If after a week of accurate calorie counting and strict monitoring of physical activity and sleep habits, you do not experience positive dynamics in the form of visual recomposition of the body and reflection in the mirror, it is recommended to conduct an examination and seek advice.
Carbohydrate distribution:
In the morning (short starch content) - yeast-free bread, potatoes, sweet potatoes, pita bread, flat bread, baked goods without sugar and yeast.
Lunch (long starches) - rice, lentils, beans, buckwheat, chickpeas, quinoa, bulgur, cereals).
In the evening (vegetables) + 2 hours before going to bed at the latest, you MUST allow yourself your favorite product up to 200-300 kcal (fruits, natural chocolate, baked goods without yeast) within the calorie content and BZHU.
If it contains less than 100 grams of carbohydrates in the calorie calculations, then this indicates that you have an increased body mass index. Physical and physical activity should be increased. Recommended values: at least 100 grams for women, at least 150 grams for men.
You MUST eat more fibrous and alkaline foods: greens, celery, radishes, cucumbers, spinach, cauliflower and white cabbage, beets, carrots, garlic, seaweed, broccoli, avocados, lemons.
ON TRAINING DAY, 120 minutes before training, add another 100 grams of carbohydrates from short starch carbohydrates (yams, potatoes, yeast-free bread, pita bread, flat bread, baked goods without sugar and yeast).
ADD CALORIES INSIDE.
For example: 150 grams of carbohydrates should be consumed per day, 100 should be consumed before training, and the rest should be distributed throughout the day.
DURING TRAINING, drink ONLY plain water, without various BCAAs and amino acids (due to unnecessary insulin spikes during training).
Add 5-7 grams of salt (table or iodized) daily
REDUCE and ideally REMOVE the number of simulators: coffee, tea, tobacco, alcohol.
Buy a kitchen scale. Weigh grains, vegetables, and other foods in their raw form. Meat, fish, poultry are ready.
Prefer polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats (omega 3, vegetable oils, nuts, avocados, seeds).
Carbohydrate ratio, 30% fructose (fruit, natural chocolate), 70% starch (rice, buckwheat, potatoes, gluten-free flour, sugar- and yeast-free baked goods)
In nutrition, it is recommended to give preference to foods that cause an alkaline reaction, to remove or reduce to 1 meal per day the foods that cause an oxidative reaction: poultry, red meat, gluten, sugar, seafood. Farm eggs and farm dairy products are allowed. Food with an acidity of 6. 0 - 10. 0 PH. Detailed table in the link.
The consumption of freshly killed or vacuum-packed animal products is allowed. Avoid refrigerated and frozen animal products.
The presence of a product providing psychological pleasure is MANDATORY, within the calorie and macro content (BZHU).
If it is impossible to reach the daily calorie intake with the "RIGHT" foods, then the maximum calorie content within the macro (BZHU) is taken into account.
The number of meals is not important, we eat strictly according to our appetite (divide the "meal basket" into the number of meals suitable for you).
It is possible to change the components of the diet depending on your own preferences within the macro (BZHU).
- B12-, iron-deficiency anemia, weakness, increased fatigue, impaired hematopoiesis (pallor and yellowness of the skin and mucous membranes, rapid heartbeat, heartache, exercise intolerance, dizziness and frequent fainting, enlarged spleen), damage to the digestive system (indigestion, unstable stools, loss of appetite), weight loss, changes in the color and shape of the tongue, taste disturbances, frequent mouth infections, abdominal pain after eating), nervous system damage (sensitivity disorder, paresthesia, ataxia, reduced muscle strength, impaired urination, mental disorder).
- Hypothyroidism. Reduced physical and mental performance, increased fatigue, skin changes (myxedema), increased sensitivity to cold, hoarseness, weight gain, swelling of the face and body, constipation, hypotension and bradycardia, drowsiness, reduced memory and intelligence), growth retardation in children and intellectual development.
- Metabolic syndrome (insulin resistance). Weight gain in the abdominal area, metabolic disorders, insulin resistance. Subjective feelings: bouts of bad mood when hungry, increased fatigue, food selectivity, bouts of rapid heartbeat, heartache, headache, thirst and dry mouth, increased sweating
How many calories do you need per day to lose weight?
There is no single standard for how many calories you need per day to lose weight. It is calculated individually for each person, taking into account their physical characteristics and lifestyle.
Where should I start?
Before calculating how many calories you need to eat to lose weight, you must first determine your daily intake. Essentially, calories are energy. Most of it is used daily to maintain the functioning of the body: breathing, heartbeat, food digestion, etc. Scientists found that:
- Men burn more calories than women.
- The older a person is, the less energy they expend.
- During adolescence, pregnancy and illness, you need many more calories.
- Physical activity increases calorie consumption.
In addition, there are unique characteristics of the body, determined by genetics, which determine the amount of calories consumed. However, on average, you can easily calculate how many calories you need to consume per day in order not only to not gain weight, but also to lose weight.
