# Counting calorie intake



## PeteXXX (28 Feb 2020)

Does anyone count their calorie intake on a daily, or weekly, basis? 

I eat fairly healthily, but could lower my general food intake now I'm not riding so much (knee issue) 

I see on food packaging that a serving is, for example, 60g. I've never actually weighed a 'serving' out to see how small it is. 

And we all know that a bottle of wine or a few beers in the evening doesn't get added on to the intake total, don't we...


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## vickster (28 Feb 2020)

Not really, but I do weigh rice & pasta (usually)

i have used myfitnesspal in the past but lost interest due to tedium after about a week (if that)


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## Bill Gates (28 Feb 2020)

PeteXXX said:


> Does anyone count their calorie intake on a daily, or weekly, basis?
> 
> I eat fairly healthily, but could lower my general food intake now I'm not riding so much (knee issue)
> 
> ...


I've weighed out cheddar cheese to keep within the syn guidelines for losing weight on the slimming world weight loss programme. I kept a food diary and wrote everything on it food and drink wise that I consumed. 60 grams wasn't very much. But then this wasn't a measurement of calories in calories out which is what you are doing. I can't see it working


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## Specialeyes (28 Feb 2020)

I use MyFitnessPal online and on my phone. I'm not always totally to-the-calorie accurate but I do enter into it everything that goes into me 
It's probably about as inaccurate as the 'calories burned' counts within Fitbit and Strava, so I always try and leave a wide margin for error - the net result of which is that I'm the lightest I've been in 5 years - still some way to go though 

The phone app is very handy as you can scan the barcode of any foodstuff that has one and it will have it in its database somewhere. I know some folks are not keen on giving away too much personal information, but it works for me!


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## figbat (28 Feb 2020)

^^^ This ^^^

I did this when I wanted to lose weight - I was religious about every calorie. I lost 3.5 stones in 6 months through controlled calories and increased exercise. Nothing else - no special food types, no fasting days, no cutting out specific food groups (other than cutting high-calorie snacks simply to keep under my daily limit). Because it was app-based and data-driven it appealed to me (science and tech geek) and became self-competitive. In fact in the end I went a bit far and people starting telling me I'd lost too much, something I am happy to have now corrected. However after spending so much time tracking this stuff it gave me a good sense of what the nutritional content of various foods is, meaning I no longer use the app but can make better choices on an intuitive level.


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## lane (28 Feb 2020)

Because I eat communally (with the family) and don't always prepare the meals it is not really possible. However because I am trying to loose weight I did have a look at roughly how many calories I should be consuming and the calories in things I commonly eat to give me some idea and I think its been helpful as a bit of a guide. If I did all my own cooking i would probably keep a record.


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## keithmac (28 Feb 2020)

I just used Portion Control, did it by eye mainly. 2 stone down (took 8 months though!).

Smaller Dinner plates help..

Calories in Vs Calories out is the golden rule.


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## PaulSB (28 Feb 2020)

PeteXXX said:


> Does anyone count their calorie intake on a daily, or weekly, basis?
> 
> I eat fairly healthily, but could lower my general food intake now I'm not riding so much (knee issue)
> 
> ...


I used to but got board with it. I'm very careful about carbs so for instance I would weigh portions of rice, porridge, pasta. This has two benefits, controlling portion size and reducing waste. My wife guesstimates and there is always too much which gets binned.

I'm not sure how much weight I've lost over how long. At one point I'd reached 88kg, today I'm 69.5kg.

At around the 75/76kg it became very difficult to lose more. Then I changed my diet. I learned about what stimulates the body to store food as fat and why it does this. I also learned to eat according to my activities.

My view is my body is an engine which needs fuel (food). Provide the correct fuel and it will perform well and use all the fuel (food) and won't try to store it. The wrong type of fuel or too little will leave your body looking to protect itself. If the body is regularly stressed by these two it looks to lay down fuel stores for future use - these it stores as fat.

It's possible to increase your calorie intake and reduce weight. The point is to eat the correct calories so as to avoid forcing the body in to storing fuel as fat. Reducing calorie intake and eating the wrong foods can result in weight gain


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## Bill Gates (28 Feb 2020)

PaulSB said:


> I used to but got board with it. I'm very careful about carbs so for instance I would weigh portions of rice, porridge, pasta. This has two benefits, controlling portion size and reducing waste. My wife guesstimates and there is always too much which gets binned.
> 
> I'm not sure how much weight I've lost over how long. At one point I'd reached 88kg, today I'm 69.5kg.
> 
> ...


