They do, but not nearly as much as wasted, useless calories from stuff like hydrogenated oils, sugar, transfats, processed foods in general, and so-forth. Here’s a quick example: on average, 100 calories of organic chicken breast will require about 20-25 calories just to digest and process the protein into useable amino acid structures. That’s a lot…almost 25% of the food is used to burn the food. How convenient, right?

The opposite is true for processed foods and pre-digested protein: only a fraction of the food is used to process and digest. So, “100 calories” doesn’t really mean “100 calories”, if you get my drift.

Now, here’s an example from my own life — I eat at least 3 Jolly Ranchers per day. I enjoy the hard candy, and while I don’t have sugar ‘cravings’ any longer, the taste is still pleasant. Pretty much harmless, and my body composition changes would indicate that. However…oh, isn’t there always a however on the 10 blog? Sure there is. You love it. You live for it. You would literally cease to have any meaning without reading my howevers, and you should get down on your knees and thank Bingo for….

Sorry. Went all megalomaniacal on you guys. Won’t happen again. (Just don’t anger Bingo, and follow his Three Commandments, and all will be fine. Please ‘do’ be careful with the shipping of virgins. They can bruise easily, and like bananas, this can ruin the appeal. We thank you in advance.)

God, I’m in dire need of Dr. Freud.

Anyway, check out this “however”: I looked up the calories for three Jolly Ranchers (cherry, please): 70 calories, 11 grams of sugar. Wow. Didn’t think it’d be that high.

You’re thinking, “High? What are you Jon…high or something? That’s not high. An entire apple pie is ‘high’, you twit…oh. Sorry Bingo. You’re not a twit, and please don’t smite me in thy mercy.”

Yeah…an apple pie or a fridge full of ice cream is certainly high’er’, but check it:

Do some math (promise: no NASA equations to toss you for a loop) — what’s 70 x 7? 490 calories. That’s how many wasted calories I’m consuming in a given week. Some days I have more, others none, but that’s a good average. Today I’ve had 6, for example. Considering my otherwise pristine nutrition, all things considering, this is hardly a crime against humanity. That would be more like…let’s see…if I tortured people for military secrets by dangling Jolly Ranchers inches from their parched and starving mouths. Makes me want to join the Marines.

Still, look at the math: what’s 500x8? That’s more than a pound of fat every eight weeks assuming all other variables stay the same.

Looking at this another way, I could have already hit and exceeded my 10 in 10 goal by now had it not been for the Jolly Ranchers.

But…before you guys go all off an wig on me, check it again: I’m not too concerned about it. After all, this is lifestyle eating, and enjoyment is a vital component to the process. So, if I discard only “9” pounds of fat rather than 10 in eight weeks, who freakin’ cares?

The only time this ‘does’ matter is when you’ve hit a plateau. Then, thanks again to the insect conspiracy I’ve already warned you about, you have to watch out for those little buggers. The plateaus…and the bugs.

So, if I’m going to shed massive fat and hit a peak, I’ll ditch “all” empty calories during that period — but always with the knowledge that I don’t have to live that way to be very lean.

I hope this blog helps you guys get a handle on calories — the rumors, the myths, the facts, and the fantasies. There were not any ‘fantasies’ per-se, but that sentence ended better with “fantasies”, don’t you agree?

Let’s not forget I’m a writer as well as your very own Bingo.

Prep for tomorrow…and I want UPDATES from each of you. Let’s blow out a freakin’ TON of fat over the next week! {10}