Whether your goal is to lose weight or maintain your current weight, controlling your daily calorie intake is key. How many calories you need depends on your age, gender, height, weight and activity level. Your doctor or a dietitian can help you determine your individual calorie needs. In general, a 1,600-calorie is a low-calorie diet that can help most active men and women lose weight, and sedentary women over the age of 51 maintain their weight.
Eating Plan
The goal of your eating plan is to adequately meet your essential nutrient needs while staying within your daily calorie needs. To do so, your diet must emphasize a variety of nutrient-rich foods from each of the food groups in controlled amounts. A diet guide, such as the exchange diet, can help you. The exchange diet divides foods into familiar groups and assigns a specific serving size to each food to help you control calorie intake. A 1,600-calorie diet includes nine servings of starch or grains, five servings of meat, four servings of vegetables, three servings of fruits, two servings of milk and three servings of fat. These food items should than be divided among three meals and one snack.
Breakfast
For breakfast you can have two servings of starch or grain, one serving of meat, one serving of fruit, one serving of milk and one serving of fat. A sample meal may include 3/4 cups of low-fat cottage cheese with a small banana, a toasted whole wheat English muffin with 1 tsp. of margarine and 1 cup of nonfat milk. This meal contains about 390 calories.
Lunch
For lunch, include three servings of starch or grain, two servings of meat, two servings of vegetables, one serving of fruit and one serving of fat. This meal may include a roast beef sandwich with 2 oz. of lean roast beef on two slices of whole grain rye bread with mustard, served with 2 cups of mixed greens and 1 tbsp. of salad dressing, a small apple and 3/4 oz. of pretzels. This meal contains about 505 calories.
Dinner
For dinner, include three servings of starch, two servings of meat, two servings of vegetables and one serving of fat. A sample meal on your low-calorie diet may include 3 oz. of roasted chicken, 1 cup of cooked couscous, 1/2 cup of steamed carrots and 1 cup of mixed greens with 1 tbsp. of salad dressing, for 500 calories.
Snack
A healthy snack on a 1,600-calorie diet may include one serving of starch or grain, one serving of milk and one serving of fat. This may translate into a 3/4 cup serving of ready-to-eat cereal with 1 cup of nonfat milk and 1 cup of fresh strawberries sliced, for 230 calories.
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