential for weight loss and overall health. In fact, it is that important, I would put it as high up on the list of helping you lose weight as being in a Calorie Deficit.
A review of 17 studies found that people who slept 7-9 hours per night had a significantly lower body mass index (BMI) compared to those who slept less (7).
One reason lack of sleep is associated with weight gain is that sleep deprivation can lead to an increase in appetite, particularly for high-calorie, sugary foods. This is because sleep deprivation can lead to an increase in the hunger hormone ghrelin and a decrease in the hormone leptin, which regulate hunger and fullness. As a result, people who don't get enough sleep may feel hungrier and eat more.
In addition to increasing appetite, sleep deprivation can also lead to an increase in the hormone cortisol, which can promote fat storage and weight gain. This is because cortisol is released in response to stress, and sleep deprivation can be a source of stress for the body.
Furthermore, insufficient sleep can lead to a decrease in physical activity and a decrease in the body's ability to burn calories effectively. This is because sleep deprivation can lead to fatigue and decreased energy levels, making it harder for people to be physically active. It is also not uncommon to see a drop in fidgeting and other calorie-burning activities throughout the day, because of tiredness.
Overall, it is important to get enough sleep in order to maintain a healthy weight. The National Sleep Foundation recommends that adults aim for 7-9 hours of sleep per night.
2. STRUCTURED MOVEMENT
As I mentioned above, we need to work on both sides of the energy balance equation to easily create a calorie deficit, especially if you aren’t counting calories.
The most important thing for you to remember when it comes to physical movement, in pursuit of losing weight, is to not view calorie-burning as the reason you are exercising.
Yes. Exercise does burn calories.
No. You don’t have to earn your calories in the gym.
Yes. Exercise is amazing for your overall health.
No. Exercising doesn’t burn as many calories as you would think.
Yes. Exercise is a great tool to help keep you on track dietarily and emotionally with a weight loss goal.
All exercise will help you create a calorie deficit. Notice the word “help”?
The most important aspect of exercise with regards to this is that you chose the exercise you enjoy the most because you will then be far more likely to continue doing it for long enough to see results.
I very recently got this message on Instagram in relation to a workout I give away for free:
The person who sent me this, was in a phase of not counting calories, although she is quite calorie aware, and she was wanting to begin the journey of feeling her best for her wedding which is in a few weeks (as I write this), and she is about 7 months post-partum.
The results are immense. But for me, the best result isn’t the weight loss she created, its the fact she felt more empowered as a result of exercising, and she is evidently more confident as a result of getting stronger. Its the dream scenario.
The workout she completed was this:
If you want the same strength workout I gave her then just put your email address in here and I will send it to you in a day or two:
Or if you would like a four-week beginner strength training routine for beginners with video tutorials then head here.
Aim for 2-3 workouts a week, which last for about 30-40mins and that make you feel two inches taller when you walk out of the Gym compared to when you walked in, and you will be right where you need to be when it comes to working out.
3. INCREASING YOUR NEAT
You could look up any advice about losing weight across the whole internet, and I promise you that every weight loss plan you find will feature something in relation to your NEAT.
Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis.
This is the largest portion of your daily caloric burn. It is responsible for burning as many calories as structured movement and how many calories you burn through digestion combined.
Essentially the simplest way it can be measured is by your step count.
But there are other aspects of it as well. When I designed my five awesome rules for fat loss life, I made one of those rules: 10k Steps A Day.
Science has since shown that 10k steps a day are not necessarily needed for improving your health, the figure stands at around 7.5k steps a day if you are only focused on improving your health.
But as you aren’t counting calories, and I am telling you that you can lose weight easily, then we need to put in some targets here.
This is the simplest way to make sure that your step count is right:
Take your previous month’s daily average number.
Multiply it by two.
That is your new step count.
Then after about two weeks, you need to multiply it by two again.
And continue doing this all the way up to 10k steps a day and then keep it there as consistently as possible.
Now if you just don’t have time to fit in that amount of steps a day in, there is another solution. We need you to walk faster. If all you have is the maximum time in your day to do 5k steps a day, then a great way of making that 5k steps as effective as possible for you is that every time you walk, do it with as much purpose and direction as you possibly can.
Don’t dilly-dally. You aren’t strolling, you are walking with the intention to get to your destination as effectively as possible.
Other great ways to increase your NEAT are:
Incorporate more movement into your daily routine by using a standing or adjustable desk.
Take regular stretch breaks throughout the day to loosen up and move your body.
Take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator whenever possible.
Walk or bike to the store or grocery shop instead of driving or taking public transportation.
