I'm not exactly sure what I want to write here, but i know that I feel like writing. So, I'm going to start typing and see what comes of it
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OOOH!!! PICK ME!twinkletteJune 17 2006, 01:58:20 UTC
So, I'm taking "Nutrition" this summer as one of my random courses that (fortunately) transfers to Albion, and I have lost 10 pounds since I started taking the class. And to explain this all to you, it would take about 6 hours a week for the next 7.5 weeks, but here's the basics:
**"Calories" are not bad. They're a measure of energy. In the average day, your body burns approx 1660 (that's how much my body burns, yours probably burns less) if you're just laying around all day; this is due to the fact that your heart still has to beat, your lungs still need to move, and your brain still has to process information. That being said, DO NOT EAT LESS THAN 1660 CALORIES PER DAY (otherwise, that other stuff starts ceasing to happen). Now, if you want to do more than just lay around all day, you need to eat a bit more. With my current--fairly sedentary--lifestyle, I "need" approx 2200 calories per day to maintain my weight. So, basically, any day in which I eat between 1660 and 2200 calories I will be healthily losing weight. **There are three things which contain calories: protein, carbs, and fat. (Well, I won't lie, there are four, but I don't consume much of the fourth and it's not essential...alcohol.) A good percentage of each to have in your diet is 55-65% of carbs, 10-20% of protein, and less than 30% of fat. That is the really complicated thing to explain why, but just trust me. When figuring out your percentages, find out how much a serving size contains of each of the above 3, and mutiply the grams or milligrams or whatever by the follow: carbs, 4; protein, 4; fat, 9; alcohol, 7. (Threw that one in because it does add to your calories per day although you probably won't find it in most foods.) This tells you how many calories of each are in your food. Divide those numbers by the total number of calories in the food and you have your percentages.
Okay, so that isn't the easiest thing to do in the world, but here's something I will do for you. Keep and insanely close track of what you eat for 3 days (Th, F, Sa or Su, M, Tu work best), and I'll run the numbers through the computer. It's really hard to eat normally when you have to measure how much of everything you're taking in, but give it a go. That's only if you want me to, of course.
Exercise is important too. I've taken to walking the track (or the mall if it's raining) with a friend of mine a couple times per week. It's not much, but it burns more calories ;)
**"Calories" are not bad. They're a measure of energy. In the average day, your body burns approx 1660 (that's how much my body burns, yours probably burns less) if you're just laying around all day; this is due to the fact that your heart still has to beat, your lungs still need to move, and your brain still has to process information. That being said, DO NOT EAT LESS THAN 1660 CALORIES PER DAY (otherwise, that other stuff starts ceasing to happen). Now, if you want to do more than just lay around all day, you need to eat a bit more. With my current--fairly sedentary--lifestyle, I "need" approx 2200 calories per day to maintain my weight. So, basically, any day in which I eat between 1660 and 2200 calories I will be healthily losing weight.
**There are three things which contain calories: protein, carbs, and fat. (Well, I won't lie, there are four, but I don't consume much of the fourth and it's not essential...alcohol.) A good percentage of each to have in your diet is 55-65% of carbs, 10-20% of protein, and less than 30% of fat. That is the really complicated thing to explain why, but just trust me.
When figuring out your percentages, find out how much a serving size contains of each of the above 3, and mutiply the grams or milligrams or whatever by the follow: carbs, 4; protein, 4; fat, 9; alcohol, 7. (Threw that one in because it does add to your calories per day although you probably won't find it in most foods.) This tells you how many calories of each are in your food. Divide those numbers by the total number of calories in the food and you have your percentages.
Okay, so that isn't the easiest thing to do in the world, but here's something I will do for you. Keep and insanely close track of what you eat for 3 days (Th, F, Sa or Su, M, Tu work best), and I'll run the numbers through the computer. It's really hard to eat normally when you have to measure how much of everything you're taking in, but give it a go. That's only if you want me to, of course.
Exercise is important too. I've taken to walking the track (or the mall if it's raining) with a friend of mine a couple times per week. It's not much, but it burns more calories ;)
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