Calories: are they all the same?
Are all calories made equal? This is an
interesting question and in honesty the jury is still out. It depends on the
context of your question, and I will do my best to address it here.
When it comes to weight loss, calories are
all the same. Whether you eat 2000 calories of broccoli, or 2000 calories of
donuts; it is the same number of calories.
How you feel in the period afterwards, and
the long-term impact on your health will be very different, but the energy you
consume, and it’s impact on short-term weight loss will be the same.
Different foods have different numbers of
calories; with protein and carbohydrates having 4 calories per gram, while fats
have 9 calories per gram. You can clearly see that you will be able to eat more
food if you eat protein and carbohydrates, to end up with the same total
calories.
However, if we go back to the broccoli vs
donuts example; eating broccoli is filling because it’s high in fibre and
nutrients. Eating donuts tends to cause a blood sugar spike, and subsequent
crash, making us quickly hungry again. This happens because it is high in sugar
and fat.
While the calorie loads are the same, the
impact on behaviour is going to be different. When you have an energy crash
you’re going to reach for more calories, more sugar; to give yourself more
energy.
This means eating the high sugar food is
going to make it harder to eat the right foods and the right number of calories
for the rest of the day.
While a calorie is a calorie in terms of energy, it is not the same in its impact on the body. In conclusion, calories are in one way all the same, but in another way they can have a very different impact on the body, and your fitness goals.
Category List
news (2)
Fitness Solutions (19)
group training (1)
Yoga (3)
productivity (1)
recipe (2)
Exercises (2)
Strength and Tone (54)
training (4)
Weight Loss (41)
Plank (1)
Rehabilitation (1)
Workout (2)
self care (2)
food (8)
Gym (5)
competition (2)
Beginner (3)
strength (1)
reformer (2)
lifestyle (11)
reformer pilates (4)
Genesis Ballarat (1)
gym owners (2)
Programs & Products (1)
Health Advice (2)
weight loss transformation (1)
Your New Beginning (11)
transformation (1)
challenge (4)
wellbeing (2)
franchise (3)
genesis team (3)
Fitness (129)
fitness goals (3)
Press Release (14)
Group (2)
nutrition (49)
health (106)
Community (12)
sleep (1)
business (2)
Find Your 30 (30)
genesis community (5)
