Cutting Through Weight Loss Bullshit

If you're a whiny snowflake that can't handle the truth, is offended by the word fuck and about 37 uses of it in different forms gets ass hurt. When you hear someone speak the absolute, real and raw truth, you should leave Like right now. This is Shut Up and Choose, the podcast where we cut through the shit and get real about weight loss, life and everything in between. We get into the nitty gritty of making small, smart choices that add up to big results. From what's on your plate to how you approach life's challenges. We'll explore how the simple act of choosing differently can transform your health, your mindset and your entire freaking life. So if you're ready to cut through the bullshit and start making some real changes, then buckle up and shut up, because we're about to choose our way to a healthier, happier life. This is Shut Up and Choose. Let's do this Now. Your host.

Jonathan Ressler. Hey everybody, welcome back to Shut Up and Choose, the podcast that cuts the noise of the fat diets, the quick fixes, the unrealistic weight promises and all that other bullshit out there. I'm your host, jonathan Ressler, and I'm here to give you the brutally honest truth about weight loss and, more importantly, about sustainable weight loss. After losing 135 pounds without any fat diets, any shots, any pills, any supplements or even the gym, I learned the key. I kind of cracked the code to sustainable weight loss, and the funny thing is, the crazy thing is that it's all about making small, smart choices. Everything else is bullshit and hopefully I'm going to give you some insight today that's going to help you literally lose the weight and transform your life. So let's get started. So today I'm going to talk about probably what is one of the most hotly debated topics in the world of weight loss, and that's counting calories. I mean, counting calories sucks, but before everybody gets all you know butthurt and stuff, listen to what I have to say because I think it makes a lot of sense and I'm saying like, hey, if you need to lose five or ten pounds, no, then yeah, counting calories is probably important because you really need to to, you know, to be precise, but if you need to lose 30 pounds or more, you know, and kind of a more significant weight loss, you know it's time to say goodbye to the calorie counting crap. Okay, I'm going to show you why calorie counting is not the magic bullet and how it can lead to like crazy, like obsessive behavior and stress, and even weight gain, truthfully, and I'm going to show you, kind of, I guess, maybe some alternate method or why my method of eating works. Now, look, you know, I've been on every diet under the sun and calorie restriction was one of those diets. I did a calorie restriction diet. I went to some doctor and he told me that if I, you know, ate, if I restricted my calories about 1800 a day, I'd lose a ton of weight. And he was right, there's no question about it. I, when I restricted my calories to 1800 a day, I definitely lost weight, but it fucking sucked. Okay, I mean, look, we all know and maybe you don't know this, but again, you're gonna know it now to lose a pound, you gotta burn. You know, you have to burn like an extra 3,500 calories. I mean, that's you know, that's fact. I mean, there's no two ways about that. That's just fact. It's indisputable proof. But the rest of it how you do it sucks right. So I was on this calorie restriction. It's indisputable proof, but the rest of it how you

Challenges of Calorie Counting and Nutrition

do it sucks right.

So I was on this calorie restriction diet where I was counting my calories and, like I said, it worked. But I hated it so much that eventually, like every other diet out there, I got sick of it and I stopped. I got tired of counting calories. So I believe that no one will ever be able to convince me otherwise, that we all know what to eat In me, otherwise that we all know what to eat Inherently. We all know what to eat.

Okay, we know the difference between the stuff that makes us put on weight and the stuff that helps us lose weight or maintain our weight. It's in us from day one. It's imprinted in your DNA. We all know it. Now some of us choose not to pay attention to it, or some of us make believe that we forgot it, but the reality is we all know what to eat and we all know how to lose weight. It's the choices that you make that determine what you eat and whether you lose, gain or maintain. I mean, that's it Bottom line. We all know it and it's all based on your choices. But calorie counting like really calorie counting when I was on that diet, one of the things that I found was you know, first of all, it's inaccurate. Right, one of the major issues with calorie counting is it's inaccurate. I mean, you know, the calorie count of food depends on so many different things like how they're cooked, the exact ingredients and even just natural variations in food. Like an orange has X calories.

Well, yeah if it's one size, but if it's another size it has a totally different amount of calories. And food labels they're saying I just read something food labels are off by as much as 20%. I mean that's crazy. Restaurant meals forget about it. I don't care what they tell you, what the nutritional guide says. In a restaurant, it's more calories.

