WHAT IS A CALORIE?

Many of us consume too many calories.
Lots of us try to burn off excess calories.
In order to survive and thrive we need the proper amount of calories.
Some foods are rich (or super rich) in calories.
Some foods are low (or void) of calories.
People paying attention to their weight, often count calories.
Weight gain is a result of consuming too many calories.
Weight loss is a result of a deficit of calories.

OK, here is a question that I am going to ask myself:  WHAT IS A CALORIE?
(It is at this point of my blog entry that I will 'save' what I have written and do a little research on the internet - because one thing I know for sure - I do not know what a calorie is)

. . . . . . . . . . . .

Hi, it's me...I'm back.  Here is what I have learned from GOOGLE definitions:

cal·o·rie

kal(ə)rē

noun

noun: calorie; plural noun: calories; noun: cal.

1. either of two units of heat energy.

   • the energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water through 1 °C (now usually defined as 4.1868 joules).

     noun: small calorie; plural noun: small calories
   • the energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water through 1 °C, equal to one thousand small calories and often used to measure the energy value of foods.

     
     

This definition is a bit technical.  But there is one useful part of the definition that we can try to understand.  A calorie is 'often used to measure the energy value of foods.'    This starts to make sense to me.  Food is fuel.  Calories are the measure of how much fuel a particular food has.   Still there are good fuels and bad fuels.

I was searching for a very simplistic explanation of what a calorie is and I found something useful on kidshealth.org:

You can find out how many calories are in a food by looking at the nutrition facts label. The label also will describe the components of the food — how many grams of carbohydrate, protein, and fat it contains. 

Here's how many calories are in 1 gram of each:

• carbohydrate — 4 calories

• protein — 4 calories

• fat — 9 calories

That means if you know how many grams of each one are in a food, you can calculate the total calories. You would multiply the number of grams by the number of calories in a gram of that food component.    I always tell my daughter to 'check her work' when she does a math problem - so here I will take my own advice.  I want to check if this information is actually correct - Up until this very moment I had no idea that the calories of any food were based on the calories in the three components: carbohydrates, protein & fat.  

So, I borrowed a Hershey's Chocolate Bar that my daughter has in the refrigerator.   It proudly proclaims that one bar contains 210 calories.   Back in the old days, I would have thought nothing of having two chocolate bars before dinner.  I have not had too many 400 calorie  meals in the past five weeks.  Sorry, I digressed.... now back on topic:

Hershey's Chocolate Bar 'Nutrition' Facts
SERVING SIZE   1 BAR
CALORIES 210
TOTAL FAT           13 GRAMS                            13x 9=117 calories
PROTEINS              3 GRAMS                                3x4=12  calories
TOTAL CARBS     26 GRAMS                              26x4=104 calories
117+12+104=233 CALORIES (perhaps the slight different result is from rounding errors - but it certainly gives us a good idea of what types of foods are high calorie)

We need calories (fuel) to exist.   We all know that we will 'burn' an elevated number of calories if we vigorously exercise.   We also 'burn' calories simply by sleeping.  We burn calories every moment of every day.  It takes energy for our body to function and our body is functioning 24/7.

We gain weight when we consume more calories than we need.   Our body is very good at storing calories for a time when we might need them later.   Many people take vitamins each day to supplement their diet.   The reason that we take them every day is that our body DOES NOT STORE THEM.  Whatever excess vitamins we consume on Monday are expelled by the body on a daily basis.  We don't have that 'problem' with calories.  Our body is an efficient calorie storing machine.   Our body will convert excess calories into fat.

And here is the most obvious analysis of the year:

EXCESS FAT MAKES US FATTER.

Conversely, a deficit of calories will encourage the body to use that storehouse of fat and convert to calories to fuel our bodies.  This is how we lose weight.

The current scientific consensus is that for every 3500 excess calories that the body turns to fat - the scale will reflect an additional pound.   The reverse is true - for every accumulated deficit of 3500 calories less than the body needs - our body will use fat to convert to calories and our scale will reflect the one pound loss.

The less technical definition of calories

THURSDAY MENU

BREAKFAST   two poached eggs, 2.5 oz SALMON                                   275 CALORIES

LUNCH             Jason's Deli Spicy Seafood Gumbo                                     301 CALORIES

DINNER            Turkey Burger, Spinach, Vinaigrette, Zucchini Pancake
                            cup of chicken broth soup                                                   328 CALORIES

                 TOTAL CALORIC CONSUMPTION        904 CALORIES

CALORIES BURNED

6AM  30 minutes ELLIPTICAL   380 CALORIES
6PM  30 minutes ELLIPTCAL     390 CALORIES
                                    TOTAL CALORIES BURNED 770 CALORIES


NET CALORIC CONSUMPTION   134 CALORIES

Kirkland Turkey Burger, Zucchini Pancake, Spinach w/Vinaigrette, Chicken Broth Cup   328 CALORIES

Another week has gone by.  Last week I was disappointed as I thought I would have lost more weight than I did in that particular week.  This week, I am trying to keep expectations low.  I did everything possible to have a good weigh-in tomorrow.   I worked out 1 hour per day (two sessions, 30 minutes each) and I kept my caloric intake on meals under 1000 calories each day.   Today, Friday, is Day 45 of my program.  When I woke up 45 days ago to visit the doctor, I was 309 lbs. Last Saturday, I was 272.7 lbs.   I am hopeful that my metabolism will have been cooperative this week and shed at least the three pounds to get me into the 260's.   I will know in 24 hours.    See you tomorrow!

1. • 
     

GLUCOSE 114 mg/dL

Five days after my blood tests were performed during my 'wellness' checkup, my blood work results arrived via email.    At the doctors office I was advised that my blood pressure was a bit elevated.  Today I have learned that my bloodwork results came back normal with the exception of my GLUCOSE levels.   The normal range for me should been between 70-99 for a fasting glucose reading.   My results were 114 mg/dL which is a bit high.   Continued high or worsening glucose levels can lead to diabetes.   So this is no joke.   The email from the doctor indicated that this is "commonly caused by being over weight and [having] a sedentary lifestyle."  The communication from the doctor indicated that I am "advised to improve TLC efforts. (Low saturated fat, low carbohydrate, well balanced diet; engage in aerobic exercise for at least 20 minutes, 3 times per week; and achieve and maintain a normal weight."   The doctor suggests that the test is repeated in 3 months.    I already have a followup exam scheduled in two months, I will ask to be retested at that time.

It is going to take a little while to "achieve and maintain a normal weight."   I am glad that I have already started. I believe that I am already well on my way to eating a more sensible, well-balanced diet.   And I intend to follow the advice to engage in aerobic exercise for at least 20 minutes, 3 times per week. I have great confidence that my test results will be much improved the next time.  I am always encouraging my own daughter to "keep her grades up" as each semester in 7th grade progresses.   It is time for me to heed my own advice.   I need to get my blood test scores up, well, in this case, get my glucose levels down.   There is no question in my mind that my next tested result will be radically different.

GLUCOSE molecular formula C6H12O6