Calorie Counting Made Easy
The overconsumption of calories is one of the main reasons for the obesity epidemic. Granted, a lack of sleep, community, and exercise have played their part. But for the sake of the article, we will focus on solving the issue of overeating. When you have a poor understanding of the calories in a meal, you tend to overeat without even realizing it. But it isn't your fault; no one has ever taught you how to portion your meals or track calories. Schools taught algebra and physics but never taught us how to eat correctly. Today we fix that and teach you how to control your portions through four simple steps.
Step 1: Download MyfitnessPal
To get started, I recommend downloading Myfitnesspal. It is a fantastic app that takes the guesswork out of the equation. After you create a profile, it will give you a calorie intake to follow based on your goals. I recommend buying the premium features so that you can customize your macronutrient levels. For example, if you enjoy carbohydrates, you should follow a higher carb diet instead of a low carb diet. The research is clear; both a high and low carb diet can be useful for weight loss when a calorie deficit is present (1).
A calorie deficit occurs when you consume less energy than your body needs (2). To lose body fat and not muscle mass, you must perform resistance training and consume enough protein (.75 grams per pound (3,4,5). For example, a 200-pound person would optimize muscle mass by consuming 150 grams per day. You will hit this number by setting your protein intake to 20-30% of your calorie total.
Step 2: Select The Number Of Meals
The total amount of calories you consume is responsible for your metabolism, not the number of meals. Therefore, you should select a number of meals that you are comfortable eating. I recommend starting at four meals per day (yes, snacks count), then adjust from there. If you feel bloated or overly stuffed after each meal, then decrease your meal size and add in smaller meals like a piece of fruit or protein bar.
I have found fruits and vegetables to be highly effective at reducing hunger. Boy, do I love me some apples and carrots.
Ideally, each meal should consist of lean proteins, fruits or vegetables, and starchy vegetables or whole grains. But don’t worry if life gets in the way, and your meal doesn’t look like the one mentioned above. Those are guidelines to help you stay on track. Also, I want you to remember that no food is evil or unhealthy, even if it isn’t considered “healthy” by an Instagram Influencer. That’s the beauty of calorie counting; it allows you to eat the foods you love and still lose maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Step 3: Buy A Scale And Weigh Your Food
You want to pay very close attention to foods that contain higher amounts of fat, such as nuts, granola, beef, salmon, dairy, and oils. Fat is two times the energy density of carbs and protein (9 cals vs. 4 cals per gram). So underestimating your portions of fattier foods can lead to increased calorie intake and potentially cause weight gain.
To prevent this from happening, weigh each food you consume for 2-4 weeks to get a general idea of its serving sizes, and record it in myfitnesspal. You should be testing your newfound skill throughout this time by estimating each food’s weight before weighing it.
Your hand is a great place to start. For example, you can use the size of your palm to estimate four ounces of protein. You can then take the palm-sized burger or steak and weigh it to see if your hand portion was correct. The infographic below will give you some pointers on how to do this.
The purpose of the test is to give you feedback. If you can consistently estimate each food’s right amount, you have improved and can wean off the food scale. But if you are nowhere close, you need more work and should continue to weigh your food. The whole point of weighing food is to develop the skill of recognizing accurate serving sizes so that you can get rid of the food scale.
*Here is the food scale I use: Click Here
What About Restaurants?
I recommend limiting eating out to three to four meals per week because restaurants will add more fat and sugar to meals to add flavor.
But can you blame them? Sugar and fat together are delicious!
Remember, their job is to make the food taste good, not healthy. Myfitnesspal does have a calorie tracking feature for restaurants, but not everyone restaurant uses it. So on the days you go out to eat, you should consume more protein, fruits, and veggies throughout the day while limiting your fat calories.
Step 4: Be Patient & Strive For Progress
Tracking your calories is a skill, one that takes time and patience. There is no timetable for this process; it could take anywhere from a month to a year. I am no robot; I am a human being just like you, so I know how challenging it can be to track your calories every day. If you mess up and forget, give yourself a break and focus on the next day. Set a goal to do it for a month and see what happens. The extra work you put forward will be worth it in the end.
References
Gardner, C. D., Trepanowski, J. F., Del Gobbo, L. C., Hauser, M. E., Rigdon, J., Ioannidis, J., Desai, M., & King, A. C. (2018). Effect of Low-Fat vs Low-Carbohydrate Diet on 12-Month Weight Loss in Overweight Adults and the Association With Genotype Pattern or Insulin Secretion: The DIETFITS Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA, 319(7), 667–679. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2018.0245
Hill, J. O., Wyatt, H. R., & Peters, J. C. (2012). Energy Balance and Obesity. Circulation, 126(1), 126–132. http://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.111.087213
Longland, T. M., Oikawa, S. Y., Mitchell, C. J., Devries, M. C., & Phillips, S. M. (2016). Higher compared with lower dietary protein during an energy deficit combined with intense exercise promotes greater lean mass gain and fat mass loss: a randomized trial. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 103(3), 738–746. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.115.119339
Morton, R. W., Murphy, K. T., McKellar, S. R., Schoenfeld, B. J., Henselmans, M., Helms, E., Aragon, A. A., Devries, M. C., Banfield, L., Krieger, J. W., & Phillips, S. M. (2018). A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults. British journal of sports medicine, 52(6), 376–384. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2017-097608
Leidy, H. J., Clifton, P. M., Astrup, A., Wycherley, T. P., Westerterp-Plantenga, M. S., Luscombe-Marsh, N. D., Woods, S. C., & Mattes, R. D. (2015). The role of protein in weight loss and maintenance. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 101(6), 1320S–1329S. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.114.084038