Average calorie intake per day. Calculation of ideal weight and minimum calorie intake for weight loss

Do you want to lose weight, but don't know how many calories you need to eat in your daily diet? Find out how many calories you need to eat per day to lose weight without harm to health!

The question of caloric content of food is one of the most important when planning a diet. It directly depends on its correct decision whether weight loss and getting rid of extra pounds will be effective. Calories are units that measure the energy value of food. They take into account not only the overall nutritional value of dishes, but also the content of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins in them. Thanks to calories, the vital processes of the body receive the necessary energy. They are necessary for normal mental and physical work of a person.

There is such a thing as a minimum calorie requirement per day. The numbers may vary, as the need for energy for normal life is different for everyone. What matters is body surface area, age, parameters such as weight and height, level of physical activity, etc.

The fight against excess weight, based on reducing the caloric content of the diet, is based on the principle: you can lose weight if the calorie consumption per day is greater than their consumption. As a result, the mechanisms responsible for the consumption of body fat reserves begin to work.

Online calculator is your reliable assistant

A nutritionist can help you calculate the amount of calories your daily diet should contain. But it is much easier and faster to turn to an online calculator that will give the result, which will allow you to create a nutrition system aimed at getting rid of extra pounds. You just need to enter several parameters in the fields (age, gender, height and weight indicators, physical activity data) and calculate the result using different formulas.

The choice of menu and diet depends on what you want to get in the end. Weight can be dropped quickly or gradually, in addition, sometimes the goal is to keep the existing weight at the same level.

Which weight loss regimen will you choose?

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Rapid weight loss - 1000 calorie diet

This is a rather tough method that helps to quickly lose weight while meeting all the requirements. Recommended only for healthy people, ideally after consulting a doctor. There are two options for this diet.

The first option - it is allowed to introduce any dishes into the diet, sweet, fried, fatty, but in a very limited amount, so that the total calorie content per day does not exceed 1000.

The second option is to consume a specific amount of certain foods per day in any sequence and combination. Among them:

• Fresh fruit - no more than 300 gr.
• Vegetables (in any form - fresh or boiled) - up to 400 gr.
• Lean meats - up to 160 gr.
• Milk (non-fat) - up to half a liter.
• Rye bread - 40 gr.
• Egg - 1 pc.
• Cottage cheese or cheese - 30 gr. or 15 gr. respectively.
• Creamy. oil - 15 gr.

The second option is optimal and simpler in terms of counting calories. Let's take a look at its menu.

Reviews about this diet are different. The advantages are the ability to quickly lose weight - up to 10 kg. But the diet is limited - both in terms of food volume and energy value. Therefore, negative health effects are possible. It is recommended that such a diet be observed for up to 3 weeks.

1200 kcal diet - restrictions without harm to health

Such a nutrition system will not harm your health and will allow you to steadily lose weight. Here is a sample menu, you can choose products from the list, roughly calculating the daily calorie intake within 1200.

Try to create a menu for the day, and you will understand that 1200 calories is not so little.

Meal plan for 1695 kcal

Such a diet must be combined with training. This is the only way to achieve results. Also follow these tips:

• Always have breakfast. This will energize you. Caloric content - about 30% of the total daily diet. The best option is porridge. You can add coffee, milk, tea, meat, boiled egg, dried fruits, cheese, cottage cheese, nuts, fruits to it.
• Always have lunch- This is 40% of the calories of the diet. Soups, fish or meat with vegetables, cereals, salads (vegetables), legumes and pasta are allowed.
• Always have dinner- the main thing is 4 hours before going to bed. The best choice is vegetables and meat or fish. Protein should prevail. The share of calories is 20%.
• Light snacks allowed between meals - 10% of calories. In the morning, it can be honey, nuts, berries, fruits, tea with a cracker. In the second - dairy products or vegetables.
• Follow the drinking regime. Ideally - 2 liters per day.
• Bring food to work. It is more difficult to choose something low-calorie in the supermarket.
• Satisfy Your Hunger Hours Before Sleep, but if it is very difficult, you can eat a green apple, carrots, drink a glass of kefir.
• Never overeat- this is the main reason for weight gain.

Trying to make a diet

For a beautiful and fit figure, enhanced and regular physical activity is not enough. We also need a balanced diet based not only on healthy foods, but also on counting calories. The latter depends on many parameters, including age, height, weight and other indicators.

