I Found Freedom Through Calorie Counting

I want to share my story in the hope that it might inspire someone else who is where I used to be.

I’ve struggled with being overweight my entire life, mostly because I (previously) hated moving my body and loved eating (still do). Over the course of my life I’ve lost more than 50 kg in total, and 12 of those kilos were lost during the fall of 2025 and spring of 2026.

Sometimes I see people online say they don’t want to count calories because it would feel restrictive or controlling. I also see others say that calorie counting is a first step toward eating disorders.

I want to share my experience as someone who has tried many different ways of losing weight but who finally found something that works with the humble kitchen scale + calorie tracking app method.

For me, it became freedom.

For the first time in my life, I don’t think about food all the time.
“Can I eat this?”
“Am I allowed to have another cookie?”
“Can I put sauce on this or is it unhealthy?”

Thanks to the scale and the app, I now know the answer. I can plan my day around what’s happening.

If I know I’m going to eat a hamburger for lunch, I log the calories in the app and immediately see that I should eat a bit less at breakfast or dinner for it to fit into my day. If someone asks whether I want a piece of chocolate, I can just check the app and see if I still have calories left.

The guessing game is over, and I finally feel free.

As a bonus, I’ve also learned that some things simply aren’t worth eating anymore. Don’t get me wrong—I still eat foods I truly love regardless of how many calories they contain. But there are things I used to eat out of habit that I now skip because I know how many extra calories they cost.

For example: a splash of olive oil on pasta, regular soda, or fries at McDonald’s. Those things were “pretty good,” but now they’re not worth it when I know the calorie trade-off.

I hope this post inspires someone. I honestly can’t believe it was this “simple” all along. Why did I make it so complicated for so many years?

I also want to mention that English is not my native language, so an AI helped translate this text—but the words and story are mine.