Park further away from the grocery shop in the car park.
Every time there is an ad break on TV, climb your stairs three times.
Wear ankle weights when walking.
Take up a new hobby that involves movement such as rock climbing, ice skating or roller skating.
Do some gardening.
Every time there is an ad break on tv, use it as a Dance Break instead.
Never sit down when you are on the phone, always stand or walk.
Take the kids or grandkids to the park and play games or sports with them.
Carry your shopping as opposed to using a trolley.
Walking is your solution to most things. Emotional stress, physical stress, or maybe you just need to find some more energy to help get through the day. You might want to improve the quality of your sleep or even to help you easily lose weight without counting calories, I promise you, walking solves more issues than you will ever thought possible.
How Do You Know If You’re In A Calorie Deficit
As I mentioned earlier, counting calories gives you instant feedback on whether or not you are in a calorie deficit.
So if we are taking counting calories away, it is useful to know what other signs you can look for, to get similar feedback on your progress.
Here are the kinds of things I always tell clients to keep aware of to measure their success when they aren’t counting calories:
SCALE WEIGHT
This one is always tricky as many people who aren’t counting calories, likely won’t be the most comfortable with getting on the scales either.
However, if we are directly answering the question of “easily losing weight”, then at some point you will likely check in with your body weight.
Now read this very carefully:
You should only compare your scale weight on a monthly basis, not weekly, to determine if you are in a calorie deficit or not.
You can track daily, or you can track weekly. But from only comparing Day 1 to Day 31 will you know if you are in a Calorie Deficit or not.
This is because scale weight is a fickle fiend and comparing weight loss on a shorter timescale will drive you insane due to all the fluctuations involved.
Please, if you want to look at your scale weight in relation to easily losing weight only compare monthly readings.
2. MEASUREMENTS
These are probably your better friend than scale weight to track your progress. Again, only compare on a monthly basis maybe even a 6-week basis. Another great sign of your measurements changing is feeling different in your clothes - if you feel like they are fitting you better, or you feel like you are wearing them better, then you are probably making an impact on your measurements.
The measurements I ask my clients for, if they are comfortable doing this, are the following:
Neck
Chest
L Bicep
R Bicep
Waist at the Belly Button
Waist 2in below the Belly Button
Waist 2in above the Belly Button
Hips
L Thigh
R Thigh
3. WORK IN PROCESS PICTURES
I don’t call them before or after photos. I don’t call them “progress pictures” either.
Simply because a photo solely looking at your physique, can often cause more issues than it solves. It automatically puts you into a mindset of “the way I look is all that is important”.
And it’s not.
The way you look is one aspect of you, and it is likely one of the last reasons anyone enjoys being with you.
Think of your friends. Are you only friends based on the size of their body? Of course not.
So I like to try to change the narrative of photos. Your work in process pictures are just that, designed to capture your process and the changes you are seeing along your journey.
This could be, photos of you working out, or on walks.
This could be family snaps where you remember not feeling awkward in the photo.
This could be a photo on a night out where you didn’t automatically feel anxious when someone asked for a picture, and you resisted the urge to want to look at it, in case you didn’t like it and wanted it deleted.
These are work in process pictures.
When you engage in a weight loss journey, sure weight loss is the goal, but in truth its the least interesting goal that actually occurs.
Use your photos to celebrate your journey, celebrate your building confidence, celebrate your consistency, celebrate your confidence changing as you progress.
These are all signs of progress too, aside from seeing your belly reduction on two photos that are six weeks apart.
Your physique can and will change. But a photo only focussed on your physique will never capture the internal changes that have occurred to you over time. Get photos that describe your internal monologue as well.
Document that progress.
It’s so much more rewarding.
4. CONSISTENCY
Another incredible sign that you are in a calorie deficit is recording your consistency. Tick off these things:
How regularly you are getting your workouts in
How regularly you are keeping your structure with food
How regularly you feel less guilty about the food you are eating
How regularly you are trying to move away from calling foods “good” and “bad”
How regularly you are getting your steps in
How much water you are drinking
How regularly you are getting 7-8 hours sleep a night
You can do this on a calendar, a tracking app or a journal.
Remember there is a key difference between consistency and perfection. In order to be consistent you need to be hitting your goals and habits 25 days out of 30 in a month.
5. HUNGER
Going to bed and feeling a little hungry is also a good sign that you are in a calorie deficit. At no point in your life do you want to be ravenous, and hunger should be managed relatively well throughout the day, especially if you have a structure with your food.
But going to bed and feeling a little hungry is a good sign that you are in a calorie deficit.