How many calories do you need to lose weight?

The answer to the question of how many calories you need to lose weight is simple: in order to lose weight, you need to maintain a daily calorie deficit. Those. spend more than you consume. And here's how to achieve this: eat less, or exercise more is everyone's business. Many are so addicted that they reduce their calorie intake by an unacceptable amount, which can adversely affect health. The daily reduction in calorie intake should be no more than 20% - this is the norm for safe weight loss.

You can find out the number of calories needed for weight loss as follows:

• determine how many kcal you can eat per day (using the online calculator or the formulas described below);
• we calculate the required daily caloric deficit, i.e. number of calories to eat less to lose weight.

The average daily norm for women is 2000-2500 kcal, for men - 2400-2900 kcal. To lose weight, you need to ensure that the daily calorie intake is not higher than these values, but not lower than 1500 kcal. Otherwise, you can deal with all sorts of diseases. There is no need to take these indicators as a standard: you need to take into account the individual characteristics of a person, including the metabolic rate, the level of physical activity, and so on.

The required number of calories for weight loss for a woman

A woman needs fewer calories to function normally than a man. This is explained both by differences in the physiological processes occurring in the body, and by various physical activities. The average daily calorie requirement is 2200 kcal. For example, a young girl needs to consume more calories than an older woman. With age, the metabolism slows down, so the body does not need a lot of energy.

Every hour the human body consumes one kcal. Accordingly, the allowable rate will be equal to the product of body weight by 24 hours. For example, a woman with a height of 165 cm and a weight of 80 kg should consume no more than 1920 kcal daily (80 kg x 24 hours = 1920). That's the only way she can lose weight.

Weight is not the main indicator for calculating calorie intake. Lifestyle must also be taken into account. If a woman does not play sports at all and her work is associated with constant sitting, then, depending on age, the following calorie intake rates apply:

The table will be slightly different if the woman systematically has light loads:

The norm for active women who regularly play sports increases a little more:

The required number of calories for weight loss for a man

According to generally accepted standards, there is the following gradation of normative calorie intake for men:

• up to 30 years - 2400-2600 kcal per day;
• 30-50 years - 2200 kcal;
• over 50 years old - 2000 kcal.

To calculate the required number of calories per day, you need to multiply the weight of a man by 20. But this is without taking into account physical activity. For every minute of cardio load, you need to add 5 kcal to the daily norm, for strength training this figure will be equal to 10 kcal.

Weight Loss Calorie Formula

A number of formulas are known that allow you to calculate how many calories you need per day for weight loss. The basic calculation is the calculation based on the weight of a person. In this case, it is necessary to multiply the body weight by the basal metabolic rate equal to twenty. The resulting amount is the norm of calories per day. For weight loss, you just need to consume less by 200-300 kcal from the amount received.

This figure is not final. The degree of human activity is of great importance. There is a certain indicator of activity by which you need to multiply the result:

• for people actively involved in sports, or engaged in physical labor, it will be equal to 1.5;
• for people attending training at least three times a week, the figure will be 1.4;
• individuals who resort to sports from time to time will have to take 1.3 as a basis;
• overweight people leading an inactive lifestyle should multiply the received calorie intake by 1.2.

Muffin-Jeor Formula

It is considered one of the most accurate. It has been successfully used for weight management. The calculation is based on the basic metabolism (RO), which means the number of calories consumed during the day. At the same time, most of them should be burned due to active pastime.

For men, the formula will look like this:

OO x body weight + 6.25 x height (in cm) - 4.92 x age + 5.

For women, the formula will be slightly different:

OO x body weight + 6.25 x height (in cm) - 4.92 x age - 161.

The formula is also subject to adjustment due to the coefficient of physical activity. The basal exchange must be multiplied by:

• 1.2 - with a passive lifestyle;
• 1.375 - with insufficient activity;
• 1.55 - with moderate activity;
• 1.725 - increased level of physical activity;
• 1.9 - at extra high load.

Ketch-McArdle calculation

The simplest formula that does not take into account any individual parameters of a person. The calculation looks like this:

370 + 21.6 x X, where X is body weight excluding fat.

The final value must also be multiplied by the physical activity coefficient.

