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Is Counting Calories The Way To Go? What Works And What Doesn't When It Comes To Diets?
Still Seem To Struggle To Lose Weight Consistently.
What Am I Doing Wrong?"
"How Come Sometimes I Can Succeed In
Losing A Few Pounds And Other Weeks
The Cravings Simply Take Over?"
"Some Days Counting Calories Is Just Too Darn Hard!
How Do You Keep On Top Of Everything
AND Stay Focused And Committed?"
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From: Ann & Howard Woolston
Date:
Counting calories has long been seen as a great way
to manage your weight, although getting on top of
all the numbers, and staying focused can be sometimes difficult.
to manage your weight, although getting on top of
all the numbers, and staying focused can be sometimes difficult.
So, we'd like to help...
On this page you will find, under the heading "Counting Calories" further down the page, some links to some interesting articles on the topic of calorie counting that should prove helpful. On an adjacent page "How Many Calories" you will also find,
- a table with the top 20 most requested items that people have asked for the calorie count on, and
- a list of the next 300 most requested
Elsewhere on the site we have also put together a wide range of other useful information in the form of articles covering the following areas:
* Weight Loss Help ...
* How To Lose Weight Fast ...
* Dieting Made Easier ...
* And some suggestions to help you Lose More Fat ...
You'll find the links to the other pages at the bottom of this page. Please feel free to poke around a bit as you will be very pleasantly surprized by how much information is here for you to use.
Enjoy...
Kind regards,
Ann and Howard Woolston
Is Counting Calories Confusing You?
It’s quite common for people to make a serious commitment to losing weight, either because they simply feel a little heavy or because they worry about their health. Many of us actually progress past this commitment stage and make a start…only to find that we can’t sustain our efforts after those first few weeks. This is often especially the case if you are trying to lose weight by counting calories and monitoring and controlling your calorie intake each day. With hundreds of possible foods and meal combinations to consider, it can be very confusing.
Fact is this seems like one of the simplest and most effective ways of losing weight. If you can work out what your ideal daily calorie count should be then you should simply be able to modify your eating habits to meet this count right?
This should, after all, be easier than trying out the latest diets, supplements and shakes that leave you feeling hungry and irritable.
The problem is, counting calories isn’t always that easy and a lot of people give up too early -- if you have too many days when you get to dinner and realize that you’ve already gone over your daily calories then it can be downright depressing!
If you want to count calories, the key thing is to be organized…and to look at the way that you like to eat and the way that you ought to eat, before you start counting calories in earnest. If you use a calorie counter to work out how many daily calories your favorite foods or snacks would be, for example, then you can work out which ones you need to cut out completely, which ones you could have as an occasional treat and which ones you can eat more frequently. And you can plan for that.
Counting calories on a daily basis is about more than this however. In order to maximize your chances of sticking to your daily calorie count you need to know what that number is, and you need to know how to work out the calorie content of the various foods you may be eating. A little planning will help and can actually make it easier for you to stick to your diet. Try buying a notebook to plan your meals and note down what you eat, or get a calorie counter to keep a running total of where you are up to each day.
If you can build your meal planning around calories then you’ll find it a lot easier to eat healthily, stick with your diet and maintain the right calorie intake.
A lot of people find it best to start with daily or weekly meal planning to do this. Because you need to think about things in advance, this might take a little time and effort to start with but as you get used to working stuff out here you’ll start to do it automatically. And everything then becomes easier.
There are lots and lots of online resources that can tell you what your daily calorie level should be and how many calories are in each food you consume etc. plus many others that will supply you with good meal plans…with the calories already worked out for you!
So, with a little investigation and planning, counting calories really doesn’t need to be confusing.
A good tip is to eat more regularly, make your portion sizes a bit smaller than you may be used to…and to remember to eat lots of fruit and vegetables as their calorie content is often lower than many other foods…yet they can be quite filling.
(And you could consider taking advantage of our Four Hidden Mysteries Of Successful Weight Loss email course)
Are You Burning Calories Or Storing Calories?
