If you want to maintain your weight or lose a few pounds, keeping track of your daily caloric intake is an easy way to do so. You may think that this is too hard or you just don't have the time. Well, it's really not as hard as you think nor is it very time consuming. I'm going to go over some basics in calorie counting to get you started.
It's a fact: an easy way to lose weight is simply by eating fewer calories and getting more exercise. But how many calories does a person have to eat daily and how many fewer calories do you need to lose weight? Well, it's simple. First, you have to figure out how many calories you need to maintain your weight. Your body uses about two-thirds of the calories each day just for the normal functioning of your body. The rest of the calories are for everyday activities such as writing an article, going for a walk, or cleaning the house.
In order to find out what your daily caloric intake is, you need to calculate your BMR (basal metabolic rate). In women, you get your BMR by multiplying your weight by 10. In men, you would multiply your weight by 11. Then, you would add 20% to that number if you live a sedentary lifestyle, 30% if you are somewhat active, 40% if you are moderately active, and 50% is you are very active. Now, this number will give you the amount of calories your body needs daily to maintain your weight.
Now that you have the amount of calories to maintain your weight, your next step is to figure out how much you would like to lose and how you're going to do it. Since one pound is equal to 3,500 calories, you would have to cut 500 calories per day to lose 1 pound per week. You may think this is a lot, but it's really not. You really just need to make some small changes in your diet.
Keep a small notebook in you purse to write down what you eat and drink so you can keep track of your caloric intake. You would have to check what a single serving size is and then use that to accurately calculate the calories. Also, there are a lot of online resources that can help with finding the amount of calories in certain foods.
Try doing this for a week and you will likely notice what you're doing wrong. You would then need to substitute some high calorie foods for low-calorie ones. You can easily save a lot of calories simply by replacing water for the cup of orange juice you have in the morning or the can of soda with dinner. Right there you are saving around 240 calories!! Instead of those bag of chips with lunch, have some air-popped popcorn or flavored rice cakes. Have a piece of fruit instead of a piece of cake. You get the point.
The last thing you need to do is get at least 30 minutes of exercise daily. If you took a brisk walk for 45 minutes, you can lose around 200 calories. You can walk with a pedometer which tells you how many calories you burned. You now know the secret to weight loss: watch your caloric intake and exercise.
Here are the steps:
Step 1: Calculate your BMR
Step 2: Keep a food journal with you and document everything you eat and drink. Do this for a week.
Step 3: Go over your journal and note what areas need changing. Remember: little changes in your diet can make big changes in your life.
Step 4: Keep track of the calories burned by getting at least 30 minutes of exercise daily. Get a pedometer to help you keep track.
Good Luck on your journey.
If you are interested in losing a few pounds, I hope this information was helpful. If you would like to read some more on weight loss, please visit http://caloriecounterforexercise.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Melissa_M_Fitzpatrick
No comments:
Post a Comment