The main rule of losing weight is: you need to spend more calories than you eat. Why sometimes this rule does not work, especially if you need to lose quite a few pounds? What are calories and how to count them?
A calorie is the amount of heat that allows one gram of water to be heated by one degree Celsius. All the food that gets into your stomach is digested, so calories are the energy needed for the processing of this very food. Foods consist of different ratios of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, and these components require different energy for their digestion.
To determine the calorie content of a meal, 2 methods are used.
First, each product is measured using a calorimeter device. The food is burned and energy is released, and the device calculates it.
The second way is mathematical. Food is decomposed into the ratio of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, and the tables determine how much energy is required to break it down.
Both methods are fine in theory, but in practice each organism is unique and many processes affect digestion. Depending on the state of the hormonal system, nervous system, lifestyle, weight and height, gender, time of day – the same dish can be digested in completely different ways. Therefore, it is impossible to call the exact method for determining the calories eaten and expended.
Those who decided to start counting calories and build on the basis of these calculations their way to a slim figure. We must understand that this method is effective and correct, but approximate. You don’t need to be equal to others, it is important to build your menu and physical activity, and when the weight goes down, analyze what kind of food and activities provoke weight loss.
During the day, the body spends energy on thousands of little things – from the work of the little finger to inhaling and exhaling. All day you spend calories and gain them again with food.
How to count calories
To get started, it’s enough to simply track your menu by writing products into any application on your computer or phone. Estimate how many calories you are consuming during your normal exercise.
The result should be collected within a couple of weeks and the arithmetic average for the week should be calculated. And already based on the information received, if the weight stands still or even grows, you can add physical activity so that there is more calorie consumption or reduce food intake – so that the consumption is less.
Be sure to pay attention to the ratio of proteins, fats and carbohydrates and not get hung up on one menu. Change foods to consume the vitamins and minerals your body needs.
The plus of calorie counting
– Conveniently track your diet and adjust it;
– You clearly imagine what and under what circumstances you eat;
– You can plan the menu in advance;
– You can eat whatever you want, the main thing is that it fits into your calorie intake;
Calorie counting is disciplined.