Does Calorie Counting Work For Weight Loss?

Let’s get this out of the way in which up entrance.

Sure, calorie counting works for weight reduction.

The legislation of thermodynamics applies to everybody.
The “Energy In vs Energy Out” equation applies to everybody.
A caloric deficit is the underlying reason behind fats loss.
A caloric surplus is the underlying reason behind fats achieve.
Different elements additionally matter, however above all else… it comes right down to energy.

These are confirmed science-based information.

However you’ll typically hear individuals say this isn’t true. That calorie counting doesn’t work.

In lots of of those circumstances, it’s as a result of they’re making an attempt to promote you some bullshit plan, program, or complement that can in some way help you shed pounds with out consuming fewer energy.

These individuals are the worst. Attempt to keep away from them.

“Calorie Counting Didn’t Work For Me”

However different occasions, you’ll hear it from common sincere individuals who tried it themselves.

They’ll say one thing like…

“Calorie counting doesn’t work. I do know this, as a result of I attempted it and I didn’t lose any weight.”

Or possibly…

“Calorie counting may be just right for you, however it didn’t work for me.”

Or…

“I’ve been counting energy for X days/weeks/months, however I’m not making any progress.”

And for many of those individuals, this will probably be all of the proof they should conclude that weight reduction isn’t about energy in any case. At the least, not for them.

It have to be carbs. Or sugar. Or gluten. Or not consuming on the proper occasions. Or not doing the suitable workout routines. Or not taking the suitable dietary supplements. Or their metabolism is damaged. And on and on and on.

No matter it’s, one factor is now sure to them: calorie counting doesn’t work.

Right here’s the factor about that.

Calorie Counting Works… When It’s Completed Proper

It’s VERY potential and VERY widespread to depend energy and NOT shed pounds.

I’m not denying that reality in any respect.

It occurs on a regular basis.

However it’s not as a result of calorie counting doesn’t work, or as a result of weight reduction isn’t actually about energy. It’s as a result of a mistake was unknowingly made someplace that prevented it from being carried out proper.

Consider it like this.

Think about you wish to drive from Level A to Level B. So that you get in your automobile, drive round in circles for an hour after which say “Driving doesn’t work. I attempted it however I didn’t get anyplace.”

The difficulty isn’t that driving doesn’t work. It’s that it wasn’t carried out proper.

And in terms of counting energy, there are 5 predominant explanation why it could not have labored for you previously or is probably not working for you proper now.

Let’s see which one applies to you.

1. You’re Consuming Extra Energy Than You Understand

I actually can’t overstate how typically this occurs. It’s seen in research after research (sources: right here, right here, right here, right here, right here, right here, and right here) and within the real-world by rattling close to each dietitian, weight loss program coach, and weight loss program skilled who works with purchasers.

I see it with individuals every day.

Whether or not it’s because of underestimating, miscalculating, under-reporting, or some mixture thereof, it’s a well known reality that folks unintentionally eat extra energy than they’re aspiring to.

Sure, even once they’re carefully counting each calorie they eat.

They nonetheless unknowingly find yourself consuming greater than they understand, which suggests a caloric deficit doesn’t exist, which suggests weight reduction doesn’t occur. (I cowl all the methods this will occur and the way to forestall them proper there: Why Am I Not Shedding Weight?)

In these circumstances, it’s not that calorie counting doesn’t work, although it could appear that method.

Fairly, it’s that the particular person is consuming extra energy than the quantity they’re counting.

2. Your Calorie Calculator Isn’t Correct

Step one to counting energy is determining what number of energy you want to eat per day to shed pounds (or no matter your objective could also be).

This manner, you will have a day by day calorie goal to goal for. That’s the quantity you’re counting your energy to achieve.

So, how do you discover this tremendous essential quantity?

You in all probability Google “calorie calculator” or “TDEE calculator” or “upkeep calculator” and discover 1000 completely different calculators that use advanced mathematical equations and promise to be the perfect and most correct of all of them.

You enter your top, weight, age, gender, and exercise stage, and the calculator immediately provides you the calorie consumption you want to make weight reduction occur.

Superior.

From there, you begin counting energy each day to make sure you’re consuming the magic variety of energy the calculator instructed you to eat.

Days go… weeks go… months go… after which… nothing.

No weight reduction. No progress. No outcomes.

This should imply calorie counting doesn’t work, proper?

Not fairly.

Calculators Solely Give You An Estimate

The fact is that each calorie calculator in existence is just able to offering you with an estimated start line, not the assured calorie goal you really want.

Irrespective of how good and fully correct it claims or not it’s, it’s virtually by no means going to be good and fully correct.

In reality, these calculators are frequently off by lots of of energy.

So what occurs is that an individual will use some calculator to get a calorie goal to goal for, and so they’ll incorrectly assume it’s the peerlessly correct calorie goal they want.

They’ll then eat this quantity of energy each day for weeks or months (possibly even years), and by no means lose any weight.

