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Today, one of the most popular nutritional systems is calorie-based nutrition. It is this method of losing weight that is considered the most effective, safe and at the same time does not require giving up your favorite foods.
The main rule is to calculate the number of calories the body needs throughout the day and, therefore, to be aware that each increase in the portion leads to an increase in calories.
It is possible to follow a calorie-based diet all the time, because this nutritional system does not harm health at all, and even contributes to excellent well-being. The basic principle of this system is to consume exactly as many calories as the body spends per day. The range of products and their quantity does not matter, the main thing is not to exceed the limit of the permissible calorie content. It is also not recommended to consume much less calories than the norm, because the body must function normally, without any disruptions and stress, so as not to harm health.
Calculating your daily calorie intake
To determine the approximate number of calories required by the body per day for normal operation and keeping in shape, you need to determine the main indicators (which are individual for everyone) and carry out the calculation using a special formula.
- One of the main indicators is metabolism… Even if a person works in a sedentary mode all day, the body still expends the energy received from food in the process of digestion, heartbeat, kidney, brain, breathing. You can calculate it in this way: multiply the weight by 20 kcal.
- The second important factor in calculating the required amount of calories is person’s age, because after twenty ends the period of active development of the body. This indicator is determined in this way: each subsequent decade after twenty reduces the amount of calories by 2%.
- The next indicator is divided by genderbecause men need more calories than women. This factor also includes the general indicator of physique, because a smaller body will need less energy for heating. That is, the larger the body, the more calories you need.
- Another important factor in the calculation is physical activity… If you regularly engage in sports training, exercise or other strength training, then it is dominated by significant muscle mass, which burns significantly more calories than adipose tissue. To determine this indicator, you need to multiply the metabolism by the percentage of the activity of the rhythm of life.
Activity percentages:
20% – mostly sedentary lifestyle;
30% – light activity during the day (cleaning, cooking, walking, shopping);
40% – average activity (work in the garden, garden, yard, general cleaning in the house, long walks, etc.);
50% – a high level of activity (regular training, jogging, various exercises, strength work).
- The last indicator of the general calorie formula is energy percentage when processing and assimilating food. It is calculated by the formula: (metabolism + physical activity) multiplied by 10%.
The formula for calculating the daily calorie intake:
Metabolism + physical activity + percentage of energy for food processing
Having calculated the daily portion of calories, it is necessary to clarify the result obtained according to the indicator of the age category (for each subsequent decade after twenty, we reduce the total volume of calories by 2%).
If a diet with calorie counting is used for weight loss, then it is worth correcting the result of the main formula in this way: we compare one kilogram of weight with 7 kcal, that is, we multiply our weight by 7, then subtract the resulting number from the calculated daily portion of calories according to the above formula.
Calorie Diet Recommendations
- 1 According to the recommendations of the famous nutritionist M. Ingmar, it is necessary to consume more fat (30-40% of the total number of calories per day). Thus, the body will be full, and the stomach will not be stretched from a lot of low-calorie foods.
- 2 Researcher of the popular diet of athletes L. Cordain advises everyone who leads an active lifestyle, when eating by calories, to make a diet mainly from, and (with a mandatory increase in the final indicator of the calculation). Cordain also recommends avoiding dairy products as allergens and foods that interfere with weight loss.
- 3 When compiling a daily diet, you need to understand that it is better to eat a portion of something healthy and satisfying than sweets, chips, convenience foods, etc. It is necessary to properly distribute meals according to a clear schedule, because this way it will be easier for the body to adapt to the new nutritional system, and for the body as a whole, the nutritional system will only benefit. In no case should you exhaust your daily portion of calories before lunch and starve during the second half of the day, since with such measures, negative consequences cannot be avoided.
- 4 It is worth calculating calories and making a menu in accordance with this diet in advance in order to save your time. To calculate the calories contained in a specific product, you can use special programs that can be downloaded on the Internet.
- 5 You should always remember about the sugar that is added to tea, because it also has a lot of calories.
- 6 In the life of the human body, calories are simply necessary for normal functioning, but the point is not only in their quantity. It is important that the foods consumed contain nutrients, namely proteins, fats, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins. Therefore, you should not mistake freshly squeezed juice and soda with “juice content” or chicken broth from real with chicken broth on flavored instant seasoning for equal use, even though the “chemical” version has fewer calories.
- 7 The opinion that the more satisfying the product, the less high-calorie it is, is a common misconception, which often misleads the calculations and, therefore, prevents weight loss.
- 8 If you follow a calorie diet for weight loss, you should regularly use weights in order to monitor the dynamics of weight and, in the negative case, correct mistakes, and in the positive case, adhere to the necessary channel to consolidate the result.
- 9 Misconceptions that promote fat burning. Conversely, alcohol is an additional sticky calorie.
- 10 Calories can be calculated using special tables. There are tables of calorie content of various dishes, calorie saturation of certain world cuisines, specific products, as well as for certain groups of people. The latter, in accordance with the energy requirement of a particular group (for example, pregnant women, breastfeeding women, children, students, athletes, couch potatoes, etc.), determines the required amount of nutrients and minerals.
The daily calorie requirement, taking into account your physiological characteristics, you can on our website. There you will also find a personal calorie intake and an optimal weight loss prognosis.