Calorie counting vs. carb counting: Which approach should you follow for weight loss?

Calorie vs carb calories

People trying to shed kilos often find themselves swamped with diet-related questions. Most common one includes the right amount of calorie and carb intake.

We all know that carbs and calories both are important when it comes to cutting down a few inches from the waistline. These are the two approaches you can adopt to lose kilos. Both can help you achieve your goal. But the two of them are completely different from one another and help you in different ways. We have compared the two approaches to find out which one is the best for shedding kilos.

Counting calories

To lose weight effectively one must create a calorie deficit. That means that the amount of calories you burn in a day by performing different activities must be more than the number of calories you consume. This way the body will be forced to burn the fat stored in the cells for energy that will eventually lead to weight loss. 

Pros and cons counting calories

The best thing about counting calories is that the calorie count of all the food items is easily available. Just at a click of the button, you will be able to find out the calorie content of any food. So, it becomes easy for you to track your daily calorie intake and eat accordingly. You also do not have to put much effort into controlling your portion size. If your breakfast should be of 300 calories, you can easily track it. A low-calorie diet can also be beneficial for people suffering from different health conditions like obesity and heart issues. However, restricting your calorie intake too much can be harmful to health and might not help you shed kilos.  

​Counting carbs

Carbohydrate counting, on the other hand, is all about calculating the net carb intake. The number is obtained by subtracting fiber from total carbs per serving. There are several diet plans that involve consuming a low amount of carbs in a day. In the most restricted one, only 60 grams of carb are consumed in a day. In most low-carb diets, it is not really necessary to count the calories but for safe weight loss experts recommend that the number should not go below 1200 for women and 1500 for men. 

Pros and cons counting carbs

Unlike calories, finding the right amount of carbs in food can be a bit of a challenging task. You may not find the net carb content of all the food items. Even the food you buy from the supermarket might have listed carbs under three different headings: Total carb, dietary fiber and sugar.

Besides, in a low-calorie diet, you are allowed to eat all kinds of food, all you have to do is take care of the calories and manage the portion size. But in a low- carb diet, you might have to avoid some sources of carbs.

Low-carb diet is good for people suffering from type 1 and type 2 diabetes to manage the blood sugar level. After losing weight on a low-carb diet you might maintain the same calorie intake for a while to stay in shape.  

​The bottom line

Both the approaches to losing weight have their own pros and cons. Which one you should choose entirely depends on your health condition and convenience. By comparing the two forms of diet, it can easily be said that counting calories is better than counting carbs. Remember no matter which diet you choose to follow you must eat healthy food, full of vitamins and minerals. In both cases, consume a considerable amount of calorie in a day. Going too low in an attempt to lose weight faster will make you weak and will slow down your metabolism.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

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