Lose weight by calories for beginners. Simple math: How to count calories to lose weight. Common beginner mistakes

Each person is different, and each formula may have an error. You need to choose the formula that will work for you.

Start with the mean, or with a formula that approximates the mean. If the results are not as effective as expected, try sticking to the following value: lower for weight loss, higher for weight gain.

Harris-Benedict equation

Basal metabolism according to the Harris-Benedict formula is determined taking into account gender, age and body size. The equation was first published in 1918. The formula is suitable for men and women over 18 years of age.

This formula has a rather large error - according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 90% coincidence of the results with real data was recorded only in 60% of cases. That is, in 40% of situations, the equation may show incorrect data, and, mainly, upward. That is, as a result of the calculation, it may turn out that the need for calories is overestimated and a person begins to consume more calories than he actually needs.

New Harris-Benedict Equation

Due to shortcomings in the basic Harris-Benedict formula, an updated equation was published in 1984. Rosa and Shizgal conducted a study on a large group, and the data was taken from research materials of Harris and Benedict in 1928-1935.

This formula already takes into account the features that in the old formula led to an excess of calories and therefore it was this formula that was more often used to determine the basal metabolism before 1990.

Mifflin Formula - San Geora

Over time, the lifestyle of people also changes, new products appear, the dietary schedule, physical activity change. A new formula has been derived, it does not take into account muscle mass body, and is also calculated based on height, weight and age. This equation is used clinically to determine calories and basal metabolic rate.

According to research by the American Dietetic Association, the Mifflin-San Geor formula turned out to be the most accurate. In other sources it is considered. that this formula is more accurate than the Harris-Benedict formula by 5%, but it can still give a spread of + -10%. But this equation has only been tested on patients from the Caucasian group and therefore may not be accurate for other groups.

Ketch-McArdle Formula

The formula was not formulated on the basis of weight, but on the basis of lean muscle mass. Thus, this formula ignores the energy to maintain fat and is less accurate for obese people than for athletic people.

If you are in good physical shape, the result of this equation will be accurate enough for you. If you just set foot on the path of improving your figure, use the Mifflin-Saint Geor formula.

WHO formula

The World Health Organization formula is based on the Schofield formula (gender, age, weight) for height, currently in use. Previously used in the US dietary guidelines. Based on baseline metabolic rate, thermal effects of food, physical activity, and thermoregulation.

Based on body area

The formula is suitable for people over 20 years of age. Resting energy expenditure (or metabolic rate) is proportional to body surface area, usually expressed in kcal per square meter of body surface area per hour (kcal / m2 / m2). Body surface area can be calculated from your height and body weight

Calorie Calculation

Why do you need to calculate the number of calories per day?

The answer is simple - in order to maintain, gain or lose weight, you need to know how many calories your body consumes. If you want to lose weight, you need to spend more calories than you consume. You only get calories if you eat or drink something. And you have to spend calories constantly - for the work of the body itself, for physical and mental stress.

Average number of calories per day

Basically, women need 1500-2000 calories to maintain weight. For men, this value is more - 2000-2500 calories.

How many calories do you need to lose weight or gain weight?

With the help of an online calculator, you can calculate the calorie requirement that you need to live, and calculate the number of calories for losing weight, gaining or maintaining weight. Calories are calculated based on weight, height, age and activity. Based on the data obtained and your desired weight, the calculator will calculate the number of calories you should consume per day to lose, gain or maintain weight. As a rule, calculations are made by several methods that will show an approximate range. This is done to minimize the error of each individual calculation method.

Minimum calories per day for weight loss

Calorie calculation is shown in the Weight Loss column. "Extreme Weight Loss" will show you the lowest possible calorie values ​​for your reference, but these are not recommended. If you reduce the amount of calorie intake below the minimum, then the body will begin to burn not only fat, but also muscle for energy. The metabolic rate will drop and even a slight excess of calories will be deposited by the body. In addition, muscles consume several times more energy than fat cells. Therefore, burning muscle does not lead to positive results.

Zigzag calories

The calculation results show a table for calculating calories by day, the so-called "zigzag". It's believed that top scores obtained by slightly varying the daily calorie content, observing the average value.

How to calculate kilocalories

A kilocalorie is a thousand calories. One calorie is how much energy it takes to heat 1 ml of water by 1 degree. But there is also a food or dietary calorie equal to a kilocalorie. On food packaging, the calorie content of the food may be indicated as "kkak" and "calories", and this will mean kilocalories.

Calorie Calculation Example

Anna, office worker, two children. Does household chores when not at work. Go in for sports three times a week. Height 163 cm, weight 65 kg, age 35 years. He wants to reduce his weight to 57 kg. According to the Mifflin-San Geor formula, the daily calorie consumption will be 1,833 kcal, the average being 1918. To lose weight, Anna needs to reduce her daily calorie intake by about 500 calories per day, that is, consume 1,400 kcal.

Should I Eat the Same Number of Calories

You can stick to the same number of calories per day, or you can move 200-500 calories to the previous or next day from the day of training. Also, if the weight suddenly stops (weight plateau), then the use of calories according to the Zigzag scheme will help to get it off the ground.

Is it possible to lose weight only on a diet?

You can lose weight, but with a decrease in the daily calorie intake, a person loses not only fat, but also muscle. Try to drive more active image life, do exercises, add small physical activity

Weight loss rate

Weight gain rate

Ideal for increasing muscle mass is considered to be 1 kg per month for men and 0.5 kg per month for women. A large gain will lead to an increase in not only muscle, but also fat

Should I drink water?

Drinking clean water is essential for weight loss.

A warning

All calculations are based on mathematical and statistical formulas. But only a doctor can give an accurate assessment and recommendations. Please consult your doctor before starting a diet or changing levels physical activity.

Reading time: 17 min

One of the most effective and safest ways to lose weight is by counting calories. In this article, we will answer the following questions. Why is calorie counting effective for weight loss? How to correctly calculate the daily calorie intake for weight loss? And we will consider in detail the question of how, in fact, calculate the calorie content of the daily menu.

