Now that there are only 4 weeks left to the 4^th of July weekend, I really need to tighten things up and devise a new plan to reach my goal… so I decided to go through a little exercise that I do on occasion to make sure I’m on track, which is to check my BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) and where I am with my calories in and out….. Below is a really great link that my hubby uses to calculate your BMR, calories, and what your approximate daily fat, carbohydrate and protein intake should be. Also a blog he did on when to count calories.

http://www.bmicalculatorforfemales.us/calorie-calculator-to-lose-weight/

http://markoneworkout.blogspot.com/2010/09/counting-calories-is-pain-in-you-know.html

OK – so step one was to find my BMR which is basically the calories my body burns to exist.  For my age, height and weight mine is around 1350. The next thing I did was to go to one of my favorite calorie counting sites www.fitday.com – where I entered all of my food for the day to see what my basic calories in are – this is a free website. Now I am not a big calorie counter, but I don’t have to be because I’ve done exercises like this over the years and now basically what the calories are in everything I eat. If this is something you’ve never done, I highly recommend it – it is a huge eye opener.

Now as some of you know I am a creature of habit – I eat basically the same thing each day up through dinner – It’s easy for me planning wise and works for me. So here is what I found… my fat intake is a little too high on certain days, because of the amount of nuts I eat. I’ve been having slice almonds in my salad and also 1 oz of almonds with my veggie shake, which is fine on the days I have chicken or a leaner protein for dinner, but on the days I have ground beef or a higher fat protein, I need to cut out one of my nut servings and replace it with something different, for me that is going to be shrimp.

Another thing I want to mention here on calorie counting which I just heard Valerie Waters say in one of her live chats is “I don’t believe that a calorie, is a calorie, is a calorie  – or in calories in, calories out. I believe there is absolutely a difference in the quality of a calorie, that you can operate on higher calories and have less cellulite and less of that little fat that sticks around when eating clean vs. eating a lower calorie diet of crap.” I love this!  And it basically means you can’t replace your apple and almond snack with a snickers bar… It will be the same calories in, but will not be processed in your body the same way. Also, alcohol calories are not processed the same way as fuel calories, so you can’t have two glasses of wine for dinner…

The next thing I did was look at my calories out… Yes I do work out 6 out of 7 days a week, but because I’m smaller and in decent shape I have to push myself a little harder to drop weight… 1 lb of fat is 3,500 calories… Again, which is why the above link is so great… I can calculate a 1 lb a week loss and it will tell me how many calories I should consume… If I was underweight, which I have some dear friends that are,  it can also tell you how to gain a pound too.

The key is we want to lose, or gain, weight in a healthy way, by building muscle, not losing muscle, or by eating healthy foods, not junky foods….. I now see exactly what I need to do, which is A. watch the quality of my calories in and B. Increase my cardio to burn more fat calories…If I do this, I will succeed!

So – wish me luck!!