5 Tips on How to Make Counting Calories Easier

Counting calories is easy when you break it down to simple, achievable steps. Too many people get overwhelmed by it, and get so discouraged that they give up entirely. Don't let that happen to you! Here are five simple, easy tips to help keep track of calories:

Learn the calorie count of your favorite foods. Think of your favorite foods- healthy, unhealthy, doesn't matter- just your favorite foods. Take ten of them and look up their calorie counts. Don't bother memorizing anything, just get a general idea of which foods have the most and which have the least. Also, take into consideration what a serving size is. For example, if you love mashed potatoes and gravy, there's a pretty good chance that the portion you normally have is more than one serving size. Measure a few foods out, so that you have a visual on how that particular food, it's portion size and the number of calories correspond to each other.

Know the calorie counts in treats. The idea of never being able to have food treats is often enough to sabotage a diet. Indulging in a favorite food treat does not have to be a diet-killer. In fact, it's OK to have treats while you're trying to lose weight- just know the calorie extent of your treat. It may seem counter-intuitive, but sometimes you're better off calorie-wise having a treat than having something that strictly adheres to your diet. For example, a Fudgesicle has 60 calories, and a large apple has over 100. So go ahead and have a treat when you really, really want one- just be smart about it. And, obviously, don't have so many treats that you're eating all empty calories. You definitely need to get proper nutrition out of the overwhelming majority of the calories you consume.

Be aware of hidden calories. Hidden calories are diet-killers. Be very careful to check the calorie count on prepared foods. Sometimes you'll think that because a dish is loaded with vegetables it's low-cal, but then you find out it has so many "hidden calories" that it's really not low-cal at all. The same thing goes for salads and drinks. Drinks are probably the worst place for hidden calories. Be very mindful of the calorie counts in fancy coffee drinks, alcoholic drinks, and smoothies.

Check the calorie counts at restaurants. Do simple comparisons. For example, a Whopper Junior has 340 calories, and a Mocha Venti has 508 calories. So even though you might think a fast-food hamburger is really bad for a diet and a cup of coffee is fine, that's not accurate. You don't have to know the calories for every single thing, but restaurants are required to provide nutritional facts, including calorie counts, so when in doubt, look at the calories.

Know how many calories exercise burns. For a 150 pound person, walking at a slow pace burns 171 calories an hour. Keep in mind that a 16 ounce Coke has 200 calories, so if you go to the mall and walk for an hour then have a coke, you've actually consumed more calories than you've burned. (Better to bring a water with you.) A few more examples of calorie burning: an hour of dancing burns 475 calories, an hour of Tai Chi burns 269 calories, and two hours of golf (carrying clubs) burns 755 calories. You know what kind of exercise you enjoy, so get a rough idea of how many calories participating in those activities burns.

Sources:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/tag/show/fudgesicle
http://www.bk.com/en/us/menu-nutrition/index.html
http://www.shapefit.com/starbucks.html
http://www.prohealth.com/weightloss/tools/exercise/calculator1_2.cfm
http://www.annecollins.com/calories/calories-coca-cola.htm