Should I stop counting calories?

I have this crazy obsession with counting calories... I used to even log gum and coffee (no sugar, no milk, just plain, black coffee). 

Well, long story short, I was developing an E.D.... I was following very strict fad diets and as a result of that (besides fast weight loss, obviously), my hair started falling out. It still is, but since I'm eating around 1200kcal now, I'm hoping that this'll stop. Also, I started bingeing. Not very often, but they are still scary, and once I start, I just can't stop bingeing. It's like I'm out of control. I go to the kitchen, eat a bunch of stuff until my mouth's full, go back to my room, try to distract myself, and then run back to the kitchen to eat again. Peanut butter, muesli, bread, corn flakes... my biggest enemies haha

Anyway, I bought a book called "Intuitive Eating" and so far, it's amazing! It recommends not counting calories as you become obsessed with restricting and whatnot, which is very true in my case.

So, what do you guys think? Should I stop counting calories? I've been logging my food EVERY SINGLE DAY since February 19, 2012. I'm seventeen years old... if that makes any difference whatsoever.

Thanks x

You probably should until you can eat a normal amt. of food.

 

1,200 calories is not anywhere near enough.

You need to bump up your caories some more. 1200 isn't enough! Try intuitive eating for a few weeks.

When counting gets obsessive, it's probably best to stop for a while.  Try following the books advice for at least a month and see how you feel then.

17 might have a little do with it, in that, when we're young (on up through our mid-30s) we can be so blisteringly hard and pointed with ourselves.

Then we advance a few years, we grow (hopefully) in compassion towards others and towards ourselves ... and we're kinder, more patient, more forgiving of ourselves.

So, skip ahead.

Be kinder, more patient and more forgiving with yourself today. To relax in this way, to enJOY and make love with yourSelf every day, is not the same as "letting yourself go"; it is not the self-abuse of indulgence: overeating (which I sometimes do) or the self-neglect of not engaging in some kind of physical movement that releases you (as I need to do more of myself) ... Being kinder, more patient and more forgiving with yourself is to give yourself a hand to help yourself up when you fall down or short; it's to say encouraging words to yourself; it's not allowing something as superficial as a calorie count be the measure of the depth of the love and passion you have for yourself and the work you do in contributing to others. 

Count your calories if you enjoy the numbers (I do! but then I also solve Sudoku puzzles in my spare time and they're nothing but numbers and patterns). Have you added to that count all the nutrients necessary for proper all-round functioning (as found in the Analysis section) of your log. Do you eat the right kinds of foods to give you all the "green bars" on said Analysis page? 

Play with the numbers. Look for better and tastier substitutions. "corielle" told me to try Swiss Chard - when cooked, 1c has ~960mg of potassium as a solution to my consistently too-low numbers for potassium. I have NO idea what Swiss Chard is (let alone what it's called in Spanish -- I live in Spain) ... but there's the adventure of it. 

And, fortunately, my adventures are not limited to Swiss Chard.

Good luck and be a loving friend to yourself -- a good practice for us at every age, eh?

Warm regards,

Emme

 

 

 

plus once you up your calories theres a good chance the binging will stop, because your body wont need to binge to get what it needs

btw, im the same age and Ive also obsessively counted calories at times and i know its hard to ease up, but you have to do it. just do it slowly. it also might be easier for you to slowly up your calories. set a target, like 50-100 calories a week for ten-fifteen weeks

Original Post by emmesinger:

17 might have a little do with it, in that, when we're young (on up through our mid-30s) we can be so blisteringly hard and pointed with ourselves.

Then we advance a few years, we grow (hopefully) in compassion towards others and towards ourselves ... and we're kinder, more patient, more forgiving of ourselves.

So, skip ahead.

Be kinder, more patient and more forgiving with yourself today. To relax in this way, to enJOY and make love with yourSelf every day, is not the same as "letting yourself go"; it is not the self-abuse of indulgence: overeating (which I sometimes do) or the self-neglect of not engaging in some kind of physical movement that releases you (as I need to do more of myself) ... Being kinder, more patient and more forgiving with yourself is to give yourself a hand to help yourself up when you fall down or short; it's to say encouraging words to yourself; it's not allowing something as superficial as a calorie count be the measure of the depth of the love and passion you have for yourself and the work you do in contributing to others. 

Count your calories if you enjoy the numbers (I do! but then I also solve Sudoku puzzles in my spare time and they're nothing but numbers and patterns). Have you added to that count all the nutrients necessary for proper all-round functioning (as found in the Analysis section) of your log. Do you eat the right kinds of foods to give you all the "green bars" on said Analysis page? 

Play with the numbers. Look for better and tastier substitutions. "corielle" told me to try Swiss Chard - when cooked, 1c has ~960mg of potassium as a solution to my consistently too-low numbers for potassium. I have NO idea what Swiss Chard is (let alone what it's called in Spanish -- I live in Spain) ... but there's the adventure of it. 

And, fortunately, my adventures are not limited to Swiss Chard.

Good luck and be a loving friend to yourself -- a good practice for us at every age, eh?

Warm regards,

Emme

 

 

 

Emmesinger,

This is a beautiful sentiment and so very true.  We need to be good to ourselves in every way, physical, mental and spiritual. We have only one life and our lives are so short. We have to enjoy the almost improbable nature that we even exist and are self-aware. 

To the OP, Ellay,

It sounds almost as though you had a a possible ED before you started counting in Feb. (just reading your post you state fad diets etc) Please be good to yourself. Your body is telling you that something isn't right. Something tells me this goes far beyond simply calorie counting as being the *main* source of your anxiety.  If you feel not counting will help then do it.  Please listen also to the others that posted as 1200cal is not enough for a 17yr old.   I wish you well along your journey.

 

Stop counting calories.

Do low carb.

Thank you all so much! :) xx