What are calories and why drink water?

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justlittlem
justlittlem Posts: 18
in Food and Nutrition
> I posted this in general but i realised it should really go here, sorry for the 2 topics <

I know this is a strange question and i'm not entirely sure how to word it but what are calories?

I mean, what are they in your body, are they energy? What do calories do in your body?

And why is it so important to hit 1200 calories and maintaining a deficit?


Also, the 8 glasses of water a day. Is that just for hydration or is there something else behind that? I usually just drink when i'm thirsty so about 6 glasses a day and that works for me.

Thank you

Replies

  • WinnerVictorious
    WinnerVictorious Posts: 4,735 Member
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    food is burned to provide you with energy. calories are a measure of the amount of potential energy in your food.

    that energy is used to fuel your body.

    think of it like gas in a car. gas is combusted in the engine to move the pistons which turn the crankshaft which transfers energy to the gears in the transmission, etc.

    that's a bit like the way food is used in your body.

    you eat food and it is broken down and digested to provide you with essential molecules and energy to fuel the various metabolic and chemical processes occurring in your body.

    water is used by many of the chemical processes in your body.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
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    The 8 cups of water thing is just a guideline. You want to be hydrated enough that your urine is pale yellow.

    Calories are a measurement of energy, as WV said. You want to eat enough of them so that your body has the fuel to run essential processes. If you don't eat enough you can get some pretty bad side effects-- loss of muscle (your heart is a muscle), loss of hair, fatigue, depression, etc. 1200 is just the lowest number that is considered healthy and that allows you to get essential nutrition.
  • PurpleTina
    PurpleTina Posts: 390 Member
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    I thought that calories were the things that hid in your wardrobe and sewed up your clothes in the night to make them smaller :laugh:
  • justlittlem
    justlittlem Posts: 18
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    Thank you so much for the help.
    I'm one of those people that likes to know how everything works so I can plant an image of it in my head. I just bought "Nutrition for Dummies" so I hope that'll help me out a bit but thank you so much for the information, the way you two explained it is perfect for me.

    Thank you!
  • farsteve
    farsteve Posts: 157 Member
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    The scientific definition of a calorie is the amount of heat it takes to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree Celsius but what we need to know is it takes a deficit of 3,500 calories in order to lose one pound. You can not eat 3,500 calories in a week or you can exercise an extra 3,500 calories in a week or (the recommended methodology) you can combine the two. Eat at a deficit AND exercise additionally. Presto-Changeo-poof, one pound lost in one week.

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