Are you trying to cut calories to lose weight? If so, you may be confused by all the numbers you see online and in magazines. It's hard to figure out exactly how many calories to cut to lose weight effectively and keep the pounds off for good. But don't worry. Cutting calories is easier than you might imagine - once you get the facts.
Can I Lose Weight by Cutting Calories Alone?
There are different ways to lose weight - but all of them require that you change your daily calorie balance.
Experts call this your energy balance. The simplest way to change your energy balance is to cut calories. You can accomplish this by eating smaller portions of food at meal time or by skipping snacks and high-calorie drinks.
You can also add exercise to your weight loss program to increase your calorie deficit and lose weight faster. But be careful. This plan works for some people, but it backfires on others. Exercise is good for your body and should be part of a healthy lifestyle. But exercise can also make you hungry. If you're already cutting calories to lose weight, the added hunger after exercise can be too much, and it may cause you to quit your weight loss program altogether.
Yes, it is possible that the wrong type of exercise will cause hunger and you can gain weight. That's why I suggest that making small tweaks in your diet like cutting out snack or soft drinks, doesn't really work for the long term.
First of all, I believe you have to be honest with yourself and realize the mistakes you made that cause your weight problem. If you want to lose that excess fat you have to admitt to yourself how you got to this place. And resolve in your mind that your going to stop doing those things and live a healthy lifestyle.
If you already exercise, you may be able to reduce calories and maintain your exercise program to lose weight. But if exercise is not a part of your daily routine, start slowly. First, cut calories to lose weight and then slowly add an easy exercise program to increase your weight loss.
How Many Calories Should I Cut to Lose Weight?
If you have decided to live healthier, than start by eating healthy which means eat fresh natural foods. You don't have to get crazy like going vegetarian, but you do have to start eating fresh fruits and vegetables, lean fresh meat, not hamburger, white meat poultry, and seafood. For snacks choose nuts and seeds and stop drinking calories. What ever you drink should not have calories. Stop buying processed or manufactured food. We live on a planet that provides us with natural grown foods. Buy organic when ever you can, but in some case it's not necessary like bananas or coconuts. Check the internet for suggestions.
Of course, in order to meet your goal, you need to keep track of how many calories you eat. Another reason to eat all natural foods, you don't have to count calories. You do have to restrict your meat consumption. Most humans eat too much animal meat. Poultry is not animal and the fat on poultry is not as harmful to the body.
Most of the excess fat around your waist is from animal fat and animal fat is marbled in animal meat, you can't trim off the fat marbled through meat. The reason eating poultry and fish is better for you is because the fat isn't marbled through the muscle. You can see and remove that fat. Animal meat should only be eaten in small quantities, about 3 ounces at one time, and only twice a week. The other days you should be eating seafood or poultry. Don't skimp on seafood, eat seafood in some form at least 3 times a week.
It's best to keep a food journal. This way you can find your mistakes. Sometimes when your not losing fat it might be your food preparation. I never eat fried food no matter how healthy the food maybe, frying your food will in oil will change the food and you might even double the calories.
Should I Cut More Calories to Lose Weight Faster? No
So if cutting calories can lead to weight loss, you might be tempted to cut as many calories as possible to slim down. Some dieters even lower their daily food intake to 800 calories or less to lose weight. But extremely low-calorie diets usually don't lead to permanent weight loss for several reasons.
First, very low-calorie diets (VLCD) can affect your metabolism. Some dieters call this "starvation mode." When you eat far less than your body needs, your metabolism slows down to adjust for the lower supply of energy. When your metabolism slows down, your rate of weight loss slows down, too.
Next, very low-calorie diets affect your daily energy level. Why does this matter? Your daily activity level has a big impact on the number of calories you burn every day. If you stay active and burn more calories, you're more likely to see weight loss results. If you're exhausted from eating too little, you won't burn as many calories and weight loss can stall. If your body thinks that your starving it will hoard calories to the point where you might even gain weight. It can do that by adjusting the number of calories the body burns to the point where you almost have no energy anymore. The bodies primary function is to keep you from starving and it will shut down body functions to do that.
You can cut calories to lose weight. But be careful that you don't cut too many calories and risk your health. Your body needs time to adjust to a new lifestyle and a new eating plan. Take it slow and make small adjustments to see real weight loss results that last.
You can make big changes in your body but you have to trick your body into making the changes. So changes will have to be done gradually.
If you really want to lose your body fat than look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books.
There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $1.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans or meal plans. Look for my book. at
Amazon.com, B&
N.com, iBooks,
Kobo.com,
Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.
My new e-book is available on
Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page.