Why You Should Stop Counting Calories
Hey friend! The other day I did a video over on Instagram all about calorie counting...answering questions like, how do you know that you're not eating too much, what about macro counting, and why the phrase "calories in, calories out" is so far from the truth. I thought, what a great topic! And I've done a few blog posts about calories here (like this one all about being empowered by calories instead of feared by them), but I wanted to specifically talk about counting calories. Because that maybe something you're struggling with. I know I did!For me, I was never a dieter really. I mean I was, in the sense that calorie counting IS dieting in a form. But I never was one to follow diets. Except for one time I did get caught up in the Whole 30 diet, being told it would cure my issues with digestion...little did I know that my digestion was all out of wack BECAUSE of my restriction and not eating enough.But yeah, my form of dieting was really more in the way of constant calorie counting. I was obsessed with that number on the nutrition label even to the point of not really caring about ingredients and only focusing on keeping what I ate as low calorie as I could.I've since learned that calories are such a small part of what goes into thinking about food. Or should be, rather. And that there're more important things to consider when deciding how to eat...Things like what ingredients are in the food?Is this food going to satisfy me for what I need right now?How will this food energize me?How will this food taste?How will I feel after this food?In this post, I talk all about a different way to think about calories and calorie counts on nutrition labels...as something that can help you know how a food is going to make you feel.For example, if I'm only a little bit hungry and just need a small snack, I'm probably not going to go for a whole Clif bar. I'll go for something more like celery and peanut butter. The Clif bar has more calories and would be a great option if I'm really hungry between meals or unable to eat lunch right away. It's great at holding me over for a longer period of time. But if I just need something to get me to dinner in an hour or two, the lesser calorie option is something that would meet my needs in that instance.
So why NOT count calories, though. If you find yourself, like I was in the past, tallying up your calories throughout the day, you're probably doing this because you're afraid of eating too much. That's how it was for me. I was soo scared that eating over this calorie limit that I'd set for myself would lead me to gain weight. I was so afraid of weight gain. And so, calorie counting was my security. It helped me feel safe around food.But what I now know but didn't quite see at the moment was all the issues calorie counting did for me.Physically, counting calories lead me to not eating enough for my body and dropping down to an unhealthy body size. The reality is, often if you're counting calories you're not eating enough. It also prevented me from listening to my hunger. So I'd get to the end of the day and be miserable, the most hangry person in the world, because I totally ignored my body's signals and relied on that number of calories, alone, as my way of trying to know how to eat. It also lead me to eating foods that really weren't that healthy, just because they were low calorie. Foods like sugar-free yogurt, diet coke, fat-free international delight coffee creamer, 100 calorie packs...all foods that had not so great ingredients in them.
And then mentally, counting calories caused me to say "no" to going out with friends and enjoying dinner with them just because I had to stay within my calorie count. I'd stress out if my eating plan deviated from what I'd set out for it to be. And I had so much anxiety if I was somewhere where I didn't know how many calories were in something.Life was bland. Food was bland. And I was miserable.Flash forward to now...I eat whatever, notice calories on the back of foods, and actually use it to help me eat in a way that works well with my body! You see, calories don't have to be something we fear! They can empower us! And we can eat and live a healthy life without obsessing over a number!
Let me go more into that...So I got this question... How do I know that I'm not eating too much if I don't count calories?GREAT QUESTION! I teach my clients that I work with 1:1 how to listen and tune into their bodies and use that as the main source of information for how to eat. I empower THEM to be the expert of their bodies...not a calorie count. And when you learn to do things like tune into your hunger, honor your fullness, eat for satisfaction, and make peace with food, you really don't NEED calorie counts! Your body will tell you how to eat and how much to eat.I did a whole video on this topic of calorie counting, as I said at the beginning of this post. So if you want more on this topic, I'd love for you to check it out!
VIDEO: Why You Should Stop Counting Calories (click here)
And, if you feel you need more personal support, I'm here for you! I work with women like you who want to break free of calorie counting and eat and live freely so they can do more with their lives than obsess around food! If that's you, let's set up a time to chat on your free discovery call! You can schedule that HERE.And now, I'd love to hear from you! What do you feel you need support on with not calorie counting? What hesitations or fears do you have (this is a safe place)! I'm here for you!