We all want to eat healthier but at some point, we have to start paying attention how much we are eating because if we take more than we can expend, we gain weight, and calories are important part of the equation. Nevertheless, that can be very confusing.
What is a calorie?
A calorie is the way we measure the amount of energy in food. Calories are fuel for our bodies to function. As we move around, breathe, and exercise, we expend calories. When we burn the same amount of calories that we take in, we balance our energy needs. If we disturb the equation, then we either gain or lose weight.
How do we know how much calories we need?
It is an often-asked question, and the answer is: it depends. It depends on many factors such as how old we are, gender, how tall we are, how much we weight, and last but not least, how physically active we are.
How do we figure it out?
There is a couple of ways. One general way is to go on to the Website mypyramid.gov and there is "My Pyramid Menu Planner" we can click on, and it will ask us to enter our age, gender, how much we weight, how tall we are and how physically active we are, and then it will provide us with our calorie level.
Does it make sense to count calories?
Yes, at some level everyone can benefit from it, because most of us have no idea how much we are eating. A food diary is a good way of keeping track of how many calories we are consuming, and it reminds us how often we are eating. Very often, we take a bite here; a little snack there, and we just do not realize how many times we actually take that calorie, that energy in.
How much calories do we take in?
I will go over some restaurant dishes.
Typical restaurant breakfast: three pancakes, eggs, bacon, toast, lots of butter on the bread, and lots of maple syrup on the pancakes. It is over 800 calories.
Typical restaurant lunch: two slides of pepperoni pizza plus 20 oz. Pepsi or Coke; It is about a 1000 calories in the form of sugar and fat.
Typical restaurant dinner: steak fajitas, mashed potatoes, a side salad. It is almost 2000 calories.
It is important to pay attention to calories when we are trying to lose or maintain our weight. Become familiar with the calories that are in the food we are eating, and remember, restaurant food is often packed with extra calories.
What is a calorie?
A calorie is the way we measure the amount of energy in food. Calories are fuel for our bodies to function. As we move around, breathe, and exercise, we expend calories. When we burn the same amount of calories that we take in, we balance our energy needs. If we disturb the equation, then we either gain or lose weight.
How do we know how much calories we need?
It is an often-asked question, and the answer is: it depends. It depends on many factors such as how old we are, gender, how tall we are, how much we weight, and last but not least, how physically active we are.
How do we figure it out?
There is a couple of ways. One general way is to go on to the Website mypyramid.gov and there is "My Pyramid Menu Planner" we can click on, and it will ask us to enter our age, gender, how much we weight, how tall we are and how physically active we are, and then it will provide us with our calorie level.
Does it make sense to count calories?
Yes, at some level everyone can benefit from it, because most of us have no idea how much we are eating. A food diary is a good way of keeping track of how many calories we are consuming, and it reminds us how often we are eating. Very often, we take a bite here; a little snack there, and we just do not realize how many times we actually take that calorie, that energy in.
How much calories do we take in?
I will go over some restaurant dishes.
Typical restaurant breakfast: three pancakes, eggs, bacon, toast, lots of butter on the bread, and lots of maple syrup on the pancakes. It is over 800 calories.
Typical restaurant lunch: two slides of pepperoni pizza plus 20 oz. Pepsi or Coke; It is about a 1000 calories in the form of sugar and fat.
Typical restaurant dinner: steak fajitas, mashed potatoes, a side salad. It is almost 2000 calories.
It is important to pay attention to calories when we are trying to lose or maintain our weight. Become familiar with the calories that are in the food we are eating, and remember, restaurant food is often packed with extra calories.
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