Calorie Counting - You are what you Eat!

Calorie counting enables you to better plan and manage your weight. If you have a daily caloric requirement that you want to meet, or you need to monitor your caloric intake, we have specialised and targeted approaches that will assist in your intake management. The following guidance is taken at your own discretion but illustrates key concepts that you should become aware of in calorie counting.

A calorie is a unit of measure of the energy required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1°C. A joule is a unit of electrical energy, equal to the work done when a current of one ampere is passed through a resistance of one ohm for one second. 1 calorie = 4.184 joules.

A pound of body fat equates to approximately 3500 calories.

Composition of Weight Methods

1) Body Mass Index - BMI

BMI is a popular but not accurate method of assessing your weight relative to your height. In an equation form it is given as

Based on this equation, the following table indicates your category of weight composition.

2) Hamwi Formula Method

An alternative calculation for healthy weight determination is the Hamwi method, which uses height alone to estimate a a weight range for a normal weight. This method simply states that

• For men the normal weight is 106 lb for the first 5 ft then 6 lb for each inch over 5 ft
• For women the normal weight is 100 lb for the first 5 ft then 5 lb for each inch over 5 ft

3) Lean Body Mass and Fat Weight

The lean body mass is simply your body's muscle, organs and bones but not your fat. As a very rough estimation, the following ranges for men and women illustrate categories for varying levels of body fat. Just by knowing ones health and being honest in the mirror will let a person judge what classification they belong to.

To that effect, to calculate your body fat weight and your lean body mass, first multiply your total body weight by your body fat percentage above to give you your body fat. Then subtract this from your total body weight for the weight of your lean body mass.

For example, if your total body weight is 180 lbs, and your body fat percentage is 21%:

• 180 x 0.21 = 37.8 lb of body fat
• 180 - 37.8 = 142.2 lb of lean body mass

Losing Weight

The goal of any diet and weight loss plan is not to lose weight, but to lose body fat. Exercise that builds muscle will help to prevent muscle loss, and sustain your metabolism from slowing its rate. The most important factor is how many calories you consume each day and eating too few is not the right approach. To lose weight, you need to create a calorie deficit. This simply means that you need to eat fewer calories than you burn. The equation is simply calories eaten - calories burned = calorie deficit.

If you take in 3000 calories a day, and that maintains your current weight, then a calorie deficit of 15% of that is equal to either eating 450 fewer calories per day, or burning 450 more calories per day, or a combination of the two that equals it.

A calorie deficit of 500 calories (meaning that you burn 500 calories more than you eat each day) you would lose approximately one pound per week (given the table at the top of this page):

500 x 7 = 3,500

A calorie deficit of 1000 calories would mean losing approximately two pounds per week. Do not attempt more than this at this rate, as losing weight rapidly has many disadvantages.

Drinking Water

Drink water. End of. For more reasons;

1. Initial weight loss is largely due to loss of water, and you need to drink an adequate amount of water in order to avoid dehydration.
2. The process of burning calories requires an adequate supply of water in order to function efficiently; dehydration slows down the fat-burning process.
3. Burning calories creates toxins (think of the exhaust coming out of your car), and water plays a vital role in flushing them out of your body.
4. Dehydration causes a reduction in blood volume; a reduction in blood volume causes a reduction in the supply of oxygen to your muscles; and a reduction in the supply of oxygen to your muscles can make you feel tired.
5. Water helps maintain muscle tone by assisting muscles in their ability to contract, and it lubricates your joints. Proper hydration can help reduce muscle and joint soreness when exercising.
6. A healthy (weight loss) diet includes a good amount of fibre. But while fibre is normally helpful to your digestive system, without adequate fluids it can cause constipation instead of helping to eliminate it.
7. Drinking water with a meal may make you feel full sooner and therefore satisfied eating less. Note, however, that drinking water alone may not have this effect. In order to feel satiated (not hungry), our bodies need bulk, calories and nutrients.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are chains of small, simple sugars, and are the body's main source of fuel. They are broken down and enter the bloodstream as glucose. Excess glucose is stored in the form of glycogen in the liver and, in limited quantities, the muscles.

Simple carbohydrates are small molecules. Because of their size, they can be metabolized quickly and therefore provide the quickest source of energy. They include the various forms of sugar, such as sucrose (table sugar), fructose (fruit sugar), lactose (dairy sugar), and glucose (blood sugar).

Complex carbohydrates are larger molecules. Because they are larger, it takes longer for your body to metabolize them to provide energy. They include starch, glycogen, and cellulose, and are found in vegetables and unrefined whole grains. Complex carbohydrates are also excellent sources of fibre.

