Before I start this off, I want to make it clear that there is no magical way to diet; things like Juice Plus, Herbalife, diet pills, and slimming wraps are an unhealthy and unnecessary expense, that simply do not work. The only diet that works is consuming less calories than your body needs to maintain its current state. You can essentially eat whatever you like, as long as you eat less than you need to maintain. In these 6 steps, I am going to show you exactly how many calories you need to lose weigh.
Step 1 – Find out your BMR
BMR stands for Basel Metabolic Rate, this is how many calories your body needs to maintain its current weight, when doing absolutely no activity. You can find this out by following this equation:
Women: BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) - ( 4.7 x age in years )
Men: BMR = 66 + ( 6.23 x weight in pounds ) + ( 12.7 x height in inches ) - ( 6.8 x age in year )
Step 2 – Determine your total daily calorie needs
Once you have figured out your BMR, you then need to determine how many calories you need to consume to maintain your current weight when doing your day to day activity. To do this multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor below:
If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : Maintenance calories = BMR x 1.2
If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) : Maintenance calories = BMR x 1.375
If you are moderately active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Maintenance calories = BMR x 1.55
If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : Maintenance calories = BMR x 1.725
If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training) : Maintenance calories = BMR x 1.9
Step 3 – Working out your calorie intake to gain or lose weight
Once you have the number of calories needed to maintain your weight, you can easily figure out how to lose or gain weight:
For weight loss - Reduce your maintenance calories by 200-500
For weight gain - Increase your maintenance calories by 200-500
If weight loss stalls, you can either reduce your caloires by 100 or look at ways to increase your activity levels.
Step 4 – Tracking
I'd recommend creating an account on My Fitness Pal to track your food. Once you have created an account go into Settings>Goals>Calorie & Macronutrient Goals, from here change the calories to the number you calculated.
Aim to reach that number of calories every day. Being as accurate as possible is key so weighing your food out is advised.
Step 5 – Plan in advance
To avoid cheating or over eating on your diet, it is recommended to plan what you are going to eat for the following day. This will ensure you will never go over your calories.
Step 6 – Limit your consumption of empty calories
Empty calories are foods and drinks that hold little to no nutritional value, and are extremely calorific even in small portions. They are typically high in solid fats and added sugar. It is best to consume these in moderation as calories can quickly add up when snacking on them. I'd recommend an 80/20 approach to dieting, where 80% of your food comes from low calorie, nutritious foods, and 20% comes from junk. This will keep your diet sustainable by keeping the cravings at bay.
Typically, empty calories are foods and drinks similar to these:
- Milk shakes
- Fruit Drinks
- Alcohol
- Butter
- Sweets
- Biscuits
- Chocolate
- Crisps
Instead try to opt for low calorie snacks, PT2Home has a extensive list of low calorie snacks which don't suck.
By following these 6 steps you can lose weight healthily, quickly, and effectively by eating the foods you love.