Really Simple Solutions
When I first became a Personal Trainer, one of the firs things my Coach gave me to work on was the concept of KISS.
Keep, It, Simple, Stupid.
And therefore over the years, I have always worked on trying to distil weight loss and fitness into the simplest and most effective messaging I can come up with.
And here is what seems to have stuck:
THE 3, 4, 5 SYSTEM
I remember where I was when I came up with this a few years ago. I was on the Gym Floor with one of my best Australian friends, Ben. I had been training him for nearly a year at this point, and he was aware his life was getting busier again, and it was about to cause havoc on his progress. I could never get Ben to track his food, so I asked him to stick to this.
3 litres of water a day.
4 movement sessions a week; Walking, Workouts and anything else you might enjoy.
5 moments with food every day: 3 meals, two snacks.
Its simplicity gave me so much joy. I then introduced it to one of my online clients in Colorado, doing my Strong & Confident Program and she sent me this as it was her lock screen to keep her on track.
What a beautiful idea.
DAILY AWESOME SALAD
The DAS.
Get your protein source. Add a huge bag of salad and some carby veggies.
Job done.
Do this for lunch each and every day. It’s easy to prep, its cost-effective, and it will do a good job.
BUILD MEALS AROUND PROTEIN
Start with protein.
Then add veggies to your plate.
Then if you look at your meal and still feel like you need something else, add a Carbohydrate source.
Try to aim for 100g of protein a day. This is the equivalent of:
My recommendation to clients is to always start with 100g of protein a day, or if you are vegetarian or vegan then aim for 80g of protein a day.
You can get more complex if you like, but if you don’t want to count calories, then there really isn’t much of a need to past those recommendations.
And always make sure it fits on one plate, as mentioned in the structured eating section of this article.
FIVE AWESOME RULES FOR FAT LOSS LIFE
I have written about these many times.
In a nutshell, they are:
Be in a Calorie Deficit
10k steps a day
7-8 hours sleep a night
Protein and Veggies at every meal
3 litres of water a day
If you want to find out more about how these rules work then head here:
5 Easy Ways To Do A Calorie Deficit Without Working Out
FOLLOW THE DADDY HUMPHREYS PLAN
Here is my Dad and I, out on the Golf Course back in Essex where we used to live together. I since moved to Australia. My Dad was recently diagnosed with Cancer at the age of 67.
He recently went from 80kgs to 75kgs in a matter of about 4 months.
He has never been overweight or really had any body weight concerns. But when he got Cancer, he was told that getting his BMI down a touch would be helpful, and would help him feel better in general.
His Cancer is quite serious, it is Stage 4, and he can only get onto Maintenance drugs to help him, never into full remission or be Cancer free.
But in terms of his treatment, it has all been relatively easy compared to what most people go through with chemotherapy. His side effects have been some hiccoughs, and interrupted sleep and that’s about it. My point is, he didn’t suffer weight loss as a result of his treatment.
He got his bodyweight down through behaviour, none of which was counting calories.
Here is what he did:
As you can see, it’s a pretty simple, and sensible solution.
The Daddy Humphreys Plan: I wonder if it will sell….
What’s Next…
Well, I am an Online Coach who has helped thousands of people work through the challenges in this article.
And it would be my pleasure to help you too.
My program is personal one-to-one online training called the Strong & Confident Program.
If you have ever wanted to achieve the following:
✅ Escape the constant dread of dieting?
✅ Release the guilt you attach to eating certain types of food?
✅ Learn to stop worrying about “the pesky last few pounds” and focus on all your body can do?
✅ Become truly happy with what your body is and what is capable of?
✅ Enjoy the feeling of being stronger and fitter as opposed to trying to reduce your size all the time?
✅ Achieve all of this and still lose body fat at the same time without huge restrictions and slavery to a fitness regime?
✅ Do it all on your own schedule, in your own way, with a program specifically designed for you?
Then please click on the button below and fill out an application form to start working with me.
If you feel like you need more help learning how to lose weight and release the need for counting calories then you can look through the following articles of mine as well:
Thank you so much for reading my work, and good luck with building a stronger relationship with food.
I cannot wait to see how you go!
Coach Adam
References:
Ingels JS, Misra R, Stewart J, Lucke-Wold B, Shawley-Brzoska S. The Effect of Adherence to Dietary Tracking on Weight Loss: Using HLM to Model Weight Loss over Time. J Diabetes Res. 2017;2017:6951495. doi: 10.1155/2017/6951495. Epub 2017 Aug 9. PMID: 28852651; PMCID: PMC5568610.
