How to Know when You Are Overeating
Calculate your recommended daily caloric intake., Measure servings before eating., Calculate the amount of food you usually eat., Compare how much you eat to your recommended daily intake.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Calculate your recommended daily caloric intake.
Your recommended daily calories depend on your age, size, and activity level.
They also depend on whether you’re trying to lose weight, gain weight, or maintain your current weight.Use an online calculator to determine how many calories you should consume each day or read this LifeGuide Hub article, How to Calculate Your Total Daily Calorie Needs.
You can also see a personal trainer or a nutritionist for an in-person consultation about how much you should be eating.
Heart rate monitors can be worn to determine exactly how many calories you burn each day. -
Step 2: Measure servings before eating.
Even if you don’t have a food scale or measuring cup, you can estimate your portions.
A cup is about the size of the average person’s fist.
A tablespoon is a little bigger than your thumb tip.Some things come packed in single servings.
For example, you can buy single servings of yogurt, juice, or even frozen dinners.
These items should have nutritional information per serving on the package.
Remember to measure the amount you would normally eat.
If you measure less than that, you won’t know whether you’re usually overeating or not. , Choose a day and eat as you normally would; however, write down everything you’ve eaten that day and how much of each item.
Add up the calories and compare them to your recommended daily intake.Many online databases offer free calorie estimates for thousands of foods.
Do your best to estimate.
If you eat at restaurants, or if someone else does your cooking, you may need to guess at the calories; however, you can also ask the chef about ingredients and cooking methods.
At a restaurant, you can say, “Do you know if this was sautéed in butter?” or “Was this fried?” if you’re not sure. , This will tell you if you are overeating.
For example, if your recommended caloric intake is 1,800 calories per day, but you’re eating 2,200, you’re overeating by 400 calories.
You may want to calculate how much you eat for a few days and take an average.
Only calculating for one day might not give you the most accurate results.
Exercise will affect your results.
For example, if one day you burn 500 calories exercising, you will be able to eat 500 extra calories without overeating. -
Step 3: Calculate the amount of food you usually eat.
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Step 4: Compare how much you eat to your recommended daily intake.
Detailed Guide
Your recommended daily calories depend on your age, size, and activity level.
They also depend on whether you’re trying to lose weight, gain weight, or maintain your current weight.Use an online calculator to determine how many calories you should consume each day or read this LifeGuide Hub article, How to Calculate Your Total Daily Calorie Needs.
You can also see a personal trainer or a nutritionist for an in-person consultation about how much you should be eating.
Heart rate monitors can be worn to determine exactly how many calories you burn each day.
Even if you don’t have a food scale or measuring cup, you can estimate your portions.
A cup is about the size of the average person’s fist.
A tablespoon is a little bigger than your thumb tip.Some things come packed in single servings.
For example, you can buy single servings of yogurt, juice, or even frozen dinners.
These items should have nutritional information per serving on the package.
Remember to measure the amount you would normally eat.
If you measure less than that, you won’t know whether you’re usually overeating or not. , Choose a day and eat as you normally would; however, write down everything you’ve eaten that day and how much of each item.
Add up the calories and compare them to your recommended daily intake.Many online databases offer free calorie estimates for thousands of foods.
Do your best to estimate.
If you eat at restaurants, or if someone else does your cooking, you may need to guess at the calories; however, you can also ask the chef about ingredients and cooking methods.
At a restaurant, you can say, “Do you know if this was sautéed in butter?” or “Was this fried?” if you’re not sure. , This will tell you if you are overeating.
For example, if your recommended caloric intake is 1,800 calories per day, but you’re eating 2,200, you’re overeating by 400 calories.
You may want to calculate how much you eat for a few days and take an average.
Only calculating for one day might not give you the most accurate results.
Exercise will affect your results.
For example, if one day you burn 500 calories exercising, you will be able to eat 500 extra calories without overeating.
About the Author
Carolyn Ellis
Creates helpful guides on organization to inspire and educate readers.
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