Why Calorie Counting is Dead!

When I first started putting together Sweets in the Raw: Naturally Healthy Desserts, I faced a dilemma. Do I include calorie counts with my desserts? I decided not to, and I hope after reading this post you will understand why. I am fully aware that it may be eye-opening for some. Why? Well because it used to be believed that a calorie was just a calorie and that all calories are created equal. But the script has been flipped and I want to make sure everyone understand why!

For a long time, the general population has believed that you needed to balance calories in and calories out, and that was the best way to manage a healthy diet and weight. But in today’s constantly advancing world, we have new science from Harvard to prove that what we learned is out dated and incorrect.

Let’s start by making an easy comparison. If you ask a crowd of people what is healthier, a popsicle or an avocado, most of the people will agree that an avocado is healthier. Now ask the same crowd what would be healthier, to consume a popsicle with 100 calories or an avocado with 200-300 calories and suddenly what once seemed to be an easy decision just got way more challenging. So why is that? Well because many people were taught that balancing calories in and calories out was the magical rule of thumb. But that isn’t how it really works. Let’s be honest, a popsicle with only 100 calories made with refined sugar and processed ingredients cannot be compared to a whole food such as an avocado. So why do we still have that knee jerk reaction to automatically think less calories is better? Simply put, is what we have been taught for the past 30 or more years. But that doesn’t mean it is correct!

Now I am not saying that knowing roughly how many calories you are consuming in a day bad, but it is not an efficient way to maintain a healthy lifestyle overall. I personally consume way over 2000 calories a day. Do I have to worry about my weight? Nope! Why? Because the calories I take in come from real, whole foods that contain no refined sugars. Now you may want to sit down for this part… because I am here to tell you that calories and fat do not make you fat. (I will explain this in better detail in my blog next week.) It is actually the refined sugar and simple carbs.

Sugar found in its natural form (i.e. fruit) is found with fiber and vitamins which helps to slow down the absortion of sugar. Without the fiber, the body does not know how to efficiently process it. In return the refined sugar and simple carbs taxes your liver and pancreas creating an insulin spike which then turns into fat. But don’t take my word for this! To learn more check this link.

So as you can see, the reason I did not include the calories for the desserts in my book Sweets In The Raw: Naturally Healthy Desserts is because that would continue to trick people into believing that calories are more important than what the food is actually made of. I hope that this blog has helped give a little bit of clarity to what you have been hearing in the media. It isn’t a rumor. It is new hard science. Calorie counting should be forgotten! Instead of counting every calorie you put into your mouth, be sure the food you are consuming is only made with whole natural ingredients.

I would love to know what you think about this topic! Please leave a comment below to share your thoughts.