If you’re like most people, the word “calorie” conjures up images of fad diets and food restrictions. The truth is, calorie counting can be a healthy and effective way to lose or maintain your weight – as long as you do it correctly.
Here are five things you need to know about calorie counting.
Click Here: Calorie Counting Made EasyThe Truth about Calorie Counting
1. Not a Nutrient: A Unit of Energy
According to Web MD, “a calorie is a unit of energy needed to raise the temperature of a gram of water one degree.”
When it comes to food, calories are a measure of the energy content in each serving. How many calories are in a food depends on several factors, including the type of carbohydrate, fat, and protein it has.
2. Your Body Needs Sufficient Calories to Function Properly
The number of calories you need to eat each day to maintain your weight is called your basal metabolic rate (BMR).
Your BMR refers to the minimum energy your body needs to keep all of its systems running smoothly. For most people, about 60% of their daily caloric needs come from their BMR. The other 40% come from physical activity. To lose weight, requires that you create a calorie deficit, which means eating fewer calories than your body needs. This forces your body to burn stored energy, in the form of fat, for fuel.
3. The Calories You Require Depend on Your Age, Gender and Level of Activity
Your BMR is determined by several factors, including your age, gender, and activity level.
In general, the more muscle you have on your body, the higher your BMR will be. Muscle burns fat more actively than fat tissue.
Age and gender also play a role. As you age, unfortunately, your metabolism starts to slow down naturally. Women also have a slightly lower BMR than men, on average. Your activity level is another important factor. If you exercise, the more active you are, the more calories you burn. To meet your energy demands, you’ll have to eat more.
4. You Can Burn Calories Through Exercise, but Diet is More Important
The truth is diet is more important than exercise if your goal is weight loss.
That’s because it’s exceedingly difficult to burn enough calories through exercise to make a significant dent in your daily caloric needs. For example, a 155-pound person would need to run at a pace of about seven miles per hour for 30 minutes to burn 500 calories. That’s equivalent to a five-mile run. On the other hand, diet is a more efficient way to create a calorie deficit. For example, cutting out just 100 calories from your daily diet can help you lose 10 pounds in a year.
5. It Can Help You Lose or Maintain Your Weight
Calorie counting is a healthy and effective way to lose or maintain your weight. By tracking the number of calories you eat each day, you can ensure that you’re getting the right amount of energy to support your needs. Be sure you choose a calorie deficit that suits your lifestyle and activity level and is safe. Remember, diet is more important than exercise when it comes to weight loss.
Calorie Counting Made Easy
The bottom line is that calorie counting can be a useful weight-loss strategy as long as it’s done correctly. You may start seeing results right away if you put in the effort and motivation.
For more help counting calories use an app like My Food Diary. It will help you to eat properly and be in control of your decisions, and by making healthy changes to your unhealthy habits you can lose all that weight and keep it off for a lifetime. Take the guesswork out of weight loss. Record your food and exercise, and My Food Diary will crunch the numbers for you.