Absolutely. Avoid raising Insulin level


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## Ming the Merciless (28 Feb 2020)

No. If I want to lose weight I cut the beer back. I'm one of those annoying people who doesn't snack between their meals or have biscuits or crisps apart from during long exercise sessions. I feel hungry at times but I don't let that take me to a snack of some sort in a cupboard. Weight stable to within 1/2 stone over the past 30 years. Before that I was a student and about a stone lighter, but then I did eat less back then.


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## presta (28 Feb 2020)

PeteXXX said:


> Does anyone count their calorie intake on a daily, or weekly, basis?



Yes, me.

I have a daily record of my calorie intake, weight, and exercise hours going back over 17 years. It's what enables me to calculate the average calorie consumption data I've posted on here occasionally. I've also used it to calibrate the calorie counters on my Polar heart rate monitors. It was the calorie counter function on a new HRM that originally piqued my interest, followed soon after by the discovery that my calorie intake had been inadequate for the exercise levels I was attempting.


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## Drago (29 Feb 2020)

Never formally counted calories or weighed portions - when I porked a bit last year through surgery induced inactivity I simply ate a bit less. Smaller portions by eye, occasional treats became not-at-all treats, and in 8 weeks I dropped the desired 7 pounds to my previous weight. As I slowly got more active I slowly relaxed the regime.

I'll probably get lynched for suggesting it, but if folk don' have the willpower then all the calorie counting in the world won't help, and if they do have an iron will then they don't need to calorie count that minutely anyway. That's probably why 98% of dieters weigh more after 5 years than they did before the started.


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## LemonJuice (16 Jul 2020)

PaulSB said:


> My view is my body is an engine which needs fuel (food). Provide the correct fuel and it will perform well and use all the fuel (food) and won't try to store it. The wrong type of fuel or too little will leave your body looking to protect itself. If the body is regularly stressed by these two it looks to lay down fuel stores for future use - these it stores as fat.
> 
> It's possible to increase your calorie intake and reduce weight. The point is to eat the correct calories so as to avoid forcing the body in to storing fuel as fat. Reducing calorie intake and eating the wrong foods can result in weight gain



Do you have any sources to back up those claims?

I think if you research your claims, you will find they are myths.

If someone is cutting calories too much then it can hinder his or her weight loss, but it will not cause weight regain. What may cause someone to gain weight is because he or she will give up and binge eat.


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## T.M.H.N.E.T (16 Jul 2020)

LemonJuice said:


> Do you have any sources to back up those claims?
> 
> I think if you research your claims, you will find they are myths.
> 
> If someone is cutting calories too much then it can hinder his or her weight loss, but it will not cause weight regain. What may cause someone to gain weight is because he or she will give up and binge eat.


You've suddenly became rather more capable than your own threads would suggest.

🤔


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## classic33 (17 Jul 2020)

T.M.H.N.E.T said:


> You've suddenly became rather more capable than your own threads would suggest.
> 
> 🤔


It's a bit of a step up from a 24mm Allen key. 
Possibly Microsoft.


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## MntnMan62 (17 Jul 2020)

I count calories, but somewhat loosely and only daily. I also look at sugar and carbohydrates. I’ve cut out most of the processed stuff like white bread, junk food, etc. Any carbs I do take in are going to be stuff like whole grain breads and oatmeal. And sugar I try to limit to natural sources like fruits, honey, etc. And I limit how much of those I eat. Add more exercise to this and I’ve gone from pre-diabetic to not. Now the challenge is drop all my numbers even further.


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## LemonJuice (17 Jul 2020)

T.M.H.N.E.T said:


> You've suddenly became rather more capable than your own threads would suggest.
> 
> 🤔





classic33 said:


> It's a bit of a step up from a 24mm Allen key.
> Possibly Microsoft.



I had some fish fingers.


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## keithmac (18 Jul 2020)

For me it's just as simple as calories in vs calories out, no tricks or specific diets.

I set a 1lb a week weight loss target and ate to maintain that loss (less than normal!), not a massive weight loss per week but achievable without any side effects.

Been a bit lax recently and I've put sone back on because I've eaten too much, no excuse there as I know exactly whats gone on!.

If you eat excessive calories you will put weight on, no two ways about it.


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## Kryton521 (23 Jul 2020)

I can highly recommend "Noom", if you, like me. Struggle with both portion control and snacking. I don't normally advertise things but this program is really helping me. Nearly 3 weeks into it and lost over 2kg. Monitoring of food/calories does help.

I'm sure there are calorie counters and things, but being lazy and stupid I'll sit and stuff my face, complain I can't lose weight, then eat a pack of doughnuts to punish myself! Which is why I find this program useful and helps me along.


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