Fitness

How to Exercise Safely During a Heat Wave

Study Finds - If you are on a new weight loss or health journey and have never thought about your calorie intake before, it might be worth it to start looking at them more closely. This will give you a baseline idea of what you’re eating and the amount of calories you’re taking in each day. Sometimes, people take it a step further and track actual calories for each meal and snack to capture the best picture....

The most significant thing that happens when people start calorie tracking is that they get fixated on those numbers and nothing else. They don’t consider the importance of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other nutrients. Instead, they focus on tallying the lowest numbers possible by the end of the day. “Low-calorie” does not mean healthy, just like “high-calorie” does not mean unhealthy.

 Theoretically, what’s better for weight loss may not be what’s best for overall health. For example, egg whites have far fewer calories than whole eggs, so you can eat them in volume, pack in a lot of protein, and get full on fewer calories. However, most of the vitamins and minerals are in the yolk part of the egg. The same goes for things like 100-calorie chips, bars, and desserts. They might be 100 calories, but what nutritional value are they actually providing?

Foods like avocados, nuts, and seeds are definitely higher on the calorie scale per serving, but they are also very nutritious. This means that while you would need to limit how much you eat in an effort to lose weight, you can and still should include foods like these for the fiber, vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats that they provide. Often, those on a calorie-tracking journey lose sight of this.