Ummm, one more thing. What does YMMV stand for?

Your Mileage May Vary.

I really don't think "paying attention" is the same as counting. I MUST, no way, no how, no choice, MUST count, look up, weigh, measure, list out, and sometimes guestimate to get the calories in my food, and log the whole mess or I will gain weight. If my protein percentages are 5% one day, 30% another, and average around 15% (a guess), then it's all good for me. I routinely eat a lot of the stuff the current day weight loss orthodoxy says you "can't" eat, candy, cookies, white bread (sometimes), 100 calorie packs, you name it, and as long as the calories work out, I only have to pay attention and worry about counting anything else.

DH can just "pay attention" to what he eats and he maintains his weight loss of about 30 lbs. I don't have that luxury. I also am well aware that some people have to do more than "pay attention" to their macronutrient ratios, fiber intake, fat intake, protein intake, etc etc to lose and maintain weight. I'm somewhere in the middle.

Counting to me is work. Paying attention, not so much, just a little thought here and there.

Like I said, we are all different.

Anne

My husband's method of losing weight is "just paying attention" and not counting anything. By doing so, he's been able to lose about 50 lbs.

Personally, that would never work for me, because I need to count calories in some form (I use an exchange program). I'm able to stall weight loss on programs like South Beach and even Atkins, because I can overeat just about anything (although carbs are definitely specific triggers).

I think really understanding that people really ARE different. Not only may our mileage vary, we may not even be on the same road, even though some of our destinations may be similar.

Yes, we are all different. I agree with you 100%. And yes different things work for different people. Even different word terminologies of (mostly) the same thing.

So please forgive me, I'm not trying to be stubborn or argue with you or anything with you. And I did not mean to offend you any way whatsoever. You are one of my 3FC heroes, but IMO, & it's only my little ole' not worth much of anything opinion - "paying attention" is definitely more than "just counting". For me it is anyway. Perhaps not for you and when you're dealing with *you*, you are of course the only one that matters. Period.

Yes, there are some people who could just watch. Not me. No siree. No way. No how. I NEED the forced portion control that calorie counting provides. Although that wasn't the OP's question. Could you imagine where we'd be right now if the question was "how do you feel about just paying attention?"

Hey, whatever happened to the OP anyway? I hope we didn't scare her away.

Robin, likewise on the heroes thing, LOL!! I'm not offended and I'm not trying to pick too much at what you are saying. Keeping track of the quality of your food is a GOOD thing, IMHO.

But I wanted to post because in this weight management game there are no absolutes. Even the same concept voiced different ways can help some people. People, especially this time of year, are looking for the ONE TRUE PATH to weight loss, and there really isn't one. Just what works for each of us. And the painful truth is we all have to try different things with an open mind to figure out what does work for each of us. That and I'm a big believer in doing the easy things first. If I need to start counting carbs at some point in my life, I'm going to, because the alternative is unthinkable, but as long as I don't have to, 100 cal packs here I come!! Keep it as easy as possible, because this journey is HARD, and I for one am not going to carry one more piece of baggage than I need to.

What is it with these husbands, anyway?

Anne

I am of the same mindset regarding not being filled up by empty calories versus eating more complex foods within the same calorie range. I've found over the months of tracking macro nutrients I now eat healthier. In the beginning I used to use calorie king to find out the calories and kept a word document with number of calories for each item eat not knowing the amount of fat/fiber/protein I was getting. Since TDP I've cut out the simple foods and gone heavy with fruits, veggies, and grains. I find thats one of the biggest benefits of calorie tracking website other than just knowing the number of calories consumed.

Gotcha Anne. I hear you. Loud and clear.

And I've got to tell you. I've been thinking about this. Or should I say re-thinking this.

My take is coming from someone who not only needed to lose 165 lbs, but as someone who got to be 165 lbs overweight. Helllooo. I'm thinking someone who *only* needs to lose, say 20 lbs, never had quite the same overeating issue as I did, might be perfectly fine and successful, yup even LONGTERM, *just* counting calories. Who knows? Certainly not me.

Right there with you on that! My after is higher than a lot of people's before, so I don't claim to know it all.

Anne

From the perspective of the OP's original post and question, I agree with this. To go back to the beginning the original question was:

Can you be successful in counting ONLY calories and not worrying about the carbs, fat, protein, fiber, sodium etc?

In my interpretation of that, "paying attention" to how many servings of veggies you get (even in an offhand way) or making sure you eat enough protein (even if you don't count the exact grams) is more than counting only the calories. But I can see how it could be interpreted differently as well.