Klok, M.D., Jakobsdottir, S. and Drent, M.L. (2007), The role of leptin and ghrelin in the regulation of food intake and body weight in humans: a review. Obesity Reviews, 8: 21-34. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-789X.2006.00270.x
Howarth NC, Huang TT, Roberts SB, McCrory MA, Lin BH. Eating patterns and dietary composition in relation to weight change over 7 y. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2001;73(2):209-218.
Van Walleghen EL, Hogg MM, Bell EA, Rolls BJ. Television viewing increases motivated responding for food and energy intake in adults. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2010;91(4):829-835.
Kristeller JL, Hallett CB. An exploratory study of a meditation-based intervention for binge eating disorder. Journal of Health Psychology. 1999;4(3):357-363.
Pre-meal water consumption for weight loss. (2013). Australian Family Physician, 42(7), 478. https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.405716872190923
How To Stop Yourself Counting Calories Obsessively: Life After Apps
You might think that my choice of image for this article is an odd one.
But by the end of you reading this, I promise it will become clear.
I am writing this because I got this gorgeous question from one of my one-to-one clients on the Strong and Confident Program.
Firstly, the fact that my client feels like she is personally battling this, means that there are probably millions of others out there battling with it as well.
It’s normal to feel scared about wanting to stop counting calories.
So my first point is, if you are here reading this, you are not alone.
You are here because you are struggling, and you want to find a release…this Article will provide that release from counting calories obsessively.
An awful lot of people when they are struggling feel lonely.
So please don’t.
To help stop you from feeling lonely, it would be awesome if you wanted to become my friend.
As your friend, I will send you some things. Links to my podcasts, an opportunity to work with me, some educational material, and a few books. and workout programs and probably the odd story about me, and my cats Nala and Simba.
If you want to chat more, please just send me a friend request by filling out this form:
My face now we are friends:
TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR: How To Stop Yourself Counting Calories Obsessively: Life After Apps
Does Calorie Counting Work?
Should You Stop Counting Calories?
Strategies to manage Calories Without Calorie Counting
The Process Behind Stopping Calorie Counting
A Little Pep Talk
You can listen to the audio version of this Blog Post on my Podcast: The Fitness Solution
You can watch the video version of this Blog Post on my YouTube Channel:
Does Calorie Counting Work?
It wouldn’t take you long to flick through my Blog Posts and see that I regularly give out advice to help people learn how to manage counting calories and how to make it more effective.
This is because if your goal is weight loss or weight gain - counting calories can work.
But that doesn’t mean it will always work.
And it doesn’t mean that it is the best strategy for everyone.
If you look at the titles of my posts:
It would be fair to assume that I am indeed in favour of this as a strategy. But if you read the posts and look deeper, you will see the great variance and nuance in my message around Counting Calories and their relative success for you in your Weight Loss goals.
This morning I was talking to a Physician who specialises in Type 2 Diabetes Healthcare - and we got into a glorious discussion about what is optimal healthcare for these clients.
The conclusion we both had was:
You have to let the person decide what science you are going to use.
There is Science out there that clearly shows Calorie Counting can help manage body composition [1]:
“Over 3 times as many Consistent Trackers as Inconsistent Trackers achieved ≥ 5% weight loss at 3 months (48 vs. 13%) and at 6 months (54 vs. 15%; ps < .001). Though causality cannot be determined by the present study, tracking weight and/or diet nearly every day [on a Commercial App] per week for 12 weeks a commercial app may serve as an effective strategy for weight loss. Strategies are needed to promote greater consistency in tracking.”
There is also science that shows truly how damaging counting calories can be. Damaging for a relationship with food, relationship with body image, relationship with social occasions - and this damage is real - I’ve worked with more than enough people to know that to be true.
This study [2] analysed 5.5k posts on community forums and three mobile food journals in relation to the difficulties with food tracking.
It found posts summing up these emotions of those who engaged in this behaviour:
Food journalers report feelings of shame, judgment, or obsession associated with current designs. P6 reported journaling “made me feel guilty sometimes”, while P27 noted a lack of positive feedback: “I always felt guilty when I ate too much, and there wasn't that much pride when I was under my goal.”
“Sometimes I feel like not logging things because I know it’s really unhealthy”
”It made me too focused and obsessive about what I was eating”
“It was more of an on the way to an eating disorder thing than anything else (tried to keep calories extremely low)”
“I think I was hesitant to do the logging if not alone”
“I had more of a problem with eating out at a friend’s house because I didn’t want to ask for ingredients or mention that I was logging calories”
Many of those feelings I can imagine you relate to. Which is why you are here.
The great tragedy in all of this is that my dear friend, “the fitness industry” has painted this as a black and white scenario.
