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If you’re looking to lose weight, one of the first things many experts will recommend is to create a calorie deficit, which simply means to consume fewer calories than your body technically needs to maintain your weight. Sounds easy enough, but it's a little more complex than it may seem.
To accurately calculate how many calories you're consuming, says Morgan Goodstadt, RDN, founder of Good Nutrition. And importantly, finding the sweet spot of a calorie deficit without overly restricting can be tricky. Still, a calorie deficit is a key to weight loss and it's worth exploring how you can do it in a healthy way.
How Many Calories Should I Eat A Day
Here, experts address major questions you may have, like what is a calorie deficit? And how can you create one in a healthy way? Remember: Everyone is super unique and it's always worthwhile to discuss major diet changes with your own doctor or a registered dietitian.
Meet the experts: Morgan Goodstadt, RDN, is the founder of Good Nutrition. Keri Gans, RD, is an NYC-based nutritionist and the author of
Roxana Ehsani, RD, is a nutritionist who specializes in sports dietetics. She is also a national media spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
I Am 21 Years Old And I Weigh 374 Pounds And I Am 6 Foot One. How Many Calories A Day Should I Eat To Lose Weight?
Some basics: A calorie is a measurement of energy. The calories in food supply your body with the fuel you need to survive. When you eat food, it’s broken down by your body to release energy to be used right away or stored for later, depending on what you need at that moment.
Your body needs to take in a certain number of calories to maintain your weight, says Keri Gans, RD, the author of
And so, “a calorie deficit is when you consume fewer calories than your body requires to stay at its current weight, ” she explains. If you take in fewer calories than your body needs, your body will turn to the calories you have stored up to burn for energy. As a result, you’ll lose weight.
How Much Do I Need To Eat?
Every person’s caloric needs and deficits are different and depend on a bunch of factors, like how much you exercise, your genes, your hormones, and your metabolism, notes Sonya Angelone, RD, a former spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. The landscape of the gut microbiome can also modulate how much energy we absorb and utilize from food, notes Goodstadt.
Again, it can be challenging to create a calorie deficit in a healthy way. For example, most people might not pick the correct total amount of calories to go off, then create too much of a restrictive calorie deficit for themselves to follow, says Roxana Ehsani, RD, LDN, a national media spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Excessive caloric restriction may also backfire, contributing to strong hunger cravings, Goodstadt says. “Calories provide energy to our cells to function properly, and if we are over-restricting, our body will send hunger signals (usually for quick-burning calories in the form of sugar and simple carbohydrates).”
How Many Calories Should Men Eat In A Day?
What's more, going too low calorie-wise can lower your basal metabolic rate (BMR), which is the minimum number of calories your body needs to function properly every day, Goodstadt says. And when BMR decreases, she explains, as soon as you go back to eating “normally, ” you gain the weight back (and sometimes a little more). “Nutrition theory suggests that the body does this to prevent starvation if/when the body is exposed to future famine (aka your next crash diet), ” she says.
Another risk of being in a calorie deficit is that any caloric restriction with an inadequate intake of protein and physical exercise may also lead to loss of muscle mass. “Typically, the goal of caloric restriction is to reduce fat mass and preserve muscle mass, but if done incorrectly, we create the opposite effect, ” shares Goodstadt. “This is why it can be helpful to work with a professional or dietitian to help you figure out a holistic nutrition and lifestyle plan that works best for your body.”
Finally, excessive restriction may lead to bone and muscle loss, brain fog, constipation, dizziness, fatigue, headaches, hormone imbalances, and poor immune function, per Goodstadt.
Weight Loss Tips: How Many Calories Should You Eat In A Day?
Yup, it can be a little complicated to figure out your exact calorie deficit, but, in general, it’s thought that shaving 500 calories from your daily intake should lead to one pound of weight loss per week.
