The Importance of Calories

If you want to lose weight, you must consume fewer calories than you burn. It's simple math.

In fact, it's so simple, and so important, that we have made calorie reduction our our top weight loss secret.

You can try all of the magic pills and potions you want. You can exercise 20 hours per day. However, if you consume more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. It's simple math.

A calorie is a unit of measurement for energy. The unit's name is French and derives from the Latin calor (heat). Scientists now use the joule as the unit of energy. However, the calorie remains in common use for the amount of energy obtained from food.

Human fat tissue contains about 87% lipids (what non-scientists refer to as fat), so that one pound of body-fat tissue has roughly the caloric energy of 1,914 g of pure fat, or 3,500 calories. Therefore, to lose weight, one has to create a 3,500 calorie deficit between energy intake and use to lose one pound of body-fat.

And that's the simple math, and that's the importance of a calorie. If you want to lose a pound of fat, you have to burn approximately 3,500 calories more than you consume.

That's not easy to do: check out our report on the 3,500 Calorie Exercise Weight Loss Challenge.

For more detailed information, be sure to refer to our Top Weight Loss Secrets, and read our Read the latest information in about calories in our Weight Loss Lose Weight Blog!