I agree with this as well. I've lost a good bit of weight, but then I came to my weight loss from the perspective of wanting to be "fit". I've posted in my blog before that at that time, I had no idea what being fit really meant. I had no idea that it meant eating HEALTHY, not just losing weight or being able to lift weights or whatever. In fact I know I've posted on my blog and here that I used to get pissed of at my trainer when he'd talk to me about the food I ate because I didn't want someone to lecture me about my diet - I just wanted someone to teach me to get fit. *grin* Who knew??

But maybe if I hadn't been as interested in getting fit - in building muscle - in becoming athletic - maybe I'd have spent longer counting calories only and not worrying so much about eating "right" - in whatever form that might be. And maybe if I'd always had reasonably healthy eating habits to begin with, just counting a few calories would have been ok. But coming from it from the perspective of (a) someone extremely obese and (b) someone who was interested in more than just being skinny ... that makes a difference.

So like a lot of people I think it's hard for me to answer the question w/out drawing on those two perspectives.

.

Questions like this always mess with me because they assume that we all have the same goals, also.

For pure and simple weight loss, assuming that you could STICK with any program you chose, I do believe that just counting calories could work for you. If you take in fewer calories than you burn, you will lose weight, period. So is it *possible*? Yes, in my opinion.

Now I'm going to throw several caveats and restrictions onto that.

1, if your goals aren't just being "skinny", you will want to pay attention to nutrition. This is part of being healthy, not just thin. It would be hard to reach optimum health while not paying any attention to the kinds of foods you are eating. And if you're not fueling your muscle (more on this in #4), you may end up looking loose and flabby rather than tight and toned at your goal.

2, a plan that isn't nutritionally sound isn't going to satisfy you as well as a plan that IS sound (particularly as it relates to protein, fiber, healthy fats, and volume). Therefore, such a plan will be harder to stick with long term. If you can't stick with it long term, it won't be a good solution for weight loss and maintenance for you.

3, The "calories burned" half of the weight loss equation can be fairly drastically affected by poor nutrition. If you don't eat the right foods to fuel your body, the total amount of calories you can eat and still lose weight will likely be lower than the total amount of healthy calories you can eat and still lose weight. This will, again, make the plan harder to stick to. And eventually, before you hit a weight you're happy with, you might have "nowhere to go" calorie-wise and still be above that 1200 calorie/day minimum.

4, particularly if you are exercising, failing to provide healthy, appropriate fuel for your body can actually lead to the destruction of muscle tissue and preservation of fat. Which would make the number on the scale go down, but would leave you more flabby than fit-looking.

So if your goal is only to see the number on the scale go down (not to see yourself looking fit and strong), you can stick to anything even if you're starving, and you are willing to eat a lower amount of calories than you might otherwise, then sure, it might work. Most people, though, try to fuel well so they can reap the benefits of having the number on the scale go down as well as the other health, fitness, fullness benefits.

But I also think that this happens organically. You start out calorie counting, you're hungry, you figure out that if you eat more veggies you're not that hungry, and voila...you start working toward low calorie AND high nutrient foods. So don't stress about it too much to start with...it will all fall into place.

Hi All,
I am returning to the weight loss arena after gaining all my weight back from Weight Watchers and pregnancy(you can eat for two, right?). Anyway, I am doing the calorie counting. My mom is a doctor and she says, "calories in, calories out." It is a simple formula, but nutrition is superimportant and I am going to do a balanced 1300/day. Today was the first and I already want to eat my fist.
Wish me luck!
I also am using fitday.com to journal my food intake. It's a great site.
S165.8/C165.8/G125
Rebecca

Now that I know what "macro" is all about I can add this:

The little software program I use to track my calories also keeps track of protein, fat, and carbs. It uses some USDA plan of 60% carbs, 15% protein, and 25% fat. I don't actually worry about those things myself, but at the end of the day it almost always balances out to the USDA plan.

I completely agree with the above people- this is my first time doing low calorie before I tried low carb and it always felt not right to me.. eating double bacon cheeseburgers but throwing away the buns, etc... it's about the qualit of food you eat that get you to daily allowed calories.. eating empty calories such as those 100 calorie packs or oreos or lots of bread, pasta, rice, etc.. they just aren't as healthy for you as eating a banana that is 100 cals instead.. and the fiber will fill you up better. I had to quit cold turkey myself.. on bad foods sure I coudl work those 100 cal orie packs into my day or even a big mac if I wanted- but they wouldnt be healthy calories!

now I'm not saying I'm perfect have my special K bars and my 60 calorie pudding cups I indulge in once a day when "it's my time of the month" but for the rest of the day and the rest of the weeks I use my calorie wisely!

Try eating better all around not just in calories.. When I'm buying something I pick which ever brand has the lower calories, carbs, and sodium...

good luck!