Counting Calories = losing weight. Regardless of the cost.
And with all behaviour there is a cost attached - and you must always ask yourself when engaging in behaviour whether the cost is worth it.
But the good old “fitness industry” doesn’t tell you this. It doesn’t understand that everybody is different and you need a unique path for you.
It just draws a line from where you are to where you want to be and expects you to follow it.
Counting Calories has worked for many people. If it didn’t Under Armour would never have bought My Fitness Pal.
But its greatest failure is its inability to screen its users to actually check to see whether or not they should be counting calories.
Because there is a whole host of people, people more than likely just like you, who should not have engaged in tracking calories, to begin with.
So here I am. A humble fella with just his keyboard as his weapon to try and help you reverse that damage and show you a way out of this tunnel you feel like you are in.
Take my hand… Let’s find you a way out.
Should You Stop Counting Calories?
As I mentioned previously, many people can count calories and use it as a perfectly decent way to manage their intake.
But many others cannot.
This doesn't mean that one person is superior to the other, it simply means that there are no black and white rules in fitness, other than you must always treat each and every case on its individual merits.
This also doesn't mean that if you don’t count calories, you can’t achieve your goals.
Believe me, you really can. In fact, I would say 80% of my clients on The Strong and Confident Program don’t count their calories, and we manage their nutritional needs in other ways - more on this later.
As I write this, it is very important to me that I am clear on who should not be counting calories, so that you can judge whether you fall into one of these categories, and can therefore learn how to move away from this obsessive behaviour.
Have you ever been diagnosed with an Eating Disorder?
If the answer to this question is yes. Then you should not be counting calories.
Period.
No ifs. No buts.
End of discussion really.
You must remember with every behaviour there is a cost attached, and the cost attached to counting calories if you have ever had a diagnosed eating disorder - or suspect you might have an eating disorder - just isn’t worth it.
It’s not worth the cost to your Mental Health and physical health.
Knowing the calories in your food is not worth the negative effects that can occur from counting calories.
This study [3] looked into this very topic and found:
“Of the app [MyFitnessPal] users, 73% stated that the app had at least somewhat contributed to their eating disorder, with 30% reporting that the app very much contributed to their eating disorder. Additionally, the more likely an individual was to report that usage of the calorie tracker had contributed to their eating disorder, the more likely they were to have higher eating disorder symptoms”
If you are already susceptible to an eating disorder, tracking your calories is only going to re-open that pandora’s box again.
And believe me, no physique goal is worth that.
Are you a perfectionist?
If you have perfectionist tendencies, then tracking your calories is not a good idea as it will create too much stress in your life.
Calories aren’t perfect.
The calories that are published on packets can be up to 20% inaccurate.
This study found the following:
“Measured energy values exceeded label statements by 8% on average in pre-packaged convenience meals (12), which is slightly higher but consistent with the label disparity of 4.3% in packaged snack foods. Also consistent with this study, most products in our sample fell within the allowable limit of 20% over the label calories per Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations”
Added to that, all the clever equations we use in Fitness to help calculate your Maintenance Calories, for it is from there where we can establish your Calorie Window, is just the best guess.
Figuring out your weight, height and age, and then asking you to subjectively rate your movement each week in terms of intensity is not going to be accurate.
This is why when you use many different Calorie Calculators, you get different numbers. Whether it’s the Katch McArdle Method, or the Mifflin St. Jeor neither are perfect.
This is exactly why I work with a Calorie Window with all of my clients. I don’t need their calories to be perfect, I need them to be in a range that will work.
Therefore if you are a perfectionist in an imperfect set up you will find untold stress in trying to get it right all the time.
You can’t get it right. But you don’t need to. Comprehending the imperfect system will help you be less obsessive with counting calories.
Do you feel guilty after eating certain foods?
If you can’t eat a Krispy Kreme doughnut without feeling like you have to go to the gym for an hour to “burn off those calories” then you need to start creating space between what you eat and that immediate feedback on the calories involved.
No good can come from eating something and then chastising yourself by logging it immediately, and to see that the calories are more than expected which compounds all of those feelings of shame and guilt around what you enjoyed.
Even though you see tracking and logging your foods as a way of working towards your goals, it is actually counter-intuitive if you experience this guilty feeling. This is because it will slowly rot away your self-esteem. You will feel completely undermined, and you will be left with three choices:
Spend countless hours in the gym time and time again to punish yourself for the food you ate - damaging your relationship with your body and exercise.
Stop tracking the foods that make you feel this way and therefore feel like a failure every time you have them - and be aware you are “lying” to yourself about your caloric intake - damaging your sense of self-worth.