Okay, I mean, and and aside from all that, you know, eating mcdonald's is not good for you, it's tasty. I'm not going to say it's not tasty, but it's just not good for you. So you know, as, as just regular people, we're not really equipped, to you, you know, to measure calories and count calories with like laboratory precision, right? So, like here, a tablespoon of peanut butter can easily turn into two or three tablespoons of peanut butter, depending on how you measure it. Now, to me, you know, if I'm going to eat a tablespoon of peanut butter, it's a tablespoon, plus everything else that I can get around it on the back, you know, really make it a rounded tablespoon, but that's not really a tablespoon of peanut butter and that's more like two or three tablespoons. So we're not really kind of equipped to measure calories that way. So I mean it's kind of silly, right? I mean, literally, you could double or triple the calories depending on how you measure it. And you know, when you start to add up those little kind of discrepancies, you find out that you know calorie counting in an accurate way is almost impossible, to be honest. I mean, like I said, unless you're like in a laboratory and you can measure all this shit, it's impossible to get an accurate count on how many calories you're eating.

Another thing is, you know, like it, just because it's not just about calories, right, I mean, there's got to be nutritional value too, right? I mean, when you count calories, I mean like you're working towards a number you know, and you're not thinking about what you're actually eating. You're just working towards a number and, like a lot of people will pick low-calorie foods that you know A probably taste like don't have the nutritional value of higher calorie foods that are, you know, packed with nutrients. So here's a perfect example. So you know those, like 100 calorie packs of cookies, of Oreos, or you know a 100 calorie pack of anything seems like, hey, that's a good choice, it's only 100 calories. It seems like that's probably a better choice than even 150 calories of almonds, but the reality is you eat the almonds or any nuts, they provide like a bunch of healthy fats and proteins and fibers, whereas that hundred cow pack you know that fucking everybody's trying to sell you is loaded with probably loaded with sugar and a shitload of empty calories. So I mean, it's not calories, it's calories and nutritional value. So if you just focus on the number of calories you're eating, you're completely ignoring everything else that's in that food that's essential really for your overall health. So you know, definitely, I mean, again, it does come down to calories in versus calories out. There's no question about it.

We learned, you know, dr Debbie told us you could lose weight eating Twinkies and Doritos. But yeah, I mean, at some point that's going to impact your, you know, your energy levels, your immune function, just your overall kind of well-being, right? I mean you know you can't. Yes, you can lose weight eating that shit, those 100 calorie packs, but at the end of the day you're really, you know it's not good for your body.

The biggest or I don't know if it's the biggest problem, but a big problem for me was, you know, counting calories is tough mentally, right, I mean, you got to be constantly like looking at what you're eating and spending time and if you're tracking every single you know bite that you eat and everything you drink and you're logging into some app or journal, I mean that's fucking torture, that's punishment. I mean it becomes like mentally exhausting, you know, especially like if you're eating out or eating at a friend's house and you're not making a meal, I mean so that might even make you not want to eat out. Or, you know, become antisocial, but I'll talk about that in a minute. To eat out, or, you know, become antisocial, but I'll talk about that in a minute. But this constant need to monitor and record everything that goes in and out of your mouth is like, you know, the mental effort is immense and you know, if you have willpower, it definitely depletes your willpower and it makes it really hard to stick to your goal, you know. So I just think, with everything else that we have going on in our lives, you know, today it's crazier than ever. I mean that exhaustion spills over into every area of your life. You know it reduces your productivity, it increases your stress and bottom line. I think it affects the overall quality of your life. It did for me.

I mean I was so hell-bent on counting the calories that, you know, like that was what I was living for. So I mean, it really can become a burden and and make healthy eating feel like a chore. And everything that I talk about is is, you know, eating should be a pleasure, not a chore. When you eat, whatever you choose, it's a pleasure because, again, you know what to eat. I also think that, you know, counting calories could kind of, you know it creates this unhealthy relationship with food. It kind of gets you to eat in a restrictive way, like where you become obsessed with it. Or you count calories, you count calories, you count calories and then, boom, you binge eat.

So when you're constantly preoccupied with the calories, you start to and you guys know I hate this you start to categorize foods as good or bad. And I don't believe that there's good or bad food. I think there's. You know there's healthy food and unhealthy food. But I don't think, you know, you know I like to feed my soul, you know, eat some stuff that regular, you know diet coach or doctor would not say is good, like those Costco hot dogs and like the donuts I occasionally eat or the hamburger.

