How Many Calories Should I Eat To Lose Weight 2023?

Losing weight isn’t always easy. The good news: if you’re able to burn more calories than you take in every day, you’re already on the road to success.

Here are some of our top tips on using the power of calories to meet your own expectations. A slimmer waistline doesn’t take much, and you can get started today.

One single calorie on a food label is actually something called a “kilocalorie”—in places like the UK, labels actually use an analogous term, “kilojoules,” instead of what our system uses.

The body itself runs on adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is a byproduct of the digestion process. It’s broken down at the cellular level by way of hydrolysis after being synthesized and acts as the energy “currency” of all cellular activity. This, essentially, is how our bodies “eat” calories. 

Should You Count Calories?

You might be asking: how many calories should I eat a day? Unless you’re counting them, this question will be difficult to answer.

If weight loss and weight maintenance is your ultimate goal, counting calories is probably the best place to start. Sometimes, it can be easy to take excess calories in, even if you adhere to a reasonably healthy diet ordinarily. Things like salad dressing, coffee creamer, and caloric condiments like ketchup can all add up quickly, spoiling your otherwise balanced diet.

With that being said, it can be easy to get lost in the numbers. If you’re already quite thin, you should instead choose a more active lifestyle over restricting your intake further—a new cycling hobby or a yoga routine can both help you maintain a healthy weight without depriving yourself of the healthy foods your body needs to function.

Mostly, calorie counting is useful because it gives you a solid understanding of your nutritional profile on average. If you are carrying excess body weight, you’ll be able to see where you can cut back and sub in healthy alternatives—cauliflower rice, calorie-free sweeteners, and other weight loss aids that might get you ahead.

How To Reduce Calorie Intake

Self-monitoring, self-assessment, and accountability for everything you put on your plate will all be facilitated by counting calories and documenting what you eat. Once you know what needs to change, what are the best ways to meet your weight loss goals?

• Cut the junk: Even taking one indulgence off the table a day might be enough to make a big difference. Removing junk food from your diet entirely might even be able to help you reduce cravings^[5] and instead seek other treats—ideally, ones with less fat and less added sugar.
• Make food at home: On that note: cooking as many meals as you can at home is the best way to control exactly what you’re putting into your body. It gives you the opportunity to recreate what you’re craving with healthy fats, complex carbs, and whole grains—think about the difference between a Cinnabon and a similar treat made in your own kitchen. Influencers like The Minimalist Baker offer thousands of healthy recipes on their blogs, often using vegan, whole foods as the star ingredients. Medjool dates, for example, can often be used as a sweetener instead of white sugar.
• Choose high-volume, low-calorie foods: Big salads, veggie roasts, hearty, plant-based soups, and the like can help you feel fuller without taking on extra calories. Cauliflower pizza and riced cauliflower are two popular, low-carb alternatives, as is using lettuce in lieu of something like a hamburger bun. Often, you’ll be able to satisfy food cravings for things like noodles or pasta with alternatives like shirataki noodles, which are zero-calorie and very filling.
• Eating more mindfully: Avoid vegging on your phone or watching TV when you eat—engaging with your food and even making an effort to feel gratitude for it not only makes you more likely to process it more thoroughly, but it may also slow you down and prevent you from exceeding^[6] your intended caloric intake.

Aside from these tips on your daily calorie intake, we can always recommend more physical activity as another tool in your arsenal. Staying fit can help you tackle your calorie intake and will also help you prevent muscle loss while building lean body mass. Diet pills may also be able to help you close the gap, so to speak.

Final Thought

Is fewer calories always the answer? It’s definitely one of the first steps toward improving your appearance, body composition, and health overall. If you don’t want to gain weight, watching your calorie intake is the best way to maintain and craft a leaner figure.

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