Calorie Counter

Calculating calories is an integral part of healthy eating. A calorie counter helps keep tab of total calorie intake per day. Make use of a calorie guide to help you choose the right food and the right quantity. Find out more on calories in fast food and how you can take conscious efforts to keep them down.

Calorie counter

A calorie counter helps you count your daily intake of calories. For people who are committed to eat healthy and stay trim, a calorie counter can be of immense help. The calorie counter also helps you estimate the number of calories your body requires per day for your kind of physique and physical activity. This tool also helps you estimate the energy your body requires to support your physical activities. All you require is details of your age, sex, height desired weight and current weight and the calorie counter helps you chart out the best for yourself.

Understanding food calorie will help us plan better on what we eat; all food items including beverages except water contain a certain amount of calories in them. It is understood that a gram of fat contains just about 9 calories, a gram of protein or carbohydrate contains just about 4 calories. Following the 4-calorie routine is the best diet plan that can be adapted. The energy stored in any food item is measured using calories and different types of food have different amount of calories. It is essential to understand that the energy contained by a calorie of fat and carbohydrate or protein are the same. Therefore every person has to consume calories according to their body type and functionality.

Calorie in food

Calorie in food is a measure of energy that particular food item can provide your body. Different food items have varying calorie levels, for e.g. ice cream and chocolate contain more calories when compared to lettuce leaves and therefore can provide more energy to the body than what lettuce can provide. Food items that can supply more energy have to be consumed in restricted levels according to your body's energy burning capacity. The nutrition label in any food item can provide you the information on the number of calories it contains. Listed below is a table of calories contained in food items that are consumed regularly.

Fast food calories

Big burgers, large size soda and loads of French fries are easy to grab and tasty to eat but beware of the extra calories! Fast food chains serve extra large portions to customers who easily lose their track on how many calories they just gobbled. Fast food on its own is high in calories, the toppings and sauces add to it. Healthy beverages such as low fat milk and water can replace the sodas that accompany fast food. Choosing healthy fast food requires conscious effort.

• Order for grilled sandwiches without the mayonnaise.
  
• Choose grilled chicken or fish sandwich.
  
• Enjoy whole-wheat rolls.
  
• Eat low fat sandwiches on pita bread or wheat bread.
  
• Choose baked potatoes with vegetables instead of cheese or butter or sour cream.
  
• Choose low fat milk or fat free milk over soda.
  
• Choose salad dressings that are fat free.
  

• Onion rings that are fried.
  
• Fried chicken.
  
• Large helping of French fries.
  
• Chicken nuggets.
  
• Croissant breakfast sandwich, croissants or pastries in general.
  
• Fried chicken sandwich or fried fish.
  

Daily calorie intake

Each human body has different levels of calorie requirements. The health department has set a basic guideline of 1200 calories per day for women and 1800 calories per day for men. Though this forms the basic guideline calorie requirement per man/woman per day, it largely depends on the body mass and type of lifestyle they lead. Survival requires a minimum number of calories and that cannot be cut down blindly. Listed below are a few guidelines to calculate the right amount of calories your body will require per day.

• Multiply the minimum essential number of calories your body requires by 11 if you are male and by 10 if you are female. The resultant figure indicates your minimal calorie requirement per day.
  
• Calculate your calorie requirement based on your activities by just multiplying your basic calorie requirement in step one by the percentage level of your activity. The answer gives you an idea of how many calories your body requires for the kind of activity you are involved in.
  
• Food digestion and absorption requires energy (calories), calculate this by adding the above two answers and multiplying it with 0.10. Resultant is the amount of calories required by your body for digestion.
  
• Add all the above three results and this will give you the total calorie requirement for your body.
  

Calorie guide for women

Calorie requirement for women is based on their physical activity and basal metabolic rate (BMR). BMR in the woman can determine the amount of energy required by the woman even while her body is resting.

• With sedentary life style and older women, daily calorie requirement is about 1,600 calories.
  
• Teenage girls and active women require about 2,200 calories per day.
  
• Highly active women can consume up to 2,800 calories per day.
  
• Pregnant and lactating women, the calorie intake should be extra 300 calories and extra 500 calories respectively.