In very basic terms, we eat to live. And each of us will have an individual ideal calorie intake each day that will give us just enough of the ‘good’ stuff like nutrients, vitamins and minerals and energy to keep our bodies functioning as they should, and allow us to do just that…live.
Eat less than you should and you may well get sick, eat more than you should (or eat the wrong stuff) and you’ll gain weight…and that may also result in you getting sick.
If you are taking in too many calories on a regular basis, then your body has to work out how to deal with that excess.
If you lead a sedentary lifestyle where you don’t get much exercise at all, then you won’t see many of these calories actually being burned up or used by your body. You’re far more likely to see them stored, and the problem here is that your body doesn’t just store them as easily accessible items to use up later – it will convert them and store them as fat, in all the wrong places.
In a way it’s really quite easy to work out whether you are burning calories each day or storing them. If you take enough exercise to burn up the right amount of calories and therefore match your calorie intake, then the chances are you won’t have too many (if any) problems with your weight.
On the other hand if you aren’t getting any or enough exercise relative to how much you eat, then you’ll know that you’re storing excess calories because your weight will be higher than it should, and there will be a few extra flabby lumps and bumps around your body…on your stomach, hips, thighs, back, neck, arms, legs, ankles for example.
There are various ways to deal with this “match up your calories” issue.
Some people, for example, will simply take the approach of working out what their ideal calorie intake should be and then make sure that what they eat each day doesn’t exceed that total of calories. Others will simply exercise enough every single day to try and make sure that their calorie intake doesn’t have the chance to turn to fat in the first place. They will burn up all they eat, and sometimes more.
Many people who do manage to maintain a healthy weight take the view that their best route to success here is to count their calories every day AND to make sure that they get enough exercise to burn off any excess. This may also give you the added bonus of knowing that you can occasionally add a high calorie treat to even a low calorie diet and use extra exercise as a solution to burn up the excess.
So, are you burning calories or storing calories? Is your weight growing each month, or is it at a steady level, or declining? If it’s heading in the wrong direction for you and your health, it might be a good idea to take some action. Now!
And remember, your lifestyle (the amount of exercise you get) plays as much of a part in the way that your body responds to what you eat as the actual number of calories you eat. So, if you are already at the right weight, you could (as an example) maintain your optimum weight by simply taking time to work out how many calories you should limit yourself to, taking your lifestyle or exercise into consideration…and sticking with those.
Most of us however are probably in the “storing calories” part of the equation.
We therefore need to take some action today, increase our exercise and decrease the amount (or change the type) of food we consume. Then we’ll see results.
Does Your Calorie Intake Matter?
There seem to be a lot of diets, books and articles out there at the moment that will tell you to ignore calories. Most people looking to lose weight would just love to be able to do this…you know what I mean…ignore any mention of calories. And for many people, going on a low calorie diet, looking at the calorie content of every food you eat and watching your calorie intake every single day can just be soul-destroyingly boring.
But, are these diets, books and articles right? Can you actually lose weight by ignoring your calorie intake completely?
To be honest most of these diets, and the information that supports them will simply give a work around to the issue of calories. So, as such they don’t really seem to mean that calorie intake doesn’t matter -- they’re just trying a new spin to get you to try there particular solution out.
The fact is that you cannot ignore your calorie intake if you are looking to lose weight because it is this very intake (along with some related factors such as exercise) that makes your body decide whether you’re going to lose weight, gain weight or stay at the same weight.
Everybody has their own optimal individual calorie intake level. Let me explain. In general terms your daily recommended calorie count is based on whether you are male or female, your age, your weight and your height…and how active you are.
Stick to your optimal calorie intake level and your body will use the calories you eat and burn them off…and you won’t gain weight. Eat more than you should and you’ll gain weight, unless you exercise your butt off every single day to compensate for it.
It really is that simple. Too many calories and you get fatter and fatter and fatter. So, your calorie intake does matter. In fact it doesn’t just “matter”, it’s actually very important to your health and well-being.
From a general health perspective, if you ignore your calorie intake and eat more calories than you should then you’ll keep on gaining weight, and sooner or later you’ll probably get to a point where you could develop serious weight-related health issues. The same goes if you eat less than your ideal calorie intake level says you should…you’ll keep losing weight. And you could still make yourself ill here as well.