Give up on your whole fitness journey period - again leading you down a path of feeling like a failure and thinking you will never succeed at changing what you want to change.
None of those options are ideal for your long-term success.
Do you refuse to eat when you are hungry because you are worried about going over your Calories?
Calories are a best guess.
If you are refusing to eat when you are genuinely hungry because you might be over for a day - then you have a problem.
Hunger can mean many things - not all hunger is a desire for food.
Hunger can mean you are bored, you need a hug, or you are in need of a connection other than for food.
But there is an element of hunger that is related to the need for food - if you are denying that hunger too much in order to stay within your calories, and you are doing it too often, then there is no way you will be able to keep that up.
The hunger will win - and then you will again give into that physiological feeling - perpetuating your feelings of failure either way.
Strategies to manage Calories Without Calorie Counting
You are probably sitting there thinking this all so far makes sense but how on earth do you keep working on your goals when you have no idea what your intake is?
But there are many ways to manage a calorie deficit without having to track your calories.
A Study called: The Effect of Adherence to Dietary Tracking on Weight Loss: Using HLM to Model Weight Loss over Time [3] concluded that:
“Consistent trackers had significant weight loss (-9.99 pounds), following a linear relationship with consistent loss throughout the year. In addition, the weight-loss trend for the rare and inconsistent trackers followed a nonlinear path, with the holidays slowing weight loss and the onset of summer increasing weight loss. These results show the importance of frequent dietary tracking for consistent long-term weight loss success”
However, when you look at how they were asked to track their dietary intake you find a great nuance that doesn’t involve MyFitness Pal.
They managed this long-term weight loss by:
Maintain daily food journals and physical activity records;
Reduce portion sizes;
Reduce foods high in calories, fat, and simple sugar;
Increase consumption of fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy products;
Weigh themselves frequently and at least weekly
They each worked with a Health Coach and attended interactive sessions designed to educate them on nutrition and exercise adherence.
Strategy 1: Food Journals
The food journal in the study above could well have been on MyFitness Pal. But it doesn't have to be on there exclusively.
A Food Journal can just be writing a record of what you ate and when you ate it. No Calories but just the foods.
For example:
I chose this diary as an example because I love the “Starbucks” comment.
I do think that with Food Journals if you can also document an emotion along with the food you are eating it would be really helpful. It just needs to be a sentence, explaining how you were feeling at the time and how that led. to you eating what you had.
For example:
Porridge with peanut butter - was a little tired but wanted to have a good breakfast.
Coffee - I was tired, and I love starting my day with coffee.
Plant Kitchen No Chicken Indian Wrap - I thought this was a good lunch option, but I was a little short on time because of my work schedule, but I enjoyed it.
By doing this you begin to create objectivity between your food and emotions. You can begin to see how your emotions are impacting your food choices and the more information you gather in this way the more you can see patterns and get insights into how your emotional state affects your caloric choices.
Strategy 2: A Structured Diet
I come across an awful lot of people who use Calorie Counting as a way to try and control emotional and binge eating. But as we have seen from the studies, this can be very counterintuitive.
A lot of calories do come into your diet when:
You don’t eat because you are “busy”
You restrict too much and then binge.
This is where a structured diet will have huge benefits. The two issues are essentially the same.
Just yesterday, I had a banana for breakfast and some toast at about 07:30 am - not a huge amount of calories for me - then I didn’t eat again until I was in a restaurant at about 12:30. But by that point, I could feel my blood sugar levels dropping, I was getting anxious and was beyond hungry. The second I sat in the restaurant, before my lunch, I asked for a Croissant with Nutella in it. Just because I was ravenous.
I then ate my full lunch too.
That is an extra lot of calories that could have been managed a lot better by having a much better breakfast.
I have worked with many people who vow that they don’t eat that much, I then ask them to start eating breakfast…and they start to achieve their goals.
As this study [4] backs up:
“Eating breakfast is a characteristic common to successful weight loss maintainers and may be a factor in their success.”
When you don’t eat at regular times during the day it creates moments where you overeat at mealtimes.
By eating in a more structured way you protect yourself against that.
In many ways - you will feel like you are eating more - and yet you are actually consuming less.
How To Structure Your Diet
I have one method: 3 Meals. 2 Snacks.
Each meal must fit on one plate - as much food as you want - but it must only be on one plate.
If you have an alcoholic beverage the night before - try and take away a snack the next day - but this isn’t essential.
If you can iron out your food intake to more regular moments with food, in a structured manner your body will respond well. It will enjoy the rhythm and pattern of knowing when it is being fed, and your hunger hormones, grehlin and leptin, will respond in a much better way because they will have a structure.
