Ask the Doc

Calorie Lowdown

Is counting calories wasted energy?
Calorie Lowdown

Q: How do I determine how many calories I really need?

A: Actually, you shouldn’t have to think about it, because your digestive tract does the counting for you. It has a complex set of nerves designed to give you a gnawing feeling in your stomach and scream, “Feed me!” when you need more food. These nerves signal you again when you’re full. Just as your lungs know when to breathe, your digestive tract knows when you need to eat.

For the most part, the system works pretty well, which is why people eat nearly the same amount of calories each day, without counting. On average, American women consume roughly 2,000 calories each day, men about 2,500, although these numbers vary from person to person, depending on body size and activity.

Unfortunately, certain foods defeat this system. Chocolate, for example. We don’t eat chocolate because we are hungry; we eat it because we love the taste. It also triggers a release of opiates within the brain, causing a slight feel-good sensation. So even if you are completely stuffed after a wonderful dinner, you may still want a piece of chocolate. Ditto for sugar, cheese, and meat. They have very mild opiate effects, causing them to tempt us for reasons other than hunger, often leading us to overdo it.

Q: Should I cut calories if I am trying to lose weight?

A: To lose weight, you do have to eat fewer calories than you burn, but you don’t have to do it through willpower. If you change the type of food you eat, it happens more or less automatically. Here are three tricks you should know:

First, bring on the high-fiber foods. Fiber holds water and tends to fill you up, tricking your stomach into thinking you’ve eaten more than you actually have. The fiber champions are beans, followed by vegetables, fruits, and whole grains.

Second, keep fats, including oils, to a bare minimum. Fats pack 9 calories into every gram (compared with only 4 calories for a gram of carbohydrate or protein). Steer clear of fatty foods, and you’ll tend to eat fewer calories.

Third, avoid sugar. Although it has nowhere near the calories that fats have, sugar is the “stealth” nutrient. It hides in all manner of foods and drinkssuch as the 150 calories worth of sugar lurking in a typical can of soda.

Q: Do my caloric needs change if I am more or less active?

A: Yes, but less than you’d think. Your brain, muscles, heart, liver, kidneys, and every other part of you are busily burning calories when you’re completely stilleven while you sleep. These basic functions account for 60 to 75 percent of all the calories you burn. You burn another 10 percent of your calories in the process of digesting foods.

Routine physical activity accounts for only 15 to 30 percent of our daily calorie burn. So if you suddenly were flat on your back with a broken leg, your calorie needs would fall only slightly. And if you lace up your sneakers for a race, you do not need a lot of extra calories. Skeptical? Go to the nearest gym, jump on a treadmill, and run flat out for a mile. Then push the little button that tells you how many calories you’ve burned. It turns out to be only about 100.

Caloric intake for serious athletes is another matter. Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps works out five hours a day, six days a week. To keep up with his intense workout, he takes in thousands more calories each day than you or I would ever need.

Q: Does it matter when during the day I get my calories?

A: Yes, it does. People who skip breakfast and pack their calories into the later part of the day tend to weigh more than people who eat earlier in the day. Whether the issue is some sort of hormonal effect of late-night eating, or because late-night food choices tend to be especially fattening is not yet clear.

Q: Is my body’s metabolic rate genetic? Is there anything I can do to rev it up?

A: It is genetic, to a large extent. But, yes, you can rev it up, to a degree. First of all, the after-meal calorie burn that comes as you digest foods can be increased by a low-fat plant-based diet. The reason, apparently, is that such a diet causes the body to be more sensitive to insulin, which pushes nutrients into the cells where they can be burned. So, more of the calories you eat will be liberated as body heat, rather than stored as fat.

Second, exercise. People who exercise vigorously tend to burn calories faster, not just while they are exercising, but afterward too, as their bodies repair stressed tissues.

March 2010 p.28

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One thing I'd like to touch upon is that weightloss program fast can be carried out by the correct diet and exercise. Someone's size not only affects the look, but also the overall quality of life. Self-esteem, depressive disorder, health risks, as well as physical skills are influenced in an increase in weight. It is possible to make everything right but still gain. In such a circumstance, a medical problem may be the reason. While an excessive amount of food rather than enough physical exercise are usually responsible, common health concerns and traditionally used prescriptions can easily greatly amplify size. Thanks a bunch for your post in this article.

Jesus - 2014-11-08 01:27:06

I have read books that say vegetarians don't have to count calories - but I've always thought calories DO count. You have to burn what you eat to stay at your right weight. Does that mean that you can only have 1/2 cup servings of vegetables and limit fruits because of the sugar? 1/2 cup of green beans, 1/2 cup brown rice and a peach for dinner isn't much food. So how much food in a serving would be considered right for a vegetarian?

Pat Cincotta - 2014-06-21 08:28:46

Makes sense! Thanks a lot

Just Foxy - 2013-04-15 06:18:06

This was a good read thought I'd share

Saaraa - 2012-05-16 10:36:14

To the hungry folks, I use to be hungry all the time, and now I am almost never hungry at all! I haven't lost much weight, but I feel fantastic. My secret? Greens, heavy duty greens like Kale and collards, spinach, romain lettuce etc. I follow a low fat Vegan plan, (Engine 2 Diet) and tell you it can be done. I used to live in Texas and had BBQ and smoked meats and lots of fatty meaty foods and nacho cheese sauce everywhere. I now live in Peoria, Il which is almost worse for having everything be meat filled and dripping with fat. Snack on whole foods with low sugar and watch the hunger leave you! Good luck!

Dez - 2012-05-16 03:48:55

Why should nutritional yeast be grown on beets, not barley? I saw this in the October 2010 issue of Vegetarian Times on a recipe for Crispy Kale Chips.

Niki - 2010-09-13 19:28:40

I tried going vegetarian a while ago and I felt hungry all the time (I still ate eggs, cheese, but can't tolerate any other dairy products). So with all the junk/poison in the meats we eat I have decided to go veggie again (and permanently). But I remember being hungry ALL THE TIME. Snacking on nuts didn't help (I can consume them by the pound); and fruits were "et nausea". Any suggestions?

still hungry! - 2011-01-17 06:02:54

I am a vegetarian by choice with Celiac and work out at least 4 -5 times a week, am in training for the Boston Marathon and I am 60 years old, I am hungry every 2 hours, and eat the right stuff,,,can you tell me why? I am afraid of gaining weight, I weigh 132, thanks

Nancy - 2012-02-09 12:08:38