Q – I am a 26-year-old woman and I want to get back in shape. I put on a few kilos in the last few months but now I want to be my ideal weight. I have heard dieticians and fitness experts say that keeping a track of calories is important when losing weight.Can you please tell me why and also how can I keep track?

A – Our bodies need only a certain amount of calories in a day to function properly, this is known as BMR – Basic Metabolic Rate. Dieticians devise a diet chart for us based on this and nutrition factors and we can easily be in shape if we follow this and workout. Keeping a track of the number of calories we consume and burn during the day helps determine how much weight are we losing or gaining and how much we need to exercise and eat. This is why it is important. It also gives us a clearer idea of how much time we’ll need to lose or gain the weight we want to.

Basic concept

Weight loss or gain is all about consuming and burning calories. When you burn more calories than you consume in a period of time, you lose weight and when you consume more calories than you burn, you gain weight.

In order to keep track of the number of calories you are consuming, you need to know the number of calories in each food item you eat. While you may find many apps or online calorie counters, you may not find Indian food listings everywhere. You can try www.healthifyme.com for this purpose. If you want to calculate your BMR and set a goal for yourself, you can use this calculator. You can burn many calories by doing everyday activities like cooking, mopping, reading and even eating. Don’t forget to include these in your list of calories burnt every day