A calorie is a unit of energy measurement. Food calories provide the body with the energy it needs to live. When you consume food, your body breaks it down to release energy that can be used right away or saved for later, depending on your needs.
To maintain your weight, your body needs a certain number of calories. A calorie deficit occurs when you eat less calories than your body needs to maintain its current weight. If you consume less calories than your body needs, it will turn to calories stored in your body for energy. As a result, you’ll lose weight.
Every person’s caloric requirements and deficits are unique, and they are determined by a variety of factors such as how much you exercise, your genes, hormones, and metabolism.
Now the question is, how to calculate your calorie needs?
There are many methods for calculating how many calories a person burns on a daily basis. They can, for example, measure their daily calorie requirements manually or use an online calculator.
Moderately active people can measure how many calories they will need per day by multiplying their current body weight by 15 in a manual calculation.They should then deduct 500 calories from that amount to decide how many calories they can eat for a healthy calorie deficit. People can, however, make sure they aren’t eating too few calories. It’s also worth noting that exercise will help you lose weight by burning calories.
A person’s current caloric needs can also be determined using their basal metabolic rate (BMR) and activity levels.
How can you create Calorie Deficit?
Once an individual understands how many calories, they need each day or week, they may work toward a calorie deficit.
Around 3,500 calories are contained in one pound of body fat. A calorie deficit of 3,500 calories, or 500 calories per day, will be needed to lose 1 pound of fat in a week.
There are 2 ways one can create Calorie Deficit
- Diet
Changing what a person eats and drinks each day is one component of creating a calorie deficit. Foods that are high in nutrients but low in calories should be prioritized.
A healthy eating pattern with less calories, according to the Dietary Guidelines, should include:
- Vegetables: Vegetables, including dark greens, reds, oranges, starchy vegetables, and others
- Protein: Lean meats, poultry, eggs, legumes, nuts, soy products, and seafood are all good sources of protein.
- Low-fat Dairy: dairy products that are low in fat or fat-free, such as milk, yogurt, cheese, or fortified soy beverages
- Fruits: One should focus more on whole fruits
- Healthy Oils: Olive oil, canola oil, and other healthy oils
- Grains: At least half of them being whole grains
In addition, sugary beverages and trans fats should be avoided.
Exercise
Exercising is an integral aspect of losing weight. If possible, a person who is not very active should try to increase their daily activity levels.
This could involve things like:
- Hiking
- Playing a leisure sport
- Biking
- Walking
- Running/Jogging
- Using stairs instead of using the elevator
If a person wants or needs to lose weight, creating a calorie deficit can be beneficial. This can be accomplished by a combination of diet and exercise.
They should remember to eat more healthy foods, drink more water, and exercise on a regular basis.
People can measure how many calories they burn every day using formulas and online calculators. A individual can then estimate how many calories they should consume to achieve a calorie deficit.
Kritika is a freelance content writer with Femsay.com