Busting the myth: Counting calories

One of the myths that we now have to break is that of spending our lives without stopping counting calories. It’s one of the best ways to oversimplify what it’s like to try to lose weight. Things just don’t work that way. The process is much more variable and complex to simply keep a count. There are processes that are interrupted, properties that change, functions that are not robotic and therefore, are different each time. I don’t want to complicate the issue, but it’s true. Look, food labels, when they tell you the number of calories, are only 30% close to reality. Most calorie calculators and food labels show you the average calories in foods. However, things like the country where it is produced, the brand, and the serving size cause the numbers to be very different for the same product. For example, in a banana – one calorie calculator says 90 calories and another 120. That’s a difference of more than 30%. Another thing to consider is that we absorb more calories from processed foods than from whole foods. Things like fruits or grains typically contain more fiber than processed foods. Like juice or flour. What you don’t know is that fiber counts as carbohydrates and is taken into account when calculating the calories of that food. However, not all carbohydrates are absorbed by the body. These same fibers are nondigestible carbohydrates, which means that the body does not absorb them. So you can have a food that says it has more calories than another, but that doesn’t mean your body is going to absorb all those calories. And these are just two examples of what happens. I have to tell you that this also applies when exercising using a calorie counter. Or that hormones can influence the fat storage process. I know, it also lowers my spirits that having good health is not as easy as losing it. But the good thing is that we know that it DOES make a difference. Eat varied and healthy, plus exercise. It is not the most comfortable, but it brings out the best in us.