Diet vs. Weight Loss

Despite the way it feels, losing weight isn't a mysterious process. It's a simple matter of burning more calories than you eat. But, if it were really that simple, none of us would have a weight problem, would we?

Weight loss can be such a struggle that we start thinking we have to do something drastic to see results - diets, pills or those weird fitness gadgets on infomercials that promise instant success. However, the true secret to weight loss is in making small changes each and every day and slowly losing those extra pounds. The key is to forget about instant results and settle in for the long run.

Cutting calories doesn't have to mean dieting

 We become overweight when we consume more calories in food and drink than we burn up. To lose weight, we need to shift that balance and burn up more than we consume. We can accomplish that by consuming fewer calories, burning more, or both. Cutting calories doesn’t necessarily have to mean going on a “diet.”  It can just mean avoiding or limiting one or more foods high in calories from fat (such as high-fat meat, cheese, or snack foods, or too much added fat), lots of sugar (like sweets or sweetened drinks).  Cutting calories can also be accomplished by reducing our portion sizes, or by eating smaller portions of those high-calorie foods and filling up on larger portions of low-calorie vegetables and fruits.

Rules of Weight Loss

To lose one pound of fat, you must burn approximately 3500 calories over and above what you already burn doing daily activities. That sounds like a lot of calories and you certainly wouldn't want to try to burn 3500 calories in one day. However, by taking it step-by-step, you can determine just what you need to do each day to burn or cut out those extra calories. Below is a step by step process for getting started.

1. Calculate your BMR (basal metabolic rate). Your BMR is what your body needs to maintain normal functions like breathing and digestion. This is the minimum number of calories you need to eat each day. Keep in mind that no calculator will be 100% accurate, so you may need to adjust these numbers as you go along.

2. Calculate your activity level. Use a calorie calculator to figure out how many calories you burn while sitting, standing, exercising, lifting weights, etc. throughout the day. It helps to keep a daily activity journal or you could even wear a heart rate monitor that calculates calories burned.

3. Keep track of how many calories you eat. You can use a site like Calorie Count or use a food journal to write down what you eat and drink each day. Be as accurate as possible, measuring when you need to or looking up nutritional information for restaurants, if you eat out.

4. Add it up. Take your BMR number, add your activity calories and then subtract your food calories from that total. If you're eating more than you're burning, (your BMR + activity is 2000 and you're eating 2400 calories) you'll gain weight. If you're burning more than you eat, you'll lose weight. Example: Saima's BMR is 1400 calories and she burns 900 calories in daily activity with regular exercise, walking around and doing household chores. To maintain her weight, she should be eating 2300 calories but, after keeping a food journal, Saima finds that she's eating 2550 calories every day. By eating 250 more calories than her body needs, Saima will gain one pound every 2 weeks.

This example shows how easy it is to gain weight without even knowing it. However, it's also easy to lose weight, even if the process itself can be slow. You can start by making small changes in your diet and activity levels and immediately start burning more calories than you're eating. If you can find a way to burn an extra 200 to 500 calories each day with both exercise and diet, you're on the right track.