When it comes to nutrition, the topic of calorie tracking divides opinion.
Some people swear by it, others think it’s too much effort. The truth? Whether you should be monitoring your calories depends on your goals — and those goals usually fall into one of two categories: losing weight, or maintaining general health.
If You Want to Lose Weight
Let’s be clear: if your goal is weight loss, you must be tracking your calories. There’s no way around it. Weight loss is as simple (and as challenging) as creating an energy deficit — meaning you burn more calories than you consume. Without tracking, you’re just guessing, and guessing rarely delivers results.
Apps like MyFitnessPal or NutraCheck make the process straightforward. You log what you eat, see the numbers, and adjust accordingly. The first week or two can feel fiddly, but soon it becomes second nature. And once you start seeing progress, the effort is more than worth it.
If You Want to Maintain Health
If your goal isn’t weight loss but general health and wellbeing, calorie tracking isn’t quite as crucial. That said, it can still be useful in the short term — especially to help you understand portion sizes and the calorie content of your usual foods.
Once you’ve built that awareness, the focus should shift towards food quality rather than the exact calorie count. That means ensuring your diet includes plenty of:
Fruit and vegetables for vitamins, minerals, and fibre
Protein to maintain muscle mass and keep you feeling full
Whole foods over ultra-processed options
In this case, calorie tracking is a tool you can dip into occasionally to keep yourself on track, rather than a daily necessity.
The Bottom Line
If weight loss is your goal, tracking your calories is non-negotiable — it’s the only way to know if you’re truly in a calorie deficit. If your aim is simply to maintain health, you can afford to be less strict, but tracking for a short time will help you develop better food awareness. In both cases, knowledge is power when it comes to nutrition.
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