4 Tips of Calorie Counting for Divers.

Calories are energy. How many calories that a diver need for scuba diving? Do you know? Scuba diving calorie calculator tips is here!

1. Calorie counting tips for divers

Before you will do calorie counting, it’s important to know that calories alone are not as important as the type of food. There are “good” fats like those found in foods such as avocados or salmon for example.

Here is some info
– Fat = 9 calories per gram
– Protein = 4 calories per gram.
– Carbohydrates = 4 calories per gram.

So based on calories alone, it seems that a diver who wants to lose body weight should avoid fat in the diet.

Some divers already have an ideal body weight, healthy nutrition, exercise, and sports. Long-distance runners actually rely on dietary fat for fuel to complete events that can last for hours. Divers, however, need very little fat as fuel for diving.

The easiest way to count calories is to use a “food counts” book, some apps can provide a similar service online, tell us how many calories, protein, fat, carbohydrates, sodium and other nutrients are in a particular food.

2.Limit your fats

This macronutrient combination is based on the muscle energetics of activities like sitting, walking and standing under a load of dive gear, moving around on the surface of the water and fin-kick swimming at depth.

Fresh whole foods and natural lean proteins offer lots of efficient, healthy fuel.

Diving is a moderate activity, and with dives lasting less than an hour and surface-interval snacking, fat consumption of any kind is best kept to 15 percent or less of daily calories.

Other macronutrient recommendations for diving are 55 percent of calories from carbohydrates and 35 percent from protein.

So divers can eat chicken, fish, beef, turkey, tofu and even lean pork up to four times a day. Divers can also eat unlimited quantities of vegetables and several portions of fruit each day, giving them many choices to satisfy hunger and maintain a better body composition.

3.Practice mindful eating

Sometimes eating is for pleasure and food is almost always a part of celebrations.

Eating small, frequent meals helps divers avoid cravings, overeating and binging,

Other times, eating is mindless or because of stress and anxiety. Focus on your hunger, not boredom, to practice mindful eating.

Remember, beverages often have more calories than foods. Soda, fancy coffees, and sports drinks are usually loaded with sugar, fats, and stimulants.

Eating protein first gives carbohydrates a place to land, helps regulate blood-sugar levels and makes the meal more satisfying.

4. How many calories should a diver eat each day?

A very general rule is to add a zero to your body weight. A diver weighing 185 pounds and planning to lose body fat might begin with a guideline of 1,850 calories as a baseline.

Dives can decrease calories based on individual metabolic rate and increase calories to accommodate daily activities and exercise.

Once you’ve determined your total daily caloric needs, structure your meal planning and portions by using calorie-counting tools or a food scale.

Weighing food will help you visualize portion size and can make programmed eating easier.

Focusing too much on food can also represent a stumbling block. , however, healthy eating on the fly is best for some divers who don’t have time for measuring.

Avoiding bad fats and sugars is imperative to eating on the fly.

Six small meals that include protein, fruits, and vegetables spread out throughout the day will help maintain physical energy and mental acuity.

New habits become part of a healthy lifestyle once a diver understands how important it is to eat foods with the highest nutritional value and the least calories. Visualizing portion sizes, paying attention to natural hunger, and eating smaller, more frequent meals are all part of a healthy lifestyle as well.

Souce => https://scubadiverlife.com/calorie-counting-tips-divers/