• Keeping track of your caloric intake helps you stabilize your weight."Bourbon Pecan Pie at Dyron's Lowcountry" is Copyrighted by Flickr user: ralph and jenny (Ralph Daily) under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
  
  

Function

• You daily caloric requirement refers to the amount of calories your body needs to carry out its work. Calories come from many sources, but they all serve as the 'fuel' for your body. One pound of body weight is equal to roughly 3,500 calories.
  
  

Types

• Calories come from three major sources: fat, protein and carbohydrates. Fat is mostly involved in maintaining proper cellular functioning in the body, and for storing calories for later use. Proteins are the building blocks of muscle and help to regulate hormones. Carbohydrates are broken down by the body into sugars and provide most of the burnable energy that our bodies use to function.
  
  

Considerations

• The metabolism of an adult is much more stable than that of a teenager or child. According to the American Heart Association, for a moderately active female adult (defined as three days of exercise per week) about 2,100 calories daily will maintain weight; for men caloric intake should fall closer to 2,600 calories . Teenagers may need anywhere between 1,000 and 2,000 calories, depending on their activity level and size.
  
  

Calories and Weight

• If you're looking to lose weight through caloric restriction, make sure you maintain a diet that can at least sustain your basic metabolism. Use a caloric intake calculator to ensure that you are eating enough calories daily to meet your minimum requirements. (Find a link to one in Resources.) Individuals looking to increase muscle mass through exercise and weight training require more calories to fuel muscle growth.
  
  

Warning

• Before you begin any dietary plan, talk to a health care professional to ensure that you are healthy enough to sustain it. Lowering your caloric intake too drastically can lead to slowed metabolism, loss of muscle mass, and serious medical issues.