Many people reject this method because of its complexity, but it is thanks to the reasonable restriction of calories in your diet that you will balance your diet and improve your figure. Actually, if one day you learn to count calories and monitor your diet, then you will not only get your body in shape, but also gradually change your eating habits. In fact, calorie counting does not impose restrictions on any specific foods, but if you start counting the calories of the meals eaten, then one day you will understand for yourself that it is better to eat a plate of salad with meat than a small cake. Yes, in terms of calorie content, it will be approximately the same, but the nutritional value of these dishes is completely different.

The principle of losing weight is very simple: you need to eat less than the body can process in order for it to start using stored fat for energy. It would seem that what is easier - you sit on a strict diet for a week, lose weight and then again allow yourself liberties in terms of food. However, this principle gives a short-term effect, all the lost kilograms come back very quickly. The best way to lose weight is by counting calories. Why?

  1. The calorie counting method assumes a sensible approach to eating without stress and severe restrictions. You do not injure your body by putting it on a rigid diet.
  2. By counting calories, you will have a complete nutritious diet, so this method of losing weight does not harm the body, unlike various mono diets and hunger strikes.
  3. You can not exclude your favorite foods from the menu, the main thing is to keep within the calorie corridor. And appreciate how great it works! On the one hand, in order to fit into a given calorie rate, you will cleanse your diet of useless, harmful and fatty foods. (which is good in itself)... But on the other hand, you will always have the opportunity to eat your favorite treat just by reviewing the daily menu.
  4. Calorie counting is the first step towards a healthy, balanced diet. You will learn to keep track of your diet and choose your foods deliberately.
  5. By counting calories, you will consume enough protein, fat and carbohydrates, which means your weight loss will be carried out in a healthy and harmless way. Why is it important? For example, a lack of fat can lead to problems with the hormonal system, from a lack of carbohydrates - loss of energy and loss of strength. And an overabundance of proteins, which is so often promoted in various diets, very often causes problems with the gastrointestinal tract and kidneys.
  6. Calorie counting is actually the only nutritional option if you exercise and want to maintain your muscle mass while protecting it from breakdown. (muscle support = good toned body)... Rigid low-calorie diets and mono-diets primarily hit muscle tissue, not fat: in a mode of severe restrictions, it is easier for the body to say goodbye to muscles, since they require more energy.
  7. Such a process of losing weight as counting calories is more sustainable and stable - without sudden jumps and an instant return of the lost kilograms.
  8. Usually, 2-3 months after regular calorie counting, you will form several menu options for yourself and you will roughly know what and how much you can eat per day, to stay in your calorie corridor. If you think that now the calculator will be your companion for the rest of your life, then you are not.
  9. Calorie counting is a very flexible and convenient method of losing weight. If, after a breakdown from the diet, you have to give up everything or start over, then with the calculation of calories it is quite easy to regulate the sudden "hard days". Just reduce your daily calorie intake a little for the next 2-3 days, or do an energy-intensive workout.
  10. With calorie counting, it is very easy to switch to a weight maintenance regimen after losing weight. You just need to add + 10-20% to your current calorie content (depending on the deficit you choose).

In order to begin to control your nutrition, you must do the following:

  • Determine the number of calories in your daily diet.
  • Start keeping a daily record of food eaten.
  • Observe regular improvements in your figure in the mirror.

Calorie Counting Algorithm for Weight Loss

STEP 1: Calculate your base metabolic rate

Each of us, depending on weight, activity and age, requires a different amount of food. To find out the exact figure you need to use formulaHarris-Benedict :

  • Women: BMR = 9.99 * weight (in kg) + 6.25 * height (in cm) - 4.92 * age (number of years) – 161
  • Men: BMR = 9.99 * weight (in kg) + 6.25 * height (in cm) - 4.92 * age (number of years) + 5

where BMR - basal metabolic rate

STEP 2: Determine Daily Activity

The resulting base metabolic rate (BMR) figure must be multiplied by physical activity ratio :

  • 1.2 - minimal activity (lack of physical activity, sedentary work, minimum movement)
  • 1.375 - little activity (light training or walking, little daily activity during the day)
  • 1.46 - average activity (training 4-5 times a week, good activity during the day)
  • 1.55 - activity above average (intense training 5-6 times a week, good activity during the day)
  • 1.64 - increased activity (daily training, high daily activity)
  • 1.72 - high activity (daily ultra-intense training and high daily activity)
  • 1.9 - very high activity (usually it comes about athletes during the period of competitive activity)

Note! When choosing a coefficient, it is better to focus on the overall activity during the day. For example, if you train every day for 30-45 minutes, but at the same time you have a sedentary lifestyle, then you do not need to take a coefficient greater than 1.375. One workout, even the most intense, does not compensate for the lack of activity during the day.

STEP 3: calculate the end result

So, multiplying your base metabolic rate (BMR) by your physical activity ratio, we get your calorie intake. Eating within this norm, you will neither lose weight, nor gain weight. This is the so-called calorie intake for weight support.

BMR * Physical Activity Rate = Calorie Allowance for Weight Support.

If you want to lose weight, then you need to subtract 15-20% from the resulting product (this will be a diet with a calorie deficit). If you are working on muscle growth, then you need to add 15-20% (this will be a diet with a surplus of calories). If you are at the "weight maintenance" stage, then leave the resulting figure unchanged.

With a little excess weight, we recommend calculating the daily calorie intake with a 15% deficit. If you need to get rid of> 10 kg, we recommend calculating with a deficit of 20%. With a lot of excess weight, if you need to get rid of> 40 kg, you can take a deficit of 25-30%.

EXAMPLE:

Woman, 30 years old, weight 65 kg, height 165 cm, physical activity 3 times a week:

  • BMR = 9,99*65 + 6,25*165 - 4,92*30 – 161 = 1372
  • Calories to maintain weight= 1372 * 1.375 = 1886.5 kcal
  • Calorie intake with a deficit= 1886 - (1886 * 0.2) = 1509 kcal

In total, we get 1450-1550 kcal - this is the daily rate for losing weight. Focusing on this figure, you need to keep a daily calorie count for your menu.