Today, with the development of Internet technologies, there are special online calculators that themselves calculate the indicator with maximum accuracy. To calculate, you just need to enter the necessary personal parameters.

We calculate the calorie content

Every day a person consumes food. And many do not monitor its calorie content. Even if not so much is eaten, extra calories may still be present. This is because different foods have different calories. Calories can also be good and bad.

When a person thinks about losing weight, he resorts to various kinds of diets that work on the principle of reducing the total number of calories. At the same time, products are selected based on their usefulness. Not everyone can “sit” on a particular diet: each of them has a product that you either don’t want to eat at all, or it’s expensive, or it’s hard to find at all.

But there is another more attractive way: eat whatever you want, but counting the daily number of calories. But this calculation must be correct. The main thing to do when counting calories is to pay attention to the product label, which lists the energy value and composition of the product. Next, you need to multiply the energy value by the amount eaten. For example, milk with a fat content of 2.5% has an energy value of 54 kcal. After drinking a glass of milk, which is equal to 250 grams, and multiplying these data, we get 135 kcal (54 x 2.5).

It will be harder to count calories in ready meals. Here you need to know the composition of the dish and the energy value of each component. Special programs, tables or an online calculator can come to the rescue.

1. Keep a meticulous record of all food eaten and drunk during the day. The diary should also record deviations in normal life. For example, instead of traveling by car, I had to walk, or vice versa, instead of training, I had to lie on the couch because of poor health.
2. Get a kitchen scale that is accurate to one gram. With the help of them, you can always know the weight of the dish and use this indicator in the calculation.
3. Have on hand a reminder of the calorie content of certain foods and a calculator.

It will also require patience and perseverance.

Beginner mistakes

There are a number of mistakes that people make when they decide to lose weight by counting calories:

1. Dramatic calorie reduction

For example, a person calculated that his daily intake is 1500 kcal. And he ate 2500 kcal every day. It turns out that he needs to reduce the “dose” by a thousand units at once. It is absolutely impossible to do this: it causes great harm to both the body and metabolism. It is necessary to subtract 100-200 kcal from the initial daily intake every week until the required value is reached.

1. Measuring the number of calories "by eye"

All calculations require precision, and counting calories is no exception. All food consumed must be weighed. To do this, you will have to cook at home, since food from catering is very difficult to “disassemble into calories”. In the future, of course, such extreme measures can be abandoned: experience itself will tell you what and how much you need to eat so as not to gain weight.

1. Ignoring the benefits of food

In addition to calculating the energy value, you need to pay attention to the usefulness of the product. For example, you can eat one chocolate all day, 100 grams of which is about 600 kcal. With an average caloric intake of 2000 kcal per day, you can eat three of these tiles. But there will be no benefit from such food.

How to achieve a calorie deficit?

A calorie deficit can be achieved in two ways:

• eat less, i.e. cut calories;
• spend more, i.e. to live an active lifestyle.

Ideally, a combination of these two methods. But practice shows that people choose one thing. Someone eats whatever they want, but does not leave the gym, and someone lies on the couch, but there is very little. What to choose - everyone decides for himself. The only thing that can not be done is to combine both methods with an urgent desire to lose weight. For example, for the summer or a significant event. Abruptly starting enhanced physical training, coupled with minimal food intake, is fraught with serious health problems.

How many calories do you need per day to lose weight? Subject to certain rules, making figures slimmer is real. In this case, you should intensively engage in physical exercises, regulate the diet, adhere to the correct daily routine.

Calculation of the calorie content of products, taking into account your own weight, height, age and other parameters also contributes to weight loss.

What is meant by calorie counting

According to nutritionists, one should adhere to the rule - to consume fewer calories than those consumed per day. In order not to cause harm to health, you can reduce calories by 20% per day. To calculate you need:

1. calculate the possible calories that are consumed per day (using a calculator or formulas);
2. calculate how much to reduce kcal.

If you want to learn about the diet recommended by nutritionists, read this article.

Norm per day

This is a superficial calculation, since each organism has its own characteristics. To achieve the result, take them into account when calculating.

The calculation of the daily calorie intake is done taking into account:

• how physically active the person is;
• age values;
• height;
• weight indicators;
• metabolic features.

