Let's find out if all diets are harmful, how to eat to lose weight and maintain the results for a long time and whether you need to count calories to do this.
The desire to be thin can lead you to innovative, sometimes even dangerous, practices. But in the end, even if the weight disappears, it soon returns. Why is this happening?
As a rule, a radical reduction in daily caloric intake has only a temporary effect when the cause of excess weight lies in lifestyle and nutrition.
A professional nutritionist explains which principles help you lose weight without harming your health.
What diet will help you lose weight
So, diets really help you lose weight. But before we rejoice, let's note one important detail: none of the restrictive types of nutrition work in the long term and can even cause harm.
Every diet has a downside: for example, the keto diet can worsen existing liver disease, cause kidney problems, and cause mood swings and irritability due to the lack of glucose contained in complex carbohydrates.
Furthermore, a diet in the popular sense is always a matter of restrictions, and restrictions concern malnutrition and breakdowns. As a result, even if you "feel" for a while and actually lose weight, but don't change your eating habits, the weight will come back. And this is a proven pattern.
The more varied the diet and the more flexible the nutritional plan, the easier it will be to follow. This means not going broke and achieving your goals without harming your body. Therefore, a complete healthy diet is better than restrictive diets.
But maybe there is a diet that will help you lose weight without harm to your health?
A short-term switch to a "healthy" diet will not lead to sudden weight loss. Plus, who said this is what proper weight loss looks like? You can achieve the desired result without any problems by forming new eating habits.
Therefore, the question "What diet will help you lose weight? " is best rephrased as "What is healthy eating? "
What is healthy eating
A healthy diet is mainly balanced and varied. The diet must provide all the nutrients, vitamins and minerals necessary for the body to function properly. The "healthy plate" principle will help with this.
- Eat fruits and vegetables of different colors. Fresh, boiled, dried - anyone.
- Include whole grain complex carbohydrates in your diet: they are rich in vitamins, minerals and fiber.
- Remember that dairy and plant-based alternatives are an important source of calcium. Choose low-fat options with no added sugar.
- Try to eat fish and vegetables at least twice a week.
- Use different vegetable oils.
Before you begin your weight loss journey, think about "healthy" foods you like so you have more delicious options for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Remember that the best "diet" is the one you follow.
A proper diet - without restrictions and without the stress they cause - can help not only lose weight, but also improve your health. In many cases, even a simple transition to a balanced diet leads to weight loss.
However, even if you eat a nutritious and varied diet, it is important not to overeat. In addition to internal guidelines – feelings of hunger and satiety – practice can help with this: finding portions of food that are comfortable for you.
Should you count calories when losing weight?
The calorie calculation method for a daily routine is not the best:
- concentration on numbers associated with the body - parameters, weight, kcal and so on - can cause neuroticism associated with the development of an eating disorder;
- Not all calories are equal from a qualitative point of view – a brownie and avocado toast have different nutritional values;
- the calorie content depends on the state of the product, for example, the same mass of nuts, whole or ground, gives a different amount of calories.
Therefore, calorie counting is more suitable for clinical practice when it comes to pathologies and/or hospital treatment.
At the same time, the calculation can still be used carefully to independently understand your own nutritional standards and the level of proteins, fats and carbohydrates consumed.
You can use an app or website to count calories – it makes life easier in many ways. But often these methods are inaccurate: after all, something eaten and drunk can be forgotten. This means that tens or hundreds of kcal consumed will not be considered in the final numbers.
If you control the calorie intake in your diet, do it efficiently: take into account snacks, drinks and various additives to main dishes - sauces and butter.
How to calculate your daily calorie intake
To calculate the correct daily calorie intake, use one of the following methods.
Method 1. Formula for calculating energy needs
This EER formula takes into account age, gender, weight, height and physical activity level and is suitable for adult men and women:
- EER for men = 662 – (9. 53 x age in years) + PA x [(15. 91 x weight in kg) + (539. 6 x height in meters)]
- EER for women = 354 – (6. 91 x age in years) + PA x [(9. 36 x weight in kg) + (726 x height in meters)]
PA is a level of physical activity that can be assigned a value based on the following parameters:
- sedentary lifestyle (practically no exercise) - AF = 1. 0;
- low activity (light exercise, sports 1–3 days a week) – PA = 1. 11–1. 25;
- moderate activity (moderate exercise, sports 3–5 days a week – PA = 1. 26–1. 48);
- increased activity (intense exercise, sports 6–7 days a week) - AF = 1. 49–1. 94.
Method 2. Harris-Benedict Formula
This formula will help you estimate your BMR – your basal metabolic rate, or the number of calories your body needs at rest. From the BMR, taking into account your activity level, you can calculate the TDEE – total daily energy expenditure.
For men:
- BMR = 66. 5 + (13. 75 x weight in kg) + (5. 003 x height in cm) – (6. 755 x age in years).
For women:
- BMR = 655. 1 + (9, 563 x weight in kg) + (1, 850 x height in cm) – (4, 676 x age in years).
To calculate your TDEE, multiply your program BMR by your activity factor, based on the following values:
- sedentary lifestyle (practically no exercise) - BMR x 1. 2;
- light activity (light exercise, sports 1-3 days a week) - BMR x 1, 375;
- medium activity (moderate exercise, sports 3-5 days a week) - BMR x 1. 55;
- increased activity (intense exercise, sports 6-7 days a week) - BMR x 1, 725;
- hyperactivity (heavy exercise, sports and physical work) - BMR x 1. 9.
These methods have their drawbacks. For example, the Harris-Benedict equation, although used for many years and serves as a standard guideline, does not take into account lean body mass, which can affect basal metabolic rate.
Furthermore, the equations only provide estimates, and individual variations and metabolism can affect actual energy needs.
Therefore, you should not rely solely on calorie counting. Consider your practical experience and comfortable portions and listen to your feelings of hunger and fullness.
What is important to know when losing weight
Seven tips for those who want to lose weight.
- Striving to get in shape is great until it becomes an obsession. Analyze why you want to lose weight. Your weight may be healthy, but non-environmental motivation can, on the contrary, cause harm.
- Fat performs an important function in the body: it protects against cold and hunger, surrounds the organs and protects them from injury, and provides the body with energy. Before losing weight, assess how much weight you need. After all, obesity and fat are not the same thing.
- Any restrictive diet is harmful to your health. If they give results, they are short-term, but can lead to neuroses and eating disorders. Remember that it is important for stars to lose weight "here and now" and therefore a beautiful photo is not synonymous with health and, perhaps, is not the best example.
- Excess added sugar in the diet is one of the main causes of obesity. Adjusting your diet to the principles of a "healthy plate" is the most effective diet.
- Weight is affected not only by nutrition, but also by the quality of sleep, the level of physical activity and even the psychological and mental state. If adjusting your diet doesn't produce the changes you want, there may be another reason.
- Some experts recommend Mediterranean and Scandinavian diets, as well as intermittent fasting, for weight loss. However, before trying a new eating plan, evaluate your eating habits and preferences. And if it's not your thing, don't accept it. Self-forced eating practices can lead to negative results and harm health.
- And, of course, don't self-medicate. If being overweight has already caused health problems, seek help from specialists.