How many cal should i take

Ask your health care provider for a referral to a registered dietitian nutritionist to learn more about your nutrition needs during and after pregnancy. There are many free online calculators to help you figure out how many calories you need. The National Institutes of Health Body Weight Planner allows you to calculate your personal needs based on your height, sex, age, current weight and activity level — ranging from 1.

The tool is set for a default value of 1. For example, for an individual with a desk job who either takes walks or goes for a bicycle ride once a week. The MyPlate website also has an easy online tool for figuring out how many calories you need. How does it work? You can also learn about the amounts that are recommended from each food group to help you meet your healthy eating goals:.

While there is no exactly known, ideal proportion of macronutrients fats, proteins, carbohydrates , some balance is certainly advisable, and different foods have been found to have different effects on health, feelings of hunger, and number of calories burned.

Generally, minimally processed plant and animal foods tend to be more conducive to healthy weight loss and maintenance. There are many approaches to weight loss and there is no set ideal method that works for all people, which is why so many different diets and exercise regimens exist.

While some methods are more effective for each individual person, not all weight loss methods are equivalent, and studies suggest that some approaches are healthier than others. That being said, one of the most commonly effective weight loss methods is counting calories. In its most basic form, calories consumed minus calories expended will result in weight gain if the result is positive, or weight loss if the result is negative. However, this is far from a comprehensive picture, and many other factors play a role in affecting healthy, sustainable weight loss.

For example, there exist conflicting studies addressing whether or not the type of calories or foods consumed, or how they are consumed, affects weight loss. Studies have shown that foods that require a person to chew more and are more difficult to digest result in the body burning more calories, sometimes referred to as the thermic effect of food. While the increase in burned calories may be marginal, foods that are more difficult to digest such as vegetables generally tend to be healthier and provide more nutrients for fewer calories than many processed foods.

Consistent with the view that in regards to weight loss, only net calories are important and not their source, there exist cases such as the Twinkie diet, where a person that solely counted calories while eating a variety of cake snacks managed to lose 27 pounds over two months. As effective as this can be, it is certainly not suggested. While the participant did not seem to suffer any noticeable health detriments in this particular case, there are other less measurable factors that should be considered such as long-term effects of such a diet on potential for developing cancers, heart disease, and diabetes.

However, ignoring efficiency and health, sustained, significant reduction of caloric intake or increase of physical activity should result in weight loss, and counting calories can be an effective way to achieve this sole result. Aside from being one viable method for facilitating weight loss, calorie counting has other somewhat less quantifiable advantages including helping to increase nutritional awareness.

Many people are completely unaware of, or grossly underestimate their daily caloric intake. Counting calories can help raise awareness of different types of foods, the number of calories they contain, and how these calories have a different effect on a person's feelings of satiety. Once a person has a better understanding of how many calories are actually in that bag of chips that they can so easily inhale within minutes, how much of their daily caloric intake it consumes, and how little the chips do to satiate their hunger, portion control and avoidance of foods with empty calories tends to become easier.

Having actual caloric measurements can also assist in weight loss, since tangible calorie goals can be set, rather than simply trying to eat less. Also, although this is not necessarily directly related to calorie counting, studies have shown that portion control by simply eating from a smaller plate can help reduce calorie intake, since people tend to fill their plates and eat everything on their plates.

Many people do not realize that they are overeating, since they have become accustomed to restaurant-sized portions being the norm, when said portions can be up to three or more times larger than necessary for a typical meal.

Once a link is made between the amount of exercise that some snack equates to, many people find abstaining from that bag of chips to be the preferred option rather than performing an equivalent amount of exercise — which can lead to healthier eating habits. In the end, however, what's important is picking a strategy that works for you. Calorie counting is only one method used to achieve weight loss amongst many, and even within this method, there are many possible approaches a person can take.

Finding an approach that fits within your lifestyle that you think you would be able to adhere to is likely going to provide the most sustainable option and desirable result. Zigzag calorie cycling is a weight loss approach that aims to counteract the human body's natural adaptive tendencies.

Counting and restricting calories, as described above, is a viable method to lose weight, but over a period of time, it is possible for the body to adapt to the lower number of calories consumed. In cases where this happens, a plateau in weight loss that can be difficult to surmount can result. This is where zigzag calorie cycling can help, by not allowing the body to adapt to the lower calorie environment. Be honest. Over time, as you lose weight you will need to recalculate based on your new weight.

Also, if you make big changes to your workout reducing or increasing you should also recalculate. Science tells us that 1 pound of fat is equal to calories, so a daily calorie deficit of should result in 1 pound per week fat loss. The amount of food intake that once resulted in weight loss, will now only maintain 2.

Need help with the basics of weight loss? Read our straight-forward guide. The "Extreme Fat Loss" level is effectively a rock bottom calorie level. Do not attempt to immediately drop your calories to this level hoping for the quick fix. This may ultimately backfire. The Extreme Fat Loss level shows the lowest calorie amount that can be considered. It should be seen as the exception rather than the rule.

It becomes more efficient at using energy lowered metabolism , and therefore burns less fat. This is why most of us reach a weight loss plateau. You often find that the nearer you get to your goal weight or body fat percentage — the harder things get!

The 7 Day zig-zag provides a suggestion for daily calories that will keep your body guessing — and increase your chances of continual weight loss. It is difficult to set absolute bottom calorie levels, because everyone has different body composition and activity levels. Javascript is required in order to use this web app. Calorie Calculator. Switch to Metric Units Age years Height ft. Weight lbs. Select the statement that best describes your usual activity level.