Are You Down For The Count?

You here it all the time, 'don't waste time counting calories' and 'only obsessive people count calories' or even 'our program has no calorie counting in it'. The good old method of calorie counting is being vilified in an effort to sell you things you don't need... there I said it. In the early days of a body (and life) changing health and fitness journey, calorie counting can seem like the most tedious and confusing thing in the world. Truth is it's a stepping stone to being in true control of your shape and fitness levels.

A lot of the people I work with really have no idea when it comes to nutrition. I had one gentleman tell me that he thought a ham and cheese croissant was good because he was getting much needed fibre from the bread, protein from the ham and a much needed serve of dairy from the cheese and of course he was obeying the golden rule 'Breakfast is the most important meal of the day'. So when they start looking after themselves, most people need to start with the basics. Brought down to its most simple level eating well starts with 'energy in energy out' or knowing how much food goes in versus how much gets burnt off.

I hear fitness professionals, athletes and of the like spout on about the evils of calorie counting, truth is they do it themselves it's just on a more sub-conscious level because they 'just know' when it comes to the energy in part of the equation. They go on about Macro's, Carb Cycling, Intermittent Fasting and other confusing nutrition speak hoping to educate you, when the truth is you got to crawl before you can walk. Calorie Counting is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to nutrition. It's like your baby child sitting up for the first time. It's the first stepping stone and it quite simply has to be stepped on if you're gonna make it across the pond.

In short learn how to count calories first and the rest will come as you start to make progress, then you can worry about organic, paleo, vegan and all the other weird and wonderful ways to get the most out of your fitness training.