What are calories and how to use information about them to lose weight

Everyone has seen the ominous inscription “calories” and the numbers that follow it on the packaging of certain foods. For many, these numbers cause a nervous tic, because they are associated with poor nutrition, excess weight, weight loss, which will not come. But are calories really so scary? Do they really have such a strong influence on weight change? Eaten in the morning eclair with cream can turn into a couple of extra pounds by evening? It is worth talking more about it, in order to get rid of scary dreams about calories once and for all.

What are calories

Many people in pursuit of a slim figure blindly follow the advice of insta-bloggers and pseudo nutritionists, without understanding the basic terminology. But what is a calorie, it is said in school textbooks on physics.

A calorie is the amount of heat energy that allows you to heat 1 gram of water by 1 degree Celsius, given that the atmospheric pressure remains within normal limits. Even the very name “calorie” translates from Latin as “heat”.

However, the energy value of various foods is measured in larger units - the very same kcal or kilocalories. 1 kcal contains 1000 calories, which is equal to a kilogram of water. Simply put, calories are energy units of food that the human body can use immediately to maintain activity or set aside and use when it needs more energy, for example, during vigorous exercise, stress, etc.

What role calories play in weight loss

Among fans of diets, there has long been an unspoken “rule” about 3500 kcal. Its essence is simple - to reduce body weight by 0.5 kg for 7 days, you need to achieve a deficit of energy value of the daily diet by 500 kcal. When multiplying 500 by 7 it turns out exactly 3500 kcal per week, the subtraction of which from the menu theoretically should lead to a loss of 500 g of weight.

But, of course, this rule has nothing to do with reality. It has existed since the 50s of the twentieth century. For all these long years it would be necessary to forget it like a terrible dream, because science has advanced so far that such calculations have become absurd. The human organism is complex. He knows better what exactly to do in order to keep the body normal in a critical situation. The body stores calories in case there is a shortage of energy and repair in the body. These reserves should help a person when his health is threatened.

Therefore, you can't just cut your diet and immediately lose a similar number of grams of weight. The results will certainly be noticeable. But then will come the so-called plateau effect - the worst nightmare for everyone who is chasing a slim figure. The plateau effect is a condition in which the weight as if intentionally frozen and no exercise, diets, teas for weight loss and other methods do not help to change it.

If a person continues to reduce the diet and further, the body will move to the next stage - austerity mode. It will “freeze” many body functions until better times, which will lead to the development of pathologies of the nervous, immune, endocrine and other systems of the body.

Is it necessary to count calories?

Yes and no. In matters of weight loss, several factors are important:

• The quality of foods.
• The balance of essential nutrients.
• Quantity and quality of physical activity.
• The quality of sleep.
• The glycemic index of the foods.

Naturally, as a general scheme “eat less, move more - lose weight” works. But there is a huge amount of nuance here. At the time when the rule of 3500 kcal was developed, mankind knew nothing about vitamins, dietary fiber, minerals and micronutrients.

Today, in order to correct and keep weight in the “norm” for a particular person, it is necessary to know not only and not so much the calorie content of products, but also their glycemic index. The glycemic index refers to the rate at which a product raises blood glucose levels. Refined foods, which are absorbed almost immediately into the bloodstream, have very high values. Foods in their natural state will have a much lower index.

But in the case of the 3500 kcal rule and the glycemic index, another important point is not taken into account - the physical state and consistency of foods. Soft and heat-treated foods are digested faster and in greater quantities than raw foods. Which means thermally processed foods will deliver more energy than the label says.

The important question is not “How many calories does the body get?” but “From what source are the calories obtained?”. For example, the 300 kcal in bran will not equal the 300 kcal contained in baked goods made from fine flour.