The fact is that your ideal calorie count tells you something real important. It tells you how many calories your body ideally needs to keep functioning to the best of its abilities. That’s why it’s called the optimum or ideal calorie level. The calories you eat every single day are simply the fuel that keeps your body going. Most people wouldn’t dream of not refueling their car, but for some reason they seem to be quite happy about either leaving their bodies short on gas or so stuffed full that they overflow in fat terms!
So, there is one really important fact to consider here about calories. If you cut down too far on your calories, or exceed your recommended calorie intake by too much…then you could do yourself some real physical harm.
So, does your calorie intake matter? On balance it would definitely seem like it does, so don’t ignore it, find out what your optimal daily calorie level should be, understand what it’s all about and use it to your advantage.
(And don't forget the extra bonus of subscribing to our Four Hidden Mysteries course. The email subscribe box is near the top of this page.)
How Many Calories Is Too Many Calories?
If you’re looking to lose some weight then you probably already realize that you need to know what your ideal daily calorie intake should be. You need to know how many calories is too many calories, and how many is just right for you. The right amount can help you keep fit and healthy and make sure that you don’t pile on the pounds because you are eating too much.
For some people, working out your appropriate daily calorie level can be real hard. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of websites out there that will claim to tell you what your ideal calorie intake should be. Sound like a solution?
Well, good as it sounds this might not always work for you. The problem is that not all of these websites will tell you the same ideal calorie level. Some are simply estimates based on your current weight.
So, you might take the first website’s answer, pick a calorie intake and stick with that. But what if it’s too low for you? Chances are then you’ll simply feel hungry all the time and overeat to compensate. You’ll also stand the chance of actually feeling sick as your body won’t be getting enough calories to keep it going.
And, if the number you get is too high, then your calorie intake will be too high as well, and…you’ve guessed it, you won’t lose the weight you want to lose because you’ll essentially be overeating.
You can easily find general figures that tell you how many daily calories men and women should be eating. These are likely to be accurate in some situations but they don’t take the whole picture into consideration. So, for example, they won’t necessarily include your build or physique and they won’t look at how your lifestyle affects your overall calorie count. Burning calories by being active may mean that you need more calories just to get by than if you spend your life on the couch watching TV!
It seems logical to try to work out your daily calorie intake in a way that takes into account these factors. Many people find that the Harris-Benedict calorie calculation formula helps here. This calculation of calories is based on you as an individual and your lifestyle.
So, how does it work?
What you do here is work out your daily calorie intake by using a simple calculation to establish your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) figure to start with. This will tell you how many calories your body needs, simply to keep ticking over, even before we consider any level of exercise at all.
If you are a male then you work out your BMR this way:
• 66 + (6.23 x your weight in pounds) + (12.7 x your height in inches) - (6.8 x your age in years)
If you are a female then you use the following calculation:
• 655 + (4.35 x your weight in pounds) + (4.7 x your height in inches) - (4.7 x your age in years)
But, and this is a big but, the advantage to this system is that you must also adapt it to your lifestyle in terms of how active you are. This gives you a much more accurate calorie intake as a whole.
To do this you need to think about much exercise you do and increase the BMR accordingly:
- Sedentary. None/very little/desk job -- multiply your BMR figure by 1.2
- Lightly active. Basic exercise a couple of days/times a week -- multiply your BMR figure by 1.375
- Moderately Active. Exercise/sports 4 or so times a week -- multiply your BMR figure by 1.55
- Very Active. More than 6 times/days a week -- multiply your BMR figure by 1.725
- Extremely active. Virtually every day, more than once a day or doing intensive training --multiply your BMR figure by 1.9
So, if you are a female aged 35, who weighs 140 pounds and is 63 inches tall…your BMR would work out at about 1,400 and if you were moderately active you would multiply this by 1.55 to get a total daily calorie needs figure of 2,170 which tells you how many calories you need each day to maintain a constant weight.