Remember:
“We find freedom within a structure, without structure all we have is chaos”
The other important aspect of structured dieting is actually spending time with your food. Don’t eat in a distracted manner, if possible. As in, don’t work as you eat, don’t watch TV as you eat, and certainly don’t scroll social media as you eat.
I fully respect and understand the issues with this advice for parents with young children - you are exempt - just do what you need to do to get through dinner.
But allowing yourself a moment of self-love, self-care and nourishment when you eat is going to help you improve that relationship with food, and will help stop the mindless eating.
It is all about being more mindful, not mindless.
Strategy 3: Five Awesome Rules For Fat Loss Life
I came up with this for my clients when I first became a personal trainer. It was more instinct than science, and since then science has very much backed up what I put in place.
These Five Rules are very simple:
Be in a Calorie Deficit
and the others help you achieve that, without counting calories:
2. Three Litres of Water A Day
3. Protein and Veggies at every meal
4. 10,000 steps a day
5. 7-8 hours of sleep a night
I explain all of them in much more detail right here:
5 Easy Ways To Do A Calorie Deficit Diet without Working Out
Or you can watch this:
Strategy 4: Portions and Food Choice
Now within 3 Meals, 2 Snacks it would be wise to still follow some guidelines for better nutrition. It’s important we don’t overthink this because overthinking this can lead you back to that desire to track what you are doing to make sure you are getting it “right”.
I recommend Protein and Vegetables at every meal.
In fact, some meals I have personally, are only protein and veggies.
You are allowed Carbs - probably more Carbs than you think you should have - in fact, Carbohydrates will be the fair majority of your diet - in the forms of Fruit, Vegetables, and Complex Grains.
Remember, no one ever gained weight from eating too many fruits and vegetables.
The fact that within 3 meals, and 2 snacks you are only allowed your food to fit onto one plate is designed to help control portions.
When it comes to Carbohydrates, portion control is the issue. They are so easy to overeat.
This is why I always recommend building your plate of food with Protein first, Vegetables second, then Carbohydrates last.
But it is also why you should make sure your food fits onto one plate because then you know you are controlling portions in a more optimal way.
When you look at the study I referenced earlier one of the points that led to more successful weight loss was:
“Reduce foods high in calories, fat, and simple sugar”
There are a number of other studies that back this up. In this study [5] participants had maintained a weight loss of at least 13.6kg for at least 1 year, and they found that:
“Successful maintainers of weight loss reported continued consumption of a low-energy and low-fat diet.”
The tasty food isn’t the Carbohydrates. It’s a very real combination of carbohydrates, Fat and Salt.
Like with potato chips. Let’s take the greatest potato chips ever made:
These have:
123kcals, 6.5g of Fat which is 58.5kcal and 14.3g of carbohydrate which is 57.2kcal.
If you want to have a bag of chips, then please do. But as you do. consider the portion size a lot more and by doing that you will naturally improve your calorie management.
The Process Behind Stopping Counting Calories Obsessively
Everything I have so far said in this article will help you stop calorie counting because it is all designed to help take your fear away.
Because I get it.
You are stuck in this loop of;
“I don’t want to count calories anymore, but I am scared of having no control over what I am doing”
And the thought of just not logging into MyFitness Pal and not tracking that one carrot and teaspoon of Hummus you ate a 20:30 when you were at a friend’s house is just too scary.
So there are a couple of things you can do to help ween yourself off tracking your calories.
Make Sure You Have A Structured Diet
I am not going to go through the structure again;
***Cough***
Three Meals, two Snacks
***Cough***
But I do want to make sure I emphasise how truly important this is to your success away from tracking calories obsessively.
Track One Meal A Day
Pick a meal - any meal - and just track that each day. Then over time, you will see that you are still making progress by only tracking one-fifth of your intake, and you will show yourself that everything else you have implemented aside from tracking food is working.
Go into an Education Mindset
I believe this should be the case for anyone who starts tracking anyway - but sadly very few people set themselves up in this manner. When you started tracking your calories, rather than using it as a way to control your intake, you should have used it as a way to educate yourself about your intake.
And this difference takes away the shame.
It adds in the aspect of investigation and exploration, two very important themes in how I work with clients.
Therefore if you are trying to stop tracking calories obsessively, give yourself a time frame of a month or two to use the tracking as a way of learning, a tool for you to create a knowledge and database in your head about what you usually eat and how that all plays into your goals.
Tracking your calories should only ever be used as an educational tool - not a tool to control you, and the more you learn the more freedom you will find over time.
