Calories come up sooner or later when we’re talking weight loss.

Some “diets” say they don’t matter, as long as you eat wholesome, nutritious foods.

And then there’s the tiresome myth, “A calorie is a calorie.” Or its equally frustrating twin, “Calories in, calories out.”

These “diets” also can’t agree on how many calories we need.

“Okay, Cristy, so what am I supposed to believe?!”

Never fear: Cristy’s here to shed some light on this for you.

First of all, yes: The quantity of calories does matter. It’s possible to overeat even healthy foods, like what we enjoy on the Code Red Lifestyle, and gain weight.

But the quality of a calorie is equally important…perhaps more so, which means anyone who tells you that 100 calories of soda and 100 calories of broccoli are equally fine to consume is completely misguided.

Soda is a man-made chemical concoction. It’s liquid, so it’ll briefly fill up your stomach, but it has zero nutrition.

Worse, all those chemicals it contains wreak havoc on your system, especially if you’re guzzling the stuff all day long.

Broccoli, on the other hand, is a food that occurs in nature. It’s packed with vitamins, minerals, nutrients, phytonutrients, and fiber.

That means 100 calories of broccoli will nourish your body.

As for how many calories each person needs to lose weight vs. maintain their weight, that varies wildly based on age, gender, height, and a whole bunch of other factors.

When someone purchases a custom program from me, they fill out an extensive questionnaire so I can determine their custom calorie range for fast, safe weight loss.

For that reason, I can’t give you “general guidelines.”

But if you’re gorging on calorie-stuffed fast food hamburgers and super-sized French fries with a large, sugary soda…let’s just say you’re getting a lot more than you need, in addition to punishing your insides with all those chemicals.

Eat real food. The closer to its natural state, the better. Drink lots of water. Get plenty of sleep.

And listen to your body. When you’re not hungry, don’t eat, even if “society” says it’s meal time. Eating when you’re not hungry is one of the surest ways to get fat.

It you need help understanding what real food is, how much water to drink, and getting enough sleep, these are things I go over in the 10 Pound Takedown. Register for the next one and try the Code Red Lifestyle for yourself!