![]() They may have even heard about a friend who went on a low calorie diet and lost weight, using these apps to keep them on track. Many of our clients recount their experience of using a calorie counting app or finding a calorie calculator online, to determine how many calories they should have in a day. Should You Stop Counting Calories?Īlthough diet culture may lead you to believe that counting calories will lead to long term weight loss and will be easy to sustain, this is simply not the case. What’s one sure way to gain a false sense of control when trying to achieve our safety needs? Calorie counting. Recognizing that we live in a society where weight stigma, fat phobia, and thin privilege exist (more information on these concepts here), it’s clear that when we zoom out from the desire for weight loss, what we might really be trying to achieve is a sense of safety and acceptance within our community. It’s what brings us a sense of safety and security, and as shown in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (above image), safety and security come in second to our most basic physiological needs: food, water, warmth, and rest.Īccording to this model, needs lower down in the hierarchy must be satisfied before individuals can attend to needs higher up. Photo Source: Dylan K YangĪs mentioned above, humans need certainty in their lives. This mentality also can bleed into our relationship with food, especially when we’re surrounded by diet culture messaging telling us exactly what the “right” and “wrong” way to eat is (and this messaging changes constantly!) It makes sense why we’d feel overwhelmed, which is why many of us turn to calorie counting to feel in control. Whether it was a spelling bee where you spelled the word perfectly or it was a math test that you aced, we’ve been conditioned to feel affirmed in our value by getting the answer right. Off the top, we often hear these two questions:įrom a young age, we’ve been taught to strive for the right answer. Some serious myth busting on the subject!.5 steps to stop counting calories obsessively and learn to cultivate body trust.The research on why you should stop counting calories.The psychology behind why we count calories.calories out and that counting and cutting calories will support our health.īut is this really true? As intuitive eating dietitians, we do a deep dive into: This mentality makes sense, given we’ve all likely experienced diet culture to some degree, which sells us the lie that weight loss is as simple as calories in vs. It can also make us feel accomplished day to day, as we utilize “willpower”, calorie tracking apps, and diligent label reading to make sure we’re “ okay”. Counting calories can give us a feeling of safety because we believe that as long as we don’t go over our target limit, nothing ‘bad’ will happen. ![]() So it’s no wonder many of us find comfort and a false sense of control in counting calories. ![]() It’s hardwired into our brains to find solace in knowing what to expect. Here we dive into why we might count calories, why you may want to stop counting calories, 5 tangible steps to stop counting calories obsessively, as well as debunking some common calorie myths. It can also rob us of our joy, connection, and time and negatively impact our relationship with food, our psyche and our metabolism.Īs intuitive eating dietitians, we want to arm you with the facts so that you can make an empowered decision on the subject. Counting calories can be tempting, we get it! But in the end, it gives us a false sense of control and leads us to focus on outside factors determining the “right” way to eat, rather than trusting our own bodies.
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