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Whole Health Insights: Does Calorie Counting Work?

Posted by Carolyn Kontos, Wellness and Nutrition Coach on January 21, 2025

People often ask me if they should count calories to lose weight. Unfortunately, my answer is rarely what they want to hear. Like so many things in wellness and nutrition, the answer is: it’s complicated!

Some people hope I’ll say, “Yes, absolutely,” and hand them a precise calorie target and a logical prescription to make the pounds melt away. Others secretly pray I’ll say, “No, it’s a waste of time,” so they can avoid the tedious task of tracking (and the guilt that often comes along with it). The truth, as always, lies somewhere in between.

The old “calories in, calories out” mantra makes weight loss sound like a simple math problem. But research shows it’s not quite that straightforward. Factors like your gut health and its ability to absorb nutrients, your metabolism, inaccuracies in food labels, and when you eat all impact how many calories you consume and how your body uses them. Plus, calories say nothing about the quality of the food and how it will make you feel and perform.

That said, calorie counting isn’t entirely flawed. To lose weight, you do need to create an energy deficit.  Understanding calories as a general principle to guide portion sizes and raise general awareness can be helpful. But, it doesn’t have to mean disciplined measuring, logging and counting.  That can actually be counterproductive.

Want to make progress without crunching numbers? Focus on the foods you choose, not the calories.  Pick nutrient-dense foods with fiber, proteins that keep you full, and watch your portions. For a quick shortcut, you can use the size of your hand as a portion guide. It’s simple, effective, and a great place to start.

If you want to dig into these strategies, I’d love to help! Reach out to learn more.

Carolyn Kontos, MS, ACC, offers Wellness & Nutrition Coaching at the JCC through her Eat Well Programs. For more information, contact Carolyn at [email protected]

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