When is a Calorie Not Just a Calorie?
Every few years there are new diets introduced suggesting that if you count calories you will be more conscious of them, and therefore you will eat less and lose weight.
But being conscious of calories is not the same as choosing not to eat as many.
Simply acknowledging the calories in that bacon triple cheese burger with extra bacon and chocolate milkshake is not going to negate them.
It will not block their artery clogging cholesterol, saturated fat and simple carbohydrates that leave you feeling hungry even though you never burned them off.
A calorie is simply a unit of measure.
It is the amount of energy that is needed to raise the temperature of one gram of pure water one degree Celsius.
There is nothing magic about the calorie in and of itself.
It doesn't matter what time you eat or what in what order you consume your foods.
The calorie will still affect your body in the same way.
If you eat too few calories, you will feel hungry and may become sluggish and tired.
Eat too many calories and you will feel sluggish, bloated and possibly unwell.
Continually eat too many calories for your own body and you will gain weight.
There is no real trick to the concept of the calorie.
It is actually quite simple: Your body has a set need for calories to maintain its current weight.
If you eat more than your body actually needs to have, the additional calories will be converted first to additional energy and then to fat.
More unnecessary calories coming in leads to more fat.
On the other hand, if there are too few calories taken in, the body will be forced to burn its own stores of fat for energy.
If the body goes too long without a new source of calories, however, it will stop burning the right fuel and will instead hold onto every single calorie that comes in, making you remain at the same weight even though you are eating far less than before.
The Calorie and the Concept of Hunger and Appetite The calorie is simple enough to understand, but there is more at work behind the scenes.
Complicated processes called hunger, appetite, digestion and metabolism can be influenced by emotions and other outside factors.
Appetite can be influenced by more than just a need for food.
The body can feel like it is starving because of emotional, visual or other cues.
In fact, the body can be influenced by something as simple as the time on the clock, eating not because you are hungry but because your body is conditioned to expect food at this time every day.
Watching other people eat can also make you eat, even when you know that you are not really hungry.
Actual hunger rarely prompts the office worker to hit the vending machine mid afternoon, but rather he is driven by his sense of habit.
Real hunger can be a difficult thing to understand, but there is also the concept of misplaced hunger.
It is important to understand the difference between real hunger and false hunger or you will end up eating more than you intended and more than you need, even when you are not hungry at all.
For some people, thirst can be mistaken for hunger.
Imagine that you need eight ounces of zero calorie water and instead eat a three hundred calorie snack.
Instead of giving the body what it was asking for, you have given it three hundred calories more than it needed and have also skipped giving it the water it needed in the first place.
But a Carb Calorie Counts for More than a Protein Calorie? Each gram of fat and carbohydrates has nine calories while each gram of protein calories has four.
In addition, the body burns up more energy while digesting protein than it does with either of the other macronutrients.
That being said, there are different considerations for which nutrient is needed, when it is needed and how much should be eaten.
The brain, the mysterious, complex organ that controls every system and other organ in the body, can only accept and use energy that is generated from complex carbohydrates.
Protein is used to build muscles and skin but also plays a number of other very complex roles in the body.
It contributes to cellular creation, the generation of bones, ligaments and tendons and also helps the body to create new chemicals that are used during the digestion, ovulation and even sleep.
Protein also plays a role in the cardiovascular system, helping to maintain the pH balance of the blood and keeping the blood pressure regulated.
It is important to get the right number of calories from the right kind of foods.
For some people, habit eating and a lack of understanding of real hunger can be a serious problem.
Some people become so overwhelmed with the deluge of information that they simply stop eating completely, which is just as bad as overeating to the metabolism.
It is important to remember that the body actually does need to get new energy sources every day, in evenly spaced meals, perhaps eating more frequently throughout the day instead of eating two or three large meals and nothing more.
Healthy between-meal snacks can be a great way to get the energy you need to keep your metabolism high.
