Make Sense of Calories and Why They Matter

9. Calories and Exercise

Another misconception that can come from focusing on calories is that you can eat as many high-calorie, processed foods as you want as long as you work off the calories later. Calories burned through exercise vary wildly from person to person. What doesn't vary, however, is the balance of calories burned through exercise compared to calories needed to lose weight. An intense workout still burns only about 400 calories, which is pretty removed from the 3,500 calories needed to burn a pound of fat. This is why overall lifestyle improvements we can stick to, encompassing eating, sleeping, fitness, and stress reduction, is the best method to lose weight and keep it off.