How To Lose Weight By Counting Calories

Calories are a very important part in losing weight, so it is important to know how to lose weight by counting calories. No matter what diets promise, it all boils down to the fact that in order to lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume. Calories are the fuel your body functions on. They either become energy or fat. When you lower your calorie consumption, your body begins to use the fat in your body for energy. Exercise helps you burn even more calories which also aids in weight loss. Here are some tips on how to lose weight by counting calories.

Before you begin you will need:

• a food diary
• a food calorie chart or calorie counter
• a weight loss goal
• a daily calorie intake figure

1. Burn away fat one pound at a time. So, just what does that mean? Well, one pound equals 3500 calories. It means you have to use up 3500 more calories than you take in to lose one pound. To burn off one pound per week means cutting out 500 calories a day (3500 divided by 7 days = 500).
2. How to begin? Perhaps the easiest way to lose weight by counting calories is to write down in your diary everything you eat for the first week to determine about how many calories you usually consume on a daily basis. Don’t leave anything out.
3. Look up the quantity and count calories for each item you ate that week. Take note of any really high calorie “junk” food items you ate or drank. Count calories for the foods you ate for the week and average them out to get a daily figure. This will let you know what your target calories are to lose that pound a week. For example, if you are averaging 2200 calories a day, you need to somehow reduce your consumption to 1700.
4. Start your calorie reduction plan in Week 2. By the second week, you have looked up all the foods you ate the first week and kind of got an idea of how many calories are in foods you ordinarily consume. You can, at this point, make out a menu plan for Week 2, check the calories in your choices, and start your plan to lose weight by counting calories. If you eat something that is not on your proposed meal plan, be sure to write it down and add in those calories. Be sure to switch it out for something approximately equal in calories from your meal plan.
5. How to reduce consumption and burn off those calories. First of all, if you eliminate sweets, unhealthy snacks and sodas from your diet, you can cut out a lot of calories. Don’t eat that donut (169 calories) from breakfast or that bag of chips (152 calories) and can of soda (16 oz. 196 calories) while watching TV. Drink a cup of coffee (with sweetener or stevia 0 calories) and eliminate the latté or cappuccino (107 calories). Grab veggies to nibble on instead of a cupcake (131 calories). It is not hard to cut out calories. If you get rid of about 300 calories by cutting out those types of foods, you can get rid of the other 200 calories by taking a walk for half an hour each day or by doing some other form of exercise. On days you don’t exercise, cut the calories.
6. Other ways to cut calories. Cut down on portions, eat more fresh vegetables and fruits, eat less potatoes, pasta, rice, and white bread, eat leaner cuts of meat and fish, and avoid processed meats. Watch the calories when eating condiments, dressings and sauces. Eat fruit for dessert instead of pies, cakes and ice cream. In other words, watch your carbohydrate and saturated fat intake, and eat whole grains. Avoid trans fats. Make a habit of checking the nutrient labels on foods. In other words, eat healthy and you will begin to see how to lose weight by counting calories when you eliminate those unhealthy foods and/or limit your portion size.