Calorie content is a unit of measurement of the energy value of food, accumulated in components such as proteins, carbohydrates and fats, expressed in calories (cal) or kilocalories (kcal). Many modern representatives of the fair half of humanity, and even men, regularly count calories in order to properly plan their diet for effective weight loss and eliminate extra centimeters in the most problematic areas of the body (waist, hips, butt and abdomen).
Calories are also counted to gain muscle mass and total body weight, which is mostly found in people who are professionally involved in sports. But hardly anyone has ever thought about what calories themselves are and what significance they have for the life of the body. In the materials of the presented review, we will take a closer look at what calories and kilocalories are, how they differ and what their benefits for human health are.
This is the place where spears break
A wise definition says what the calorie content of food is: this is the daily ratio of the main necessary substances - fats, proteins and carbohydrates.
Our body’s ability to consume certain substances depends on many factors:
- gender, age, race, type of constitution;
- habitat;
- physical activity;
- weather;
- accompanying illnesses;
- genetic characteristics;
- temperament;
- individual metabolic rate.
This is where many formulas for calculating the required amount of calories come from. Each author studies first of all himself, then a certain group of people available to him to analyze the problem. None of the formulas are perfect. What should I do?
To each - according to needs
Who will determine them? We ourselves, based on our data, reason and logic.
Some boast about achievements like: “I ate everything I wanted at McDonald’s, but no more than 2000 kcal a day - and lost weight.” Should I comment? Okay, I'll explain. Standard components of such establishments:
- margarine - about 750 kilocalories;
- mayonnaise - about 630;
- bread - from 220 and above;
- ice cream - no less than 320;
- McMuffin with pork cutlet – 425…
If you get up to 2000 food, the amount will be more than modest, and you can lose weight. In this case, instead of normal fats, carbohydrates and proteins, we will get trans fats, easily digestible carbohydrates and carcinogens. The body will not be able to process some of this set and will throw it away, the rest will cause a series of knockdowns for the liver and kidneys, in comparison with which the extra grams are less scary.
It's not about the calories, but where exactly they are found.
What are calories and their main differences from kilocalories
Initially, when this concept of “calories” first appeared, they were not associated at all with extra pounds on the human body. They were used to measure thermal energy and only in the twentieth century did calories begin to indicate the level of energy value of food.
Historical reference
The concept of “calorie” appeared in the mid-19th century, when the famous French thermochemist Frau Silberman used the word color to denote the amount of heat released during the combustion process. And in the early nineties, chemist Wilbur Atwater divided all food products into three main components:
- proteins;
- carbohydrates;
- and fats.
It was from that time that the measurement of the energy value of each food group of foods in calories began. Another century later, from the beginning of the 20th century, people who cared about the beauty of their figure began to count calories when drawing up their own diet.
Concept of calories
So what is a calorie? A calorie is a certain amount of thermal energy, with the help of which the temperature of 1 g of water increases by 1 g on the Celsius scale. In physics, the amount of thermal energy is measured using joules and kilojoules, but in everyday life all this is measured in calories. Many people are mistaken in thinking that calories and kcal are the same thing. They are actually slightly different units of measurement for the thermal energy of food.
Video
The difference between calories and kilocalories
So, calories and kilocalories, what is the difference between them? In order to better understand and understand the difference between these two quantities, you should remember that one kilocalorie is equal to 1000 calories, just like one kilogram is equal to 1000 grams. The energy value of food products on packaging forms should also be indicated only in kcal. If the package indicates the amount of cal, that is, calories, then this indicates the illiteracy of the manufacturer. Likewise, in sports clubs, on certain types of exercise equipment, the number of kilocalories expended must be indicated.
About the dangers of drying oil
Drying oil is boiled vegetable oil, most often hemp or flaxseed. But similar properties of a film-forming substance will be obtained by any heat-treated vegetable oil. Try cleaning the frying pan!
There are more calories in vegetable oils than in butter: 850-900 versus 650-660. But frying with the latter is safer. It is low in polyunsaturated fatty acids, everyone's favorite omega-3 and omega-6. It is they that, at temperatures above 100 degrees, produce ketones and aldehydes—that very drying oil. If you want to get the benefits, eat vegetable oils raw, cold-pressed and unrefined.
And again the number of kilocalories fades into the background. The first is the method of processing food. But we just need calories!
Benefits of calories for human health
For the life of each living organism, a certain amount of energy is required, which will support processes such as:
- movement;
- breath;
- thinking;
- pumping and transporting blood throughout all internal systems of the body, etc.
This vital energy enters the body from the foods that a person absorbs daily. How much food is eaten, so many calories will be received, which means that the body will receive the same amount of necessary energy. As noted above, all food products consist of three main components, corresponding to the following number of kilocalories:
- carbohydrates 1 gr. equal to 4 kcal;
- whites 1 gr. are also equal to 4 kcal;
- a 1 gr. fat equals 9 kcal.
