Inadequate amounts of calories for your body type can lead
to health problems. For instance, if you
consume an inadequate amount of calories from proteins, which are used to
maintain muscle mass, your heart could weaken and you could end up with cardiac
atrophy.
Another problem if you don't eat enough calories each day is
malnourishment. We've all seen pictures
of the little children with grossly bloated stomachs due to malnutrition! This can happen to anyone who doesn't consume
adequate calories for a long period of time.
Inadequate calorie consumption also causes your metabolism
to slow down dramatically. As you know,
your metabolism is what causes your body to burn calories and lose weight. If your metabolism gets slow, you lose less
weight, or even go into "starvation mode" and stop losing weight
altogether.
So, you can see that it is important for your body and your
health to consume adequate calories each day.
How do we know what is adequate and how can we use this figure to lose
weight?
To get an estimate of the amount of calories you need each
day, multiply your current weight by 13 if you are sedentary, 14 if you
exercise lightly up to three times a week, and 15 if you exercise strenuously
more than three times per week.
Then, simply take this number and multiply it by 80%. This amount of calories each day will lead to
optimal health and sustained weight loss.
The next issue you want to think about is where your
calories are coming from. Calories from
protein, fat, and carbohydrates affect your body differently.
Calories from carbohydrates cause your body to release
insulin. Insulin is a
"fat-storing" hormone and causes these calories to be stored as fat.
Calories from protein cause your body to release glycogen. Glycogen doesn't store your fat, but converts
it into energy for your daily needs.
The different types of fats have been discussed many times -
monounsaturated, polysaturated, hydrogenated, polyunsaturated, etc. The main thing to remember is to avoid
hydrogenated fats - those that remain solid at room temperature - and
concentrate on monounsaturated fats. The
healthiest oil to use is extra virgin olive oil. In fact, a cardiologist I know said that
olive oil can actually reduce the plaque build-up in your arteries and lead to
better heart health.
So, pick your calories wisely. Your health and your body will thank you.
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