This might seem like an opus on dieting, but it isn’t. It is drawn from my experience over the last few years of getting older, less active, and of eating too much.
Calorie counting
After a certain age your body uses the calories you take in at a slower rate. You gain weight. You slow down. This is normal. However, this fact becomes a problem if you gain too much weight.
The solution might seem obvious — stop eating so much. Most of the fad diets don’t work. Eating fewer calories and being active does. Most diets rely on eliminating the calories from either carbohydrates or fat. A normal diet should consist of 1/3 protein, 1/3 carbs, and 1/3 fat calories. These diets eliminate 1/3 of the calories taken in by eliminating 1/3 of the nutrients you need. That is not healthy.
Most people in the industrial west add about 1 pound per year after age 25. This is a result of taking in too many calories, regardless of the source, and too little exercise. The weight gain comes from the calories in carbs and fat. To reduce your weight you have to reduce the calories you take in and burn off more calories than you take in. These facts are self evident until you try to loose weight (as we all know). Food is everywhere, its so easy to overeat. And how do you count calories anyway?
What is a low calorie diet?
Any diet that dips below 1200 calories per day is unhealthy! Any diet that causes headaches, nausea, or joint pains is unhealthy — don’t go there!
A man should burn about 2000 calories a day in normal activity. Sitting all day, you burn less. If you want to lose weight, reduce your normal intake by 500 calories, and you should be able to lose about one pound a week.
You must become accustomed to eating fewer calories over a period of time. Allow 2 or 3 months to get to the 1500 calorie level (most people will loose weight at 1500 calories per day). It may take you that long to be able to properly plan meals and calculate the calories you are consuming.
Any diet that causes you to loose more than 2 pounds per week is unhealthy.
How to count calories
Webapp, a Calorie Counter, searches the USDA food nutrition database and provides instant nutritional information for thousands of generic or prepared food products. See what 200 calorie and 300 and 400 calorie meals look like. Here is a list of weight-loss tips. The Daily Plate has lists of popular fast food items and their calorie count.
Another interesting site is The Hacker’s Diet. All of us computer-addicted desk jockies suffer from the same afflictions.
Exercise
To loose weight, you have reduce the calories consumed and be active enough to burn more than you consume. This does not mean you should embark on an strenuous exercise regime which may be dangerous if you are obese, or just 20 pounds overweight. The extra weight strains joints and the heart and just about every other bodily system. Don’t add to the strain!
To be more active, schedule your day better. Get 7 to 8 hours sleep, more or less and you won’t loose weight. Eat a breakfast that is weighted towards protein, this actually speeds-up your metabolism. Start walking to become more active. Strive for at least 5 miles a day. Snacks, lunch, and dinner should be planned.
A Reasonable Plan
If you are looking for a book to help you with organising you diet, then get a copy of The 3-Hour Diet: How Low-Carb Diets Make You Fat and Timing Makes You Thin. One way to reduce the hunger most people experience when dieting is is to eat every three hours. This also allows you to better control the calories you consume.
When reading this book, bear in mind that this is a low calorie diet. You may want to make adjustments to keep your intake to 1500 calories.
Don’t Turn Your World Upside-down
Loosing weight should not require special foods, special preparation methods, and an exasperated spouse. It does require some discipline to plan meals, control portions and calorie intake, along with mild exercise such as walking.
The Next Step
The next step I will cover is the first group of exercises you need to start doing.
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