Whether for health or personal reasons, understanding how to count calories can make meal planning an easier task. Carbohydrates contribute about four calories per gram so naturally, the more carbohydrates in a food, the higher the calorie content. Likewise, fats and proteins also contribute to the total caloric content of a food. A registered dietitian can help you determine how many calories and carbohydrates you need in your diet.
Step 1
Look at the food label of the food you are going to count. Check the serving size of the food. All of the nutritional facts listed on the label are in relation to the serving size.
Step 2
Determine how many servings you want to eat based on your caloric goals. If you eat double the listed serving size, you must also double all of the nutrients, including the calories and carbohydrates. Conversely, if you would like to eat a higher-calorie food and keep it within your caloric goal, eat less than the recommended serving size.
Step 3
Multiply the total grams of carbohydrate by four to give you the amount of calories that come from carbohydrates to determine what percentage of calories comes from carbohydrates.
Step 4
Divide the number of calories from carbohydrates by the total calories listed, and then multiply by 100. This will give you the percentage of calories from carbohydrates.
Step 5
Access a calorie counter program to determine the calories from foods that do not have food labels, such as fresh produce or meats. Several books, websites and phone apps are now available to help monitor caloric intake.
Tips and Warnings
- Keeping a food log will help you keep track of the foods you are eating and any associated trends in caloric intake. Also, it is helpful to have measuring cups and spoons available to help measure the serving size, but if you do not have access to these things, an estimate can be obtained by visualizing the portion based on the "servings per container" listed on the food label. For example, if a product has two servings per container, you can deduce that one serving would be about half of the food item.
- Food manufacturers may change their product formulary and serving sizes, so check the labels frequently to ensure a more accurate nutrient assessment.
Member Comments