100 Calories Surprises

Many of us are familiar with the concept of calories. We at least know that the balance of what we eat and what we burn is important to maintain a healthy weight.


Unless you are actively counting calories, however, it often seems abstract. People are often surprised by how many calories can be in small snacks, or how few calories they burn on an exercise.

Here is a brief list of ways you can burn 100 calories and some snacks that will give you about 100 calories.

Ways to burn 100 calories:

Traditional exercises:

- Run a mile

- 10 minutes of aerobics

- Jump rope for 10 minutes

- Swim laps for 15 minutes

- Lift weights for 20 minutes

- 10 minutes of pushups

- Dancing for 20 minutes

Less traditional exercises:

- 20 minute game of badminton

- 30 minute game of Frisbee

- Paint a room for 20 minutes

- Mop the floor for 20 minutes

- Play tag with the kids for 25 minutes

- 20 minutes of active gardening

Even less traditional options (according to Women’s Health Magazine):

- Sheer three sheep

- Twirl around your office chair 123 times

- Play chopsticks on the piano for 40 minutes straight

- Swing a lasso over your head 375 times

- Yo-yo for 20 minutes

- Walk up and down a flight of stairs 33 times

- Rearrange your furniture for 17 minutes

Now for the food side. What does 100 calories look like?

- 10 French fries

- 1 celery stalk with peanut butter

- 6 animal crackers

- 10 dry roasted cashews

- 26 grapes

- 1 hard boiled egg

- 1/3 of a candy bar

- ½ cup plain cooked noodles

- 4 saltines

- 1 medium banana

- ½ can of regular soda

Notice this is just an estimate of calories alone. It does not evaluate fiber, fat or protein content which are vital in determining the true nature of a good snack.

All calories are not created equal. There are some foods that are naturally higher in calories (avocados and nuts for example) that people avoid because of the higher calorie count. However, these foods have lots of additional vitamins and amino acids that say, a handful of animal crackers, could never provide.

Be a wise consumer in the calories you take in and have fun finding ways to take some calories off. Knowing more about the balance is just one step towards reaching your health and fitness goals. Have fun and happy training!

Don't go into a race cold...

Take a cue from the pros and don't go into your race cold. "Do this warm-up before the gun goes off to help freshen your legs," says Andrew Kastor, founder and coach of High Sierra Striders running club in Mammoth Lakes, California. It's a smart start to any run; also try it once or twice a week as you train.

http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/running/training-schedules/race-warm-up-drills/

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