  • Why you can't go below the established corridor: the body will get used to a small amount of food, slow down the metabolism and as soon as you start to eat a little more, you will gain weight dramatically.
  • Why it is impossible to exceed the established corridor: you will not lose weight, because the body will not have time to waste the received energy.

  1. Keep a food diary, the numbers must be recorded in writing. Don't rely on your memory and do not count on a rough estimate, otherwise, there is a risk of eating too much or, even worse, not eating enough.
  2. Technological progress has made it much easier for us to manage our diet. Download mobile apps for calculating food calories and you will greatly simplify your life. Recommended Reading: Top Best Free Calorie Counting Apps.
  3. Do not trust the measurements of the weight of products "by eye", be sure to buy a kitchen scale. Without a kitchen scale, your calorie calculations will be inaccurate, which means it will be more difficult to achieve the desired result. By the way, very often in programs for calculating calories, the energy value for a whole product has already been calculated, for example, for one orange ... How much this conditional orange weighed, for which the calorie content was calculated, is unknown. Perhaps your orange is significantly larger or smaller. Of course, the error is small, but if during the day all the products are introduced approximately and "by eye", then an objective picture will not work. Check out our selection:.
  4. Weigh uncooked food only! If you suddenly forgot to do this during the cooking process, then be sure to check the calorie content of the finished dish. For example, the energy value of 100 g of raw rice and 100 g of cooked rice is not the same. It is best to always weigh food dry or raw rather than cooked. This will make the data more accurate.
  5. Weigh a product that is ready to eat or cook: boneless meats, fruits and vegetables without skin and core, cottage cheese without packaging, chicken without skin, etc.
  6. Plan your sample menu for tomorrow. Enter a suggested list of dishes so that there are no surprises with the lack of certain products.
  7. When planning a menu for the current or tomorrow, always leave a small corridor (150-200 kcal) to have room for maneuver. Suddenly you have an unplanned snack or you decide to replace one product with another.
  8. If you are preparing a complex dish consisting of several ingredients (soup, cake, casserole, pizza), it is better not to look for its calorie content on the Internet. Before cooking, weigh each ingredient, calculate their energy value and add up the numbers obtained. Thus, the result will be much more accurate.
  9. Avoid restaurants and food service. IN modern world It seems incredibly difficult, but if you get into the habit of carrying food with you to work, school or even for a walk, you will achieve your weight loss goals much faster. Even if the restaurant menu lists the number of calories in a dish, remember that these numbers are only approximate.
  10. Never be guided by the number of calories listed for recipes on various sites or in recipe groups on social networks. Firstly, it is not known how conscientiously all of these recipe compilers calculated. Secondly, you may have different weights of individual ingredients, which will change the total calorie content of the dish.
  11. If one day you seriously go beyond the established calorie intake, then do not in any case arrange for yourself fasting days or hunger strikes. So you will only disrupt the work of metabolism. Continue to observe the calorie corridor, and if your conscience is tormented by your conscience for yesterday's "zeal", it is better to devote 1 hour to training, walking or any other physical activity. Alternatively, you can reduce the diet by 15-20% for a couple of days to compensate for the excess eaten, and then return to the previous diet.
  12. To train yourself to count calories the first time you need serious self-discipline. But after a couple of weeks, you will accustom yourself to enter the consumed foods in your diary before each meal. Usually 2-3 months are enough to form a daily menu and learn how to determine your food ration without calculators.

How to correctly count KBZHU products

Where can I find the calorie content and BJU products?

  • For all information on calories, proteins, carbohydrates and fats, see the food packaging. The most accurate information is provided there.
  • If the product is sold without packaging or the energy value is not indicated on the packaging, then see the calorie content and nutrient content on the Internet. Just, for example, enter in a search engine "Banana KBZHU" and find all the data you need. It is advisable to look at several sources to ensure the accuracy of the data.
  • If you use a website or mobile application for calculating calories, then they usually contain a ready-made food database with KBZHU data. Therefore, there is no need to search for additional information.
  • If you have a complex dish that consists of several ingredients, then weigh each individual ingredient, calculate the KBZhU for each ingredient separately and add up the numbers obtained. More on this below.

How to count KBZHU correctly: examples

Let's take a look at specific examples of how to correctly count calories, proteins, fats and carbohydrates for individual foods and ready-made meals.

1. Curd 5%. We look at the calorie content of the product on the package. If not specified, then we are looking on the Internet.

KBZHU cottage cheese 5% - 100 g:

  • Calories: 121 kcal
  • Protein: 17 g
  • Fat: 5 g
  • Carbohydrates: 1.8 g

a) For example, you decide to eat 80 g of cottage cheese. In order to calculate KBZHU 80 g of cottage cheese, simply multiply each indicator by 0.8:

KBZHU cottage cheese 5% - 80 g:

  • Calories: 121 * 0.8 = 96.8 kcal
  • Proteins: 17 * 0.8 = 13.6 g
  • Fat: 5 * 0.8 = 4 g
  • Carbohydrates: 1.8 g * 0.8 = 1.44 g

b) If you decide to eat 225 g of cottage cheese, then multiply each indicator by 2.25:

KBZHU cottage cheese 5% - 225 g:

  • Calories: 121 * 2.25 = 272.3 kcal
  • Protein: 17 * 2.25 = 38.25 g
  • Fat: 5 * 2.25 = 11.25 g
  • Carbohydrates: 1.8 g * 2.25 = 4.05 g

Thus, we get specific KBZHU cottage cheese, depending on its weight.