For example, you can use the formula of scientists Mifflin and San Geor. It was introduced in 2005 and proved to be more effective than the Harris-Benedict version. For the calculation you need:
- Weight multiplied by 10.
- Height multiplied by 6. 25.
- Age multiplied by 5.
After that, all you have to do is add up your weight and height, and then subtract your age. Then the men add 5 and the women subtract 161. The result is multiplied by the activity coefficient:
- 1. 2 – you lie on the sofa for days or work in the office.
- 1, 375 – 3 times a week you remember to exercise.
- 1. 55 – active athlete who trains 5 times a week.
- 1, 725 - you are actively exercising every day.
- 1. 9 fanatical athletes, you work as a loader during breaks.
In other words, for a 35-year-old female accountant weighing 85 kg and 180 cm tall, the calculation will look like this (there is no time left for sports due to work):
((85x10) + (180x6, 25) - (35x5) - 161) x 1, 2 = 1966. 8 calories.
This amount of energy will be enough to live and work calmly without gaining weight. But in order to lose weight, you need to calculate how many calories you need to consume.
How to lose weight by counting calories?
The golden rule of weight loss is to burn more calories than you consume. But you can't just suddenly reduce the amount of food you eat. The body does not like this. Instead, get out the calculator again and calculate how many calories you need to eat to lose weight. For this, 15-20% must be deducted from the previous result. In other words, in order to prepare for the summer, our accountant must absorb:
1966, 8-20%=1573, 44 calories.
If your idea is to get better, you should do the exact opposite. But it's not over yet. There are several additional conditions to consider:
- The number of calories consumed should not fall below 1200. Otherwise, the body will not have enough energy to live, and various chronic diseases may develop.
- You can't calculate how many calories you need per day to lose weight, eat in the morning and walk around hungry all day. Dividing the meal into 5-6 times. In this way, the stomach and intestines will be constantly busy with work, the feeling of hunger will be less disturbing, and the diet as a whole will become much more enjoyable.
- Not only calories, but also nutrients need to be monitored. Food should be varied so as not to provoke vitamin deficiency and other health problems.
- We must not forget about water. Drinking large amounts of fluids speeds up metabolic processes in the body and removes toxins. This is a great help for rapid weight loss.
Therefore, some nutritionists advise not to pay too much attention to the number of calories consumed. According to them, it is much more important to monitor the ratio of nutrients in the diet. And if the right balance is maintained, a person will lose weight quickly, regardless of the number of calories consumed.
By the way, there is another way to lose weight without reducing your diet. If we take our accountant and subscribe her to 5 hours of a fitness club, it turns out that she no longer needs 1966. 8 calories, but:
((85x10) + (180x6. 25) - (35x5) -161) x 1. 55 = 2540. 45 calories.
In other words, it turns out that you even need to improve your diet a little and start eating more high-calorie foods and recalculate. And at the same time, it will still lose weight quite quickly.
Why can't you reduce your diet too much?
If you start counting how many calories you need to take in to lose weight, it may seem that the problem can be solved if you immediately reduce the amount of energy by a multiple or even to zero. But that's not how the human body works. Fasting once a week creates positive stress and can accelerate weight loss. In the case of prolonged fasting, less positive changes occur:
- hair falls out and the condition of the skin deteriorates;
- the person becomes irritable and easily depressed;
- the functioning of the digestive organs and kidneys is disturbed;
- the ability to concentrate and think coherently decreases.
At the same time, the body enters "energy-saving mode". Metabolic processes slow down, and weight loss occurs more slowly than it should. And after stopping fasting, weight gain occurs quickly.
It's better to keep track of how many calories you need to lose weight and don't rush anything. Experts in healthy nutrition advise us not to suddenly try to lose 5-10-15 kg by cutting calories. The natural weight change should be 1-1. 5 kg per week. For the average person, this is the most comfortable rate of weight loss, and this is what we should strive for.
How to calculate your daily calorie intake
Any diet, regardless of the goal, begins with calculating the daily intake of calories, protein, fat and carbohydrates. In this article, we will talk about the most accurate methods of determining the daily calorie intake for men and women.
The caloric content is calculated depending on the goal (loss, maintenance, weight gain), gender, age, physical activity and other factors.
What is basic metabolism?
Calculating your daily calorie intake starts with calculating your basal metabolic rate (BMR) – the amount of energy your body needs to support vital processes. Even at rest, the human body continuously spends calories on breathing, digestion, blood circulation and other physiological processes. Your daily caloric intake must be higher than your BMR or your body cannot function normally.
Basal metabolic rate can be determined by two methods: direct and indirect.
In the first case, a person is placed in a special chamber, where the amount of heat consumed by him is measured, and then the PBM is calculated. This research method is the most accurate, but at the same time inaccessible.