Calorie calculation for women

For women, a smaller amount is required, since there is a difference in how physiological processes proceed in organisms. The activity of the sexes also differs.

The average is 2000 kcal. With aging, the body no longer requires such rich energy foods, therefore, older ladies need less.

A woman with extra pounds for weight loss needs to eat about 1800 kcal.

However, lifestyle is taken into account. If women move little, do not play sports, then the following calorie norms are suitable:

• from 18 to 25 years old - 2000 calories;
• from 26 to 45 - the same amount;
• from 45 - 1800 kcal.

With active life, the calculation changes:

• from 18 to 25 years old - 2400;
• from 26 to 45 - 2200 kcal;
• from 45 - 2000.

How many calories do men need

For young people, it is enough to consume 2400 - 2600 calories throughout the day. Older people, aged 30 to 50 - 2200 kcal, the elderly - no more than 2000. These are approximate data without taking into account physical activity.

To get the actual number of calories needed for weight loss for a man, use a simple formula. Weight is taken and multiplied by 20, the result will be normal calorie intake, if you do not take into account physical activity.

When playing sports, 5 kcal per minute of load is added to the resulting number, if strength training was carried out, then 10 kcal is added.

The main rule to lose weight

The main thing is the use of more of the energy than that which came from food. Calorie balance calculation is not complicated. To find out how many calories you need per day to lose weight, you need to multiply your weight by 20 and reduce by 200 or 300. You get the amount of calories your body needs to lose weight properly.

However, these indicators change, it depends on how actively a person spends the day. To calculate, you need to multiply the result by the activity indicator:

• 1.5 - with daily training;
• 1.4 - if sports are given at least three times a week;
• 1.3 - this applies to office workers;
• 1.2 - recommended for those who are inactive.

Even if you know how many calories you need per day to lose weight, sports are important, only the combination of these programs will help in getting rid of excess weight.

So how do you learn to eat right? First of all, you need to find out how many calories you "eat" daily. To do this, using the calorie tables, count the number of "eaten" calories. As a rule, as a result of calculating daily calorie intake, most overweight people get numbers from 2 to 3-4 thousand kilocalories per day, or even more. In order to lose weight, you must "eat" 1000-1400 kilocalories per day. The more the number of calories you consume differs from the above figure, the less result from following the diet, and if the number of calories is 1800 - 2000 kcal per day, you will not lose weight at all.

How to calculate how much to eat per day?

However, for fans of mathematical calculations, we present a formula by which you can more accurately determine the amount of energy expended per day and thus know how much you need to eat in order to lose weight. We repeat once again that it is desirable to switch to a consumption of 1000-1400 kcal per day without any complicated calculations.

So, energy consumption consists of the following components: basic metabolism + energy spent at work + energy spent during leisure + energy spent on digestion.

BX

This is the amount of energy needed to maintain the life of an organism that is at rest, that is, in the morning, lying in bed on an empty stomach at a comfortable temperature. For men, this value is 1 kcal per 1 kg of body weight per hour, and for women - 0.9 kcal / kg / hour. That is, if you weigh 90 kg, then the main metabolism per day will be: 0.9 kcal x 90 kg x 24 h = 1944 kcal. At the same time, we calculated the basic exchange for a woman who does not want to lose weight. If a person calculates his nutritional balance in order to lose weight, then it is necessary to determine the number of calories per desired body weight. Let's go back to our example: let's say the desired weight is 60-65 kg. Therefore, the main exchange should be: 0.9 kcal x 65 kg x 24 h = 1404 kcal.

The energy that is spent in the process of work

Approximately 26% of the basic metabolism is enough to cover energy costs during sedentary work. If your basal metabolism to lose weight was 1404 kcal, then muscle work during sedentary work requires 365 kcal. For people of various specialties, there are already calculated values ​​\u200b\u200bof energy costs during an 8-hour working day:

• with light physical work for mechanized labor professions (laboratory assistants, cashiers, programmers), approximately 1000 kcal is required to cover energy consumption;
• for persons performing moderately hard work (workers, machine operators, drivers of vehicles), 1500 kcal is needed;
• to cover the costs of physically hard work, 2000-2500 kcal is required, and sometimes more (miners, diggers, athletes).

