Counting calories - worth it!

Is counting calories really such a huge project?

Seriously now. To count calories. It sounds like every meal you make will take hours to prepare. That is far from the truth! Once you start and have done it a few times you will have a routine that will make the measuring process easy and fast.

It does not have to be a way to eat super strict like pro athletes either. It can be the perfect solution for you to be able to enjoy your snacks without feeling bad about it. 

Lets say you have been counting your calories for the day. You have enough protein in your system. You know that you can still eat 300 calories, it is time for POPCORN! Or ice cream. Or crisps. It does not matter, you can eat it without feeling bad afterwards. 

After a while you will learn approximately how much a certain amount of rice weigh and the amount of calories for example. You will be able to do a lot of stuff without even having to measure it and calculate.

There are a number of different ways to use databases to find out how much calories different products contain. With the smart phones there are apps where you can scan the code, like the person at the store does for the price. After you scan it you will have the information about the product all set in your app.

I usually use a database in the computer where I add certain stuff that I eat regurarly. That way I spend a few minutes every once in a while to add stuff but that is just because I want it to be perfect. There are always similar products already in there that you can use and get the approximately calculations anyway.

Just get an electronic scale. When you add things to your plate it is easy to measure the different things by adding it. One example below:

First I put the empty plate on the scale. I press the reset button on the scale so that it does not count the weight of the plate. 

Then I add the potatoes. Write down the number and press reset again. 

Now I add my chicken. Write down the number and once again I reset the scale. 

And so on and so fourth. It is easy and a lot quicker than most people can imagine. 

And truth be told... 

People have NO idea what food contains a high number of calories. 

Stuff that we are taught is healthy for some reason often has the same amount of calories that crisps have. Bread is a good example. The bread itself is not really as much calories as crisps. But do you eat the bread without cheese? or butter? And a sandwich is easy to make, easy to eat a few in front of the TV. The fact that it is not white flour does not make it lighter in any way, not in this text where I only focus on the weight and calories. Sure, there might be healthier than white flour in other aspects but you will still have to watch out for the calories.

This is a great way to discover these things that you may have been taught to eat because it is healthy but then you never imagined it would be so many calories hidden in it. And either way, when it comes to your weight. Calories in, calories out. If you eat way more calories than you burn - you will unfortunately gain weight!

When you work out it is a good way to make sure that you are either losing weight or gaining weight, depending on what you are trying to achieve. Many people do want to lose some extra weight during the spring. By knowing the amount of calories you are plus or minus you can make sure that you are losing weight in a controlled way and you avoid losing too much muscle mass in the process.