Anyone who wants to lose some weight naturally wants to lose weight successfully. Unfortunately, a lot of misinformation is now buzzing through the internet and the media.
It starts with demonizing carbohydrates and recommends drinks that boost the metabolism but don’t do that.
So in this complete guide, we look at what you need to consider from a scientific point of view if you want to lose weight successfully.
In addition to that, we also discuss how to avoid the yo-yo effect after weight loss effectively. Here we go!
How does fat loss work?
If you want to lose weight successfully, one thing is always mandatory: a negative energy balance! If you have a negative energy balance, it is also known as a calorie deficit.
This means nothing other than that you burn more calories than you take in over a certain period.
A simple example to illustrate the negative energy balance:
Our example person is 27 years old, female, hardly does any sport and therefore has a daily calorie consumption of approx. 1500 kcal. She consumes 1000 kcal daily through food and drink. This results in a calorie deficit of 500 kcal per day.
Caloric intake: 1000 kcal
minus calorie consumption: 1500 kcal
= – 500 kcal ( = negative energy balance )
The resulting calorie deficit forces the woman’s body to take the energy it needs from somewhere else. This is ideally done to a large extent from the body’s fat reserves (fatty tissue).
If we take in more calories than we use over a certain period, we are the opposite of a calorie deficit: the so-called calorie surplus!
A calorie surplus is a simple reason many people keep gaining weight. They eat more calories than they use up over time, and the body builds up fat tissue.
A calorie deficit is always necessary when losing weight!
Regardless of whether you lose weight with low carb, low fat, a mixed diet, a vegan diet, or any other method: the calorie deficit is always why we lose body fat. This process is based on a fundamental physical law that cannot be broken.
For example, I am telling you this because many people who lose weight with low carbs still believe that they are only losing weight. After all, they are cutting out carbohydrates.
However, this is completely WRONG! You can also gain weight with low carbs!
You can lose weight with low carbs because by reducing the number of carbohydrates you eat, you can create a calorie deficit and therefore lose fat!
So if you want to lose weight successfully and don’t think of a calorie deficit as the first thing, everything goes wrong. It would be best if you ALWAYS had a calorie deficit. It doesn’t matter which diet you ultimately choose.
- Remember: A calorie deficit is ALWAYS necessary when reducing body fat (losing weight). It doesn’t matter what diet you use. A calorie deficit is defined as consuming fewer calories than you expend over some time.
Roughly know your own calorie needs.
To be sure that you are in a calorie deficit, you must know your own caloric needs.
The quick way to get an approximate estimate of your calorie consumption is this:
Multiply your body weight by a factor of 25 to 30. If you move a lot, use the upper end of the range. If not, then instead of the lower value.
So if you weigh 70 kg and exercise a lot, you would calculate 70 x 30 = 2100 kcal. This value comes pretty close to your calorie consumption, but it is not very accurate. If you sit a lot or are very overweight, your consumption can also be lower.
In contrast, your calorie consumption can also be higher if you do many sports, walk long distances or do heavy physical work.
If you want to determine your needs, and accurate fitness bracelet* is the best solution.
Adjustments to calorie intake when losing weight
As you lose weight, you need to adjust your calorie intake constantly. As your body weight decreases, so do your calorie consumption.
The following rules therefore apply:
- When you stop losing fat, you know you’re consuming too many calories and are no longer in a calorie deficit. So it would help if you lowered your calorie intake to continue losing fat.
- If you lose weight very quickly over some time, you usually eat very few calories and therefore have a very high-calorie deficit. That’s not bad, as long as you’re comfortable doing it and not struggling with binge eating. Because losing weight quickly is not unhealthier than losing weight slowly and does not have to mean a yo-yo effect. Whether adjustments are necessary for this scenario depends on the situation and cannot be answered in general terms.
How many calories do I need to “extra” burn to lose 1kg of fat?
You have to consume about 7000 additional kcal to lose 1 kg of body fat. For example, that would equate to a daily calorie deficit of 1000 kcal for a week. Or a daily calorie deficit of 500 kcal for two weeks.
How high you set your calorie deficit depends on various factors. The higher the debt, the faster you naturally break down fat. At the same time, however, your stamina is more strained with a high-calorie deficit. It is essential to find a good middle ground to reach the goal!
It’s also important to know that not all the weight you lose when you lose weight is fat. If you have created a calorie deficit of 7000 kcal, it is also possible that you have lost 2 kg, and only 1 kg of that is fat. The other kilogram would then be water, for example.
- Remember: To reduce 1 kg of body fat, a calorie deficit of about 7000 kcal is necessary!
Does that mean I have to count calories now?
No, you don’t NEED to count calories to lose weight. But if you have failed to lose weight numerous times and it wasn’t because of your stamina, counting calories is an excellent and accurate variant.
You could just as well get a nutrition plan that calculates calories and macronutrients (protein, carbohydrates, fat, alcohol).
A low-carb diet can also make sense if you don’t want to count calories and have no problems doing without carbohydrates. You might as well start intermittent fasting and see if that puts you in a calorie deficit without actually having to count calories.