Energy consumption throughout the day

Energy consumption during leisure consists of housework, sports and recreation. The table shows the approximate energy consumption for various activities.
Leisure energy expenditure per standard person weighing 60 kg.

Type of activity kcal/hour
sleep 50
rest lying down 65
reading aloud 90
household work such as washing dishes, ironing, cleaning 120-240
calm walking 190
brisk walking 300
jogging 360
skiing 420
rowing 150-360
swimming 180-400
cycling 210-440
skating 180-600

Nutritional thermogenesis

For the consumption and further utilization of food, the body expends a certain amount of energy. It has been established that protein foods are most difficult to digest, and the utilization of carbohydrates and fats requires 10 times less energy than for protein foods. With a mixed diet, which is the most physiological, the metabolic rate is 6.5% of the main metabolism, that is, in our case, 91 kcal / day will be spent.

Calorie calculation

To calculate how many calories enter the body every day, just look at the corresponding table of caloric content (energy value) of products. In addition, the calorie content is usually indicated on the package.

Correction of body weight should begin with determining the basic caloric content of the daily diet, in which the body does not lose weight and does not get fat. Then, depending on the goal - to lose weight or gain weight - adjust it with the appropriate menu.

First way. For a week or two, leading a normal life, write down the amount of food you eat every day. Then, using the calorie tables, determine the average daily number of calories.

The second way. It is believed that for every kilogram of body weight, approximately 30 kcal is required. Thus, to determine how many calories you need to consume per day, you need to multiply 30 kcal by body weight in kilograms.

How to regulate your diet

The resulting figure will allow you to adjust the daily diet depending on the goal:

• if body weight remains constant, nothing needs to be changed: the body spends as many calories as it consumes;
• in case of excess weight, the tendency to increase it is worth reducing the calorie content of the daily diet, but not completely giving up food;
• with excessive thinness, it is worth increasing the energy value of the daily diet.

Even with a slight imbalance of calories - for example, the intake of only 100 extra kilocalories each day - 4.5 kg of body fat accumulate per year. That is why it is so important to return not only the optimal body weight, but also to maintain it at this level, to fully consume all calories, preventing them from turning into fat.

Having determined the basic calorie content of the diet, for weight loss, you can reduce the daily diet by 200-300 kcal. In any case, you should not lose weight faster than 100g per day. Otherwise, the body will not have time to adapt to changes, there may be disturbances in the work of internal organs and systems.

How many calories does a healthy person need? Recent studies have shown that a person consumes an average of 3,000 calories per day.

How many calories do you really need to eat? The norm should vary between 2000 and 2500 calories. Thus, people usually eat more than they need. The daily calorie intake does not correspond to the real needs of the human body and, with low physical activity, reserves of excess fat are formed. To keep yourself in shape, you need to change your diet.

If you want to follow a strict diet and lose weight quickly, you can use the following menu, which is based on a daily intake of 1200 calories.

Try at least 30 minutes of daily exercise to speed up your diet. In addition, you will tone your muscles! As they say, kill two birds with one stone.

People who are faced with the problem of being overweight sooner or later ask themselves the question: how many calories should I eat per day in order to lose weight? To do this, you need to learn how to count the arrival and consumption of units of energy. The daily requirement depends on how mobile a person's lifestyle is. There are several formulas by which this rate can be calculated.

To maintain vital activity, even in a state of complete rest, a person needs a certain amount of energy. The more we move, the more food the body needs to function properly. The daily calorie intake for weight loss, weight gain or weight maintenance is calculated using an individual formula for men and women. This is the first step in creating a personalized diet. Gender, weight, height, age, muscle mass and energy expenditure per day are important.

1. The easiest way: calculation per kilogram of body weight. If we are talking about losing weight, the daily norm is 26-29 kcal. 33-35 units of energy will help you stay in shape. You can get better if you consume 40 or more calories per 1 kg of your weight per day. But this method does not take into account the physical activity of a person, therefore it is imperfect.

2. The Harris-Benedict equation makes it possible to determine the basic metabolic rate based on weight, height and age.

• Formula for men: 66 + (13.7 x weight) + (5 x height) - (6.8 x age).
• Formula for women: 655 + (9.6 x weight) + (1.8 x height) - (4.7 x age).

