While you can choose from a wide range of diet plans to lose weight, the bottom line remains that weight loss is determined by the number of calories you consume, according to MayoClinic.com. Whether the calories come from fat, carbohydrates or protein doesn't matter as much as the combined total you take in and burn off each day.
Significance
Calories provide the fuel that allows the body to function properly. According to MayoClinic.com, energy comes from calories contained in food. Calories also measure the amount of energy your body burns in basic functions such as breathing, digesting and circulation, as well as all physical activity. Calories not burned are stored in the body as fat.
Types
Diet plans that reduce the number of calories that you eat each day and promote exercise to burn off additional calories are the most effective. Diet plans that reduce fat allow you to eat more food because each gram of fat contains about nine calories, while protein and carbohydrate grams each carry closer to four calories. You'll take in about seven calories for each gram of alcohol you consume.
Features
One pound equals approximately 3,500 calories. According to MayoClinic.com, you should look for a diet plan that reduces calorie consumption by about 3,500 calories a week in order to lose weight slowly and safely and develop a better chance at keeping it off. Cutting 500 calories per day can be achieved through portion control, removing high-fat desserts from your menu or substituting lower calorie foods for high-calorie staples.
Function
Many diet plans provide pre-measured foods that eliminate the need to count calories because the calorie counts are already taken into consideration. Diets that rely on home cooking and grocery shopping must include a calorie-counting guide. Labels on grocery store items include calorie counts and calorie guides available online can help you figure out how many calories are in other packaged and fresh foods. Calorie guides such as those available through the National Diabetes Education Center can be printed or bookmarked for easy access.
Considerations
While many diet plans prescribe certain foods to maintain a balance among carbs, proteins and fat, they don't always provide a means to measure the nutritional value of the foods in the diet. The U.S. Department of Agriculture publishes a nutritional guide that can help you make appropriate food choices. Food labels also provide information about nutritional content in each serving size.
Warning
Many diet plans and weight loss efforts are sabotaged by misunderstandings about portion sizes. According to the Weight-control Information Network, learning to recognize appropriate portions when counting calories can help to save you the time and hassle of measuring. For example, one cup typically equals the size of your fist, one and half ounces equals the size of four dice and two tablespoons is the size of a ping pong ball.
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