Calories #Dieting Week 6

It is amazing how much I am aware of calories now. There are days when I think my budgeted calories for the day are not enough and others when I feel I can’t eat that much. It truly is a daily battle.

For those interested, here is the formula to lose a pound. 

Negative 3500 = 1 pound loss.

There are several calorie calculators online to figure out how many calories you need to maintain your current weight. Find one and plug in your stats and it will tell you what calorie count to maintain. In order to lose weight you need to be negative 3500 calories. The method I choose for myself is to reduce my calorie intake by 500 calories a day below my ‘maintain’ weight ideal there by giving me a negative 3500 calories after 7 days. By this method I should lose one pound a week.

By upping my activity level and staying with a 1200-1400 calorie a day diet, I can increase the speed by which I lose weight.

There is a science to all of this; but you still have to figure out what is best for you. 

Changing Habits: Snacks #Dieting Week 5

Guilty, Guilty, Guilty of stopping and buying a Hersey’s bar or a bag of cheese doodles or chips in the middle of the day when I get hungry. It is the worst thing you can do for any diet. Obviously fruits and veggies (veggies I don’t like at all) are the preferred snacks. I like oranges and bananas. So a banana is great and an orange range under 100 calories or so; they are great snacks.

But sometimes you don’t want either; I have gotten into the habit of carrying the Special K bars in my purse. I really love the vanilla one and the chocolate and pretzel ones. They are great on the go, you know the calories and they satisfy the need for sweet. There are also all sort of granola bars and snack bars on the market just find the one that suits your taste and that craving for a snickers might be tamed.   

 Also, Trader Joe’s is a good place to find something healthy to snack on that doesn’t have several hundred unneeded calories!