I feel obsessed over counting calories.....

This is a total thing of my past experiences with dieting, but I find myself reverting and being obessive over counting calories.  Is anyone else like this? How do you get yourself away from this or should I be doing this?

Also, how many calories do you get in and how far out are you? I feel like maybe I eat too much sometimes.

It's a good thing you're aware of this - and I don't think it's a hard habit to change.

As the Dietician said to our group last week, "the goal is that you're not dieting anymore... "  which resonated with me.

Portion control, protein intake and sensible fat/carb limits (like what we've got in our booklets) are the main goals.  Counting calories is something you don't need to be doing so much anymore - just make the good food choices that fuel the machine.

I hope this helps :)

Thanks! It does. I think it is just so ingrained in my brain from constant dieting and tracking. I am going to give it an honest effort to get away from it. 

My dietician just told me tracking calories is something  that may come into play around the three month point.  I'm not counting at the moment,  at nearly 10wks.  My weight loss has been steady and I'm feeling well.  I feel that the weighing and portioning and recording  for now is adequate for me as my 3 meals /2 snacks are still very low in calories.  

He suggested as time goes on and appetite increases...my fitness pal tracking is a great way to keep an eye on calories.  He suggested 1000-1200 eventually unless you are very active it may allow for higher.  Not sure of how this is determined or if it's just a general guideline.

You know yourself best.  If you feel like you are eating too much...maybe you are.  Take your food records in to your dietician and have them advise you based on YOU as an individual.  I think you'd likely be happier and less stressed to be "calorie aware" instead of "calorie obsessed " .  They can help you focus your energy in the right places. 

I counted my calories from day one post surgery.

First - I was curious what my count was when I was eating so little.  It took me a 3-4 months to get above 500 calories and I didn't go much above that ( 750 maybe) during my first year.  I stuck to protein and a small amount of veggies - zero white carbs or sugar until I got to goal.  By the one year mark I ventured over 1000 occasionally and up to 1500 by maintenance.  Unfortunately I went too far overboard and regained some weight ( 30 pounds) by the 3 year mark.  I have since lost most of the 30 by again, counting my calories and journalling my food intake.

I disagree with the clinic that said you shouldn't have to "diet" or count calories again.  At the end of the day its all about calories - and the foods you choose to make up those numbers.

1000 calories of bread - potatoes - pasta or sugary things is not going to fill you like 1000 calories of dense protein and you get more bang for your caloric buck.

Some people don't ever want to "diet" again.  Then call it something different but believe me you must be aware of your consumption for the rest of your life.  I don't mean obsessively - though I thin****asionally I can be - but you sure have to eat with thought - every day.

Right from day one, I counted protein grams and carbohydrate grams, not calories. If you are getting at least 75 grams of protein per day and no more than 30-35 grams of carbohydrates per day, NO sugar, NO "white carbs", your calorie count will be where it should be. Aside from counting protein grams (your main focus) counting the carbs (and extremely limiting them) is really key.

I so agree with your post.  For myself, I am a big advocate of the original Dr. Robert Atkins book (1972).  He instructs to count proteins and carbs and all else falls into place.

I also take this approach. I always found counting calories cumbersome but for some reason counting protein and carb grams is much easier. I also agree that the foods that make up these macros are important (echoing the no "white" foods). I track my food in MFP so I generally have an idea of my calorie count but its not my end-all and be-all. All calories are not equal - a calorie of protein from a high quality source is NOT the same as a calorie of white table sugar.

I have to agree with Barb that you will always to some degree be tracking your intake if you want to keep the weight off. The key is not to be obsessive but it's always going to be there, and honestly there's nothing wrong with that.

I agree with Karen M and Barb. Counting calories keeps me accountable. Many people use my fitnesspal for this. Sure making sure your portions are the right size is important but you need to know how to use what calories you have over the day. I sometimes change what I am eating based on how it looks in myfitnesspal.

I am older and the dietitian told me about 1200 calories. If I venture too much over this I gain

Just for extra reassurance, I contacted my dietician today at TWH.  She emailed me back (I love her) and discussed my concerns.  She thinks I am doing fine but should up my calories. She doesn't neccessarily share the same opinions about the carbs as stated here but either did the NUT at my one month follow up. So I'll just keep on going and hope the weight startes moving again.