Before learning how to count calories, you should understand why. Counting calories is the most effective way to track, manage, lose, and/or gain weight. You need to know how many calories you eat and burn to create, maintain, and/or change a diet or exercise program.

A few other reasons to count calories:

• It’s easier than learning the chemical processes of how food digests and is absorbed into the body.
• Could help save money when shopping for food
• Could help you lose those extra pounds
• Could help you bulk up

Now that you understand why you should count calories, there are still a few more key concepts that you need to have a firm grasp on.

1. The amount of calories in each Nutrient (carbs, fat, protein)
2. How to read a Nutrtion Facts (Food) Label
3. How to keep a food log/journal

• Fat has 9 calories/gram
• Carbohydrates have 4 calories/gram
• Protein has 4 calories/gram 

 Keeping a food log is important for tracking how many calories you eat over a period of time.

1. Find out how many calories are in each item of food you are eating by reading the Nutrition (Food) Label.
2. If you have more than one serving, and the Nutrition Facts (Food) Label only lists for 1 serving, then you must multiply by the amount of servings you had.
3. Keep track of all the major Nutritional information, from the food you ate, in your food log/journal.
4. Add up all the calories for the day

Now you have the total amount of calories that you ate in a day (Daily Caloric Intake).

With the high rate of obesity and health ailments in America, do you think the Government should encourage more people to count calories?

Check out this video and see what they are doing in the state of Connecticut.