Using protein supplements or protein based snacks can be a great way to accomplish this, helping you to avoid the lure of the vending machine at the end of the hall.
But being conscious of calories is not the same as choosing not to eat as many.
Simply acknowledging the calories in that bacon triple cheese burger with extra bacon and chocolate milkshake is not going to negate them.
It will not block their artery clogging cholesterol, saturated fat and simple carbohydrates that leave you feeling hungry even though you never burned them off.
A calorie is simply a unit of measure.
It is the amount of energy that is needed to raise the temperature of one gram of pure water one degree Celsius.
There is nothing magic about the calorie in and of itself.
It doesn't matter what time you eat or what in what order you consume your foods.
The calorie will still affect your body in the same way.
If you eat too few calories, you will feel hungry and may become sluggish and tired.
Eat too many calories and you will feel sluggish, bloated and possibly unwell.
Continually eat too many calories for your own body and you will gain weight.
There is no real trick to the concept of the calorie.
It is actually quite simple: Your body has a set need for calories to maintain its current weight.
If you eat more than your body actually needs to have, the additional calories will be converted first to additional energy and then to fat.
More unnecessary calories coming in leads to more fat.
On the other hand, if there are too few calories taken in, the body will be forced to burn its own stores of fat for energy.
If the body goes too long without a new source of calories, however, it will stop burning the right fuel and will instead hold onto every single calorie that comes in, making you remain at the same weight even though you are eating far less than before.
The Calorie and the Concept of Hunger and Appetite The calorie is simple enough to understand, but there is more at work behind the scenes.
Complicated processes called hunger, appetite, digestion and metabolism can be influenced by emotions and other outside factors.
Appetite can be influenced by more than just a need for food.
The body can feel like it is starving because of emotional, visual or other cues.
In fact, the body can be influenced by something as simple as the time on the clock, eating not because you are hungry but because your body is conditioned to expect food at this time every day.
Watching other people eat can also make you eat, even when you know that you are not really hungry.
Actual hunger rarely prompts the office worker to hit the vending machine mid afternoon, but rather he is driven by his sense of habit.
Real hunger can be a difficult thing to understand, but there is also the concept of misplaced hunger.
It is important to understand the difference between real hunger and false hunger or you will end up eating more than you intended and more than you need, even when you are not hungry at all.
For some people, thirst can be mistaken for hunger.
Imagine that you need eight ounces of zero calorie water and instead eat a three hundred calorie snack.
Instead of giving the body what it was asking for, you have given it three hundred calories more than it needed and have also skipped giving it the water it needed in the first place.
But a Carb Calorie Counts for More than a Protein Calorie? Each gram of fat and carbohydrates has nine calories while each gram of protein calories has four.
In addition, the body burns up more energy while digesting protein than it does with either of the other macronutrients.
That being said, there are different considerations for which nutrient is needed, when it is needed and how much should be eaten.
The brain, the mysterious, complex organ that controls every system and other organ in the body, can only accept and use energy that is generated from complex carbohydrates.
Protein is used to build muscles and skin but also plays a number of other very complex roles in the body.
It contributes to cellular creation, the generation of bones, ligaments and tendons and also helps the body to create new chemicals that are used during the digestion, ovulation and even sleep.
Protein also plays a role in the cardiovascular system, helping to maintain the pH balance of the blood and keeping the blood pressure regulated.
It is important to get the right number of calories from the right kind of foods.
For some people, habit eating and a lack of understanding of real hunger can be a serious problem.
Some people become so overwhelmed with the deluge of information that they simply stop eating completely, which is just as bad as overeating to the metabolism.
It is important to remember that the body actually does need to get new energy sources every day, in evenly spaced meals, perhaps eating more frequently throughout the day instead of eating two or three large meals and nothing more.
Healthy between-meal snacks can be a great way to get the energy you need to keep your metabolism high.
Using protein supplements or protein based snacks can be a great way to accomplish this, helping you to avoid the lure of the vending machine at the end of the hall.