2. Oat groats. This is the most popular breakfast among those trying to follow proper nutrition... Calorie counting for oatmeal is also very simple. By analogy with the proposed plan below, we calculate KBZhU for all other cereals and pasta.

a) Weigh the oatmeal in dry form (in dry form, this is important!). For example, you got 70 g. We look at the KBZhU data on the package or on the Internet for 100 g:

KBZHU oatmeal - 100 g:

  • Calories: 342kcal
  • Protein: 12 g
  • Fat: 6 g
  • Carbohydrates: 60 g

Since we do not plan to eat 100 g, we are counting on a 70 g serving, multiplying all indicators by 0.7:

KBZHU oatmeal - 70 g:

  • Calories: 342 * 0.7 = 240 kcal
  • Protein: 12 * 0.7 = 8.4 g
  • Fat: 6 * 0.7 = 4.2 g
  • Carbohydrates: 60 * 0.7 = 42 g

This is the ultimate KBJU 70g empty oatmeal: K-240; B-8.4; F-4.2; U-42. No matter how much water you add, no matter how boiled your porridge is and how much it weighs after cooking, you enter data into your food diary by dry matter... We act in the same way with other cereals, pasta, potatoes.

On the Internet, you can find calories for oatmeal already cooked. But it's better not to be guided by these numbers. The cereal absorbs water and swells, and its final weight may vary depending on how much water you add and how long the porridge is cooked. Therefore, always weigh all cereals only in dry (uncooked) form.

b) Suppose you are cooking oatmeal in milk with added butter, honey and milk. In this case, we weigh each individual ingredient before cooking. (cereals, butter, honey, milk), we count the KBZHU for each individual ingredient, summarize and get the KBZHU of the finished dish. We calculate all this before cooking! More on the specific count of ready-made meals a little below.

3. Chicken breast. Another popular product among those who are losing weight, so let's take a look at that as well.

We weigh chicken breast raw, preferably after you have thawed and dried it, so that it does not get into the calculations excess moisture(well, if you remain accurate to the end)... For example, let's calculate the KBZHU of chicken breast for 120 g:

KBZHU chicken breast - 100 g:

  • Calories: 113 kcal
  • Protein: 24 g
  • Fat: 2 g
  • Carbohydrates: 0.4 g

KBZHU chicken breast - 120 g:

  • Calories: 113 * 1.2 = 135.6 kcal
  • Protein: 24 * 1.2 = 28.8 g
  • Fat: 2 * 1.2 = 2.4 g
  • Carbohydrates: 0.4 g * 1.2 = 0.48 g

After we boil the chicken breast, we do not weigh it and do not count calories. We take into account the data only in its raw form. Spices and salt do not affect calorie content, but if you are cooking in oil, do not forget to add it.

How to count ready-made recipes

As we said earlier, when cooking complex dishes, we count calories as follows:

  • Weigh each ingredient wet / dry
  • We count for each ingredient KBZHU according to the scheme above
  • We summarize the data and get the total calorie content of the dish.

Here's an example with a complex dish that we mentioned above: oatmeal with milk, honey and butter.

Ingredients for porridge:

  • 130 g oatmeal
  • 50 ml milk 3.2%
  • 30 g honey
  • 10 g butter

We calculate by analogy with the examples above, multiplying the data by the weight of the product. Then we add up the calories, proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.

Groats 130gMilk 50mlHoney 30gButter 10gTotal
Calories444,6 29,5 98,7 74,8 647,6
Protein15,99 1,45 0,24 0,05 17,73
Fats7,93 1,6 0 8,25 17,78
Carbohydrates77,35 2,35 24,45 0,08 104,23

We get KBZHU oatmeal: K-647.6; B-17.73; F-17.78; U-104.23.

An easy way to calculate the KBZHU of a finished dish

There is the simplest and most convenient way to calculate the KBZhU of a finished dish. To do this, we will use the Calorizator website. Go to the Recipe Analyzer page and enter all our ingredients in the window that opens, separated by commas: 130 g oatmeal, 50 ml milk 3.2%, 30 g honey, 10 g butter :

We press analyze and instead of manually counting calories, we get ready-made figures:

We look at the line Total and we get the finished calorie content of a complex dish with several ingredients.

Moreover, it is not necessary to enter the weight in grams, you can use the designations as follows:

As you can see, you can copy the finished recipe and calculate the KBZHU in this way. But be careful! For example, 2 onions in the understanding of the recipe analyzer is 150 g. But in reality it can be either 100 g or 200 g, depending on the specific size of the onion. The values ​​in such programs are taken averaged. Therefore, it is better to weigh and enter the products in grams into the analyzer, having previously weighed them.

If you use mobile apps to count calories in the same way, it is better to weigh, rather than use in calculations "1 banana" or "1 onion" from a ready-made food base.

How to weigh meals if you cook for the family?

Very often we cook complex dishes not for ourselves, but for the whole family. How, in this case, to count calories if you need to weigh the food raw, but during cooking the weight of the food changes? There is a fairly simple way to fix this problem.

1. We calculate KBZhU based on the above described schemes, weighing the ingredients in dry or raw form before cooking. Let's take our example oatmeal with milk, honey and butter , which we considered above. We got a common KBZHU: K-648; B-17.7; F-17.8; U-104.

2. Prepare porridge, add all ingredients, mix. We weigh the resulting dish. For example, we got 600 g - the total weight of the finished dish.

3. Now put the porridge on your plate, weigh it. For example, our portion is 350 g.

4.350 g is 58% of the total amount of porridge (350 divided by 600 and we get 58%) .

5. Accordingly, we calculate the KBZHU of your portion, multiplying each digit by 0.58:

  • Calories: 648 * 0.58 = 376 kcal
  • Proteins: 17.8 * 0.58 = 10.2 g
  • Fat: 17.8 * 0.58 = 10.3 g
  • Carbohydrates: 104 * 0.58 = 60.5 g

6. In total, we made a count of one portion of porridge: K-376; B-10.2; F-10.3; U-60.5.

Calorie content of foods in the table

Most mobile applications and sites with food diaries have information about energy value all kinds of products. But if you will carry out calculations manually, then it will come in handy (click on the picture to save it):

We looked in detail at several cases of calorie counting, both for individual foods and for whole meals. Do you have any questions? Write, we will try to answer them!

