Is Calorie Counting Safe and Effective for Weight Loss? What You Need to Know

Most modern humans think of calories as a way to keep track of how much they’re eating in a day, particularly if they’re concerned about weight management. There are lots of ways to do this, including a wide selection of apps and online tools.

Research suggests that calorie counting can be effective for weight loss, but there are also some downsides that give experts pause. Read on to learn what a calorie is, how to work out your ideal daily intake, and the pros and cons of calorie counting for weight management.

What Is a Calorie?

One thousand of these units make up 1 dietary calorie, which is sometimes called a kilocalorie or spelled with a capital C. In the United States, people simply use the term “calorie” without capitalization.

Why Count Calories?

Some people manage their dietary intake by tracking the calories they consume, usually using apps or digital food diaries that let them scan package barcodes to enter calories from a database of nutritional information. This is known as calorie tracking, or calorie counting.

Certain set weight management diets are based on calorie density or calorie counting, including the following:

• Volumetrics, a diet that groups foods into four categories based on calorie density and encourages eating less than 1,400 calories daily

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• The CICO diet, which stands for “calories in, calories out,” and emphasizes burning more calories than you consume

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• The Golo diet, a commercial program that focuses on staying within a certain caloric range and taking a particular supplement

How Many Calories Do I Need?

Calorie needs vary widely from person to person, says Erin Holley, RD, who practices at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. “We can’t simply look at a person and know their calorie needs,” Holley says.

Holley maintains that recommended daily calorie intake depends on a variety of factors, including the following:

• Weight
• Height
• Age
• Gender
• Activity level
• Muscle mass
• Stress level
• Life events, such as pregnancy, menstruation, or the presence of health problems

Still, even the most accurate calorie calculators won’t always be right, says Lisa Moskovitz, RD, CEO of NY Nutrition Group. “It’s impossible to know every single calorie your body needs every single day because we don’t burn the same number of calories every single day,” she points out.

Instead, Moskovitz says, listen to your body to guide you toward when you need to eat (and take in more calories) and when you’re full.

What Is Calorie Density and Why Does It Matter?

Being strategic about calorie-dense foods can play a role in weight loss, Holley says. Consuming mostly lower-calorie-density foods can mean that you consume fewer calories overall. That can contribute to weight loss.

Benefits of Calorie Counting

It’s a popular school of thought that weight loss is simple math: calories in versus calories out. Some research does suggest that calorie counting is an effective way to lose weight.

Calorie Counting Can Support Short-Term Weight Management

You Might Not Be Aware of Your Accurate Calorie Intake

“Calorie counting can be used as a tool to empower you to take control of your overall health,” says Kim Rose, RDN, CDCES, part of the professional team for the Lose It! weight loss app. When you do it correctly, she says, tracking the calories can help you realize how much you’re consuming and where you could cut back, and encourage more mindful eating.

Calorie Tracking Can Help You Spot Unhelpful Patterns and Portion Sizes

Reading labels or using tracking devices that help you understand how many calories you are actually eating will give you a better idea of what healthy portions of food should look like, says Rose. It can also help you determine which foods are the most calorie-dense and when you tend to consume them.

For example, you might notice a sharp uptick in calories at 8:30 p.m., and realize that’s when you’re lounging on the couch, mindlessly snacking as you watch your favorite TV show. Being aware of those patterns can help you make healthy changes, she says.

Calorie Counting Isn’t Just Helpful for Weight Loss

Calorie counting can also be useful for people who are trying to gain weight, including athletes. “Especially if they’re trying to eat enough, having a general idea can help make sure they’re getting enough fuel for those who are trying to put on muscle,” says Moskovitz.

Risks and Downsides of Calorie Counting

However, not every expert agrees that weight loss is a simple math equation.

Your Body Defends Itself Against Reduced Calories

A successful weight management approach needs to move beyond calorie counting to one that helps the body maintain a stable energy balance, looks after your hormones, and supports you in breaking psychological and behavioral loops that defend a higher body weight.

