Calorie Burning 101

By Author: Carole Pagan, 2004
Total Articles: 1
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You know the formula for losing weight, right? Burn more
than you take in. So say you're like me, and you eat an
average of 2000 calories a day. Yep, I love my food. But
I also have to eat that much just to maintain my weight.

How the heck can I burn all that off?

First off, you burn calories just by gracing the earth with
your presence. That's right. Everything about you burns
calories- breathing, heartbeat, digesting your food, even
reading this article. You knew this was good for you, right? :)

So what did you do today?

Slept, say 7 hours- 420 calories
Took a shower - 65 calories
Ate Breakfast - 35 calories
Drove an hour to work - 120 calories
Ate Lunch - 35 calories
Took a 20 minute walk - 90 calories
Worked an office job all day - 800 calories
Drove an hour home - 120 calories
Stopped at the grocery store - 70 calories
Made dinner - 50 calories
Washed dishes - 45 calories
Cleaned a room - 70 calories
Sat and vegged in front of TV - 2 hours - 150 calories

You burned ...
... 2040 calories.

In other words, you would maintain the same weight you
are at. 2000 in, 2000 out. But there is an extra 40 calories
in the burn column. If you were to keep that up, you would
lose a pound in 88 days.

Oh my gosh, did I hear some light bulbs going off?

But Caaaarole, I didn't feeeeel like going to the store and
making dinner. I ran through the McDonalds drive-thru
instead. Kicked my feet up in front of the TV and didn't
move.

Oh my, that decision cost you 160 burned calories, plus an
additional 200 calories that you added to your intake, for a
total of 360 excess calories. Do that for 10 days, and you'll
have gained a pound.

Not to mention that you'll feel sluggish from all that fat, so
you'll be even less motivated to get up and move.

But let's say that the snapshot above was pretty close to
your day, but instead of 2 hours of TV, you went to the mall.
You added another 135 calories to the burn column!

Or you have a stationary bike in front of the TV -
that works too, add about 135 calories to the burn column.
If you have kids, or a dog, add another 120 calories burned
for each hour of activity with them.

I know, it could be more or less depending on the kinds of
activity and how strenuously you do each one. That's really
not the point here. There's a fine line between maintaining
and gaining weight. Poor decisions made regularly add up
quickly.

Eat Smarter + Move More = Lose Weight
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Carole is the author of I've Got a Thin Attitude. Find out why thin people don't struggle with their weight. You'll proudly say- I've Got a Thin Attitude!
http://ThinAttitude.CommonSenseLiving.com

About the Author Carole is a single work at home mom. She shares her Common Sense Tips for solving everyday real-life problems at www.CommonSenseLiving.com