Do calories count or not? This question alone is enough to send some health nuts into an absolute rage… which is when I like to hand them a plate of starchy carbs and say, “chill bro” 😉
Unfortunately most of the attention typically gets focused on the extreme end of both sides of the debate.
On one end you have the die-hard calorie counters who believe eating 2000 calories in candy bars will have the same outcome as consuming 2000 calories of chicken and broccoli. Think Dr. Twinkie… the prof who proved you can lose weight eating crap as long as you are in a caloric deficit.
On the other end you have the hardcore hormone police who say that calorie counting is a waste of time and doesn’t work. They firmly believe consuming more calories than you burn isn’t what makes you fat. All you need to do is keep your hormonez and insulinz in check and you’re good to go.
Note: I thought I would act all trendy and add a ‘z’ to the end of those words, because it seems to cause a positive reaction… but for some reason it just doesn’t feel right 😉
Personally, I don’t like to get caught up in debates. I pride myself on having an open mind and respecting the views of others. That’s how I continuously learn and grow.
In most cases I find the solution is somewhere in the middle.
Every day people lose weight and body fat without counting calories or without having any clue if their hormones or insulin are in check.
Although it’s hard work… fat loss really can be simple… in most cases. You can guess your way to a better body by simply eating less and moving more.
However… I recommend educating yourself on the process of fat loss in order to prevent any pitfalls and negative side effects, which can come back to haunt you down the road.
Where Does The Calorie Confusion Come From?
My humble opinion on the issue is that we are very complicated beings and we’re all unique. A simple equation doesn’t tell the whole story…
Your hormonal response to certain foods may be different than my response to those foods.
You’re lifestyle may completely suck. You may be stressed out, have a sedentary job, and sleep like crap.
You may do a poor job of honestly tracking the calories you consume, while placing your full trust in the accuracy of the calorie burn reading on your treadmill.
…and the list could go on and on.
But this isn’t to say that using these simple equations or calorie counting isn’t effective. Far from it.
Smart Physique Artists understand that these tools are designed to provide us with a more educated guestimation of how many calories we should be consuming. We understand it’s not an EXACT science… that it’s a bit more complicated.
This is why our most valuable tool is our feedback system. At the end of the week if we didn’t hit our target fat loss goal we take an honest reflection on the experience….
a) Could there have been room for error with the recording of my intake? Did I record everything (or stick to the plan).
b) Was I as active as I thought? Both in and out of the gym?
If there was little to no human error the smart Physique Artist will modify their caloric intake the following week. If still no change, they would modify again. In many cases this will resolve the issue if you are honest in your tracking.
If still no change, then it’s time to look a little deeper at what could be going on hormonally and causing your metabolic rate to slow down.
This is a case where the calorie calculations indicate you should be burning ‘X’ number of calories, but you aren’t.
For example… let’s say you consume 2000 calories and think you’re going to maintain your weight because the calorie calculator estimates you should burn 2000 calories… yet because your metabolic rate is slower than it should be you only burn 1800 calories… you actually end up storing 200 calories of that energy as fat.
This is where the anti-calorie counting crowd… the ones who say calories in vs calories out is false… shout out, “I told you so!”
…but did they? Did they tell you so?
No, not really.
True, the calorie calculator may not have been accurate for you because it didn’t account for your hormones being out of whack.
If you are stuck in the way of thinking that counting calories is the only way and you refuse to take into account the hormonal impact of food and dieting… this is where it could get you into some trouble and lead to a lot of frustration.
…but, it still doesn’t mean that calories in vs calories out is false.
The laws of thermodynamics still applied… you consumed 2000 calories, burned 1800 and stored 200.
When you take the appropriate action to reset your metabolism and get back to the point where you are burning 2000 calories as you should be… the laws of thermodynamics will still apply. You’ll consume 2000 calories, burn 2000 calories, and maintain your weight.
Conclusion
The take home message is that YES calories in vs calories out is true. Consume more calories than your body burns and you will store it as fat. Burn more calories than you consume and you will release fat.
BUT…
You must understand that hormonez and insulinz (sorry, I couldn’t resist again) 😛 will have an impact on how many calories you burn throughout the day.
Like I said… the answer is somewhere in the middle ground… and it pays to have an open mind.
It goes without saying that this is a simplification of what goes on in our body. A large number of variables are at play, which can have a positive or negative impact on your metabolism.
Rather than freak out over what you read in articles, it really pays to seriously educate yourself on the topic. After all… it is your body.
Each time you read an article on calories or hormones, use it as an opportunity to dig deeper into the issue.
The best advice I can give you is to become a student of your own body.
Develop a keen awareness to how certain foods and nutrition practices impact your body. How does sleep impact your body? How is your lifestyle impacting your physique?
I hope this provided you with some food for thought. I’ll have more on this topic in the coming days.
Sculpt a Masterpiece,
Scott Tousignant
About The Author
Scott Tousignant is a Certified Fitness Consultant and Elite Natural Bodybuilder with the UFE.
Scott specializes in helping regular guys get ripped abs insanely fast. With his careful attention to the finer details, you'll carve out a rock hard and jacked physique in no time flat!
When Scott needs to urgently strip away stubborn sacks of fat for a photo shoot or bodybuilding contest, he turns to his time-tested proven system… Elite Physique.
Now you too, can follow his easy-to-follow system to finally uncover your ripped abs and chiseled body! Get the full details by visiting Elite Physique today!