Diet and Exercise Analysis free essay sample

Over the course of this week I have learned many things about my eating habits. I found that when I am very busy I tend to eat less and healthier. When I am just sitting around I tend to eat more than necessary and the foods are not as good for me. Using this tracker has really helped me to see what I am consuming, as far as carbohydrates, fats, sugars, proteins, sodium, and total calories. I have also been able to tell that the more active I am the more calories that I burn in a day. Before I started using the tracker I never gave much thought to how many calories I was burning just walking around, cleaning, cooking, and working. My eating habits are not the greatest. This week I went to the beach for a couple of days and my eating habits while we were driving to and from Delaware was horrible. I ate fast food and consumed way to much sodium and sugars. When we were cooking for ourselves and walking around all day my numbers were much better. I did notice using this tracker though that I need to eat more vegetables and proteins, and cut back on my sugars. I have a hard time staying under my daily sugar allotment. Overall, I really do need to improve my eating habits. I have been using myfitnesspal.com to track my eating habits. When I set up my profile I chose to stay under 1870 calories a day. My plan is to eat healthier and to lose weight so that my overall health improves. As I stated above, I am tracking my calories, proteins, fats, sugars, sodium, and carbohydrates each day. I have also been keeping track of my daily water intake. It is recommended that you drink 8 cups of water each day and I have been drinking about 5-6 cups of water a day. So, I do need to be consuming a bit more water each day. My daily calorie intake has been good; I have stayed under everyday but one since I started tracking my diet two weeks ago. Today I have done pretty well, but it has been a busy day. I am a waitress and I worked from 6:45 am until 3:30 pm, and I did not get a chance to eat anything for breakfast and I just had an apple for lunch. I was able to get in my daily coffee though! My total calorie consumption for the day has been 766, my carbs for the day were 94, my fats were 25, my proteins were 38, my sodium was 328, and my sugars were 26. The amount of exercise that I did today gave me an additional 1,548 calories. So, comparing my totals to my daily goals I see that I am quite short on most of my goals. Remaining for calories is 2,652, carbs is 375, fat is 88, protein is 89, sodium is 2,172, and sugar is 42. I need to learn to stop for a moment while I am at work and eat a small bit. My fitness habits are very sporadic. This week I have done exceptionally well, but I had been on vacation and walked for about 7 hours each day for 4 days, then I came home and went to work. So I have burned a lot of calories this week. Eating healthy and exercising has many benefits. Doing both will help you to live a longer healthier life. It improves your heart health by lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and helps to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. It will also help to give you strong bones, more energy, stress relief, and a higher self-esteem. The six classes of nutrients are water, protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and minerals. Water is a very important nutrient. It helps your body to function by maintaining temperature, maintaining electrolytes, it helps your body to rid itself of wastes, and it can help you to lose weight. Proteins help your immune system, the pH balance of your body, your body structure and movement, and they help to transport the other nutrients throughout your body. You can find proteins in foods such as meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, nuts, seeds, and beans (USDA.gov). Carbohydrates are used as an energy source, they are a starting point for other nutrients, and are stored as fat in your body. They are found in many foods such as, fruits, vegetables, grains, milk, and in foods that contain added sugars. There are carbohydrates that are good for you and those that are not so good for you. Good carbs are those that have fiber and complex carbohydrates, and not the ones that contain added sugars (USDA.gov, Why Is it Important to Eat Grains, Especially Whole Grains?). Fats are used for energy, immune function, body protection, insulation, and heat. There are good fats and bad fats. Good fats can be found in foods such as olive oil, avocados, nuts, and olives (USDA.gov, Oils). These fats are essential for your body. Minerals play an important role in your body as well. They support body cells and structures and help to keep your blood glucose levels normal. You can get minerals from milk, red meat, fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and seeds (USDA.gov, Why Is it Important to Eat Grains, Especially Whole Grains?). Vitamins keep your body working properly. They produce energy, regulate cell and tissue growth, they help the minerals to work properly in your body, and even protect your cells from damage. You can get vitamins from many sources such as milk, vegetables, and fruits (USDA.gov, Why Is it Important to Eat Grains, Especially Whole Grains?). The human body is a very complex structure. It needs to be treated properly to function properly. A healthy balanced diet and exercise are two ways to ensure that your body is functioning properly so that you may live a long, healthy, and happy life.