I mean, you know, I think you know when you start to label foods as good or bad. You know, when you eat one of those quote unquote bad things, you start to feel guilty and you start to feel, like you know, ashamed, like oh shit, I blew that. You know, I blew the diet because I ate something bad and I think that's. You know, it's really that kind of black and white thinking good and bad that makes it, you know, particularly hard. So, like, if you go over your calorie limit for the day, you feel like you failed, or you feel like you can't eat, or you might say, ah, you know, fuck it, I blew the diet, I'm going to now I'm going to binge eat because I blew it. Anyway, I'll start again tomorrow. So you know, I just think it's.

The Pitfalls of Calorie Counting

I think that counting calories definitely leads to that kind of mental thing. I talked about this for a second, but I think when you're really crazy about calorie counting, like I was, it leads to social isolation.

I didn't want to go out to eat because I was afraid what I was going to eat in the restaurant was going to be over the calories, especially if it's a restaurant, if it's any kind of decent restaurant. They're not telling you the caloric value of the things you're eating, you're just eating, you know. So, like you go out or you go to a friend's house and you're like, stressed about you know, stressed out about eating, that's craziness. I mean, that's like taking it to the extreme, which of course I did, the extreme, which of course I did. And I think people who count calories do they worry about, you know, the, these kind of strict numbers that they're trying to stick to because they know they have to lose. So I think calorie counting, you know, in that area is a is a freaking disaster. I mean, it fucks with your head. You know the pressure to stay inside your calorie limit is causing you anxiety, right? I mean which? Which? And, by the way, anxiety absolutely can, you know, stop you from losing weight. There's no question about it. I mean, this is a medical fact that stress releases cortisol and that's a hormone that increases your appetite and promotes fat storage. So now you're stressed out and you know you're secreting all this cortisol because you're trying to restrict your calories and you're getting the exact opposite of what you're trying to achieve, you know. I also think another thing is that it, you know it fucks with your body, right? Your body is an incredible machine, right? I mean there's no question about it. I mean it's the most incredible machine in the world. So when you like, all of a sudden strictly reduce your calorie intake, your metabolism definitely slows down to conserve energy. I mean, we all know what it's called. It's called going into starvation mode. You know your body goes like holy shit, when am I going to eat again? So I better start slowing stuff down. And you know, saving these calories for when you know, or saving this energy, this fat, for when I need it, because you know I don't know what I'm going to eat again. It also, you know, obviously, when you're really not eating enough, it can lead to like loss of muscle mass and that slows down your metabolic rate even more. So you know my metabolism is slow. No, you're slowing your metabolism down by not feeding yourself, by not giving yourself the nutrients that you need. So you know, the more muscle mass you have, the better you burn, because muscle burns calories, you know, at a much higher rate than fat does.

Another thing is and this is a big one for me I you know I'm going to take a little little detour here, but I started going to this chiropractor who you know I was having just pain in my back and this was along my journey. It was a few, three, four, five months ago, I don't know and the chiropractor was like you know, the problem is, yeah, I can, I can get you out of pain in your back and your shoulder, but you know, we have to figure out what the cause is. There's no, you know, there's no. We can treat the symptom, you know. I mean, I can get you out of pain, you know we'll do that, but we have to figure out what's causing that pain.

And when you go on this calorie restriction thing, when you start to count calories, it focuses purely on the symptom is calorie intake, rather than you know the cause of your weight gain, which could be who know? Emotional eating, stress. Uh, you know you're a lazy sack of shit, like I was just laying around doing nothing. I mean, there's a million reasons, there's a million causes why you put on the weight. You know, if you're just treating the symptom, it's not sustainable. That is the very definition of a traditional or fad diet. Right, let's treat the symptom, not the cause.

So if you're not addressing that root cause, you know the weight that you lose even through that calorie restriction, is likely to be temporary. Not likely. It's definitely going to be temporary. I'm living proof, you know. I mean, I did that. I restricted my calories, did it for a few months and I lost a lot of weight, but sooner or later I got sick of it and I started to eat like a normal person, you know, eating the things that I wanted to eat, and I put the weight back on.

So if you're an emotional eater, or you eat when you're stressed out, counting calories, I hate to tell you it ain't going to solve the problem, okay, it's not going to solve your emotional issues, you know. So if you're a lazy guy like I was you know which I, and I still am, you know, and I didn't really do a lot of exercise reducing your calorie intake alone is not going to be enough to achieve and maintain a healthy weight. Yeah, I mean, I, I did it without losing weight. But I know, you know, now, 14 months into this thing or 15 months into wherever I am I, you know I am exercising much more.