“The classic definition is based on the fact that one pound of fat contains 3, 500 calories, ” Angelone says. If you eat 500 calories less per day than the amount you need to maintain your weight, you should lose one pound in a week. If you want to lose two pounds a week, you might try a 1, 000-calorie daily deficit. You just typically don’t want to cut any more calories than that. “Healthy weight loss is considered one to two pounds per week, ” Gans notes.
You don’t necessarily have to drop 500 calories a day from your diet to lose weight, though. “Any deficit will lead to weight loss, ” Angelone says. “It will just take more or less time, depending how great the deficit.”
A Balanced Diet: How Many Calories Should I Eat In A Day?
If you're burning more calories through exercise than you consume in a day, you will have a calorie deficit, says Dana Ellis Hunnes, PhD, a senior dietitian at UCLA Medical Center. This is why any extra movement, like daily exercise and walks can help.
But you don't want to just ramp up your physical activity and completely neglect your diet. “It is so easy to out-eat anything you burn, ” says Hunnes. “Cutting out calories is probably more effective than trying to burn off what you eat.” However, she believes doing both is important and more effective.
Of calories you take in, Angelone notes. (Some nutrients, like sugar, are used up more easily and quickly than fiber, she explains.) Your body also compensates for short-term calorie changes, temporarily raising your metabolism if you eat more for a few days, and lowering it if you eat less.
How Many Daily Calories Should I Eat?
Your activity levels, age, height, quality of sleep, and weight all affect the exact number of calories you need. Here's a handy graphic for you to find your number based on how old and active you are.
That said, at the very minimum, women need 1, 200 calories per day to function properly. If you go below that number, you may need even fewer calories at some point to maintain your weight, which becomes increasingly difficult and not sustainable. And, reminder: You will tend to store the calories you eat if and when you go below your BMR, says Hunnes.
Consider the options below to find your BMR. Then, factor in how many calories you think you burn from activities during the day. (Again this won't be a perfect science.) Then, anything below that should be a calorie deficit that will help you lose weight over time.
How Many Calories Should You Eat To Lose Weight?
Every practitioner has a slightly different approach. Angelone will take calculations based on body measurements like weight and height, along with exercise level. And Gans prefers a more low-key approach. “I try to leave math out of the equation and instead focus with my patient on making small changes that can naturally lead to weight loss, ” she says.
But some practitioners may even send you for metabolic testing, which measures how many calories you burn at rest (like when you’re sitting around), to try to get an accurate number.
The most popular equation used is likely the Mifflin-St. Jeor equation, Goodstadt says. This equation calculates your basal metabolic rate (BMR), which is the minimum number of calories your body burns at rest.
Daily Calorie Needs
For women, the Mifflin-St. Jeor equation is: BMR = (10 x weight in kg) + (6.25 x height in cm) – (5 x age in years) – 161.
So, the BMR equation for, a 25-year-old woman who is 5'4 and weighs 150 pounds would be this: BMR= (10 x 68) + (6.25 x163) - (5 x 25) -161 = 1, 413 calories
The Harris Benedict equation is often used for comparison, and Goodstadt says some studies suggest that the Harris-Benedict Equation may be more accurate than Mifflin-St. Jeor. That equation is: BMR = 655.1 + (9.563 x weight in kg ) + (1.850 x height in cm) - ( 4.676 x age in years).
How Many Calories Do I Need To Gain Weight Story
For the same 150-pound woman, the BMR using the Harris Benedict equation would be: BMR= 655.1 + (9.563 x 68) + (1.850 x 163) - ( 4.676 x 25) = 1, 490 calories
The results are slightly different depending on which formula you use. And Angelone stresses, “This is still an estimate, since so many factors affect weight loss.”
Don’t feel like doing the math? There are plenty of online calculators that can help. The National Institute of Health’s Body Weight Planner is a good one to try, Angelone says. It looks at your current weight and fitness level, along with your weight-loss goals, and helps map out how many calories you need to take in to lose the weight over the period of time
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