Calories: The Hard Facts.
Calories. You know this term. It’s the measurements found on every selection of food at the grocery store. It’s the number being counted and burned during your workout. It’s what determines your healthy daily allotment of food per day.
But what is a calorie?
Cal-o-rie. Noun. a) A unit of measure equal to the kilocalorie, used to express the heat output of an organism and the fuel or energy value of food. b) A quantity of food capable of producing such an amount of energy.
Calories are essentially “food energy.” How does this help you?
Calories and Your Workout
Shape Fit quotes, “3,500 calories resides in one pound of body-fat.” This means if you exercise every day, and burn 500 calories during your exercise routine, you will lose one pound. Sounds alright, doesn’t it? To reach 500 calories, however, requires a dedicated workout that actually runs you anywhere from 20 minutes to a couple hours of aerobics.
Here’s how to combat those 500 calories:
- Bicycling: 250 to 500 calories in 30 minutes, depending on slope and speed.
- Swimming: approximately 400 calories in 30 minutes.
- Running: approximately 300 calories in 30 minutes.
- Brisk Walking: approximately 180 calories in 30 minutes.
Calories and Your Diet
Fighting the calories off is not just the only thing to be aware of either. Since calories are littered all over the sides of boxes and on the labels underneath the food products purchased at your grocery store, start counting your intake! You will find yourself more conscious of high-calorie foods that are prone to weight gain. This will better your nutrition.
Calories are not the sole perpetrator of weight, but understanding calories can ultimately lead to a healthier died. Other underlying factors of food energy include: fat, ethanol, proteins, carbohydrates, organic acids, polyols, and salatrims.
Outside of the United States, food is not just measured in calories, but in joules–the unit that has otherwise replaced calories in scientific measurement for energy.
The Calorie Amount That’s Right for You
There is no hard answer for how to determine how many calories you should eat per day. Several websites have counters, but these forms of measurement rely on one of two things: body mass index; and height/weight tables.
As a rough standard, however, take your desired weight and multiply it by 100. This will give you a starting point for how many calories you should aim for, if you plan on losing weight without any exercise. Remember that as you exercise, you can watch the calories you burn, and this will allow you to increase your calories per day. If you are aiming for a weight of 120 lb., and you burn 300 calories a day during a good aerobic workout, you can eat 1500 calories.
But this is just a starting point! The amount of calories you can intake and remain at a stable level, or at a weight loss level, is best determined through trial and error. Measure how many calories you currently intake with your diet. Is your weight relatively stable? Gaining? Losing? Once you figure out the right amount of calories you need to be stable or to lose (or perhaps to gain!), stick with your gameplan to meet your agenda.
Calorie intake per day is dramatically affected by three different things:
- How active you are
- How much of your weight is lean mass
- How much of your weight is fat
Calories and You
You’ve heard the saying, “You are what you eat.” The amount of calories you eat will directly affect your energy level and your weight. Be aware of the calorie, and how it impacts you! Stay healthy!
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