Calories Per Day | Healthy Weight Loss

Setting and Maintaining a Healthy Weight Loss Goal

When you embark on a healthy weight loss plan, the most important part is choosing the goal correctly. Too small a goal will not inspire while too large a goal may result in early failure and disheartenment. Most of us do not understand the science behind fast weight loss and end up setting an objective that dooms the project even before it takes off. So how does one decide on the ideal weight to lose and in what time span? This article talks about setting and maintaining healthy weight loss goals.

First of all it is important to know one’s ideal weight. There are various internet sites you can visit, where you fill in your gender and height to get a result. Good sites give you a range; in case they don’t then it is safe to assume that 10% on either side of the given ‘ideal’ is okay. But keep in mind that weight is not the only indicator of good health. Two people with the same weight and height can have radically different body compositions of fat and muscle making one fit and the other unfit. So remember that body weight is just one of the many ways to measure body fitness and should be considered along with other variables for a better overall picture.

One you have a ‘qualified’ weight ideal in mind, it may be a good idea to put pencil to paper to see how much you need to lose for healthy weight loss. Now the calculation of calories and equivalent pounds goes something like this. Every 3000 calories make one pound, so you need to expend an extra 3000 calories to lose that weight. So assuming you have a weight loss goal of 10 pounds, you need to lose 30,000 calories. While theoretically you can lose this weight in as little time as you want by exercising all day or cutting down on what you eat, it is not safe. This is because eating too little or exerting yourself too much suddenly can throw the body into shock and land you on the hospital bed. Nutritionists recommend at least 1200 calories per day for healthy adults. When you exercise, you will need more nutrition for repairing the wear and tear the body undergoes. What all this means is that in reality, it is difficult to go beyond a real weight loss of 1-2 pounds per week if you want healthy weight loss. Fad diets and programs that promise a miracle loss are actually helping you lose water which you quickly regain once you get back to normal life. Yo-yo effect incidentally has a disastrous effect on your skin and overall health. What’s more, people feel guilty and are thrown into a spiral of weight gain and loss which can hurt their long term weight loss objectives.

You can incidentally increase the rate at which you burn calories or have fast AND healthy weight loss by investing in strength training. This means increasing the proportion of muscle in your body. Muscle tissue burns more even while you are sitting so it is a lifelong solution to healthy weight loss goals.

Quick Weight Loss Program — Tips to find good ones

If you are looking in to a lose weight quick program, there are a few things that you should keep in mind when making your decision:

A weight loss program should include all of the foods recommended by the United States Department of Agriculture and should allow the dieter to eat enough calories to keep their metabolism working full force.

Set goals- If the program you are looking in to wants you to write down your weight loss goals, you may have found the right diet plan. Studies have shown that by setting goals for yourself, and writing them down, you are more apt to stick with your diet and reach your goals. Try setting small goals each week (such as to eat less fat or lose 1.5 pounds), these mini goals are not as overwhelming as larger goals, like losing 50 pounds in three months, or whatever your final goal may be. Also, by achieving these smaller goals, we see that we are making progress and are more likely to continue trying than if we don’t set any.

Calories are good- Yes, all quick weight loss program rules will tell you that you should limit your calorie intake per day if you are going to lose weight. But, cutting your calories too much can actually stall weight loss just as much as consuming too many calories per day. A good rule of thumb is to eat no less than 1,600 calories per day for men and 1,200 calories per day for women. Beware that some of these “lose weight fast” diets can be very unhealthy and can cause health problems of their own.

Exercise to speed losing weight – For our bodies to gain one pound, we must consume 3,500 more calories than our bodies burn. So, for every pound we want to lose, we must take 3,500 calories from our bodies. This can be achieved by either consuming fewer calories, or by raising our metabolism by exercise. A smart dieter on a quick weight loss program will cut calories to a healthy level and incorporate more exercise into their every day routines to flush more calories from their bodies. Of course, you can overdo exercise, so moderation is key for healthy weight loss.

A quick weight loss program must be healthy and allow the dieter to make healthy choices. Any diet that claims that a person can lose an unbelievable amount of calories in a very short amount of time is probably going to give unsound and unhealthy advice. A dieter should not have to cut out entire food groups from their diet to lose weight. Remember that our bodies work like machines, and all food groups serve a purpose in keeping our bodies functioning at an optimal level. By cutting calories too low, doing extreme amounts of exercising and/or only eating certain foods we can actually cause our bodies to shut down and stop working correctly. Don’t fall for the gimmicks. Work hard, set goals, and believe in yourself, and you can achieve anything you set your mind to.