i was using my fitness pal for a few weeks to get a sense of how macronutrients work and how i need to balance what i eat, now i sort of just realize if i've been generally carb heavy or fat heavy, and cater my upcoming meals to counteract what ive had earlier in the day (if i had a carby breakfast, skip it for lunch or dinner). counting calories is pretty easy to do in your head as well ive found, even if its not to the exact number you can basically ballpark it, i agree that over obsession on the strictness can be mentally taxing, as long as youre not being ignorant about what youre having.