Wednesday, July 25, 2012

How many calories to lose weight?

How to Calculate How Many Calories You Need to Eat to Lose Weight

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit
The key to fat loss is first figuring out how many calories you should be burning or skipping each day. This article will help you calculate how many calories you burn just by existing, and how many you need to cut to lose weight.

Steps

Calculating your BMR
  1. Find out your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). Your BMR will tell you how many calories your body needs to function properly if you spent the entire day sedentary. To calculate your BMR, can use the Mifflin-St Jeor equation[1]:
    • BMR = 10m + 6.25h - 5a +s
  2. Calculate your weight. m = weight in kilograms. If you know your weight in pounds, divide by 2.2 to get your weight in kilograms.
  3. Calculate your height. h = your height in centimeters. If you know your height in inches, multiply by 2.54 to get your height in centimeters.
  4. Put it all together. Add in the variables for age in years (a) and sex (s). For males, add 5 for s; for females, subtract 161.
  5. Account for your activity level. Since you (hopefully) do not sit still in bed all day, you must account for the calories you burn through activity. Once you have your BMR, use the Harris Benedict Formula below to determine your total daily calorie needs depending on your activity level. To determine your total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor:
    • If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : BMR x 1.2
    • If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) : BMR x 1.375
    • If you are moderately active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : BMR x 1.55
    • If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : BMR x 1.725
    • If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports and physical job or 2x training) : BMR x 1.9
    • For example, a 19-year-old woman who is 5’5” and 130 pounds would plug her information into the calculator and find out that her BMR is 1366.8 calories. Then, since she is moderately active, exercising 3-5 days per week, she would multiply 1366.8 by 1.55, to equal 2118.5 calories. That is the number of calories that her body burns on an average day.
Losing Weight
  1. Plan to burn calories safely. In order to lose one pound of fat, you must have a deficit of 3500 calories. Losing these calories through diet restriction alone is not recommended - if you're serious about losing weight, it's safer to step up your exercise regimen as well.
    • Only aim to lose 1 or 2 pounds per week. If you were to lose weight through diet alone, you'd need a 500-calorie deficit every day to lose one pound in a week. If you were really pushing it and wanted to lose 2 pounds in a week, you'd need a 1000-calorie deficit every day.
    • If you're planning to lose 10 pounds or less, stick to losing 1 pound per week. If you're already within 10 pounds of your goal weight, your body will start lowering its metabolism to hoard calories if you diet too extremely.
    • Part of the weight you lose during the first week or two might be water weight or bloat. If you lose 5 pounds in the first week but you only aimed for a 500-calorie deficit each day, don't panic. A lot of the weight you lost might have been excess water that your body was retaining. When you plateau at 1 or 2 pounds per week after that, don't panic - you're still on-track.
  2. Don't push your deficit below what your body needs to survive. It's a bad idea to consistently make your daily caloric intake lower than your BMR. When your body doesn't take in enough calories each day to sustain basic functions, it starts burning muscle. You might lose weight, but you'll be noticeably weaker.
  3. Track your intake. Keeping track of what you're eating is the best way to calculate your potential weight loss. Consider keeping a food journal that lists everything you eat, as well as the calories per serving and how many servings you had. (Find this information on the Nutrition Facts panel of packaged food, or look up how many calories are in unpackaged food). Search online for free apps or websites that allow you to enter what you ate - some will even calculate the calories for you.
    • Stay accountable. Seeing the actual amount of calories you consume each day will force you to take responsibility for your health and cut back on eating. Be vigilant about logging everything that goes into your mouth, and you'll find it's easier to stick to your diet.

Video

Information on how to count calories.

Tips

  • Bear in mind that approximately 70% of weight loss can be accomplished by modifying one's diet and caloric intake.
  • Stay hydrated- water is necessary for fat-burning.
  • Incorporate a weight training program into any weight loss program, so that you keep your muscle and don’t turn into a pile of mush and skin.
  • If you sit at a desk all day, but work out 6 days a week, then you would probably fall under moderate activity rather than very active. It is common for people to over or underestimate their activity level, so pay attention. Since these are just estimates, keep an eye on your fat loss and if you start losing too fast or too slowly, then you will want to adjust your calories up or down accordingly.
  • Before starting any weight loss plan, it is recommended one consult a physician.
  • Once you have lost your weight, don't forget to calculate a new BMR.

Warnings

  • Don't crash diet. Losing 1 or 2 pounds per week might not sound like a lot, but it's as much as your body is built to lose in 7 days. Aiming for more than that can permanently damage your metabolism over time.

Related wikiHows

Sources and Citations

  1. David Frankenfield, Lori Roth-Yousey, and Charlene Compher. May 2005. Comparison of Predictive Equations for Resting Metabolic Rate in Healthy Nonobese and Obese Adults: A Systematic Review. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 105(5):775-789

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