Now unfortunately, there are a number of “acceptable” methods to calculate your daily calorie needs including the Hamwi formula, the Robinson formula, the Miller formula, the BMI based formula… as well as the Harris-Benedict formula we have used above, and each one produces a slightly different result and can take into account different factors as well.
There is no exact formula unfortunately that will be right for everyone.
So, back to the original question…how many calories is too many calories?
If you are trying to lose weight then the daily calorie needs calculation above will be too many. If you are trying to gain weight then "too many" calories will be based on the growth level you want, and your calorie level will need to be higher. And if you’re trying to stay at the same weight level month after month, then exceeding your daily calorie number for your activity level will prove to be “too many”.
Yet again, the answer varies for everyone. We are individuals and our calorie needs differ as well, so make sure that you calculate your level based on your set of information and don’t simply work off a global average.
How Low Is Low Calorie? Can You Have Negative Calories?
Every single individual has an ‘ideal’ calorie intake. We all have a number of calories that we should or can eat every single day taking into account factors such as our sex, height, weight and lifestyle.
Most people have weight problems nowadays simply because their calorie count intake is higher than their bodily needs -- if you eat over your calorie count for the day, for example, and you don’t see any of these excess calories burned through exercise, then your body will simply store them as fat.
One of the most common ways to lose weight is to eat a low calorie diet. That way you might avoid eating those high calorie snacks that can see you pile on the pounds and you’ll get more ‘bang for your buck’ in terms of food volume. You may also be less likely to feel hungry as you can eat a lot more of the low calorie foods compared to ones that contain a lot of calories, and you’ll probably find it easier to lose weight.
You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that not all foods are equal.
Count the calories in lettuce, for example, and you’ll find that it obviously has way fewer calories than a hamburger meal. But, have you ever thought about the scale when it comes to low calorie foods? If a hamburger has more calories in it than a piece of lettuce then is it possible to find foods that have a lower calorie count than lettuce?
Can you go all the way here? Do negative calorie foods really exist for example?
The fact is that there are some foods that can technically give you negative calories. It isn’t so much the fact that these low calorie foods have a negative calorie content, it’s more about the way that your body works to process these foods.
Let me explain. You burn calories whenever you eat something through the effort that your body makes to eat and digest that piece of food, so, the principle here is that you could find very low calorie foods that end up effectively with negative calories once your body has burned them off in the digestive process.
There are a few low calorie foods that could be seen as containing negative calories. Celery is probably the best known example of this. There are very few calories in a stick of celery and the effort you put into eating and digesting it may well end up giving it a negative calorie effect in the end. Your body uses up more calories eating and digesting it than your body actually gets from the celery!
Before you get too excited, it is wise to remember a simple fact here though…you can’t live on celery alone! Knowing that some low calorie foods could end up with negative calories is one thing, living on them solely is another. Your body needs more than that, and you’ll be hungrier and you won’t be doing much for your overall health. But, saying that, foods that can potentially have negative calories could be a good way of helping out your low calorie diet…when used with other foods.
So, here’s a brief list of very low calorie vegetable items. Do some research and you’ll easily find others as well:
| Asparagus, steamed (5 spears) | 33 calories |
| Beans, green, boiled (1 cup) |
25 calories |
| Capsicum, green (1 only) | 12 calories |
| Celery (1 stem) |
2 calories |
| Courgettes / Zucchini (1 medium) | 17 calories |
| Lettuce, shredded (1 cup) | 5 calories |
| Mushrooms (28g) |
4 calories |
| Spinach, boiled (1 cup) | 16 calories |
| Tomato, fresh (1 medium) | 20 calories |
As you can see, “How Low Is Low Calorie” can actually be very low. You do need to maintain a healthy balance though and there are recommended minimum daily calorie counts as well for both men (1800 calories) and women (1200 calories), so don’t try to cut everything out.
Here is a much more comprehensive list that may be helpful:
How Many Calories?
And if you want some help to stay focused and learn how to generate really great results then check out our Four Hidden Mysteries Of Succesful Weight Loss. It's a FREE email course that will answer many of your questions for you. you'll find the subscribe box near the top of the page.
Author: H Woolston
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