How to Lose Weight Without Counting Calories
First and foremost, the ONLY way to lose weight, especially fat, is to be in a calorie deficit. And to achieve a calorie deficit, you need to be eating fewer calories than you burn on a consistent basis. 99% of the time, I would recommend counting calories. I know it’s not fun and there is a significant learning curve and takes some extra work and effort. However, if you’ve made it this far, you definitely do NOT want to count calories. Fortunately for you, I can help you lose weight without counting calories. Let’s dive in.
Do you have count calories?
You don’t have to count calories to lose weight.
BUT…
If I told you that you were in debt and had to get your finances in order to pay off that debt, would you track your finances by looking at your spending habits, income, etc. or would you guess at everything and hope to pay it off in the next few years?
(I would hope that you would track your finances.)
I recommend that everyone should try counting calories for at least 30 days to get a better idea of:
- How much they’re actually eating
- What accurate portion sizes look like
- How much food they need to eat to lose, maintain or gain weight
However, if you asked me “do I need to count calories to lose weight?” The answer would be no. And that’s okay, I totally understand the reason behind why you wouldn’t want to. It’s unrealistic to expect everyone to count every calorie and weigh every single thing they put into their mouths (that’s what she said). If your goal is to lose weight and eventually maintain your version of a healthy body weight and composition, then the ultimate goal would be to eat intuitively without tracking. That’s why I don’t count calories anymore. I did meticulously for several years. And over that period of time, I’ve become so familiar with food portion sizes and the calorie content of foods that I can look at any plate of food and estimate its calorie content within 50-100 calories.
But as I’ve said before, in order to lose weight, you must be in a calorie deficit, non-negotiable. So your next steps would be to calculate your deficit and be consistent with hitting those numbers for the next 30 days. Now, your next question is probably, “how do I find my calorie deficit?” And the answer I have for you is right here:
- Multiply your goal weight by 12. That is your daily calorie intake. (Ex: Goal BW = 200, 200 x 12 = 2400 calories/day)
- Track your progress and adjust your calories. (Ex: If you are feeling really sluggish and low energy, increase calories. If you are not losing weight, decrease calories.)
- Stop looking for the best formula. There is none. You are different from every other person on this planet. Using this formula as a starting point. Be consistent. Track your progress. Adjust as needed.
How do I lose weight without counting calories?
This simple infographic one of the tools I use to help people lose weight without counting calories. Sometimes they really hate tracking and would much rather prefer this. Other times, they might be traveling, going on vacation, or be in some other situation where tracking isn’t an ideal option. Without further ado, here’s the secret! It’s based around having 3 meals/2 snacks throughout the day.
Again, this guide is just a starting point. Not everyone has to follow this to a tee. If you track your progress and find that you prefer or feel better eat more or less while still getting results, then by all means go for it!
I love the 3 meals/2 snacks strategy because not only does it work REALLY well but is also simple to follow. Think about it, how long would you follow a plan that was super complicated?
Either way, take this infographic, screenshot it, save it, print it, post it up on your fridge, ceiling above your bed, or the wall right in front of your toilet. Anywhere that you’ll be reminded of it in order to stay consistent and see how well it works for you.
Last thing I want to mention is that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to losing weight. The best diet is the one that YOU can stick to. Because if you can’t stick to it for life then you won’t be able to achieve your goals and maintain them. Just know there will be a lot of trials and errors you need to go through to find what will work best for you.
It may or may not be:
- This method
- Counting calories
- Intermittent fasting
- Ketogenic
- Vegan
Try all of them on this list, try the ones that aren’t on this list. It doesn’t matter. Ultimately, whatever diet fits your needs, fits your lifestyle, and most importantly, gives you the most enjoyment is the one that you should follow.
If you want a more in depth discussion about this topic, check out my YouTube video!
Quick side note about intuitive eating and calorie counting…
Intuitive eating seems to be the new buzzword. You’ll see it all over social media. Something along the lines of…“Stop counting calories/following diets/ doing x, y, z and do intuitive eating to lose weight.” -Some influencer
First off, what is intuitive eating?
It’s the idea that you listen to your bodily cues, feelings, and sensations of hunger as a signal to eat rather than tracking or aiming for a specific intake of foods.
Sure, this sounds like the dream. Your body telling you what to eat, how much to eat and you get to achieve your weight loss goals?!? Sold!!
But, and this comes with a HUGE BUT (hehe).
How can you tell someone to intuitively eat when they have no intuition? For most of the people I’ve worked with, their diets consisted or soda, pizza, chips, and other high calorie dense foods and/or junk foods. For someone who is new to the concept of nutrition, their perspective of intuition is eat thousands of calories of junk with little to no nutritional value.
The first and foremost thing I want to tell you is the truth. And here it is…
If you want to get to the point of not counting calories, you must first learn how to count calories.
I know it can time-consuming, annoying, and not fun, but think of it as an investment. If you put in the time and work now, later down the line, you will thank yourself and be so much better off, I promise you.
If you refuse to count calories, you won’t be as successful as you could be. And the one thing I want for you is to become the best version of yourself.
And a lot of people will argue, “You don’t need to count calories. You should just intuitively eat and listen to your body and how you feel, blah blah blah.”
And that’s the thing, people who usually say those things have counted calories for years before. A lot of them were figure competitors, bodybuilders, or other health and fitness enthusiasts. As people who have counted calories before (myself included), they did it to a point where they were so obsessive that one day they were like, “we shouldn’t count calories for the rest of our lives, let’s intuitively eat.”
But the reason they are able to intuitively eat is because they learned the portion sizes of how much they were eating, the nutritional content of the foods they were eating, and what foods were best for them.
Now, you might be wondering, “what about meeeeeee? How come I can’t just do intuitive eating? Everyone on Instagram is saying I can!”
I’m not saying you can’t. You totally can!
But think about it this way, how can you learn to run without first learning to stand up and walk? You can’t expect to intuitively eat right off the bat without first learning about which foods are best and how your body responds to them. The people advocating “you should just do intuitive eating, you shouldn’t be counting calories” have calorie counted. They developed that skill, did it for a long time, and then learned how to apply it mentally to intuitively eat.
Which is exactly the reason why they’ll say, “I don’t count calories anymore.” They have acquired the skill to read a plate of food and know roughly how many calories are in it from experience and practice.
Final Thoughts on How To Lose Weight Without Counting Calories
In order to get to the level of intuitive eating, you must develop these three skills:
- Knowing what portion sizes look like
- Knowing the calorie content of these portion sizes
- Knowing which foods are best at helping you achieve consistency, moderation, and enjoyment
There is a learning curve when it comes to intuitive eating. Don’t expect to be able to do it right off the bat! It doesn’t matter where you’re starting from or how much experience you have. It all starts with you establishing knowledge of portion sizes, calorie content, and choices that work best for you. And once you nail those three things down, you’ll be an unstoppable, intuitive eating, force of health and fitness!
Now, enough reading, time to put things into action! Hope this helps you be that much closer to achieving your weight loss goals!
Talk soon,
-Aus
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