Clearing Up a Common Misconception

So I have begun working with my fellow Italian athletes with their diet. Most of them want to slim down, increase muscle, etc. While I am trying my best to speak with them in the beautiful Italian language (still not amazing at it, but getting there!) I have found out that they do not understand a simple concept to me.

Body weight is directly correlated to total amount of Calories consumed/used.


A lot of people mistake gaining weight with eating too much fat, junky foods, desserts, sugars, etc. Unfortunately, this is not the answer. If you need to, or want to, lose weight, you must decrease total calorie consumption per day. Another option is to increase calorie usage per day by exercising or exercising more/longer. A combination of the two can speed things up, but losing more than 2 lbs per week can tend to be unhealthy for your body.

On average, decreasing the diet per day by 500 Calories will help you lose about 1 lb per week. Understand that different bodies react differently. So this number could be too small or too big depending. Also, 500 Calories per day can be a lot to do right away. Try easing yourself down to a comfortable level where you are not starving but also losing weight.

It can be really hard to use numbers or calculate out every darn thing you eat, so to give you an example of what 500 calories can be:

• One Big Mac from McDonald's - 540 Calories
• Small French Fries from McDonald's - 250 Calories
• Triple Chocolate Cookie from Mrs. Field's - 220 Calories
• Corn Chips single serve bag - average: 160 Calories
• Pretzels single serve bag - average: 110 Calories
• 100% Orange Juice 16 oz - 220 Calories
• Sugary soda 16 oz - average: 240-260 Calories

So depending on how things are working out for you, it can be easy to out out the 500 Calories. This plan doesn't work if you are grossly gaining weight though. If this is your case, you should seek a dietitian to gain more direct help specific to yourself! It's a great way to increase your overall health.

If you really need a snack or are having trouble with hunger, check out my post on snacks in my archive! There are some great choices for you waiting there...