UNDERSTANDING ENERGY BALANCE

In last issue’s article, I spoke about calories and what they are, and this topic of ‘energy balance’ follows on nicely from that.

Energy balance refers to the balance between the calories we consume through food and the calories we burn through physical exercise and activity, as well as our basic metabolic processes.

When we consume more calories than we burn, we are said to be in a positive energy balance, (this can also be called a surplus) – which can lead to weight gain. Conversely, when we burn more calories than we consume, we are said to be in a negative energy balance – which can lead to weight loss.

Many people believe that weight gain or loss is simply a matter of eating too much or too little.