But you can lose the weight without exercising and the worst part of it is is that the whole thing can end up backfiring on you, right? So if, if calorie counting, you know, can actually lead to you gaining weight, if you're focused on this number of calories rather than the nutritional quality of what you're eating and it doesn't satisfy your hunger or what your body needs, you'll probably overeat later, you know. And again your body can go into that starvation mode and you know it. Literally it slows your metabolism down and you end up putting on weight. So, I mean, calorie counting to me is not sustainable. Okay, it's, you know.

Like I've told you 100 times, you know there is no other way to lose weight other than to burn more calories than you consume. But the you know how you do. It is where the magic happens, you know. I mean, I like it. You've heard me say I eat whatever the fuck I want, whenever I want. What makes it different? And people have asked me this and I've been talking to people online. They're like well, you know, it's just calories in and calories out. I'm like yes, it is, but the key to it is the mental side of it, is the mental game. You know it's how you make those choices about what you're going to eat.

So you know, if it's like in the case of calorie, strict calorie counting, I mean, look the bottom line, it's not sustainable because shit happens right, there's going to be days when you're traveling, you're going to a party Honestly, you're just too busy to count every fucking calorie. You know, you have one of those apps. I mean that's work. So counting calories alone doesn't allow for those kind of fluctuations in your day, in your life. I mean, life happens. It's like that all or nothing mentality, you know, is ultimately going to lead you to quit, to fail.

I know I did it. I was tracking my calories like a champ and then, sooner or later, I was like what am I doing here? This is painful, this is work, this is hard work. This is a torture chamber and that's why people think that a diet, that losing weight, is hard work, you know. But it's not Because you know what to eat. You know in your DNA what to eat, okay, and it's just about making the choices and thinking I mean, you know another thing that I talk about all the time is you know why calorie counting isn't great?

It doesn't teach you any long-term habits. Like, if you're on the weight loss shots and all that, that's great, you're going to lose weight. If you're on paleo, you're going to lose weight. If you're on keto, you're going to lose weight. You're going to lose weight on all those diets. But you're not learning anything along the way, right? You're not learning how to eat after the diet is over? I mean, you're on a diet, right? You're not teaching yourself hey, here's how I need to eat and make it sustainable. So, yes, you'll restrict all your calories, but sooner or later you're going to go back to all your old eating habits if you haven't really kind of spent the time and taught yourself how to think about what you're going to eat and learn how to make better choices. You know, at the end of the day, my whole theory of shut up and choose is basically you know, you have to build habits that you can maintain for the rest of your life.

I've been on every diet. You name a diet. I've been on it. Okay, and every time I get to the end my goal, which is always a number right, when I would get to that goal. I'd be like all right, man, this is a lifestyle. I can, I can, I can maintain this lifestyle. But at the end, at the end of every diet, sooner or later, I couldn't maintain it. I couldn't sustain it. It didn't become a lifestyle because I didn't really teach myself anything. All I learned was how to do that thing. Whether it be cut out carbs or you know, it's not sustainable, it's just, it's crazy.

Making Smart Food Choices

And here's a real big one. Here's another reason why calorie counting sucks. It's not fucking enjoyable, right? It sucks. People don't like counting calories. It takes all the joy out of eating and it makes food the enemy. And food shouldn't be your enemy. It should be your pleasure to eat things and and you should be able to eat the things that you like, not as much as you want, not all the time, but you should be able to eat what you choose. And when you learn to make the small, smart choices and you don't make any food off limits like, hey, I could never have this again, it makes it so much easier to make those choices and it makes it easy to stick to make those choices. And it makes it easy to stick to it because, hey, I always told myself on this thing if I want to go eat a dozen jelly donuts, I'll go eat them. I just don't feel like eating them right now but I know I can, so maybe I'll have them tomorrow or, you know, I'll have them next week, but I always had the option open to me which helped me make the smart choice, the better choice, and that's you know kind of why.

I think the whole that's kind of a you know an overview of why I think calorie counting is so overrated, because you know what to eat. Right. Look, like I said early, you know, in the very beginning of this podcast, you need to lose five, 10 pounds, you know, so you can show off your ripped abs. No, then, then yes, then I think it's a there's a scientific method to doing that and you have to figure out your. You know how many calories you need and and you know cause, you're trying to burn off that last layer of fat.

