Almost all diets involve counting calories in some way. If you ask most people – they will tell you that the success of a diet depends on how well you counted your calories – and eat according to the plan. But did you ever wondered – is counting calories really needed? And -maybe, it’s even harmful and counterproductive?
Most people who “diet” don’t want to ask themselves these questions. They like the (false) feeling of control. That you can “count” food, and control your weight loss – at will. They like the “calories in-calories out” theory so much because it really simplifies – what seemed to be very complex.
But the truth is – the body is not a “simple machine”. Counting calories (calories in, calories out) may work for some, but we must also see the long-term results. Do these people gain their weight back? And what about their metabolic health? Besides that, do they suffer by counting calories and limiting food?
Many people who do the Keto diet, also count calories. I think this is very wrong. Here are some reasons to stop counting calories on the keto diet :
You can’t overcome hunger
Many people can eat strictly according to a plan, limit their calories, and “starve”, until… they get hungry. Really hungry. You can “control” yourself for how long? 3 days? 10 days? 1 month? But then what? Do you believe you can overcome hunger for years? What is going to happen is, after some time – you will “break”. And with most people – they start binging on carbs. Why not eat when hungry, until full? Then, you won’t feel hungry, and you won’t fall back into eating carbs!
You can’t really count calories
Do you think you can precisely count calories? the truth is – you can’t. Each body digests food and absorbs nutrients differently. And on top of that – you can’t know (at all) how many calories you really burn a day. So many factors affect that! The temperature, your metabolic state, your sleeping hours and so much more. Even eating more causes more calories to be burned by the body. Since you can’t really count calories in or calories out, why not enjoy life, eat real food (meat) and go on?
By eating keto and consuming mostly meat – you balance your hormones, and that will greatly affect your metabolism. You can eat more, burn more calories – and stay fit. Isn’t that better than limiting yourself all your life – counting calories?
You become obsessive
When did people start counting calories? In the last 50 or 60 years? So, you want to tell me – that for millions of years, before we knew what a calorie is – everyone was fat? Of course not. People were healthy because they didn’t eat processed foods, consumed much fewer carbs, and most importantly – didn’t consume vegetable and bean oils like soy. Counting calories is not natural – and will make you obsessive. Just eat when hungry, until you are full. And repeat!