Is It Really All About Calories In vs. Calories Out?

It’s long been debated in the fitness world rather or not the types of calories you eat have any effect on body composition. Some people believe that it won’t make a difference when it comes to fat loss and building muscle and others suggest that it makes all the difference in the world what calories you consume. But where does the truth lie? It might just be that nobody knows the answer to this question.

Literally, there are dozens upon dozens of studies on the subject and they all suggest different things, which is the primary reason why nobody can answer this question. Just do a quick Google search on the subject and you’ll see exactly what I’m talking about – you’ll click one webpage and they will say that it doesn’t matter and then you’ll click on another webpage and they will present you with a different study which suggests the exact opposite. There is no clear answer to this question.

But you should always be asking yourself one question – how do the calories you are consuming on a daily basis affect your performance in the gym. Are they helping you or hurting you?

Of course you could eat ice cream, chocolate and protein shakes all day long and still reach your macronutrient goals for the day, but how are you going to perform in the gym? Are you going to be setting new records for yourself and gaining in strength, or are you going to not have the energy, endurance and drive to do much of anything? These are all questions to consider.

Now just think what would happen if you ate sweet potatoes, chicken breasts and olive oil instead? How would you perform in the gym then? I can guarantee that your performance would improve substantially and the increased energy in the gym would probably result in more muscle being gained and less fat.

I guess the point I’m trying to make is that although it may be possible to gain muscle or lose fat eating nothing but ice cream and chocolate, is it really worth it in the long run? Do you honestly think that your performance won’t suffer by eating these foods?

We might not know if certain foods increase your metabolism and help you burn additional calories, but what we can conclude is that certain foods will definitely help you perform better in the gym.

Have some common courtesy for yourself and eat clean at all times. Sure you can have a few cheat meals per week but if your diet is not based primarily on eating healthy, nutritious food then you are not going to see the same results in the gym as you would if you were watching your diet closely.

If you’re eating like crap on a daily basis then you’re performance is definitely going to decrease, something you don’t want if you want to gain muscle or lose fat. So instead of snacking on potato chips and brownies, be kind to your body and eat a nutritious diet – I promise you won’t regret it.