How Many Calories Should I Eat To Lose Weight?
How Many Calories? You Can Do It!
If you have been told to get in shape and lose some weight and are now asking yourself, “just how many calories should I eat to lose weight”? Then here is a straight forward and simple answer and simple way to lose weight.
One pound = 3500 calories To lose one pound you need to either eat less or burn off at least 500 calories a day to lose a pound in one week. (500 calories x 7 days = 3500 calories). So, if you are just starting on this journey, one of the simple ways to lose weight is to concentrate on finding at least 500 calories in your day to get rid of. You could try and find 350 calories in food and 150 calories in exercise. This works well if you have a set routine for eating such as at work. If you weight is pretty much staying where it is right now (even if it is higher than it should be) then instead of trying to figure out exactly how many calories you are eating right now, simply start switching out some of your foods over the day rather than cutting back and get rid of 500 calories. Focus on finding 500 calories to begin with in your present diet, and this is one of the simple ways to lose weight. A pound a week is a great start. If you want to be more aggressive you could aim for two pounds a week, but that means trying to now find 1000 calories to remove or burn off in your day. |
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Personally, I found starting slow works best. Unless you Doctor wants it off fast, going slow like the tortoise in the race with the hare, wins.
So, before you panic about going hungry or eating rice cakes all day, just take a look at your most routine days, and take a close look at your meals. Don’t skip breakfast that will make things worse, as your metabolism will slow down.
Pick on other meals and snacks instead. If you eat cheese on your sandwich, try a really good brand of light cheese. That will save calories right there. If you like mayo on your sandwich, either find a low fat version or totally switch out to mustard. This is what I did. Regular mayo can be 100 calories per knife swipe! Mustard is zero.
If you love that afternoon latte get a skim milk one. I switched and didn’t really notice the difference. You should be able to find 350 calories in the day easily. Now start adding some stairs or walking the dog after dinner.
Add a few activities to gain the other 150 calories, and without feeling deprived, you should lose a pound. Try and do the same on the weekends. (Check out the calorie burner calculator for the calorie cost of activities for your height and weight)
So, rather than going all out and cutting back way too much, start slow. The extra weight didn’t go on your body overnight, so treat yourself kindly and just start a few new habits.
After a few weeks you could maybe try a few other switches, such as your chocolate chip cookies for oatmeal and raisin (just check the package for savings on calories) No one said you had to cut everything out. So next time you ask yourself “how many calories should I eat to lose weight”? Now you know!
Also check out Healthy Weight Calculator and the Calorie Calculators to see the bigger picture. These are great tools. Also see my full story on my simple way to lose weight. You can do it!
Also see How many calories are in an apple, and how many calories in a glass of wine, and how many calories in a pound for more information to help you with your weight loss goals.
So, before you panic about going hungry or eating rice cakes all day, just take a look at your most routine days, and take a close look at your meals. Don’t skip breakfast that will make things worse, as your metabolism will slow down.
Pick on other meals and snacks instead. If you eat cheese on your sandwich, try a really good brand of light cheese. That will save calories right there. If you like mayo on your sandwich, either find a low fat version or totally switch out to mustard. This is what I did. Regular mayo can be 100 calories per knife swipe! Mustard is zero.
If you love that afternoon latte get a skim milk one. I switched and didn’t really notice the difference. You should be able to find 350 calories in the day easily. Now start adding some stairs or walking the dog after dinner.
Add a few activities to gain the other 150 calories, and without feeling deprived, you should lose a pound. Try and do the same on the weekends. (Check out the calorie burner calculator for the calorie cost of activities for your height and weight)
So, rather than going all out and cutting back way too much, start slow. The extra weight didn’t go on your body overnight, so treat yourself kindly and just start a few new habits.
After a few weeks you could maybe try a few other switches, such as your chocolate chip cookies for oatmeal and raisin (just check the package for savings on calories) No one said you had to cut everything out. So next time you ask yourself “how many calories should I eat to lose weight”? Now you know!
Also check out Healthy Weight Calculator and the Calorie Calculators to see the bigger picture. These are great tools. Also see my full story on my simple way to lose weight. You can do it!
Also see How many calories are in an apple, and how many calories in a glass of wine, and how many calories in a pound for more information to help you with your weight loss goals.
