Count Calories for Weight Loss

People will try nearly anything to lose weight. The diet aid market is a multi-billion dollar per year business because so many people believe that their weight woes will be solved by the next big diet pill, plan or meal to hit the store shelves. Meanwhile, Americans continue to get larger. For some people weight loss in Ypsilanti is necessary to overcome obesity related diseases that they have developed, such as type-2 diabetes or heart disease.

Excess weight comes primarily from overeating. Many people don’t understand how they can be overweight because they don’t count their calories, and don’t realize the degree to which they are overeating. It is extremely easy to underestimate how many calories are in the food you eat. As a rule, carbohydrates and fats contain the highest density of calories per serving, so foods high in them must be eaten with caution.

The best way to count your calories is to start a food diary. Have a notebook or paper filled binder dedicated exclusively to this purpose, and purchase a digital food scale and some measuring cups. Every day, write down the day’s date and every food and beverage that enters your mouth. Write down whether it was breakfast, lunch, dinner or a snack, how much of it you ate and how many calories it contained.

The idea behind weight loss is to burn more calories than you consume, so if you’re a sedentary person, you shouldn’t exceed 1,500 calories a day unless directed by your doctor. Naturally, some people will need a little help with weight loss at first, which may be the motivation they need to keep at it.