Everyone has heard about calories, but for those who want to lose weight, this word has become just a horror story. Hateful kilograms are gained precisely from calories, and everyone who is fond of diets knows that a significant reduction in calorie intake leads to a dream figure.

1. A person can select dishes in the diet at will, without limiting himself in their choice.
2. When calculating calories, a person himself regulates the diet during the day in terms of quantity.
3. It is easy for a person to keep track of his own weight, leaving the diet at the same calorie content or reducing it.

1. It must be remembered that to reduce body weight for each kilogram, you need to spend 7700 kcal. The same amount of calories is used to purchase a kilogram of body weight.
2. It is better if all the results and plans are recorded. During the day, it is necessary to record the amount eaten, then it will be easier to control the diet.
3. Along with the number of calories consumed daily, it is necessary to keep a notebook of physical activity during the day.
4. The third table of records should be about weight loss.
You need to weigh yourself daily, in the morning, getting out of bed. When comparing the entries in all three tables, the person himself will determine which diet and physical activity leads to the optimal result - faster weight loss.

Calorie expenditure for weight loss

To lose weight, there is a well-known and well-known truth that calorie intake should be less than expenditure. With a sedentary lifestyle, a person should adhere to a diet of 1200 calories per day, while for an active person involved in sports, the diet can be increased to 1800 calories per day.

A man spends about 3000 kcal on physically hard work, a woman - 2500.

The calorie-based diet methodology is very effective, it is intended both to reduce body weight and to maintain the result achieved on any diet.

To calculate calories, you need to take the calorie table of foods as a basis. Sometimes the numbers in different tables differ - it's okay, these numbers are still average. It is better to take a table containing a larger list of products. You can print such a plate from the Internet, place it in a prominent place in your kitchen, and also put it in your purse.

You need to make it a habit to get acquainted with the calorie content of products on the labels and count on your portion. Based on these simple calculations, you can approximately calculate the volume of a portion per meal, not exceeding the selected mode.

The approximate calorie content of a cheese sandwich, cutlets, patty and a plate of porridge is 350 kcal. The calorie content of an egg, a small plate of oatmeal,glasses of coffee with milk and sugar - 120 kcal.

A glass of fruit or vegetable juice, milk, a portion of vegetable salad with vegetable oil - 100 kcal. A glass of tea with sugar, coffee - 60 kcal.

It should be remembered that the transition to food strictly limited in calorie content will not immediately bring the desired result, weight will begin to declineapproximately 4-5 days after the start of counting.

Therefore, for the initial period, you need to be patient and not approach the weights, but simply strictly follow the selected regime.

The rule - not to eat before bed - in such a diet should also be followed. Recommended last time have dinner at 18-00, prefer salad, oatmeal on the water, green tea with raisins. I have a vegetable salad with fish or chicken fillet for dinner. 3 hours before bedtime, a glass of kefir or yogurt 100-150g. (Without additives) cucumber. You can have 1 slice of cheese. (15g.)

Breakfast should be complete and contain one third of the total daily diet in calories. For breakfast, it is better to eat porridge, boiled egg, boiled lean meat, vegetable salad.

In order for food to be sufficient in volume, it is necessary to achieve a reduction in calorie content by eliminating sugar, white bread, fatty foods and oils. Dishes are best steamed or baked in foil.

With the exclusion of muffins, fatty meat, sausages, fat and sugar from the diet, it is possible to reduce the calorie content of the diet by 15%. It is recommended to eat often, up to 6 hours a day, but in small portions, so you can still reduce the calorie content by 5%.

A glass of cold clean water burns 40 kcal at a time,this can be used to burn excess calories from food. With any diet, including a diet with calorie counting, you need to take up to 2 liters of water per day - this will allow excretory system the body to work well, removing toxins and toxins.

It is good if there is a household kitchen scale at home - then you can accurately determine the calorie content of, for example, an apple, focusing on its weight, or determine your portion.

You should pay attention to the calorie content of the products indicated on the package. It should be noted that the calorie content is indicated for a dry product, or already cooked. So, the calorie content of dry pasta is 330 kcal per 100 grams. When boiling pasta, it absorbs water, its weight increases, and 100 grams of boiled pasta will already have a lower calorie content, by almost half. Unless, of course, this pasta is seasoned with butter.

A diet for counting calories in the daily diet has many advantages, you just need to study the general rules for calculating the calorie content of food and determine how much weight you need to lose. It is necessary to count calories to lose weight and feel relief, everyone can do it.

Lose weight counting calories: how many calories do you need to eat to lose weight?

Every overweight person is struggling to get rid of the extra pounds he hates. But not everyone and not everyone succeeds in this.
What people do not use to fight obesity: diets, diet pills, various decoctions, herbal teas! But there is a fairly effective way to cope with excess weight - this is losing weight by counting calories.
Don't know what this method is? Find out now!
This will be discussed on the website www.rasteniya-lecarstvennie.ru in the article “Losing weight counting calories: how many calories you need to eat to lose weight”.

Using this method, the first thought that anyone trying to lose weight should take is: "The correct diet is a sure way to lose weight without debilitating diets and hunger strikes."
Excess weight is the extra calories you eat. If you reduce their number, you will definitely start to lose weight.

How to calculate these very calories correctly?

To do this, first of all, you should understand what exactly your diet consists of. That is, to understand how to correctly translate your breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner into its numerical expression.

On the road to victory, you will definitely need to keep a calorie diary. But you need to limit your diet during the day wisely, without resorting to exhausting diets.

Therefore, remember that everything should be in moderation. Keep in mind that it is best to calculate your individual program losing weight can only be a doctor - a specialist in the field of nutrition. I will tell you how this calculation is done approximately.

Determine the daily food intake

To calculate the calories consumed that you eat during the day, you need to keep a diary. The first thing to write down in it is the number of calories you consume for breakfast, lunch and dinner during one week.
Next, try to gradually reduce the number of calories in each serving, following the arrow of the scale.

Get your weight down by an average of 200 grams per day.
When you calculate the food intake for this, you should stop reducing calories.

