Perhaps the most concerning misconception in the world of healthy eating is that to get fit, you’ve got to eat less.

We hear harrowing stories of people restricting themselves to ridiculously-low daily calorie intakes, banishing carbs and existing on kale salad.

Madalin Frodsham‘s viral before and after picture is the proof we all need that strict calorie counting can not only be dangerous, but totally ineffective.

In an Instagram post, Frodsham revealed that she used to consume just 800 calories a day – and considered herself healthy.

“I was eating healthy food, but hardly any macronutrients…. 800 calories seems absurdly low as now I need minimum 1500 calories to be full, but at the time 800 calories was keeping me full because that’s what my body was used to,” she wrote.

“After a while though, salad simply wasn’t cutting it, and for all the restrictions I was placing on my diet, I simply wasn’t seeing the results I had anticipated.”

Watch: A delicious quinoa recipe to try. Post continues after video.

The 27 year old then went to a personal trainer and nutritional coach to learn about macronutrients, the actual make up of calories. Macros are divided into three groups – carbohydrates, fat and protein.

The coach advised a major overhaul of her diet.

“When he first told me to eat 50 per cent carbs I nearly died! I was eating about 10 per cent carbs before and could not fathom how 50 per cent of carbs would not make me fat. I also freaked out at all the calories,” she wrote.

The average recommended break down is usually 20 per cent protein, 50 per cent carbohydrates and 30 per cent fat.

Carbohydrates provide 16 kilojoules per gram, protein provides 17 kilojoules per gram and fat provides 37 kilojoules per gram. (Post continues after gallery.)

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Documenting the process, she says at first her body struggled to adapt to the bigger meals.

“Now my stomach can take way more and is much happier! In the second week I was averaging 1600 calories a day! It didn’t take long for my body to catch up,” she wrote.

Now focusing on the nutritional content of food and eating 1800 calories a day, there are still days when that old frame of mind creeps in, but she reminds herself that it’s about the kind of calories she eats, not the numbers.

A typical day on a plate for her looks like:

Breakfast: Protein shake with a banana and oats.

Lunch: Low fat creamy chicken, creole chicken or lemon chicken (I’m a bit chicken obsessed!) with quinoa or sweet potato and steamed veggies.

Snack: Oat and applesauce muffin or a sweet potato and zucchini brownie with strawberries and dark chocolate.

Dinner: Wholemeal pasta with bolognese, a whole wheat quesadilla, vegetable fritters or lentil curry with naan bread.

“That’s why I love tracking my macros. It will tell me ‘Maddy, you need to eat more. Go eat three potatoes. And I’ll pat myself on the back for being healthy and doing really good today,” she wrote.

“If you’re under feeding yourself in an effort to lose weight, don’t do what I did for so long. Don’t waste your time eating salad when you could be eating sweet potatoes and banana pancakes. Eat more and get fit. It actually works.”

Since sharing the image yesterday, it’s been liked over 13,000 times, with many comments stating they were unaware of the truth about calorie counting.

However, while 90 per cent of responses have been positive, there have been a few negative comments.

“There’s always going to be a few people that try and bring you down, with the most negative comments being that 1. You looked better before or 2. You don’t look any different at all. I’ve heard both so many times that it doesn’t bother me,” she told Mamamia.

“I’ve had a few people comment that to be on 800 calories day, I MUST have had an eating disorder. This comment is probably the most hurtful as it’s so untrue. I genuinely thought I was healthy when I was eating 800 calories a day, I was just uneducated.”

Looking at macros rather than just calories is a good way to remember that every food (yes, especially carbs!) have a valuable place in your diet.

But as with any diet or food plan, it’s important to not get carried away with obsessively counting any aspect of your food to the point that it replaces the joy of eating.

Everyone has different needs and body reacts in different ways. To find out what’s best for you, consult an expert who can put you on the right path.

Image: Instagram/@madalingiorgetta.