Calories--I eat more when I count them!

I was going to post on this subject today anyway, then reading Tri-Mom's post yesterday gives me even more reason to.

Okay, so weight loss programs tell me I need to count calories. So I figure out how many calories I need in order to lose weight, based on how active I am. The formula tells me I need around 1650. Then I try to plan my meals so that they contain the right amount. Last week on the days I hit the mark I was aiming for, I was pretty full all day. I ate because it was time to eat, not because I was hungry.

For two days I got busy and didn't log my calories into Fitday until after the fact. I simply ate when I felt hungry and stopped when I felt satisfied. My calories on those days were between 1275 and 1350. That doesn't sound like enough, but I was perfectly satisfied all day, and I exercised hard on those days, too.

Everyone is different. It doesn't make much sense to me to use a formula that tells me how many calories I burn at rest based on nothing but my age and weight. Other factors determine how fast we burn calories. Muscle, how much lean meat we eat.

I don't know. I just don't know enough about it. RMR is supposed to be a good formula.

I bought the line that if we don't count calories we probably consume far more than we realize. If we eat out all the time, maybe. But healthy foods at home? The opposite is true for me.

I'll save the reason I've been counting calories for another post. But counting calories was part of what got me into trouble during my first P3 on HCG. I figured out how many calories I needed to maintain my weight, but I always fell short, and I kept gaining weight. Just about every other day was a steak day.

I thought the reason might be because I wasn't eating enough calories. Evening would come and I'd look at my calorie consumption for the day and I'd say, I better eat. What's high in calories that I can have? Most of the time I'd whip some cream and dollop it onto a little fruit.

During my second P3 I didn't count calories. I ate when I was hungry and I avoided some foods I suspected were causing weight gain during a time when my body was searching for new balance--dairy and fruit. I didn't have to do a single steak day that P3. And I did punch in a couple of days' foods just out of curiosity. I was eating far less calories, and I was maintaining beautifully.