For the people that need to lose 30 pounds, 50 pounds, 100 pounds, counting calories is not the answer. You know you're eating too many calories and you know you're not paying attention to half the things that you eat anyway. When you start to think about everything that goes in your mouth. The calorie counting is so unimportant because, again, you'll make the choices and again it can be little, small little choices. You know, I'm not going to have a bacon cheeseburger, I'm just going to have a hamburger. You'll save calories not eating the cheese and the bacon. And I'm not saying any of those things are bad because you know I like to feed my soul.

But the reality is that you know how to eat, you know what to eat. You're just choosing not to eat the right things. You know I'm not telling you things are bad. I am telling you you can make good choices and you can make better choices and you can make some not so smart choices, but at the end of the day, it's all about the choice. That's why I say and people go crazy when I say it if you're fat, you chose to be fat and you continue to choose to be fat. And again I'll say it, it may not be conscious, it may be subconscious, but when you wake up and you're present and you're making small, smart choices and you're thinking about things, you'll be amazed at how the choices you make change and the choices you make are more sustainable. And knowing the fact that you know that you can eat the donuts tomorrow allows you to make better choices today. So here's the kind of the net net.

I'll wrap it all up in a pretty little bow here. I mean, you know, counting calories definitely, you know, gives you that sense of control. Like you know, you're thinking, oh yeah, all right, I got this under control because now I know what to do, but it's a flawed method, it's not important. Well, no, let me rephrase it it is important, but it's not the best way to lose the weight. So you know, for me, instead of focusing on numbers, I was focusing on the stuff that I was putting in my mouth, the quality of the food I was putting in my mouth. I could have eaten, you know, one or two hundred calorie packs of Oreos. Or I could eat, you know, an orange or a piece of fruit, or a whole bunch of watermelon or what you know, even some turkey or some roast beef. All of those things are better than the hundred calorie pack, even if it's more calories. That stuff has nutritional values.

Diet food is poison. Okay, diet food is a joke. It's a myth. It's a great way to separate you for the money. Diet food is horrible for you. Eat real food. So you know, not only does it taste better and not only is it better for you, but it helps you create a better relationship with food. I have a great relationship with food. I eat whatever I want and, like I said, I eat some shit that people would you know a weight loss coach or doctor would say is not good. But I eat it anyway because it feeds my soul. But I eat it occasionally.

So you know, I believe that if you make these small smart choices and you trust your body, you can really do. I mean, look, I'm living proof, I'm down. You know, I'm the lightest I've been in in 35 years. You can do it without the stress and, in my opinion, the unsustainability of calorie counting. So trust yourself to make these small smart choices and, like I promise, you'll have a healthier and a happier lifestyle. I mean, in my opinion and I learned this at 59 years old but life is too short to spend it obsessing about the calorie count that you're putting in your mouth. So my advice is shut up and choose to live a better life and kind, know, kind of one bite, one small choice at a time. So that wraps it up for today my thought on calorie counting.

Um, and if you want to get my, I told you I have a shut up and choose light out. It's called why you're still a fat fuck. It's available learnshutupandchoosecom. My book is, of course, available on Amazon in both a you know printed version and an ebook version. If you know a bunch of people that need you know, of course you won't tell them that, but if you know people that are lazy, fat fucks that need a kick in the ass, I'm here to be that kick in the ass for them. Um, I hope you learned something today. Uh, if you disagree with me, I would love nothing more than to have a mega argument with you and tell you why you're wrong. Um, if you're on a diet, you know, great for you. If you're on weight loss drugs, great for you, but I promise when you come off those, you're going to need to learn how to eat anyway. So, with that being said, I will sign off and tell you to shut up and choose.

You've been listening to Shut Up and Choose. Jonathan's passion is to share his journey of shedding 130 pounds in less than a year without any of the usual gimmicks no diets, no pills and we'll let you in on a little secret. No diets, no pills, and we'll let you in on a little secret. No fucking gym, and guess what? You can do it too. We hope you enjoyed the show. We had a fucking blast. If you did, make sure to like, rate and review. We'll be back soon, but in the meantime, find Jonathan on Instagram at JonathanWrestlerBocaRaton. Find Jonathan on Instagram at JonathanWrestlerBocaRaton. Until next time, shut up and choose.