The average American consumes almost 4,000 calories every day! That’s anywhere from 1500 to 2500 more calories than the average man or woman really needs (children and athletes have different needs).
All these calories are adding fat to our body, increasing the pressure on our heart, and stressing our organs (not to mention the environmental impact of all this gluttony).
But why are we eating so much? And what are we eating? You may be surprised to really see just how easy it is to eat 4000 calories in one day! Here is a sample…
Breakfast: How about McDonald’s? That’s a typical choice for millions of Americans every day.
To be an average American, you need to eat at least 700 calories and up to 1300 calories at each setting. McDonald’s can help you with that. Another tip: it helps to drink your calories, so remember to wash it all down with a big slosh of soda or juice! Or a nice venti caffe mocha (360 calories) will do the trick.
Bacon n egg biscuit sandwich – 460 calories
Hash browns – 160 calories
Large coke – 320 calories
Total breakfast calories - 940
Lunch: I know Burger King is bad. I’ll go for Subway. Subway is fresh, so I’m sure whatever I eat there is going to be good, right?
Well, maybe if you get a 6″ whole-grain sandwich with vegetables or a salad. But according to Subway, the most popular Subway item in the world is the toasted steak and cheese sandwich.
Toasted Steak and Cheese sandwich - 400
Chips - 290
Large coke – 320
Total lunch calories – 1010 (total for the day so far = 1950)
Dinner: Pizza and burgers are beloved American foods. But let’s stop for a burger…
Burger King double whopper – 1020
Large fries – 540
Large coke – 320
Total dinner calories – 1880 (total for the day so far= 3840)
We are at 3840 calories for the day and we haven’t even added in any snacks or office birthday party cake! I’m not saying we eat this way EVERY DAY… but it doesn’t seem that far-fetched!
It’s sad that the most famous American foods – pie, burgers, pizza, hot dogs, French fries – are all JUNK foods!
I thought it would be a little bit of a challenge to eat 4,000 calories, but thanks to the vast majority of what’s available at every restaurant these days, it’s actually pretty hard not to consume twice as many calories as you need – and that’s the whole problem. It shouldn’t require a degree in nutrition or hours of online research to know what’s reasonable to eat and what isn’t. Stopping in at Subway to eat lunch shouldn’t be an obesity challenge!
We have to… MUST… get away from this “three meals a day” idea. Our meals have to … MUST… be smaller and healthier. Get away from processed foods and eat more whole grains and home-cooked foods. The R&D Diet Cookie is the best cookie diet to help you there. Start your days with the cookie… 2 or 3 will get you going. Have them for lunch or have them as between meal snacks. They will help you make better food choices for your other meals and you can reduce the number of calories you eat without being hungry or craving.
What do you eat in a day? Tell us!
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