Optimal Calories For Weight Loss

Sometimes confusion about calorie intake complicates the already difficult process of losing weight. Most people know that cutting calories causes weight loss, but many people struggle to figure out what level of calorie intake will best aid their dieting efforts. Like many things in life, determining your optimal number of calories involves understanding the facts, incorporating moderation and testing through trial and error.

Calorie Intake and Reduction

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene explains that the average adult needs approximately 2,000 calories per day to maintain weight, although this figure varies based on numerous factors, such as gender and activity level. Losing one pound of fat requires burning 3,500 calories; because there are seven days in a week, cutting 500 to 750 calories per day results in weight loss of 1 to 1.5 pounds per week.

Warning

Simply reducing your daily caloric intake may not be enough, though. While the National Institutes of Health advise that a man requires at least 1,500 calories per day and a woman 1,200 calories each day, there are some people need more than those recommended minimums, including extremely active persons, pregnant women or breastfeeding mothers.
Furthermore, cutting calories through diet alone is counter-productive, concluded researchers at Oregon Health and Science University. Their 2009 study published in the "American Journal of Physiology--Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology" showed that in response to lower calorie consumption, the body uses less energy and burns less fat, which ultimately slows the dieter's weight loss. If your weight loss begins slowing or stopping even though you have limited your calorie intake significantly, try slightly increasing your daily maximum.

Determining Your Calorie Level

To calculate your optimal calorie intake for losing weight, you must first determine your optimal calorie intake for maintaining weight; next, subtract a number between 500 and 750 to get your optimal daily calories for weight loss. Don't assume the average number applies to you, because the appropriate level varies considerably, depending on many factors. For example, men require more calories than women, and active people need more calories than sedentary persons. Age, height and weight also affect the amount of calories your body needs. To determine your number, consult a chart, such as the one provided by New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, or use a calorie calculator, such as the one provided by Brigham Young University.

Exercise

Experts consider it safe to lose up to 2 pounds a week; however, given the evidence provided by the Oregon Heath and Science University study regarding decreased calorie consumption, the best way to cut calories is a two-prong approach. Reduce the amount of calories ingested and burn calories through exercise. Exercise helps enhance your metabolism so that your body continues to burn a lot of energy even though you're consuming fewer calories. When weight loss slows, increasing both caloric intake and exercise can help revitalize the process.

Choose a Bearable Level

To maintain your weight loss, you must choose a method and intensity of dieting that you can tolerate. If you cut too many calories, you may become miserable because you feel so deprived, and if you're unhappy with your diet, then you're much more likely to cheat or quit. Finding your personal optimal calorie intake includes choosing a level of daily calories that you can stick to for a long time.