Then continue to eat for a month at your newly established rate, maintaining the amount of calories that provides a daily weight loss of 200 grams. Eating, in this way, in a month you can lose 6,000 grams, that is, 6 kg. There is no need to strive for high numbers - it is dangerous for your health.

On average, for an ordinary healthy person, the calorie limit is from one thousand to two thousand kilocalories per day. This is the norm for the fairer sex. For men, this figure ranges from one and a half to three thousand calories. If you keep track of your weight, you can easily calculate the number of calories you need per day.

Calorie diary

To do this, you will need to keep the same weight loss diary, as well as a calculator and scales. Kitchen scales up to 10 kilograms will help you weigh food and find out their weight. Although it is best to use digital electronic scales for this, they are more accurate.

In your calorie diary, you should number the pages according to the dates of the month, and each day write down everything you ate during the day in a notebook. You can even create a custom table with the following columns:

The product's name;

Serving weight;

Calorie content of a portion;

Total calories for the whole day;

Your weight at the end of the day.

Leave blank pages in your notebook in order to calculate the calorie content of the dishes that you cook.

How to Weigh Products Correctly?

When weighing, place food in the exact center of the weighing pan. Do not weigh items that are too light, as this will not give you an accurate figure. It is most correct and convenient to weigh products using the residual mass method.

So if you weigh sunflower oil, first, weigh the entire bottle, and then pour the required amount of oil into the dish you are preparing, and then weigh the bottle again. The difference that will turn out when weighing is the mass of the oil you poured.

Calculating calories correctly

In order to control your weight, be sure to weigh yourself at the same time every day.

At the same time, keep track of how many calories you consume per day. To calculate the calorie content of your diet, add up the calorie content of all foods in each meal you eat.
Their calorie content can be calculated, knowing the mass of each product and the calorie content of 100 grams of this product.

To determine the calorie content of 100 grams of the product, you can look at special tables that are available on the Internet. Also, these numbers are usually indicated on the product packaging.

If you know the calorie content of one hundred grams of the product, then you can easily calculate how many kilocalories are in the portion you weighed. To do this, the portion weight is multiplied by the calorie content of one hundred grams of the product and divided by 100.

If your dish has several ingredients, then write down the calorie content of each product in the dish from the table. Calculate the calorie content of each product, having previously weighed it and totaling all the results obtained.

Bagirrra123, www.rasteniya-lecarstvennie.ru

Have you ever counted calories to lose weight?

Source - http://www.vashaibolit.ru

Hello! Haven't come here for a long time. A lot of materials had accumulated, there was no time to disassemble. But finally I learned how to remove the nasty flashing strip at the bottom of LJ, an indescribable joy.

Today I will tell you about how you can solve one of the most common problems among city dwellers - to lose weight. They write a lot about this, and it always seemed to me that it is very difficult, and involves grueling sports training, fasting and other incredible efforts of will. In practice, everything turned out to be much simpler. Of course, if the deadlines are not very tight.

Calorie counting technique is widely known and used by many. With her help, I lost 10 kg in the fall. Then I scored in the winter, but the weight remained at the achieved level. Yesterday I received a letter from a colleague, whom I told about this method, he also helped her. I was inspired to tell more and in the blog.

Educational program. From food we get, in particular, energy, which is measured in calories. This energy is spent by the body for various useful activities. If it comes in more than it is spent, then the body stores excess energy in the form of fat, it will suddenly come in handy. If these reserves become too much, then their weight begins to interfere with movements, loads the body with excess work, depleting the resource of internal organs, and the overweight figure does not look very beautiful. In general, weight needs to be maintained. I note that this statement is correct for people of any gender, age, nationality - excess weight is harmful to health and it is better to remove it. For this, the reverse process is used: if less energy is supplied than is spent, then the body uses its fat reserves, and they are gradually burned.

The easiest way to use this method is with apps. For smartphones, for example, there is a free Calorie Counter (occasionally shows ads). There are similar ones, there are online calorie calculators, their darkness. You can count everything on a piece of paper without attachments.

In order to lose 10 kg in autumn, I didn't need to go in for sports specially. Hiking several times a week, about half an hour or an hour (including to the metro and back), going up the stairs, not by elevator. Even mental work still expends some energy. With sports, the result would be better. But if you go in for sports, and then quit, while maintaining the same diet, then this leads to weight gain. So it is better to do sports "for life", and not under a temporary weight loss project. Metabolism slows down with age, and, say, after 40 it may take longer for the same result.

If you wish, you can do the calculation with physical activity (if you need a higher accuracy).
The calorie content of the diet must be multiplied by the activity coefficient.
1.2 - sluggish workouts once a week.
1.37 - sluggish workouts 2-3 times a week.
1.45 - active training 3-4 times a week.
1.55 - intensive training 5 times a week.
1.65 - intense training every day.
1.725 - intensive training up to 2 times a day.
1.9 is the level of a professional athlete with super-hard training.
What happened after the multiplication is the daily calorie intake to maintain yourself at a stable weight.

To lose 100 grams of weight, you need to burn about 771.6 kcal of fat.(The calorie content of 1 g of fat in food is 9 calories, and the calorie content of 1 g of human fat is 7,716 calories). An hour of walking burns 200-300 calories. 1 clothing size ~ approx. 5 kg. A large number of clothes can be worn even after losing two sizes (for example, sweaters, shoes), but something in the wardrobe will still need to be changed.

Recommended for weight loss rate of no more than 2-4 kg / month (~ 100 g per day). If you lose weight faster than this, then there is a great risk then not to keep new weight, and besides, with too sharp weight loss, there may be negative effects, for example, the face may look ugly with sunken cheeks. Therefore, it is important to do this not a couple of weeks before going to the beach, but in advance.

The question of what weight is optimal is debatable. The well-known formula "growth minus 110, kg" is well, very approximate. For me personally, this is the weight in which it is comfortable, including when walking or running fast. And at which he likes his image in the mirror and in photographs.

