Can You Lose bodyfat Without Counting Calories?
To put it simply, yes, you can lose weight and fat without counting calories, you just need to be in a calorie deficit state. The real question and challenge are, what is a calorie deficit to you and how to be in a deficit?
Being in a state of calorie deficit is when you consume lesser calories (energy) relative to what your body requires to maintain your physical status and function (i.e. maintaining your current body weight). A calorie deficit can be achieved through limiting your overall food intake (portion size) or through physical activities, and in some cases, both.
Calorie deficit and/or any dietary practices are highly individualized based on the person’s goals, needs, lifestyle, health history, and preference. Just because a dietary practice works for someone does not mean it’ll work well for you. Whether your goal is weight and fat loss or to put on size, having the correct energy balance is key; fat loss = calories in < calories out, and gaining mass = calories in > calories out.
Now that we’ve settled that, let’s look at what’s behind the curtain of calorie counting. Calorie or macros (short for macronutrients) counting is a valuable tool to have during your dieting journey (both weight gain and loss) to help you find out what works best for you, so you can decide and make adjustments to your diet accordingly based on the information in hand.
Counting calories is like driving to your destination with a GPS/ map, you know which turning to take and highway to skip. If you choose not to count calories, it’s still possible and you can still reach your destination without a guide, but it’ll take a longer time to get there.
If you’re keen to start learning more about how to count your calories, digital apps such as MyFitnessPal is popular due to their user-friendly interface and it’s free (for basic usage, paid if you’d like to go premium). You’ll get the hang of it after a few trials, just think of keying in the macros as a game of Tetris, where you’ll need to match the blocks in order to score. But I must say, calorie counting has its own flaws too (nothing in this world is perfect) such as different numbers of calories and macros on the same type of food, macronutrients don’t match the total calories, can’t find such food or too many types of the same food, etc.
No calories are the same even though it’s the same food (raw chicken vs cooked), but the goal is not to find the perfect match. The goal is to use the app and food scale to help you develop a better understanding of portion sizing that works for you so that you can eyeball your food with more precision when you’re no longer counting your calories, and help create accountability to yourself with your goals.
Calorie counting has its fair share of pros and cons, and so does not counting calories. The point is, as long as it works for YOU and it’s conducive to your goals and needs, it will produce results over time. I must warn you, however, due to the effort, time, knowledge, and skill required to make calorie counting work effectively, I wouldn’t recommend those with busy work and family schedules to do it as it is not feasible nor sustainable.
Having said that, here are some of the things that you can do to lose weight & fat without counting calories;
Establish your average eating portion then gauge using your knuckle or hand to reduce/increase portion based on your goals and needs.
Eat more nutrient-dense food and less processed food. The 80/20 rule is a good start. 80% of your diet is from whole, nutrient-rich foods and 20% fun food. Example: quarter chicken with a bowl of roasted vegetables and a cup of quinoa, plus a scoop of ice cream for dessert.
Increase your physical activity level. Having established a regular routine to workout is important, but another factor that contributes the highest rating to weight and fat loss is NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis), such as walking your dog, doing house chores, carrying groceries, and even fidgeting.
Schedule an eating time slot. This is to help establish a healthy and consistent eating pattern to help prevent mindless snacking and missing out on meals then gorging double portions later. Get through a series of trial and errors, find what works for you and stick to it. The best meal frequency is the one you can adhere to.
Lastly, be patient. Regardless of whether you’re tracking your calories or not, the process of achieving a said goal takes time, as the process of weight and fat loss can be challenging and overwhelming especially if you’re doing it for the first time. My advice if you’re planning to lose weight and fat for the first time is to invest in a professional coach to help you with your journey and learn as much as possible from the experience.
I hope you’ve found this article insightful and remember, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to optimizing your health and fitness. Wishing you and your loved ones healthy and well.
