Do you count calories in addition to IF? I don’t see how it works otherwise

I’ve been calorie counting for the past 3 weeks. My goal is 1200 but I rarely stick to this - I do stay under 1500 pretty consistently though. I’ve also been going to the gym 4ish times a week. I quickly realized that I hate eating most of my calories during the day and not being able to eat much at night, so now I pretty much don’t eat at all/eat very little until dinner. However I noticed that when I do this, I end up eating more at night, and getting hungry again shortly after dinner, and eating slightly more calories overall on days that I do this. Does IF only work if you also monitor your calories? Bc tbh, just not eating until dinner would be way easier for me than tracking everything I eat. But from what I’ve logged in my fitness pal, it seems like there’s no benefit to waiting until dinner. Is there more to IF than calories in calories out? Am I doing something wrong? Which is more effective - IF, calorie counting, or both combined?

Answer

IF just makes sticking to a calorie deficit easier for most people. All weight loss still relies on a calorie deficit. There’s no getting around that fact. IF is not magic. Some people are okay eating less by eyeballing and some need to measure those calories accurately. Probably just depends on your specific situation.

Answer

Both combined is better of course.

In every diet main principle is calorie deficit. There is no other way. So you should choose your meals with calorie deficit.

IF allows you to wait until your meal time and at that time, you only able to eat the main meal trust me. No snacks etc. I become full easily. Before IF, I have never understood what food actually tastes like. Hunger and waiting for it makes you aware of what you are eating.

Answer

It ultimately depends where someone’s starting from, how close they are to their goals, and how experienced someone is with intuitively eating for their body.

A larger body with more to lose can get away with a lot. Someone smaller who is closer to their goals might have to be more diligent.

Answer

I lost 45lbs in less than 4 months years ago just doing IF and OMAD and a very active job.

Then I gained a bunch of weight back but do my best to fast at least 13hrs a day.

I recently started to count calories too.