How much to eat to lose weight
How much do you need to eat to lose weight? Weight loss arithmetic is not that simple. When developing an individual diet, it is necessary to take into account not only the energy value of the diet, but also the approximate weight and volume of the serving, meal time, own metabolic rate and physical activity, as well as many other factors.
Serving size and frequency: how much to eat to lose weight
What should be the serving size? To find out how much to eat to lose weight, you need to calculate the total number of meals, taking into account all snacks. Usually 4-7 times a day. Naturally, the portions for 4 and 7 meals a day will differ.
The mechanism of losing weight on four meals a day is based on a break between meals. When food has already been digested, insulin is not produced, which in turn causes the body to burn rather than store fat. The disadvantages of such a nutrition system include the same hunger, which usually comes a little earlier than the prescribed time, and nutrients are not absorbed as efficiently as with fractional nutrition. How much do you need to eat to lose weight with 4 meals a day? Breakfast should include 350-400 g of food, lunch - up to 800 g, afternoon tea - up to 300 g and dinner - about 400 g.
The main plus of 5 meals a day is high efficiency. And since food is eaten every 3 hours, blood sugar levels are kept at an optimal level without provoking hunger. This way of organizing nutrition improves metabolism, since the digestive tract is constantly loaded with work and burns more calories than with rare and large portions. But there are also disadvantages. To eat every 3 hours, you need to at least adjust your lifestyle. Fats are consumed more slowly due to the increased insulin content in the blood. How much to lose weight with five meals a day? The first breakfast should have 350-400 g of food, for the second breakfast - 150-200 g, for lunch - up to 800 g, for an afternoon snack - 150-200 g, for dinner - 400 g.
If you are used to snacking more often, for example 6-7 times, then for each meal it is recommended to eat no more than 250-300 g. To improve the quality component of the diet, you need to include apples, vegetables, nuts, muesli in snacks. Keeping track of how much you eat to lose weight, do not forget to consume at least 2 liters of water per day.
How many calories do you need to lose weight
There is a myth about the norm of 2000 kcal per day for a woman and 2500-3000 for a man. It is a myth, since we are all different. Someone has a dense physique, someone is thin, some are naturally given refined bones, others are wide, and we also differ in height, age and lifestyle. How many calories you actually need for weight loss can be calculated using the formula:
- For women: 10 x weight (kg), + 6.25 x height (cm) - 5 x age - 161;
- For men: 10 x weight (kg), + 6.25 x height (cm) - 5 x age + 5.
In addition, the amount received must be multiplied by a coefficient corresponding to the lifestyle:
- For a sedentary lifestyle - 1.2;
- With moderate training 1-3 times a week - 1.375;
- When training 3-5 times a week - 1.55;
- When training 6-7 times a week - 1.725;
- With intensive training twice a day and high physical activity at work - 1.9.
Based on this formula, for example, you can calculate how much you need to eat in order to lose weight for a 30-year-old woman weighing 70 kg, 160 cm tall, who works with documents and does not play sports. To maintain her lifestyle, she will need 10 x 70 kg + 6.25 x 160 - 5 x 30 - 161 = 1389 kcal. Taking into account the activity, her daily needs are 1389 x 1.2 = 1667 kcal. Therefore, for weight loss, you need to consume less than 1667 kcal with food.
There is an easier way of calculating that is suitable for people with a normal physique: about 24 kcal per 1 kg of weight in women and 26-27 kcal in men. This indicator will change depending on the level of metabolism and physical activity.
So, we have figured out how to find the required daily optimum of calories. How many calories do you need to lose weight? It is safe for health to reduce the total calorie intake by no more than 20%. If you radically impoverish your diet, you can lose weight faster. But this measure is effective only for a short period, after which the metabolism begins to slow down, and even then you will stop losing weight, even if you consume fewer calories than you spend.
How many calories are considered safe for weight loss? The limit of the minimum safe calorie content for health is 1200 kcal for women and 1800 kcal for men.
Weight loss mistakes
When deciding how much to eat in order to lose weight, it should be remembered that even a very modest calorie diet may not contribute to weight loss, but, on the contrary, lead to weight gain if you use the wrong diet. For example, when the main calorie content and serving size are in the evening time of day, your body does not receive energy for normal functioning and slows down all metabolic processes, switching to energy conservation mode. You may feel weak, sleepy.
Experiencing stress in the morning, the body remains in the economy mode in the evening, storing nutrients to provide itself with energy for the next day. In this case, in the evening, eating everything that you did not have time to consume during the day, you contribute to the accumulation of large strategic reserves of fat, which will be difficult to get rid of later. It is important not only to know how much to eat to lose weight, but also to understand when is the best time to do it.
If you evenly distribute food for 3-7 meals during the day, then the sleep mode will be replaced by an active one. Then the calorie consumption will correspond to the consumption, and you will continue to move towards your ideal weight.
Slimming products
If you want to make the process of losing weight more effective, you should include in the diet foods that speed up metabolic processes. These include:
- Green tea. It promotes the removal of excess fluid from the body, satisfies hunger and contains antioxidants that enhance heat exchange processes in the body;
- Tomatoes. They satisfy hunger well and are low in calories. Fiber, which is part of the vegetable, improves digestion;
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How much to eat to lose weight with 3 meals a day Eggs. A valuable source of proteins that maintains a feeling of fullness for a long time and accelerates metabolism in fatty tissues;
- Almond. A high-calorie product, but the fats that make up it are quickly excreted from the body. Almonds lower fatty acid levels and remove excess cholesterol;
- Grapefruit. Low-calorie citrus, which improves metabolism and removes toxins;
- Cucumbers. Low-calorie vegetables that prevent the conversion of carbohydrates into fats, improve peristalsis and eliminate toxins.
There is no single answer to the question of how much you need to eat in order to lose weight. However, knowing what foods should be included in the diet, what should be the optimal calorie content and frequency of meals, you can draw up an individual nutrition program that will help you lose weight. Use our advice, set realistic goals and start moving towards them right now.
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