Your Calories

According to WikiAnswers, in 2003 the average American ate 3770 calories a day. That's more than twice the low-range recommendation for most women (1800 to 2200 a day). So, how many calories do you eat a day? Take a day and actually write down everything you eat. Then, sometime in the next few days, research how many calories were in the food you ate. Be sure to monitor how MUCH you eat of each food in order to get accurate numbers for the number of servings you ate. On average, we eat two to four times as much as we need.

Here are some common food examples from things I eat on a regular basis:

Oatmeal -- 150 calories for 1/2 cup cooked in water, no milk or sweetener added
Peanut Butter -- 210 calories for 2 Tbl.
Egg -- 70 calories per large egg
2% Milkfat Cheese -- 90 calories for one ounce
Skim Milk -- 90 calories per cup (8 ounces)
Whole Wheat English Muffin -- 120 calories per muffin
Deli Sliced Turkey, 94% Fat Free -- 35 calories per slice
Swiss Miss Sugar Free Hot Chocolate -- 80 calories per 1/4 cup serving
Baby Carrots -- 55 calories in 10
Small Apple -- 55 calories
Large Banana -- 121 calories
Frozen Sweet Peas -- 40 calories in 3/4 cup serving
Fresh Spinach -- 7 calories per cup
Blackberries -- 97 calories per cup
Chicken -- 120 calories per serving

A good resource for finding out how many calories are in some of your favorite foods (besides the label on the back of the food that will also give you the serving size/quantity) is www.calorieking.com. You can also track your food on sparkpeople.com and babyfit.com.

Happy tracking! I think you'll be surprised by how well you are doing in some areas and how much you can improve in others.