Getting Balanced Macros Might Be More Important Than Counting Calories

Calorie counting was very popular about two decades ago, says Alexandra Sowa, MD, a dual-board-certified doctor of internal and obesity medicine and the founder of SoWell Health, but “it’s not really the healthiest, most sustainable way to lose weight.” Instead of focusing on the number of calories you’re consuming and following a low-calorie diet, she says that making sure you’re getting the right macronutrients is more important.

“If you consume a low-calorie diet without the right macronutrients — without enough protein, without enough fat to keep you full, and without enough carbohydrates — you’ll be ravenously hungry, and you’ll only be able to sustain a very low-calorie diet for a few days at a time,” she says.

Calorie Counting Has Links to Disordered Eating for Some People

Counting calories may also increase the risk of disordered eating. “For some individuals, calorie counting can become an addictive and dangerous activity, where they really don’t allow themselves to eat, even if they’re hungry,” Holley says. “They will not go above a certain number.”

Even if you don’t develop an eating disorder, Holley notes that calorie counting puts “unnecessary focus on numbers instead of nutrients, taste, satisfaction,” and everything else that contributes to the eating experience. “I think it sucks the joy from eating,” she says. “I would prefer people follow intuitive eating signals, eating when they’re physically hungry and stopping when they feel full and satisfied.”

What’s the Best Way to Keep Track of Calories?

If you do decide to count calories for any reason, you have a number of options available, and which you choose comes down to personal preference.

• Apps Smartphone apps are a great way to “get real-time feedback and accountability,” says Moskovitz. There are lots of options, such as MyFitnessPal, Lose It!, and FatSecret. Many are free. And a study comparing data from 47 clinical trials on tracking apps found that the mean percentage error in accurately logging calories was 4.2 percent across all types of trackers.
• Websites If you prefer not to download an app, you can visit websites like MyNetDiary to log your daily calories online. However, according to the study above, manual text entry diaries were less accurate than barcode-scanning assisted apps or AI-vision tracked apps that log foods using your camera.
• Pen and Paper Buy a notebook that’s branded as a calorie-counting journal, or use any old piece of paper. You’ll log every single thing you consume per day, checking its nutrition information in a book or online. This approach can be helpful if you’re not tech-savvy, but it might be a little time-consuming.
• Fitness Trackers These devices are most helpful to monitor the number of calories you burn throughout the day. This can help you maintain a healthy calorie balance. Options include the Apple Watch and Fitbit. These devices are not always accurate, however. Research has found that no brand of wearable fitness tracker was within 3 percent of measurement error more than 13 percent of the time when tracking calories.

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Regardless of which option is used for tracking calories, people face some common obstacles. Dr. Sowa notes that it can be difficult to find the exact item you ate in some apps, and even if you do, it’s hard to know exactly how much you consumed.

“People will get very quickly overwhelmed and disillusioned with tracking their calories because they’ll be like, ‘Well, I don’t know how many ounces this was, I don’t have a food scale here, I’ll just estimate,’” she says. That can lead to many inaccuracies in calorie counting.

The same can be true of other methods when it comes to whole foods or those where calorie counts or portion sizes may not be completely clear. “There’s always a small margin of error because the sizes of food, especially fresh foods, vary,” says Holley.

Additionally, it can be tough to remember everything you eat, and it is awkward to pause before every meal, drink, and snack, especially when dining with others, to record calories.

Getting Started

To get started counting calories, first, decide what method you want to use. If you prefer to write down your calories, buy a notebook or journal and decide which reference website or book you’ll use to find out the nutritional content of what you’re eating. Then, meticulously record every single thing you eat and drink in a day, including your portion size and the number of calories.

If you’d prefer to use your phone or tablet, try out a few apps before you decide which one you like best. Signing up for one usually involves creating an account and inputting some personal descriptors, such as your weight and height, and then you’ll be ready to go. “But remember that in order to get an accurate count, you really do need to log everything,” Sowa advises.

Once you see how many calories you consume each day, you can adjust that amount to fit your goals. If you find yourself obsessing, worrying, or constantly talking about calories, however, Holley suggests contacting a registered dietitian who can help you develop a healthy eating plan that doesn’t include counting calories.