Exercise Keeps You at a Healthy Weight Every time you eat food, your body does the same thing: it uses some of the nutrients in the food as fuel. It burns these nutrients to give us energy or calories. You need calories for all of your body’s functions, whether it is things you think about doing, like brushing your teeth, or things you never think about doing, like breathing. But if the body is not able to use all the calories that are coming from food, it stores them as fat. Exercise helps keep you at a weight that is right for your height, by burning up extra calories. When you exercise, your body uses that extra fuel to keep you strong.
