Hello all! I've been reading a bit more frequently, posting a bit more frequently, and gradually getting myself back into the groove
of being conscious about my food.
A few weeks ago I had a bit of a rant/meltdown about how my schedule seemed to be doing its damndest to enable me to eat whatever I liked. I love my work, but I don't love how much it exhausts me, and I definitely don't love how I reach for food to help me relax after a long day.
So I'm trying to keep a careful eye on things, especially situations which tire me out, and how I deal with that.
But I'm wondering to myself now: you know how you get those calculators which tell you, based on your weight/height/whatever, how many calories you burn doing all sorts of various activities? Like
this one for example.
I remember when I first saw these - I always looked up 'reading' because that was what I seemed to do the most of.
How many calories do we burn by mental effort? By studying, preparing lessons, marking (UGH, bane of my life), writing research papers? How much energy does the brain need to function this intensively? All this must consume
something because just as I can't exercise at a certain level for more than, say, an hour before I need a break, I can't sit and mark assignments for more than 40 minutes without getting up, walking around, and letting my brain do...well, nothing...for a few minutes.
I don't want to suggest that people can sit and think very hard and call this an efficient calorie-burning activity (
) - I think most people doing lots of 'intellectual' stuff will testify that the switch to physical exercise is sometimes really needed after a day in the office! But can we take intellectual effort into account when determining our calorie level? I mean, I know I'm not eating enough when, after an hour's "thinking" all I'm capable of is lying down and sleeping for a couple of hours
What do you folks think?