Chapter 6

The Simple Mathematics of Calorie Reduction

What determines whether I gain weight or lose weight? The answer is simple. If I eat more calories than I burn, I will gain weight. If I eat fewer calories than I burn, I will lose weight.

Thus losing weight is a simple matter: Eating fewer calories will help you lose weight. Exercising more will help you lose weight.
Remember, if you exercise more but also eat more, you might not lose weight! I will talk about exercise more in a later chapter.
How do I eat fewer calories?

A little math here: the number of calories you eat is equal to the weight of food that you eat multiplied by the caloric density of the food.

(Calories) = (weight of food) x (caloric density)

What is “caloric density”? “Caloric density” is the number of calories in a food divided by the weight of the food. A small amount of food with high caloric density will have the same number of calories as a large amount of food with low caloric density.

How the body tells when we are full is fairly complicated. However, one key component of fullness is the amount of food we eat.

Thus, the way to eat fewer calories is:

#1 To eat foods with low caloric density. Eating a reasonable amount of foods with low caloric density is part of a healthy diet.
#2 To reduce the size of the portions of food you eat.

This is the crucial part of this diet, so I will repeat it again: the way to eat fewer calories is:

#1 To eat foods with low caloric density. Eating a reasonable amount of foods with low caloric density is part of a healthy diet.
#2 To reduce the size of the portions of food you eat.