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My weight-control method involves watching the calories I take in every day and counting them against the calories that I burn. The question is, how many calories does my body burn in an average day? You can find a good answer to that question at the calorie calculator on the Calories-Per-Hour website.

So given my age, height, gender and activity level, the calorie calculator says that I burn about 2,700 calories a day. To not gain weight, I need only make sure I don’t exceed that number in calories that I eat.

The past few months, I’ve taken off about 10 pounds by trimming 500 calories per day off my diet. Of course, limiting myself to 2,200 calories a day is a challenge, so I go to the gym and use the treadmill to count the calories I burn, and then give myself that much more credit in my daily diet. It seems to work pretty well. Just another 10 pounds, and I’m back to what I weighed in college, about a millennia ago.

  

 

If you’re trying to get control of your weight, use the online calculator to figure out your daily burn rate, then subtract a certain amount from that total. Given that human fat is about 3,500 calories per pound, it’s a simple matter of mathematics to figure out how much to subtract. To lose a pound a week, subtract 500 calories a day from your diet, and you’re on your way. Like I said, if trimming that much from your daily diet is too painful, then make up the difference by burning the calories off with exercise.

The website also features an activity calculator for estimating the number of calories for several activities, including walking and running. For example, if I run the 9-minute-mile (6.7 mph) for 45 minutes, I’ll burn 767 calories. That’s good to know, especially if, in a moment of weakness, I decide to eat something extra during the day.

The bottom line is that like anything, controlling weight is a matter of accounting. The only problem is making sure you have the right numbers to work with. The website at caloriesperhour.com can help you figure out the numbers you need to work with. The hard work, however, is up to you.

Best,

Dan

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