What You Should Consider When Making Your Dieting Plan
Dieting is an integral component of weight management programs. But how does one develop a diet plan? Before anything else, you have to determine what your targets are – do you want add weight, shed some, or maintain it a particular level. As with any goals, establishing your fitness targets need to be sensible, specific, and measurable. Secondly, select a diet plan that fits your needs and lifestyle. This involves checking if the diet will provide you with the right amount of calories. Your body needs calories to function, and making adjustments to your calorie intake will help you achieve your fitness objectives. By now, you are probably thinking of the question “how many calories should I eat a day?”
How much calories a person requires actually depends on a lot of factors, and is thus different for every individual. Our metabolic rates and level of activity vary so there is really no single amount of calorie that applies to everyone. Running a quick search on the Web using “how many calories should I eat” as key phrase will generate a number of links to websites that contain calorie calculation tools. These applications are fairly easy to use and in most cases are developed from the Harris-Benedict equations which are widely used by dieticians to determine how much calorie you should take in. This formula takes into account your basal and active metabolic rates. Aside from answering your query on “how many calories should I eat,” these websites will also provide you with pointers on exercising and making smarter food choices.
Now that the answer to your “how many calories should I eat a day” question has been found, the next step would be to prepare a week-long meal plan. Planning ahead will eliminate the calorie guesswork along the way and make your dieting more effective and easier to sustain. In addition, by coming up with a meal plan well in advance, you are preventing yourself from overspending. Remember to incorporate more fruits, garden veggies, and fiber-rich food items in your meals too.
You should also keep a food diary to help you monitor your intake and keep you motivated. In a study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine last 2008; it was revealed that dieters who kept a food log lost twice as much weight than those who didn’t, probably because they didn’t eat as much calories. A number of food log applications can be found on the Web and these can be run on your portable devices.
Be warned against diet fads though as some of them are unsafe, especially those that require excessive fasting. While fasting can make you lose weight initially, it can often lead to muscle wasting, gout, and fatal electrolyte imbalances.
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