The indirect method involves calculating the basal metabolic rate using a special formula. Today there are several main calculation methods. Let's list the main ones.
Harrison-Benedict formula calorie calculation
The formula was developed by the American physiologist Francis Gano Benedict and the botanist James Arthur Harris at the beginning of the last century, but it is still relevant. It has an error of about 5%.
The formula for calculating PBM is as follows:
- For women: 655. 1 + (9. 563 × weight in kg) + (1. 85 × height in cm) - (4. 676 × age in years);
- For men: 66. 5 + (13. 75 × weight in kg) + (5. 003 × height in cm) - (6. 775 × age in years).
The obtained result is the daily caloric intake required by the body for normal functioning. To calculate how many kcal you need to consume to maintain your body weight, you need to multiply the number obtained by the physical activity coefficient:
- 1, 2 – minimal (sedentary work, lack of physical activity);
- 1, 375 – low (at least 20 minutes of exercise 1-3 times a week);
- 1. 55 – moderate (30-60 minutes of training 3-4 times a week);
- 1, 7 – high (30-60 minute training 5-7 times a week; heavy physical work);
- 1, 9 – extreme (several intense training sessions 6-7 times a week; very demanding work).
Calorie calculation using the Mifflin-San Geor formula
The method of calculating daily calorie intake was developed by nutritionists under the guidance of doctors Mifflin and San Geor. The formula was developed relatively recently, but today it is the most accurate. It helps to calculate the required amount of kcal for a person between 13 and 80 years old.
Simplified version (without taking physical activity into account)
- For women: (10 x body weight in kg) + (6. 25 x height in cm) – (5 x age in g) – 161;
- For men: (10 x body weight in kg) + (6. 25 x height in cm) – (5 x age in g) + 5.
Ketch-McArdle calorie formula
This calculation method is based on the amount of fat tissue in the body (we wrote about its measurement in a previous article). The formula does not include information regarding height, age, and gender, as these are assumed to be taken into account when calculating body fat percentage.
Formula for calculating PBM: 370 + 21. 6 x X (body weight without body fat)
The obtained result must be multiplied by the activity coefficient using the Harrison-Benedict method.
World Health Organization (WHO) formula
The World Health Organization provides recommendations for calculating daily calorie intake:
- For women aged 18 to 30 (0. 062 x weight kg + 2. 036) x 240 x CFA;
- For women aged 31 to 60 (0. 034 x weight in kg + 3. 538) x 240 x CFA;
- For women over 60 (0. 038 x weight in kg + 2. 755) × 240 x CFA;
- For men aged 18-30 (0. 063 x body weight kg + 2. 896) x 240 x CFA;
- For men aged 31 to 60 (0. 484 x body weight kg + 3. 653) x 240 x CFA;
- For men over 60 (0. 491 x body weight in kg + 2. 459) x 240 x CFA.
Where CFA is the coefficient of physical activity: 1 - low, 1. 3 - average, 1. 5 - high.
Daily calorie calculator
You can also calculate your average daily calorie intake using an online calculator.
How to properly reduce daily calorie intake in order to lose weight?
In order to lose weight harmoniously and safely, it is recommended to reduce the calorie content of the diet by 10-15% (in the case of severe obesity by 20%) taking into account physical activity. The daily calorie content cannot be lower than the following indicator:
Weight in kg/0. 45 x 8
The WHO recommends reducing food intake by 500 kcal per month from the actual diet until the calorie content is reduced by 300-500 kcal below the daily requirement.
Reducing daily intake by 500 kcal per day leads to a loss of approximately 500 grams of fat mass per week. After six months of such weight loss, or upon reaching the ideal body weight, it is recommended to recalculate the daily calorie intake taking into account the new indicators.
In order to lose weight more effectively, you should not reduce your calorie intake as much as possible. Weight loss of 250-500 grams per week is considered physiological and safe for health. Exceeding these numbers means muscle and fluid loss.
Proteins, fats and carbohydrates when counting calories
Effective weight loss is not only about maintaining the daily calorie intake, but also about the proper distribution of proteins, fats and carbohydrates. A balanced diet according to the BJU ratio will look like this:
- For weight loss: 30-35% protein, 30-35% fat, 30-40% carbohydrates;
- To maintain body weight: 25-35% protein, 25-35% fat, 40-50% carbohydrates;
- For weight gain: 35-40% protein, 15-25% fat, 40-60% carbohydrates.
With this distribution of BJU in the diet, the body receives a sufficient amount of nutrients and vitamins.
Do not forget that all the formulas for calculating the daily calorie content can be wrong. They do not take into account the percentage of food absorption, health status, metabolic rate and other factors. Even a diet prepared by a specialist may not work in certain cases due to the individual characteristics of the person. While building a beautiful, strong body, pay attention to your feelings and, if necessary, change your diet and the ratio of KBJU.
Pay attention to your diet and exercise, and the results won't last long!