The result must be multiplied by the index of physical activity:

• 1.2 - lifestyle with extremely low physical activity;
• 1.3 - exercises or classes in the gym 1-3 times a week;
• 1.9 - extra load (professional sports, especially power sports).

3. The Mifflin-San Geor method is one of the latest calculations (2005) by American nutritionists. There is a simplified and more perfect version of this formula.

• For men: 10 x weight + 6.25 x height - 5 x age + 5.
• For women: 10 x weight + 6.25 x height - 5 x age - 161.

Multiply the above formulas by the physical activity index given above.

4. Ketch-McArdle method. Its difference from the previous formulas is that, in addition to the indicated parameters, it also takes into account the mass of the muscles of the body, which means it is more accurate. Basal metabolism in men and women is calculated using the formula 370 + (21.6 x muscle mass). To find out, you need to subtract the amount of fat from the total weight. It can be 10, 20, 30%.

The most important thing in losing weight is a negative calorie balance. Only their deficiency can burn excess weight, so food intake should not exceed energy expenditure. Losing weight and not reducing muscle mass, not disrupting the metabolism and thyroid function - this is the main task. Having calculated the required number of energy units, you need to reduce them by at least 500. And it's up to you to decide whether to increase physical activity or reduce the amount of certain foods.

Calculation example

Many specialized sites are equipped with calculators. Let's summarize how many calories you need to consume per day for weight loss in each case.

1. If you are guided by the method of calculating per kilogram of body weight, then it is easy to calculate that a person weighing 70 kg in order to lose weight needs to receive 1820-2030 calories. To maintain weight, the consumption of units of energy will be 2100-2450 kcal.
2. Using the Harris-Benedict method, you need to know your height and weight. For example, you are a 40-year-old man whose height is 176 cm and weight is 82 kg. You work mostly sitting, like to lie down. The individual formula for calculating the calorie norm looks like this: 66 + (13.7 x 80) + (5 x 176) - (6.8 x 40) = 2341.4. Multiplying this number by an activity coefficient of 1.2, we get 2809.68 calories per day. You will be able to lose weight if you reduce by 500 kcal, total - 2309. This is your norm per day.
3. For the calculation according to Mifflin-San Geor, let's take, for example, a 41-year-old woman who does not play sports, whose height is 156 cm, weight - 67 kg. 10 x 67 + 6.25 x 156 - 5 x 41 - 161. Multiply the resulting 1689 kcal by the lowest activity index of 1.2. To stay at this weight, a woman needs to eat food, the energy value of which is 2026.8 kcal. Subtract 500 from this figure. In order to lose weight, a lady with magnificent forms will have to cut her diet to 1526 kcal.
4. And, finally, the most complex, but the most realistic Ketch-McArdle formula. It is only suitable for those who have tested their muscle mass. For example, you are a woman who weighs 64 kg, of which 10% is fat (6.4). This means that the muscle mass is 57.6 kg. Your basal metabolic rate is 370 + (21.6 x 57.6) = 1614.16 calories.

You can lose weight comfortably, without the feeling of hunger and stress for the body. Take advantage of some tips.

1. Reduce the number of calories gradually. A sharp jump slows down the metabolism. Stretch this process for 2-3 weeks, the body must adapt to a new diet. Experts recommend reducing your daily intake by 20%. Smoothly achieve their deficit.
2. The calorie content of the daily diet should not be lower than 1200 for women and 1800 for men, this is the so-called border. If you eat less than the threshold value, the exhaustion of the body will soon begin, instead of fat, muscle mass will go away.
3. Buy a kitchen scale if you haven't already. Train yourself to weigh food, this is necessary to find out the calorie content of the dish. Soon you will determine the weight visually.
4. Eat frequent, but small, low-calorie meals. Multiple meals during weight loss contribute to a better metabolism.
5. Do not exclude carbohydrates and fats from the diet. They should be less than proteins, but not getting them at all is wrong and unhealthy. In the morning, nutritionists advise eating simple carbohydrates in the form of cereals, vegetable fats are used.
6. Be active. If for some reason visiting the gym is not possible, include at least a light warm-up or cleaning the apartment in your daily routine. There are days when it happens to eat something high-calorie. Punish yourself for being weak with a walk or other physical activity. Losing weight is impossible with low physical activity, otherwise, in order to lose weight, you have to practically starve yourself.