One of my favorite quotes that I use when it comes to counting calories for weight and fat loss is, You Can’t Manage What You Can’t See.
Basically saying that if you can’t see what you are consuming in calories, then you can’t possibly say that you are managing your weight because you do not have any facts to stand behind what you are saying. I have a slow metabolism, is one of the many things I hear almost every day and quite frankly that is just a lousy excuse which has been programmed into the minds of the average American citizen to justify their reason for not losing weight.
This is a complete fabrication of the truth. Having said that, you are a product of your own actions, thus if you sit down all day and eat fast food then that is what you will look like. Nobody is just born in great shape, they develop the right habits that over time which will result in them being in shape. They turn down that piece of cake, they get up and go to the gym on that rainy day, and they refuse to get seconds at the buffet, these are just some of the small things. Those people that are in shape have developed healthy habits just as you have developed bad habits, and now you just need to program your body to work like theirs and burn fat 24/7. The first step is counting calories. Counting calories considerably has more pros than cons. However by the time you are finished reading this blog post you will learn to appreciate the vast benefits of calorie counting and remove any negative stigma towards counting calories.
The Pros and Cons of Counting Calories
Pro: Makes you conscious of what you are eating throughout the day and helps you with deciding whether you can have that extra plate of food.
Con: The “A Calorie Is A Calorie” saying. This thought is spawned from the belief that our bodies process calories the same way regardless of where they come from. But not so fast: 100 calories of chocolate cake are not the same as the 100 calories found in a serving of carrots. As it turns out, your body burns nearly 50% more calories after eating a meal packed with whole foods versus an equivalent meal consisting of processed foods, according to a 2010 study in the health journal Food & Nutrition Research. During manufacturing, processed foods are broken down and stripped of many nutrients, making it easier for the body to digest them.
On the other hand, whole foods, such as multigrain bread, celery or zucchini, contain naturally healthy nutrients like fiber which the body has to work overtime to break down, temporarily boosting your metabolism. Additionally, “Eating smarter calories by way of foods packed with fiber content or rewarding protein, like a chicken breast instead of potato chips, will help you naturally eat less over time”. See how to balance out meals and snacks so that you can eat your favorite foods without experiencing any negative results.
Pro: Keeping a detailed record of the types of food you consume holds you accountable for what you are eating. So if you’ve found that you’ve become the proud owner of a couple more pounds you can easily look back at what you have been eating to see the poor choices you’ve made in your diet which resulted in your weight gain. Then you really can’t say “why is this happening?” You will be able to see exactly why, by going back to look at previous meals, and with your new knowledge about nutrition you will be able to tweak and make the necessary changes to get you right back on track, no questions asked.
Con: One of the biggest issues with maintaining a record of the types of food consumed is that most people believe, If I Burned 500 Calories Today At The Gym I Can Eat 500 Extra. NO! Whatever your weight loss goals allow you to eat according to the suggested types of food, just stick with that because it also accounts for your activity level when calculating your total energy expenditure for the day, so by consuming that extra 500 calories will only set you back another day from reaching your goals.
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