Knowing the amount of substances present in the food consumed, you can easily calculate the number of calories that a person will receive after assimilation of food by the gastrointestinal tract system. So, for example, consider the most popular product - oatmeal.
Video
100 grams of oatmeal contains:
- fats – 6 grams, which corresponds to: 6x9 = 54 kcal;
- carbohydrates – 51 grams, which means: 51x4 = 204 kcal;
- proteins – 12 grams, multiply 12x4, it turns out 48 kcal.
We add up the obtained kcal values and find that 100 grams of oatmeal contains 306 kcal, which will be spent by the body itself on the processes of converting carbohydrate compounds into glucose, protein components into amino acids, and fats into glycerol and fatty acid compounds.
What happens next
Amino acids formed from protein compounds perform a construction function and contribute to the formation of new cellular structures and an increase in the volume of muscle fibers. Glucose obtained from carbohydrates breaks down into simpler sugar compounds and provides nutrition to cells. Excess glucose is deposited in muscle structures and in the liver cavity. Fats act as a kind of fuel for the body. some of them enter the liver, where they are converted into cholesterol compounds.
Please note: Excess fatty compounds do not go anywhere, but begin to accumulate in the subcutaneous fat layer, which is what representatives of the fair sex of all age groups are actively fighting against.
When following a diet aimed at increasing body weight, your calorie intake should look like this:
- protein – 25-30% of the daily diet;
- carbohydrates – 40-45%;
- fats up to 30-35%.
When following a diet aimed at losing weight, the caloric intake should look like this:
- protein – up to 30%;
- carbohydrates – up to 50%;
- fats – up to 20%.
It is important to remember that when calculating total calories, you should not forget how many calories are in a kilocalorie.
Calorage: naked mathematics
How to calculate exactly how many calories you need? This can be done using my online calorie intake calculator :
Friends!
I, Andrey Eroshkin, will conduct mega interesting webinars for you, sign up and watch! Topics of upcoming webinars:
- An effective method for cleansing the gastrointestinal tract and digestive system at home
- How to lose weight without willpower and prevent the weight from coming back?
- How to become healthy again without pills, the natural way?
SIGN UP FOR THE WEBINAR
I also have calculators that will help you in the initial stages of losing weight.
There are more complex calculation methods that take into account body mass index, constitution type, and age. Researchers also differ in the number of calories per kilogram: from 20 to 60. Any formula is arbitrary, and any one can serve as a basis, starting from which you will choose your diet.
You can focus on medical standards: a bedridden patient should consume at least 2000 kcal per day. With average loads, you need at least 2500. Less than 1200 per day is the path to exhaustion and anorexia.
To lose weight, some advise a woman: if you eat 100 kcal less than usual, you will lose a couple of kilograms in a year, and to lose 500 grams per week, eat 500 less.
You can also calculate your diet online, but it should not be considered infallible.
How to stay slim
- You should always get up from the table with a slight feeling of unsatiation.
- You should weigh yourself at least once a week and compare the result with the previous one.
- If you see that you have begun to gain weight, you need to limit either the total amount of food, or its calorie content, or start moving more, or both and three at the same time.
- Even if a person loves to eat, good physical activity will prevent extra pounds from forming. If your profession does not involve physical labor, you need to walk 6-8 km daily.
- The main food load (80-85% of food) should occur in the first half of the day.
How much and where?
And yet, I want to choose something low-calorie.
The fewest calories are in vegetables and fruits. For example, in carrots - 37, in cabbage - 27, and in lettuce in general 11. You can eat 18 kilograms of salad per day, gaining the same 2000. At the same time, we will get a sharp deficiency of protein and fat. Then why not lean on the nuts? They have a lot of calories. There are already 700 of them in hazelnuts! Three hundred grams is enough for the whole day!
It's a joke. It’s better to look at calorie tables; they exist for both individual products and ready-made meals, in any cookbook or on the Internet, and compare them with your daily requirement.
There are a lot of calculations. You need to not only calculate how much you should eat of a particular product, but also take into account the used content in it. When looking at protein, you must not go overboard with your energy reserves, and when adding carbohydrate foods, you must not forget about the required percentage of fat. Again it turns out very difficult and dreary!
Learn to count calories to lose weight
Experts estimate that if a person consumes approximately 3,500 excess feces, they will gain half a kilogram, so in order to lose this weight, it is necessary to create a deficit. You should reduce your consumption by 3500 or burn the same amount. You can also combine both methods to achieve the correct deficit.
To lose half a pound of weight in a week, you need to reduce your intake by 500 calories per day. A weight loss of 0.5-1 kg is considered a healthy and sustainable rate of weight loss. The most important thing to remember is not to cut your calorie intake too sharply. Following very low-calorie diets can be harmful to your health.
There are many different ways to lose weight and maintain a healthy diet. Calorie counting is just one of them. Along with these, controlling portion sizes and consuming nutrient-dense foods are very important factors.
