What’s a Calorie Anyway?
Whenever the topic of weight watching or dieting arises, one inevitably hears about calories.
The intake and output of calories is the sole determinant regarding whether or not one is at their ideal weight.
A strong determinant in whether or not one has their desired physique is how many calories are taken in.
Caloric values can be found on the labels of food products; some health-conscious menus and cookbooks will list the calorie content of their foods along with their ingredients. Caloric values can also be found on nutritional products such as vitamin pills, liquid vitamins, and other whole food supplements. But what exactly is a calorie? How does it get into food? Why does the body require calories? And probably most importantly, how does one arrive at their ideal physique by being conscious about calories?
Definition of a Calorie
A calorie is simply a unit of energy. In physics, there are various energy forms. One of the most ubiquitous forms of energy is heat. The definition of a calorie; the amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree Celsius.
Food Calories
Taking into consideration how small the amount of water is needed to weight in at 1 gram, one might surmise that a calorie is not a lot of energy. However, food calories are measured in kilocalories. That means the 1 calorie found in your diet soda can be translated to enough heat energy to raise by 1 degree Celsius the temperature of 1 kilogram of water, which is equivalent to 1 liter. Not just a small amount of energy, is it?
Where Do We Get Them
Where do calories come from? All food products digestible by the body are in the form of carbohydrates, fats, or proteins. All 3 forms of nutrients can be metabolized by the body to produce energy.
Proteins and carbohydrates can produce 4 calories per gram. Fats are more energy-dense foods; they can produce 9 calories per gram.
All the energy from our food is either utilized by the cells of our body for normal functioning or they are used to build up more tissue. Protein in our diet can be used to build new muscle. Alternatively, any excess energy is stored for later use, mainly in the form of adipose (or fatty) tissue.
Calorie Requirements
The human body requires a certain amount of calories per day to function properly. An average-sized adult male requires around 2500 calories a day. An average-sized non-pregnant woman needs less, around 2000 calories per day.
These figures can vary greatly. Increased environmental temperature, increased core body temperature, and increased level of physical activity, among other things, increase the caloric requirements of the body. Children and the elderly typically require less energy daily.
Calories are normally obtained from the food that we eat. However, the body can also obtain calories from nutrients derived from the body’s own stores of energy, and even from the breakdown of muscle.
Calories and Our Body
Now that we understand what a calorie is and how it affects our body, we can begin to understand how our body weight is affected by our caloric intake. Given that our body has a daily calorie requirement for everyday activities, then anything in excess of that gets stored within the body. If there is no muscle tissue to repair as the result of a lack of exercise, excess calories are stored as fat and glycogen. This is the storage form for carbohydrates in the human body. Carbohydrates can be taken in as simple carbohydrates; namely bread cereals and pasta. Or they can be taken in as complex carbohydrates; namely phytonutrients rich foods such as fruits and vegetables.
Weight Gain
The most abundant form of energy stores in the human body is fatty tissue. Because 1 gram of fat releases 9 calories of energy, this makes fat the most ideal form for storing energy. Fats can be taken in both as meat products and oils used for cooking. Most of the excess calories in the diet, beyond what is needed by daily calorie requirements, are converted into adipose tissue. This is referred to as calorie surplus or calorie excess. As the body accumulates adipose tissue, excess weight is gained. If the energy stored as fatty tissue is not used, or if the diet contains more calories than needed, weight simply continues to increase.
Weight Loss
On the other hand, if one needs to lose weight, the fat stores of the body need to be utilized for energy. Weight loss happens when the body experiences what is referred to as a calorie deficit. If one decreases the amount of calories required by the body, or decreases the daily calorie intake, the result is weight loss. This gives us two ways in which to lose weight: reduce the amount of calories that are taken in each day or increase the calories required per day. Both will lead to a calorie deficit.
Get That Heart Running
The best way to increase the calorie requirement of the body per day is through exercise. Most exercises usually fall into two general types: cardiovascular exercise and muscle-building exercise. Both types of exercise increase the calorie requirement of the body.
Cardiovascular exercises usually entail prolonged periods of exertion. Heart rate and respiratory rate are increased to meet the metabolic demands of the body because of the use of muscles for movement. Fat stores are then decreased as more calories are required by the body to meet these metabolic demands. More intense exercise that uses more muscle groups will require more calories.
Pumping Iron
Muscle-building exercises like weightlifting do not last as long and do not require as many calories as cardiovascular exercise. This is due to the fact that fewer muscle groups at a time are being used and only for shorter periods of time. However, in the long run, muscle-building exercises induce the same amount of calorie burn as cardiovascular exercises since the former increases the muscle mass of the body. Increased muscle mass increases the daily calorie requirement of the body.
Take It Off
Calories are not a bad. They are required in adequate amounts each day so that the body and mind can function properly. However, as with everything else, excess calories are detrimental to health and wellness. Excess caloric intake becomes fat that increases the ideal body. Carrying excess weight and makes one prone to diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and even cancer. With a balanced diet and adequate exercise, one will be able to shed excess weight by reducing the calories stored in the body.
Dr. Linda Kennedy, MS, SLP, ND
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Tags: adipose tissue, caloric values, calorie, calories, carbohydrates, diabetes, diet, dieting, exercise, fat, glycogen, health, heart diesease, heart rate, kilocalories, liquid vitamins, muscle, muscle building, muscle mass, phytonutrients, protein, weight watching, weightlifting, wellness, whole food supplements
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Please tell me, what is the daily requirement of energy by the healthy human body, in kilocalories?
How should I gain my weight? I’m a 23 year old, but I have poor health. What should I do to gain weight?
Hello, eat good nutritional food then you will gain your good health. It gives you confidence which is essential to gaining weight. Eat many varieties of food and do some exercise, and then you will gain your required weight.