Why we weigh what we weigh

There are just so many diets out there telling us what to eat and what not to eat. I can make this very simple. We weigh what we do because of the equation of how many calories we take into our bodies minus what we burn up. It really is just that simple. To create a loss of one pound of fat per week we have to create a caloric deficit of 3500 calories. Over the course of a week, we need to either cut our caloric intake by 500 calories each day(500 times 7 days), or, increase our exercise level to lose one pound of at per week.

Our body weight will depend on this equation, but HOW our bodies look is dependent on WHAT these calories are comprised of. If one is to plan to ingest 1800 calories a day to achieve a loss of one pound per week it is up to the person what these calorie sources are. One's weight will come down sticking to this plan, but one will look differently depending on the composition of these calories. Protein sources will provide the building blocks of lean muscle tissue as opposed to other sources of calories which will not. If one does not eat sufficient amount of protein one will lose muscle rather than fat for this one pound weight loss per week. Carbohydrates that come from fresh fruits and vegetables rather than from bread sources are the better choice. Fats, as well, that are from natural sources such as nuts are better sources than dairy products or animal fats.

I believe the best use of our calories is a ratio close to that of 30% protein/30% healthy fats/40% carbohydrate sources. Daily calories should be spaced out throughout the day over 5 or 6 meals so the body is in a constant fat burning mode speeding up one's metabolism. There should be no more than 3-4 hours between these smaller meals. Every meal should contain protein , healthy carbs and healthy fats. A easier way to compute this would be to eat at 7am/10am/1pm/4pm/7pm/and 10pm and insure all these meals have an equal distribution of these calories and grams of protein/fat/carbs. Also, dividing the number of calories per day into these 5 or 6 meals.

Dr. Crew is available for nutritional consultations as well as one on one personal fitness and strength training at his Mind-Body Fitness studio. Appointments can be made by calling him at 880-2531.