Fibre is a form of carbohydrate that our bodies cannot digest. It is not only important for health, but is a significant factor in weight loss.

Protein

Protein is the main component of our organs, muscles, all our living cells, and almost all our body fluids. Proteins are chains of amino acids linked together in complex formations. There are 20 different amino acids, and all of them must be present in order for our bodies to build, maintain, and repair themselves. Nine of the 20 amino acids are considered essential because they cannot be manufactured by your body; they must come from food sources.

Proteins that contain all 20 amino acids are called complete proteins, and they are found in animal sources: meat (poultry, fish and other meats) and dairy (eggs and milk products). Proteins that come from plant sources are considered incomplete because they do not contain all 20 amino acids, though you can combine different plant sources to obtain all of them. However to reach an adequate level of proteins, it is more important to take in dark green vegetables, soybeans, and other plant sources, as these contain more protein -- based on an equal number of calories -- than their animal counterparts.

Fat

Fats are a necessary part of the body system and is needed in limited quantities. Fat types include saturated fats, unsaturated fats (monosaturated and polysaturated), trans fats, the essential fatty acids (primarily omega-3 and omega-6), and cholesterol. It assists the building of body tissue and cells, and the absorption of some vitamins and nutrients. We have to eat less of the bad fats, but also eat more of the good fats to optimise our health.

Calories in Proteins, Fats and Carbohydrates

Each gram of fat you consume is equal to over twice as many calories found in a gram of either protein or carbohydrate. Also as a seperate rule of thumb, a gram of alcohol provides 7 calories. So when you look at food labels, take these facts into consideration.

Fibre

Fiber is the part of plant-based foods that our bodies can't digest. It passes through our digestive tract without providing nutrition or calories. Carcinogens in our intestines bind to it and move through our colon more quickly than they otherwise would, reducing our risk for colon cancer. Fiber also helps transport cholesterol out of our body, reducing our risk for heart disease. It makes us feel full, sooner and stays in our stomach longer than other substances that we eat, slowing down our rate of digestion. A single slice of whole grain bread can be more filling than two slices of white bread. It also moves fat through our digestion faster meaning less fat is absorbed.

Meat and dairy contains no fibre. Refined grain foods have their fibre removed. Whole and natural foods have more fibre than processed foods. Examples of fibre rich foods are lentils, beans, peas, fruits, whole grains - which are made with their complete grain kernel.

Refined grains like white rice and those used to make white bread and sugary breakfast cereals have had most of their fiber and nutrients stripped away. They turn into blood sugar (glucose) so fast that, like sugar itself, they can cause a spike in our insulin level. This tells our body that plenty of energy is readily available and that it should stop burning fat and start storing it.

The greater concern with the insulin spike is not that it tells our body to start storing fat. Whatever we eat and don't burn up eventually gets turned into fat anyway.

The greater concern is that the insulin spike is followed by a drop in insulin level that leaves us feeling tired and hungry and wanting to eat more. The unfortunate result of this scenario is that it makes us want to eat something else with a high sugar content. When we do, we start the cycle all over again. Eating foods with plenty of fiber will help keep our blood sugar at a more consistent level.

Adding more fiber to your diet will likely help you lose weight and improve your health, but do it gradually. Rapid increases in consumption of fiber may result in gas or diarrhea

What to look out for

• Simple Carbohydrates can be metabolized quickly and are therefore most likely to cause an insulin surge. They include the various forms of sugar, such as sucrose (table sugar), fructose (fruit sugar), lactose (dairy sugar), and glucose (blood sugar). Watch for the "-ose" ending.
• Hidden sugar in processed foods like bread, ketchup, salad dressing, canned fruit, applesauce, peanut butter, and soups.
• Sugar in Beverages especially coffee and fizzy drinks quickly add the amount of sugar.
• Fat-Free Products are often loaded with sugar to replace the flavor that is lost when the fat is removed. Without any fat to slow it down the sugar is absorbed into your blood faster.
• No Sugar Added doesn't mean that the product doesn't naturally contain a lot of sugar. 100% fruit products often contain concentrated fruit juice, still another form of fructose or sugar.

  Table sugar (sucrose) is a key contributor to empty calories, because it has no nutritional value other than providing fuel for energy. Honey and other more natural sugars, on the other hand, are often considered to be healthier because of the trace vitamins and minerals they provide. Still, for weight loss purposes, all of these sweeteners can simply be treated as sugar.

Eat small meals frequently and exercise regularly to keep your metabolism in good order.

www.emptycalories.co.uk 2008+