The Best Online Calorie Counters
Free sites like Cron-O-Meter, MyFitnessPal, FitDay, and Lose It can track the calorie intake when the foods eaten are inserted. All of them are available online and include apps for iPhone/iPad and Android devices. It is highly recommended to use a calorie counter for at least a few days, to see how many calories, carbohydrates, protein, fat, fiber, vitamins and minerals are being truly consumed. Seeing the numbers like this can often be an eye opener.
How to Reduce Calorie Intake without Starving
Calories are simply a measure of energy. Though the calories taken in to the calories taken out is considered to be the main measure to gain or lose weight, the fact is that just cutting calories with regards to the food that are eaten is not usually a sustainable way to lose weight. Although it works for some people, the majority of people end up hungry and eventually give up on their diet. For this reason, it is highly recommended to make a few other permanent changes to help maintain a calorie deficit in the long term, without feeling starved.
Here are 5 evidence-based diet/lifestyle changes that have been shown to help people lose weight in numerous studies.
Protein Diet is highly effective
When it comes to losing weight, protein is the king of nutrients. Adding protein to the diet is the simplest, most effective and most delicious way to lose weight with minimal effort. Increasing protein intake can boost metabolism, fight cravings and significantly reduce appetite. This can lead to automatic weight loss. Protein requires energy to metabolize; hence, a high protein diet can increase calories burned by up to 80 to 100 calories per day. Protein is also the most fulfilling nutrient, by far. In fact, calories can be easily increased or decreased by just adding protein to the diet.
Avoid Sugary Soft Drinks
Sugary soft drinks like sodas, fruit juices, chocolate milk and other beverages that have sugar in them should be eliminated in order to cut down liquid sugar calories from the diet. These “foods” are probably the most fattening aspect of the modern diet, by far. This is because liquid calories don’t get “registered” by the brain in the same way as solid calories. It does not avoid craving for solid calories and hence adds more calories. Studies have shown that sugary drinks are strongly linked to an increased risk of obesity. Of course, the harmful effects of sugar go way beyond just weight gain. It can have disastrous effects on metabolic health and raise the risk of all sorts of diseases.
Drinking More Water Can Help With Weight Loss
One very simple trick to increase weight loss is to drink more water. Studies have shown that drinking water can boost metabolism. Drinking it a half hour before meals can help to eat fewer calories. In can increase the number of calories by 96 by drinking about 2 liters (68 ounces, or 8 glasses) of water per day. When combined with a healthy diet, drinking more water (especially before meals) does appear to be helpful in order to lose weight.
Exercising and Lifting Weight
When we eat fewer calories, our bodies compensate by making us burn less. This is why long-term calorie restriction can significantly reduce metabolism. Not only that, but it can also lead to loss of muscle mass. One should consider doing some body weight exercises like pushups, squats, sit ups, etc. in order to look good apart from losing weight. Do some cardio like walking, swimming or jogging that can also be important for optimal health.
Reduce Carbohydrate Intake, Especially Refined Carbs and Sugars
Cutting carbs is a very effective way to lose weight. Low-carb diets also have other benefits for people with type 2 diabetes or metabolic syndrome. Substitutes for low-carb diet are to eat quality, fiber-rich carbohydrate sources from whole, single ingredient foods.
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