How Many Calories Do You Have To Eat Per Day To Lose Weight, With Weight Calculator’s Help?
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How Many Calories Do You Have To Eat Per Day To Lose Weight With A Weight Calculator’s Help?
A simple way to plan weight loss is to estimate how many calories you burn each day and then eat a bit less. A calorie calculator gives you that starting estimate.
A calculator uses your height, weight, sex, age, and activity level to estimate the calories you need to keep your current weight. You then subtract from that number to lose weight.
Calorie needs to take for weight loss.
Your needs depend on your height, weight, age, sex, activity, and health. Start by finding how many calories keep your weight steady, then aim a little below that.
A common rule of thumb is that eating about 500 fewer calories a day leads to roughly 1 pound of loss per week at first. Weight loss usually slows over time as your body gets smaller, so treat it as a rough guide.
The CDC recommends losing about 1 to 2 pounds a week, a pace that is easier to keep off.
Below are calories counts according to gender.
These estimates come from the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. "Moderately active" means walking about 1.5 to 3 miles a day on top of daily living.
A moderately active man aged 26 to 45 needs about 2600 calories each day to maintain his weight. Eating about 2,100 a day would put him on track to lose around 1 pound a week.
An active man of the same age, walking more than 3 miles a day, may need 2,800 to 3,000 calories. He could aim for about 2,300 to 2,500 to lose about 1 pound a week. A moderately active man aged 46 to 60 needs about 2,400 calories.
A moderately active woman aged 26 to 50 needs about 2,000 calories to maintain her weight. Around 1,500 a day would lead to about 1 pound of loss per week.
An active woman of the same age may need 2,200 to 2,400 calories. About 1,700 to 1,900 a day would lead to roughly 1 pound a week.
A sedentary woman in this age range needs about 1,800 calories, so about 1,300 would produce a similar loss. Going much lower than this should only be done with a doctor's supervision.
Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding need more calories, so these numbers do not apply to them. The guidelines add about 340 calories a day in the second trimester and about 450 in the third.
Children's needs depend on their age, size, and activity. They should not diet to lose weight unless a pediatrician recommends it.
Most children need a range of healthy foods to grow. Young children aged 2 to 3 need about 1,000 to 1,400 calories a day. Teens aged 14 to 18 need about 1,800 to 2,400 (girls) and 2,000 to 3,200 (boys), depending on activity.
A calorie is a unit of energy. Calories describe how much energy foods and drinks provide. A Weight calculator can help you set a target, but the estimate is only a starting point.
If your weight does not change after a few weeks, adjust your intake by 100 to 200 calories and reassess.
Lasting weight loss comes from habits you can keep, not from short bursts of strict dieting.
Some essential things that may help anyone to start weight loss.
Reduce your carb intake:
Carb decline helps some people eat less because cutting refined carbs and sugar can reduce hunger. In studies, low-carb and low-fat diets produce similar weight loss over the long term when calories are matched.
Pick the approach you can stick with. People with diabetes should talk to their doctor before cutting carbs sharply, because medication doses may need to change.
Do exercise and lift weights:
When you eat less, you can lose muscle along with fat. Strength training helps you keep muscle while you lose weight.
Keeping muscle helps limit the drop in calorie burn that comes with weight loss. Add cardio such as walking, running, or cycling for heart health and extra calorie burn.
Eat protein:
Protein helps you feel full and helps you keep muscle while you lose weight. Your body also uses a bit more energy to digest protein than carbs or fat.
Include a protein food at each meal, such as eggs, fish, chicken, beans, Greek yogurt, or tofu.
Drink more water:
Drink water instead of sugary drinks during weight loss. You do not need a calculator for this.
Some studies found that drinking about 2 cups of water before a meal helps people eat a little less. Unsweetened tea and black coffee are also calorie-free choices.
Subtract soft drinks and artificial food drinks:
Cut back on sugary drinks such as soda, sweetened tea, and chocolate milk. They add a lot of sugar and calories without making you feel full.
In children, studies have linked each extra daily serving of sugary drinks to a higher risk of obesity.
Choose whole fruits and healthy drinks instead, since whole fruit adds fiber and other essential nutrients. Sugary drinks offer calories without those nutrients.
