How Many Calories Should You Consume for Weight Loss?

With so many weight loss treatments on the market, it can be tempting to try and cut corners and go straight for the medical option. However, all weight loss medications are designed to be used in conjunction with dietary changes and regular exercise to maximise their effects. 

If you want to lose weight, it’s important that you start in the right place and try to make changes to your diet and exercise regime before taking weight loss medications. You may find that these lifestyle modifications are enough to help you reach a healthy weight; but if not, you’ll have set yourself up in the best way possible if you do need a little more help.

How Many Calories Should You Consume a Day in Order to Lose Weight?

Calories are a way to measure energy. For humans, food is our main source of energy. Theoretically, more calories means more energy. 

However, when we consume more calories than we need, we don’t burn off that energy and it is stored in our body as fat. This is why eating excess calories can cause us to put on weight. 

The recommended average daily calorie intake is 2500 for men and 2000 for women. This is the number of calories that the average person needs to maintain their weight. However, we are not all average men and women. If you’re very physically active or taller than average, you may need more calories. 

If you don’t do much exercise, if you’re older, or if your body size is smaller than average, you may not need as many calories each day. If you’re trying to lose weight, you actually need to consume fewer calories than if you’re trying to maintain your weight. So how do you work out how many calories you actually need?

One place to start is to look at how many calories you eat currently. Most foods will list the number of calories on the packaging, but there are also guides available online if you can’t find that information. It can help to keep a food diary and write down how many calories you’re consuming each day to help you work out where you can cut back. 

If you are overweight, it is likely that you are eating more calories than you need (calculate your BMI to find out if you’re overweight). In order to lose weight, it is recommended that you reduce your calorie intake by approximately 600 calories per day. For the average man, this would mean consuming 1900 calories, and it would be 1400 calories for the average woman. Remember, these guidelines are averages, so you may need to adjust the amount of calories depending on your activity levels, body size and age. 

If you are overweight, you may need to adjust these numbers to reach your weight loss goals. We recommend speaking to a dietician or healthcare professional before doing so; losing too much weight too quickly can be dangerous for your health.

How to Create a Calorie Deficit with Diet and Exercise 

If you want to lose weight, there are three main techniques to keep in mind:

1. Smaller portions – reducing your portion size can help you to lose weight without having to sacrifice one specific food type. You sacrifice the quantity of food, so you can have more flexibility with the types of food you eat. This can work well for people who enjoy a varied diet and would rather have a smaller meals than give up specific foods. 
   
   
2. Healthier swaps – cutting back on calories is only half the problem. It’s important that you still have a healthy diet. To do this, you should try to maximise the nutritional value of the calories you do consume. This usually means cutting back on high-fat and high-sugar foods, or foods with added sugar as these typically contain a lot of calories with limited nutritional benefit. Instead, foods such as wholegrains, fruit, vegetables and lean meats can be a great way to maintain a healthy balanced diet whilst trying to lose weight. 
   
   
3. Exercise – Exercise uses up some of the calories we consume from food and it also increases your metabolic rate, which helps you to burn calories more quickly. Therefore, being even moderately active can be very useful if you want to lose weight or maintain a healthy body weight. It is recommended that everyone undertakes at least 30 minutes of exercise, twice a week, that is strenuous enough to make you feel out of breath. If exercise is not already part of your weekly routine, it can be hard to fit it in. However, there are ways to sneak more exercise into your life, such as walking or cycling to work, taking the stairs, parking in the furthest spot in the car park. There’s also lots of free exercise videos/tutorials online to fit the time you can spare, whether it’s 10 minutes or a full hour. Some people may prefer to join an exercise class, join a gym or go for a run around a park. There’s lots of options available and it might take a little while to work out how to fit it into your busy schedule. With a bit of persistence, you should be able to find some exercises you enjoy. 
   
   

Weight loss can take a little while and it can be hard to get used to these changes in your diet and exercise routine. By following these techniques, you will reduce your calories, maximise your diet and increase your exercise levels. These are the important first steps in creating a healthy weight loss journey, and if you try them out and find that you do need a little more help, you’ll have set yourself up to maximise the effects of any other weight loss treatments you may need.