If you look closely at the calorie content of foods, it is easy to notice that most of the main dishes are not very high in calories, and, say, meat or cereals, it is difficult to eat more than the recommended amount of calories. On the contrary, sugar and fats exist to store energy. For example, my estimated basic diet is about one and a half kilos of rice porridge (~ 6 plates). Even if you eat this porridge on a large plate in the morning, afternoon and evening, you won't even have enough for a basic diet. On the other hand, this same diet is roughly equal to three chocolates or four slices of bread. And if you eat a sandwich in the morning, afternoon and evening, then along with the rest of the meal it is easy to go beyond the estimated diet. Therefore, the main attention should be directed to the accurate accounting of sweet, flour, fatty, nuts, to control snacks - most of the calories are there. To keep within the normative caloric content of the diet, the consumption of these high-calorie foods will need to be reduced. This does not mean that you definitely need to exclude them, just reduce the amount per day (and if you exclude them, then you will not need to count calories).

If the standard has already been typed, and you still want something tasty, then it is better to lean on non-nutritive drinks - green teas with different fruit flavors, for example. The technique can be combined to increase efficiency with others - separate meals (at least not to mix carbohydrate and protein foods in one meal), do not eat after 6 pm, eat high-calorie only before lunch, divide food into several small portions a day ... Of course, Calorie counting does not negate the fact that food must contain vitamins and other essential components.

Sleep is of great importance - you need to get enough sleep (in moderation). With a lack of sleep, weight can be gained from completely incomprehensible where: this is probably due to the process of digestion. Stress in itself consumes energy, but many people tend to "seize" them, not getting enough sleep, as a result of which they often contribute to weight gain rather than loss.

Losing weight using this technique is gentle and effortless, although not very fast. The main negative point - for women - as with any weight loss, first of all, the volume of the breast decreases, and only then everything else. But a general improvement in well-being, an increase in performance, enthusiastic compliments from others about a more slender figure compensate for this. Also, using physical exercise, massage, you can more actively influence those areas whose weight loss you want to accelerate.

Good health to you! Add me to friends.

Calories are a conventional unit of energy received from food and spent on certain actions. A person consumes food, and the body converts it into energy, which ensures the functioning of all body systems.

In addition to movement and mental work, energy is needed to maintain such important processes as breathing, pulse, heartbeat, heat exchange (maintaining body temperature).

Every food you eat has its own chemical composition... However, all food products contain the same substances, only in different proportions.

The components of any product are:

  • water;
  • proteins;
  • carbohydrates;
  • fats;
  • trace elements;
  • vitamins.

Water, as a rule, occupies most of the composition of the product, except for: flour, cereals and other bulk products, which are subsequently saturated with water in one way or another. The rest of the product is proteins, fats and carbohydrates in different ratios, and it is they that supply the body with energy.

Macro and trace elements, as well as vitamins make up an insignificant part of the product. When 1 gram of fat is broken down, about 9 kilocalories are released. When breaking down proteins and carbohydrates - 4 each.

These figures are approximate.

In different foods, the composition of fats is different, their energy value may differ by insignificant amounts, the same applies to proteins and carbohydrates.

At rest, the body spends an average of 1300 to 1900 kilocalories per day, even if you just sleep or lie on the couch.

Calories are wasted when walking, talking or reading, and even while eating, because in order to chew food and then digest it, you need energy.

Calculation of the daily calorie intake for a person

Calculating your daily allowance is easy enough. To do this, you just need to multiply your weight in kilograms by 24, so you get the calorie consumption rate for your body at rest (for the necessary processes mentioned above).

Depending on the daily activity, this figure must be multiplied by a coefficient. With a sedentary lifestyle and light loads, it is 1.2, with medium loads, sufficient mobility and physical labor - 1.5, with heavy loads or training - 1.8. Thus, you can get a value equal to the daily calorie intake.

The daily allowance is exactly the optimal amount at which the body will feel comfortable, while not gaining or losing weight. It is easy to guess that more calories consumed will certainly be deposited in the body's reserves for a rainy day, less will force the body to print out the reserves of a rainy day and take part of the missing energy from body fat.

If you drastically reduce the amount of calories consumed, then the body will begin to consume reserves not only from fat, but also from muscles, because muscles are protein, and protein is also energy. Therefore, to reset excess weight and comfortable weight loss, you can reduce the norms by no more than 500 calories per day.

Eating less than 1200 kilocalories per day is not recommended, it is harmful to health and is permissible only for short days of fasting or hunger strikes, for which the body is prepared in advance.

Why count calories

Every day in ordinary life, a person can consume a huge amount of extra calories, even if he does not eat so much, and all because the calorie content of foods is different. All kinds of snacks, which are not generally considered food, are swallowed and forgotten.

In addition, calories can be “good” and “bad”. Sooner or later, the question of losing weight through diet arises. All diets work on the same principle - reducing the total amount of calories consumed, and the products are selected in such a way that the body receives all the useful elements and vitamins.

But all diets have a significant drawback, as a rule, each of them has such a product that is difficult to find or it is expensive, or you just do not want to eat something. So why push yourself?

After all, the goal of a diet is to control the absorption of calories for weight loss. By counting calories, you can eat whatever you like, only in limited quantities.

And even if a person has already lost weight with the help of a strict diet, the previous eating habits will very quickly return him to his "former shape", therefore, in order to be slim and healthy, you should always follow the diet, proper nutrition in quality and quantity is a way of life, and not temporary diet.

Calorie counting correctly: what you need to do this

The energy value of the product per 100 grams is indicated on the packaging of each product. Less often for 1 serving (bars, chips, cookies, all packaged-by-piece that weighs less than 100 grams).

Therefore, you need to accustom yourself to pay attention to the label, composition and energy value of the product. After that, simply multiply the amount eaten by the energy value.

For example, milk with a fat content of 2.5% has an energy value of 54 kilocalories. You drank a glass of 250 grams of milk. Multiply 54 by 2.5 and get 135 calories.