They’ll then assume “calorie counting doesn’t work” or “I attempted it and it didn’t work for me,” when in actuality the quantity the calculator gave them was just too excessive and a deficit didn’t exist.

This isn’t an indication that calorie counting doesn’t work. It’s an indication that an adjustment wanted to be made to this estimated beginning quantity.

3. Your Calorie Counting App Isn’t Correct

Upon getting a calorie goal to goal for, the following step is normally going to be discovering some weight loss program monitoring app to depend your energy with.

These apps will help you search their large database of meals, choose those you eat every day, alter their serving sizes accordingly, after which routinely add up the entire energy (and protein, fats, carbs, and so forth.) that you simply’re consuming per day.

That is one thing I extremely suggest doing, because it makes the entire course of considerably quicker, simpler, and extra correct than another strategy.

Nonetheless, it’s nonetheless not good.

It’s because most weight loss program monitoring apps have vitamin data of their database that isn’t at all times correct.

This largely comes within the type of user-submitted information.

That means, whereas lots of the meals within the database are going to be offered by reliable sources (just like the USDA), many others are going to come back from some random one who added them on their very own.

How is that this potential, you ask?

As a result of many apps permit random customers (like me, you, and your most clueless pal) so as to add meals into the general public database with little to no course of in place to confirm that any of it’s even remotely correct.

So when you’re utilizing one in every of these apps and counting on a meals database that’s solely partially correct because of it’s user-submitted information, you’ll be able to very simply find yourself consuming extra energy than it appears.

As soon as once more, this doesn’t imply calorie counting doesn’t work.

It means you want to keep away from utilizing user-submitted meals in your monitoring, or possibly simply discover a less-stupid weight loss program monitoring app that doesn’t permit this to occur within the first place.

4. You Didn’t Give It Sufficient Time To Work

Now let’s think about you’ve efficiently prevented the earlier 3 situations, and you might be accurately and precisely counting your energy.

Nice information, proper?

The unhealthy information, nonetheless, is that there are nonetheless two different errors which might be made on a regular basis.

The primary isn’t giving calorie counting sufficient time to work.

This could possibly be mentioned for each weight reduction weight loss program and methodology too, after all.

For instance, I’ve had individuals inform me one thing like “I’ve counted my energy for the previous couple of days however I haven’t misplaced any weight.”

Um, no kidding.

That is going to take a bit longer than “just a few days.”

Most individuals can count on to lose between 0.5 – 2lbs per week, with the upper finish of that vary being extra possible for these with a number of weight to lose, and the decrease finish being extra possible for these with much less weight to lose.

So when you’re solely giving this just a few days to work, otherwise you’re anticipating to lose 10lbs in every week (or one thing equally unrealistic), it’s not going to occur.

But once more, this isn’t calorie counting “not working.” That is having unrealistic expectations for what “working” really entails in terms of shedding weight.

5. It Labored, However You Didn’t Monitor Your Progress Effectively Sufficient To Discover

The following mistake has nothing to do with calorie counting, and every part to do with progress monitoring.

As a result of when you’re not monitoring your progress accurately, it’s VERY straightforward to assume progress isn’t being made when it really is.

The most typical instance of that is when an individual weighs themselves simply as soon as every week (e.g. each Monday).

The issue with this strategy is that physique weight fluctuates from in the future to the following for fully regular causes that don’t have anything by any means to do with fats being misplaced or gained.

This could possibly be because of momentary adjustments in water, poop, glycogen, the quantity of meals in your abdomen ready to be digested, and extra.

So when you weighed your self final Monday and it occurred to be a day the place your weight quickly fluctuated downward for no matter cause, and this Monday occurs to be a day the place your weight has quickly fluctuated upward for no matter cause, have you learnt what you’re going to see?

Weight achieve.

And that’s going to make you assume calorie counting doesn’t work.

However that’s solely since you don’t understand how widespread it’s for an individual to progressively lose physique fats all through the week WHILE quickly gaining another type of weight that counterbalances it.

This will make it appear to be no fats was misplaced in any respect (although it was), or maybe some fats was really gained (when it positively wasn’t).

To stop this situation, essentially the most correct option to observe your progress is by weighing your self each day (within the morning, earlier than consuming or ingesting), taking the typical on the finish of the week, and focusing fully on what these weekly averages are doing over a span of no less than 3-4 consecutive weeks.

This strategy will enable you see what’s actually occurring along with your physique weight and your progress.

So… Does Calorie Counting Work?

Sure.

It does.

However, there are many errors which might be unintentionally and unknowingly made that may generally make it appear prefer it doesn’t.

So when you’re counting energy for the aim of shedding weight, gaining weight, or sustaining weight, and you discover that it’s not working for you, that’s a assured signal that there’s a mistake being made someplace.

The 5 we simply lined are the commonest, so that they’d be the perfect locations to start out trying.