You want to lose weight, so what do you do? There has
to be a calorie deficit in your daily diet, which means you
consume fewer calories than needed for maintenance.
You will subtract 500 calories from your maintenance
and start to tract your weight weekly to see how it is
working for you. Some people lose 1 lb per week while
others lose more or less but the idea is to lose weight
gradually without too much effort. Opposite occurs if you
wish to gain weight, especially for those who want some
extra lean muscle mass. You add around 200-500 more
calories per week and begin to track your progress and
how your body interacts with the change.
Let us focus now on macronutrients, which tie in directly
with calories. I will try my best to explain this as easy as
possible. 1 gram of protein equals 4 calories, 1 gram of
fat equal 9 calories, and 1 gram of carbohydrates equals
4 calories. According to most scientific studies we should
consume between 0.8 to 1 gram of protein per pound of
bodyweight. We will us 1 gram per pound of bodyweight
because we are active and do strength training 3-5 times
a week. Fat intake is 0.4 grams per pound of bodyweight
and carbohydrates will consist of the remaining calories.
Here is an example using the same female from the
BMR example. She weighs 150 lbs, so her protein
intake will be (1x150) 150 grams per day. Her fat intake
will be (0.4 x 150) 60 grams per day. Now we only
need carbohydrates, which like mentioned will be the
remaining calories. Since 1 gram of protein is 4 calories
we will multiply 4 by 150 giving us 600 calories, fat 9
calories by 60 is 540 calories. Her maintenance daily
calories were 2288 kcal so we subtract the sum of protein
and fat calories (600 kcal + 540 kcal = 1140 kcal) with
2288 which will give us 1148 kcal. The 1148 we divide
by 4 giving us 287 grams of carbohydrates. Her daily
maintenance macronutrients will be 150 grams of protein,
60 grams of fat, and 287 grams of carbohydrates.
Not too bad right? Well, it could be a bit much
to understand it all but that is the foundation of
finding out your calories for maintenance, weight
loss, or weight gain. Like I always mention please
talk with your doctor or dietitian before making
any fitness or lifestyle chances. You can also
follow me on my social media if you have any
questions or would like to have more details
on the topic. Many blessing to all and keep on
inspiring others. Stay Hefty my friends.
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