Energy Balance

I have a negative energy balance. My 3 day average for energy in kcals is

1,641.55 and my recommended intake is 4,100 kcals. I am in a huge deficit of energy
because there is a huge difference of 2,458.45 kcals. That is only 40% of my
recommended intake. I did have low energy on these days because one of the three I was
really hung-over from Saturday’s game and didn’t eat much, and I am also trying to loose
weight. I need to eat more carbohydrates early in the day to bring my energy level back to
equilibrium. If I remain on a low caloric intake I will become very exhausted and not be
able to be as active as I’d like to be.
Source of Calories
Source of Fat
a) There are many sources of fat. There are saturated, monounsaturated,
polyunsaturated fats. Cookies, eggs, and burgers are all high in fat.
b) 137g of fat is my recommended intake. In my 3 day average I consumed 63g
of fat. That is 46% of my recommended intake.
c) Some significant sources of saturated fat would be a cheeseburger and
cookies.
d) Some significant sources of monounsaturated fat would be ground beef and
eggs.
e) Some significant sources of polyunsaturated fat would be a whole wheat
english muffin.
f) Since at the moment I am trying to lose weight I believe that since my
saturated intake is only 40% of the recommendation it is a plus for my health.
g) According to my chart it says I am at 46% of my recommended intake and to
increase that I would need to eat more phospholipids and fat dense foods like
nuts, peanut butter, and salad oils.
Sources of Carbohydrates
a) Some examples of simple carbohydrates: milk chocolate, chocolate chip
cookies
b) Some examples of complex carbohydrates: granola bar, whole wheat,
spaghetti sauce w/ garlic and onions.
c) Simple sugars are very high within candies and other sweet snacks or drinks.
Complex carbohydrates are what I need, they provide the energy that you use
to burn fat and it won’t convert over to sugar then fat. Noodles are high in
carbs and so are a whole wheat english muffins. But I have to watch out
because many high in carb foods are also high in sugar. I need to improve on
my complex carbohydrate intake in order to meet my recommended daily
needs. In my average only 40% of recommended amount is met.
d) 25g a day is the recommended dietary fiber intake. The average range among
adults is 17g for men and 13g for women. My consumption falls right below
the average with 15g of fiber. This is 60% of the recommended intake.
e) I try to eat at least 1 bowl of high fiber cereal and 2 slices of high fiber bread
which wasn’t recognized by the NutriCalc program but I think my intake of
fiber should be around 22 to 27g of fiber a day.
 f) Some health roles of fibers: help maintain healthy weight, may decrease risk
of colon cancer if from whole foods, and it slows glucose absorption leading
to better glucose regulation.
Protein
a) My recommended intake of protein is 80g. In my average I intake 86g. This
covers and exceeds my recommended intake by 107%.
b) Some significant plant sources would be tomato’s, onions, lettuce, broccoli,
salad mix.
c) Some significant animal sources would be chicken, ground beef, and tuna or
any fish.
d) High protein intake isn’t to severe but could lead to kidney failure, lessens
absorption of calcium, and is linked to colon cancer plus heart attacks.
Vitamins Minerals and Water
a) I am below my recommended intake on these following vitamins and
minerals: Vitamin A- With a deficiency of 32% of my recommended value I
am more vulnerable to become blind. I would need to increase my dark
vegetables and eat more fish to get more equilibrium.
Vitamin E- With a deficiency of 44% of my recommended value I am more
prone to hemolysis. To increase my percentage I need to eat more plant oils,
nuts, and some fruit.
Folate- With a deficiency of 55% of my recommended value I am not able to
form good solid DNA because folate affects red blood cells. I need to drink
more orange juice and vegetables to increase my percentage of recommended
folate.
Calcium- With a deficiency of 63% of my recommended value I can have
bone pain, fractures, diarrhea, and could possibly develop scurry overtime
with a greater deficiency. In order to increase my calcium intake I just need to
eat more citrus fruits, broccoli, and potatoes.
Sodium-With an excess of 165% of my recommended value there isn’t any
real effects except it affects the absorption of calcium. This could be why I
have shortage of calcium. In order to lower this excess I would need to
shorten up the spaghetti sauce and salad dressings.
Iron- With an excess of 152% of my recommended value there isn’t any real
threats. But I don’t have to worry about getting iron-deficiency anemia. In
order to lower this excess amount of iron I would need to cut back on
spaghetti and ground beef, except there really isn’t a threat because all of it
isn’t getting absorbed.
b) I recently cut all soft drinks and sugar aided drinks for crystal light in which
flavors water to make it more enjoyable. Between crystal light, milk, orange
juice, beer, and apple juice that is basically all I drink. Since I drink water
constantly I exceed the recommendation with 109%. Adequate fluid intake
can help someone live longer. Most unused substances in the body can
dissolve in water and exit in urine. So waste is dissolved and excreted because
of fluid intake. I also read in Men’s Health that someone who drinks 96 floz of
water will live 6-10 years longer and be less susceptible for a heart attack or
disease.
Holistic Perspective
I weigh 220lbs and stand 5’11” tall. My BMI is 30.68 which is over the limit
for health risks. I have been working on cutting all unhealthy foods out of my diet. By
doing so, I try and prepare all foods at home and not eat out. Sometimes I can’t help it
because I just can’t get home to eat or I have nothing to eat at the time. Then I will try
and find something moderately good to eat out, which is very hard. I use to exercise a lot
more before I started watching my food then I started focusing on my weight and not
mass. But when I cut the food by energy isn’t as strong so I can’t workout as much. I try
to get a run in at least twice a week and workout once or twice, all lasting 1 to 2 hours. I
just started taking multi vitamins, in which I take 2 a day because my doctor
recommended it because of my weight and size. I usually get 6-8 hours of sleep more so
on the 6 side. And I am generally healthy I can exercise play sports and not be exhausted
the rest of the day. I am over weight but that is why I am trying to cut my weight down to
200lbs by spring. I have some history of cancer in my family but nothing that they didn’t
overcome, or they got it when they were of old age and it was uncontrollable at that
point. I want to be healthy with a good understanding of what I need to be eating in order
to live a long well life. And also I want to be very active with a high energy and low
cholesterol.
Goals
I want to get my energy at the equilibrium, increase my Vitamin A intake, and
increase my Calcium intake. All I would have to do is eat more complex carbohydrates,
fish, dark vegetables, and potatoes to reach these goals. Because carbs reflect energy,
Vitamin A is covered by the fish and dark green vegetables, and potatoes increase
calcium which is also a complex carbohydrate.