What most people who have never counted calories don't realize is that once you know general counts for the foods you consume the most and once you realize what portion size corresponds to those calories, you're not doing that much counting. The reason is that most of us tend to eat the same types of food, You're only learning a bit at the beginning. After that, there is very little thought that goes into it and it becomes almost second nature because you get used to specific portion sizes for the main staples in your diet. You just have to be a little more careful of those "indulgence" meals or days or anything that might throw your count way off.