Calorie counting can be easy, maybe even fun, and can allow you to eat the foods you love (yes, really!) and still lose weight.

This is not something I do all the time, but maybe once or twice a year for a few days to a week when I need a check-up.

I use the Fitbit app, primarily because I have a Fitbit tracker and the Fitbit Aria 2 Scale so then everything is in one app, but I also think it is easy to use.

When you keep track of your calories, you make some surprising discoveries. The first time I calorie counted (for a nutrition class in college) I discovered just how many calories are in a Costco muffin. If you have an app that also tracks exercise (like with Fitbit and many others) you might also be surprised to see how *few* calories you burn from your workout, especially compared to the amount of calories in something you’re contemplating eating. 😉

It may sound restrictive, but it’s so much easier these days will all the apps that are out there (even if you don’t have a Fitbit tracker, you can still use the app to track your calories if you want), and I find that tracking my calories in/out allows me to eat whatever I want (in moderation) and still lose weight. Filling up on fruits and/or veggies is a great way to quiet hunger without adding too many calories. And then I can have ice cream, chocolate, or any other fun food that I want! As long as I have a small enough portion. 🙂

Don’t get hung up on perfectionism. 😉 If I’m eating something out of a package, it’s SO easy to track it in an app. You can just scan the barcode, double check the info (especially the serving size) and save it. But what if I actually *made* the food, and my recipe doesn’t have nutrition info? A tip I learned from a friend was, just guesstimate it. 🙂 The apps have databases built in, and if you made spaghetti sauce, for instance, just pick an option that’s already there, rather than trying to make a custom option. [Although, I have done that if I have the time and it’s something that I think I’ll be eating a lot. For instance, one time I made my salad like I normally would, except I measured everything. Then, when I made a salad again, I could just use the info that I saved from the time I measured.]

Although calorie counting can be a lot of work, when I’m consistent about it, I feel good, I don’t feel deprived (again, I eat what I want, just in moderation) and I lose weight healthfully.