How can you possibly know what your body needs when dieting? exact nutrient macros etc, your every day job? calorie exp do you take tht into account? such as walking up the stairs to the toilet, or going to the shops etc all burns cals, inc resting cals.
experimentation?
I've done bog standard calorie counting and not worried about macros but now I put more thought into what I eat and when I eat. Some people (myself for example) can't get away with eating loads of carbs whenver they want.
I believe, and I'm sure a lot of people on here do to, that macro ratios and timings are important. If nobody beleived that we wouldn't bother with pre/intra/post workout shakes. It is all down to the individual concerned though. Some people can eat what they want and stay lean, some people can't.
Obviously I'm not just talking about getting from being fat to being thin (that's easy enough), I'm talking about leaning out and retaining muscle.