Counting calories can be an effective tool to help a person lose weight. After all, the only true way to lose weight is to create a negative calorie deficit, meaning fewer calories are consumed during a day than the body is using. If you count calories correctly, you can achieve weight loss without buying special foods, since you can eat anything as long as you don't exceed the total calorie goal. Since any food can be enjoyed in moderation, calorie counting does not require any drastic lifestyle changes.
Step 1
Go online to a site like the Healthy Weight Forum to calculate how many calories you should be consuming every day to achieve your weight-loss goals. Enter your age, weight, height, activity level and goals into the spaces provided for a daily calorie requirement. Be honest about the information you provide. Do not choose "heavy" for your activity level if you rarely exercise, because the resulting numbers will be incorrect.
Step 2
Purchase a calorie-counting book like "The Calorie Counter" by Annette B. Natow and Jo-Ann Heslin, as well as a simple writing notebook. Look up every food you eat in the book to find the calories, and keep track each day by writing the calories in the notebook. Stop eating when you reach your calorie maximum for the day.
Step 3
Eat low-calorie, water-dense foods that will fill you up. Choose foods like vegetable soups, fruits and raw or steamed vegetables. These foods will keep you full longer, and you can eat larger amounts than high-calorie foods like chocolate, potato chips, cheese and cream-based soups.
Step 4
Eat small meals throughout the day to speed up your metabolism and keep hunger away. Eat meals around 200 calories each, like a chicken breast and vegetables, and space meals out so you are eating every 3 or 4 hours.
Step 5
Exercise often to burn even more calories for faster weight loss and for better health. Run or walk for a good cardio workout and to shed unwanted fat for 30 minutes a day 5 days a week. Perform a strength-training routine, like free weights, to tone and sculpt the body, as well as increase your metabolism, twice a week. Combine cardio and strength training for optimum fat-burning results.
Things You'll Need
- Calorie counting book
- Notebook
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