Ask An Expert: Paul, I Need Help Balancing Calories!
Q: Paul, I am a 22-year-old male who weighs 204 pounds and is having trouble with caloric intake versus caloric expenditure. I have a watch that is telling me I am burning between 1000 and 2000 calories when I workout, but I find that I am still gaining weight. I eat about 1600 calories of clean healthy food but I still gain weight. Is there a chance that my body is going into starvation mode? What do I need to be eating to continue this level of activity?
A: The fact that you only eating 1600 calories a day is a problem. For a male doing that much activity you need to be eating at least 2400 calories a day. If you are really doing that much activity and eating so little but you're not losing weight then something is wrong with your metabolism and I would advise that you go to the doctor and get your thyroid checked.
I would also question the number of calories that you will burn in in a workout, it's very unlikely that you are expending more than 1000 calories in a typical workout unless you are going for more than 2 hours. I would question the calories that your watch is saying that you are expending, as many machines often over estimate the number of calories burned (this includes treadmills, elliptical trainers, etc.).
~ Paul
Written by: Paul Plakas, fitness expert on the show: X-Weighted
For more questions answered by Paul Plakas, check out "Paul Plakas Answers Your Questions" on the X-Weighted website.
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