Make Sure You Are Doing “The Work”
Many people use calorie counting to control their intake because it gives them a sense of working towards their goals. They almost use it as a way to make up for doing the other work that is required.
They aren’t going to the gym, they aren’t getting their steps in, they aren’t making mindful and healthful choices with their food and so they can use tracking as a way to either help beat themselves up for not doing the other work, or they see tracking their intake as “the work”.
A great way to make sure you feel comfortable in moving away from tracking your calories is to make sure that you are executing a well-thought-through plan each day that helps you move towards your goals.
I am by no means saying you can give up tracking and do nothing else and still achieve your goals. Implementing the rest of your plan will help reduce your anxiety about stopping counting your calories.
A Little Pep Talk: Life After Apps
The reason you are so nervous about giving up calorie tracking is that you are scared of undoing your progress, or not making any at all.
This comes down to a trust issue.
MyFitness Pal is very clever in the sense that it gets you to put your trust into it and you therefore attach your success to the app.
Its a very good marketing strategy. But it comes at great cost. Great cost at your relationship with food, and great cost at the expense of your confidence in yourself.
To give up calorie counting. you have to teach yourself to believe in yourself.
You have to build your confidence to be able to stand on your own two feet.
You have to trust that you are able. You have to trust that you can do this. You have to trust that you won’t “screw up again”.
And I know that you can do that.
As this article draws to an end, I want you to use this as your guide, I want you to start working on the concepts laid out in it, and I want you to start rebuilding your trust in yourself.
You deserve food freedom.
You deserve unconditional permission to eat and enjoy your food.
You deserve the balance that can be found between those two concepts and your goals. You deserve self-love and self-trust.
You deserve self-empathy and compassion.
I started this Article with a text from one of my clients who gets one-to-one coaching from me on the Strong & Confident Program.
I would also like to finish with what she put in her weekly report to me the other week.
There are four weeks between the first text I showed you and the one I am about to show you:
She has put in the work to get to this point. She has implemented behaviours and actions that have bought balance into her life.
Those behaviours have allowed her to begin to release the toxic control that counting calories can have.
Set and Keep Promises To Yourself
If you want help developing a system where you can rebuild that trust in yourself. Rebuild your confidence and develop your ability to know that you are doing the things that will work towards your goals then I would suggest starting with getting a few things written down and laid out for you immediately so that you can have a system which supports you.
It started with this Google Form right here:
The First Step To Building Your Confidence
What’s Next?
I hope you found this article useful, and that you feel a lot better about your struggles at the moment.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read my work, it really does mean a lot to me to have you here.
I also have some other articles you might find useful to help you navigate scale weight and your relationship with it:
It would also be a delight if you wanted to join my Facebook Group. It’s a safe space for anyone who would like some free help with empowering their Fitness Journey. I can’t wait to have you in there.
References:
Patel ML, Brooks TL, Bennett GG. Consistent self-monitoring in a commercial app-based intervention for weight loss: results from a randomized trial. J Behav Med. 2020 Jun;43(3):391-401. doi: 10.1007/s10865-019-00091-8. Epub 2019 Aug 8. PMID: 31396820.
Cordeiro F, Epstein DA, Thomaz E, Bales E, Jagannathan AK, Abowd GD, Fogarty J. Barriers and Negative Nudges: Exploring Challenges in Food Journaling. Proc SIGCHI Conf Hum Factor Comput Syst. 2015 Apr;2015:1159-1162. doi: 10.1145/2702123.2702155. PMID: 26894233; PMCID: PMC4755274.
Ingels JS, Misra R, Stewart J, Lucke-Wold B, Shawley-Brzoska S. The Effect of Adherence to Dietary Tracking on Weight Loss: Using HLM to Model Weight Loss over Time. J Diabetes Res. 2017;2017:6951495. doi: 10.1155/2017/6951495. Epub 2017 Aug 9. PMID: 28852651; PMCID: PMC5568610.
Wyatt HR, Grunwald GK, Mosca CL, Klem ML, Wing RR, Hill JO. Long-term weight loss and breakfast in subjects in the National Weight Control Registry. Obes Res. 2002 Feb;10(2):78-82. doi: 10.1038/oby.2002.13. PMID: 11836452.
Shick SM, Wing RR, Klem ML, McGuire MT, Hill JO, Seagle H. Persons successful at long-term weight loss and maintenance continue to consume a low-energy, low-fat diet. J Am Diet Assoc. 1998 Apr;98(4):408-13. doi: 10.1016/S0002-8223(98)00093-5. PMID: 9550162.