The calculation of the calories of ready-made meals is somewhat more complicated due to the varied composition of the products, but it is calculated by adding the calorie content of all components, taking into account the quantity. This is quite time consuming.

You can use online calculators, special programs for calculating calories, or you can use ready-made tables, where the calculation of the energy value of certain dishes has already been made.
However, their values ​​are approximate, since the exact recipes of the dishes differ.
Calorie table of some dishes per 100 grams for calculating calories:

Name of the dish Energy value per 100 grams of dish
Breakfast
Scrambled eggs / with tomatoes / with ham 231 / 211 / 269
Omelet / with cheese and ham / mushrooms 184 / 203 / 144
Pancakes with condensed milk / cottage cheese / meat / mushrooms 213 / 197 / 184 / 218
Butter / cheese and butter sandwich 385 / 310
Boiled / smoked sausage sandwich 259 / 324
Sandwich with red caviar / salmon 338 / 181
Oatmeal with milk 195
Rice porridge with milk 215
Semolina porridge with milk 223
Cheesecakes / curd with raisins 119 / 209
Buckwheat with milk 209
Lunch / Dinner
Chicken noodle soup 68
Pumpkin soup 49
Mushroom soup 54
Bean soup 70
Borscht in meat broth / cabbage soup in broth 132 / 105
Chicken borsch / chicken soup 127 / 103
Lean borscht / lean cabbage soup 60 / 33
Solyanka meat 168
Boiled / fried beef 164 / 234
Pork boiled / fried 329 / 370
Boiled / fried lamb 202 / 310
Boiled / fried chicken 170 / 210
Boiled / fried fish 121 / 159
Chicken pilaf 222
Lamb pilaf 278
Dumplings 271
Dumplings with cottage cheese 191
Dumplings with potatoes 178
Pork goulash 238
Beef Goulash 157
Homemade cutlets (beef pork) 223
The Kiev's cutlets 311
Chicken cutlets 158
Fish cutlets 127
Vegetable stew 56
Naval macaroni 251
Baked fish 140
Grilled chicken 180
Steamed salmon 196
Liver fried with onions 188
Fried potatoes with mushrooms 143
Stuffed pepper 184
Meatballs with rice 217
Cabbage rolls 221
Side dishes
Mashed potatoes 130
Boiled pasta 114
Braised cabbage 99
Vegetable stew 122
Boiled / fried / baked potatoes 74 /199 / 104
Fried cauliflower 121
French fries 311
Snacks
Vegetable salad with butter / sour cream 90 / 58
Olivier with mayonnaise 324
Leafy vegetable salad 34
Caesar salad 302
Greek salad 188
Chicken / meat roll 228 / 167
Herring under a fur coat 208
Herring with butter 280
Vegetable vinaigrette / with fish 77 / 120
Beetroot salad with garlic and cheese 265
Boiled tongue 156
Aspic 180
The drinks
Coffee with milk / cappuccino / latte 58 / 105 / 164
Tea with honey 84
Milk cocktail 121
Berry smoothie 71
Fresh orange / pineapple / carrot 123 / 68 / 68
Banana cocktail 110
Mocacchino 226
Hot chocolate 239
Pastries and desserts
White bread 230
Rye bread 200
Raisin buns
Buns with jam
Pies with liver / meat / potatoes / cabbage / egg
Raisin cupcake 286
Fruit salad 110
Biscuit 400
Biscuit 258
Eclair cake with butter cream 419
Whipped cream 205


In order to keep track of your calorie intake, you will need:

  1. Notebook or notebook - to keep your food diary. All meals, food, sweets, drinks and water eaten during the day are recorded there.
    And also in the diary, deviations from the general normal load should be noted, for example, general cleaning of the house, or a forced hike on a distance of several kilometers due to problems with transport, or, conversely, rest at home due to poor health.
    This will allow you to adjust the diet depending on the energy consumption of the body.
  2. Kitchen electronic scales - such scales have an accuracy of 1 gram, they are easy to use and they cost very little, however, you will always know the weight of the dish and control its calorie content.
  3. Memo of calorie content of products is a necessary thing for the first time, over time the need to use it will go to the 2nd plan, since you will already be guided by yourself. This could be a printout of a calorie table or a mobile calorie counting app.
  4. Calculator - should always be at hand so as not to bother with calculations.
  5. Patience and perseverance - you will need to overcome the initial difficulties and not quit the job you have started, you need to tune in to serious work on yourself.

Calorie consumption in daily life

Each person spends a certain amount of kilocalories on the simplest actions. Below is a table in which you can see the calculation of the consumption of kilocalories when performing certain actions.

The values ​​are given for 1 kg of a person's weight, as mentioned earlier, fat people consume more energy.

The energy consumption of an adult for certain actions in kilocalories per hour:

Action name Consumption of kilocalories per 1 kilogram of weight
Dream 0,9
Rest lying 1,1
Book reading 1,8
Walking walk 2,7
Walking fast 3,2
Walking uphill 4,3
Jogging 6,9
Running fast 10,7
Jumping rope 8.8
Swimming 6,6
Playing tennis 8,3
Game of chess 2,8
Gymnastics 6,5
Dishwashing / hand washing 2,2
Cleaning the room with a vacuum cleaner 3,1
Work in the garden 5,4
Driving 2
Bicycle riding 5,7
Horse riding 3,4
Skiing / cross-country skiing 7,4 / 11,2
Computer work 1,9

As it turned out, counting calories for weight loss is not such a difficult task, but the benefits from this undoubtedly useful habit are enormous - slimness, lightness, good health and a healthy complexion. great mood and pride in yourself.

What the calorie counts say

The best smooth weight loss method for me. Lost 4 kilograms in a month. It is easy to observe, I determine the approximate calorie content of products by eye. The main thing is that I eat whatever I want, no buckwheat without salt.

-Hope, 48 years old

I have lost weight to the desired level and have been in shape for a year now. Calories are still counting. This is the most effective way to keep fit. You just need to remember to take into account everything that was eaten during the day in order to navigate how much more you can.

-Valentine, 63 years old


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