Obesity is at epidemic levels in the United States, causing higher medical costs and reduced quality of life, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Medical complications include sleep apnea, lung disease, stroke, heart disease, cancers, arthritis, pancreatitis and diabetes. Weight gain happens when you eat too much and get too little physical activity. While exercise is an important part of staying healthy, calorie reduction is your key to weight loss.
Healthy Calorie Limitations
If weight loss is your goal, it is natural to want to lose it as quickly as possible. However, evidence has shown that individuals who lose weight gradually are more successful at losing the weight and keeping it off, according to the CDC. There is a healthy limitation to the number of calories you need to eat in order to achieve a slow and steady weight loss. In order to calculate your healthy calorie limitation in your diet, you must also know how many calories you require to maintain your current weight.
How Many Calories
Your weight loss will depend upon the number of calories you eat and the number of calories you burn. Your body requires a basic number of calories to breath, control your metabolism, your heart and brain. This number is referred to as your basal metabolic rate, according to BMI-Calculator.net. You require these calories each day, even if you were to stay in bed and sleep for 24 hours. Each pound of body weight equals approximately 3,500 calories, according to MayoClinic.com. This means that if you want to lose 1 lb. you have to eliminate 3,500 calories from your current basal metabolic rate plus the number of calories you burn in physical activity each day.
Individualized Calorie Restrictions
Your individualized calorie restriction can be calculated using an online basal metabolic rate calculator or using a basic math formula. The equation is different for men and women to account for the faster male metabolism, according to BMI-Calculator.net. A woman's metabolic rate is equal to 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) - ( 4.7 x age in years ). A man's metabolic rate is equal to 66 + ( 6.23 x weight in pounds ) + ( 12.7 x height in inches ) - ( 6.8 x age in year ). Once you have this number you can add in the calories you burn in physical activity each day and then calculate how many extra calories you must subtract or burn to lose weight. For instance, if your BMR is 1,250 calories per day and you generally burn another 500 calories in daily activities at the office and home, you will have to either increase your physical activity to burn another 500 calories per day while maintaining your current caloric intake, or eat 500 calories less per day to lose 1 lb. per week.
Unhealthy Calorie Restriction
When you lose weight too quickly you increase the risk that you will regain the weight, according to the American Heart Association. Quick-weight-loss programs usually rely on very low calorie diets below 1,200 calories per day that emphasize one food or food type. Using these types of calorie restrictions can lead to nutritional deficits. You will not be able to follow this type of nutritional plan, will become bored with the food and will not learn how to permanently change your eating patterns. Using an unhealthy calorie restriction will often lead to rebound weight gain, sometimes to a greater weight than you were before starting the diet.
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