Yes and no. To lose weight, calories do matter. You have to eat less calories than you use. This sounds simple, but when put into practice it can be challenging for many people. 

Calories are nothing more than a measurement of energy. Is this an important measurement? Absolutely. When it comes to science, research, and medical nutrition therapy these measurements must be understood. When it comes to an individual person and their weight loss goals, it may not be as important. 

The truth is when it comes to hunger and satiety, calories don’t matter as much as the food you eat. For example, 100 calories of gummy worms will not keep you full as long as 100 calories whole grain bread even though these are both carbohydrates and contain the exact same number of calories. The differences in satiety and fullness vary even more if you are comparing foods with different macronutrients such as gummy worms and grilled chicken. 

Your body will also use a different number of calories every single day. You never do the exact same thing every day, so naturally some days your body will use more energy than others. So why would you trying to eat the same number of limited calories every day to lose weight? This is why many nutrition experts will say that your weekly average of calorie intake is more important than what you eat daily.

It is important to recognize your hunger and fullness signals and respond to them; if you are still hungry and you don’t eat because “you don’t have enough calories,” or if you are not hungry and you still eat because “you have calories left and you need to use them,” all you are doing is ruining your long term relationship with food. 

While nutrition labels are meant to serve as helpful tools for understanding food and nutrition, they are not all-knowing. Unfortunately, there will always be variability when it comes to nutrition labels because each food item cannot be made exactly the same (though we may try). The FDA allows for a 20% margin of error when it comes to the calorie content of foods. So why rely solely on something that may not even be accurate? 

So are calories really king? I say no. In weight loss, it is important to recognize that certain items (such as cheesecake) will be very high in calories and that these foods should be limited. That is the extent to which I believe calories should be used in weight loss. 

Recognizing when you are hungry and full, listening to your body, choosing better food options, and managing stressors are much more important when it comes to long term weight loss and your long-term relationship with your body.