What you do to lose weight depends heavily on your requirements and preferences. For me, however, losing weight successfully always means taking your health into account.
- Remember: Counting calories is not mandatory when losing weight. However, if you have often failed, then a thorough check of the calorie intake using a nutrition plan or direct counting using an app is effective!
These things are also important when losing weight
In addition to calories, other things count when you lose weight.
This includes, for example, motivation, the distribution of macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein, fat, alcohol), sufficient intake of fiber, and sufficient intake of micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, and trace elements).
This is the only way to lose weight healthily and optimally. That’s why we will look at these points in detail now.
motivation
Your motivation ultimately determines whether you manage to lose weight or not.
It’s that time. You seriously have to ask yourself whether you’re goal-oriented enough. If you’ve been trying for a long time, have chosen a sensible and goal-oriented method that creates a calorie deficit, and it still doesn’t work permanently. Maybe it just fails because of your stamina, and your problem is much more of a psychological nature and not the proper diet. My tip to you is always thinking about your health because you only have one! In addition, work with visualization and visualize how your well-being will increase and how well you will feel when you have reached your goal.
They are pushing aside excuses to finally get started and see it through to the finish line!
Lose weight successfully through the correct distribution of macronutrients
The term macronutrients refer to the four nutrients carbohydrates, protein, fat, and alcohol.
The distribution of macronutrients is one of the essential things when losing weight – along with the calorie deficit. That is why you will find below short descriptions and some recommendations for the intake of the individual macronutrients while losing weight.
Protein for muscle maintenance and satiety
The essential macronutrient during weight loss is protein.
Because if you eat too little protein during fat loss, more muscles will be broken down. But that’s precisely what you want to avoid as much as possible because muscle tissue consumes energy and is known to look far better than fat tissue.
Studies like this one also show that higher protein intake results in a more significant percentage of weight loss being fat.
Other studies like this one also showed that taking 50g of protein instead of 50g of carbohydrates resulted in participants losing more weight. And that although the calorie intake was the same!
Healthy people should eat about 1.5 to 2.2 g of protein per kg of body weight per day while losing weight. If you are very overweight, you will need less protein than stated above. Women usually need a little less than men.
Here is a list of the best protein foods to add to your diet.
Carbohydrates and fats during fat loss
The rest of the calories we eat during weight loss should come from carbohydrates and fats.
Exactly how you allocate those calories depends on many factors, and some of it is a decision you should make based on personal taste.
When it comes to fat loss, the distribution of carbohydrates and fats is far less critical than many people think. However, it is essential not to consume too little fat. This can hurt our hormonal balance.
In addition, you should make sure that you have sufficient amounts of essential (= vital) fatty acidspicks up. The essential fatty acids include the omega-three fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) and the omega-six fatty acids linoleic acid.
While ALA can be found in plant sources like flaxseed, high-fat sea fish is a significantly better source of Omega 3. This is because the omega-three fatty acids in fatty sea fish are in a better form for our body and can therefore be used more efficiently.
The omega-six fatty acid linoleic acid is mainly found in vegetable fats such as sunflower oil. However, you are likely already consuming more than enough omega-six fatty acids. There is also a handy overview of various recommended fat sources for your diet.
alcohol and fat loss
Alcohol is the last macronutrient that we haven’t looked at in more detail. In my opinion, alcohol didn’t lose anything when losing weight – at least in larger quantities.
Because alcoholic drinks often contain high amounts of calories and are exceptionally poorly satiating! However, as long as you have enough calories open, drinking alcohol won’t make you lose fat as severely.
So, having a drink now and then won’t hurt your weight loss success as often as you’re told. The energy balance also plays the primary role here!
- Remember: Protein is the most critical macronutrient when losing weight because it keeps us full and protects the muscles from breakdown. How you distribute carbs and fats matters less than many people think!
Micronutrient intake for maximum health!
Of course, everyone who wants to lose weight successfully must also value maximum health! And for our health and performance – in addition to a few other things – the so-called micronutrients play an enormously important role. Micronutrients
Because you’re consuming fewer calories while losing fat, you now need to get the same amount of micronutrients with fewer calories. Therefore, it is essential to include micronutrient-rich foods in your diet. Include vitamins, minerals, and trace elements. Excellent sources of micronutrients are vegetables.
Such as broccoli, spinach, or kale, berries such as raspberries, and animal foods such as eggs and dairy products.
- Remember: You take in fewer calories than before when you lose weight. As a result, fewer micronutrients would be absorbed with the same diet. For this reason, it makes sense to use micronutrient-rich variants when it comes to vegetables.
Fiber for satiety and gut health
Dietary fiber should also be consumed in sufficient quantities while losing weight because fiber not only ensures that we stay full longer. Among other things, they serve as food for our intestinal bacteria. It would be best to aim for a fiber intake of about 30g per day. A little more depending on your body weight and calorie intake. If you have been consuming very little fiber up to this point, I recommend gradually increasing your information. A sharp, sudden increase in dietary fiber intake can also have negative consequences. Good sources of fiber include vegetables (broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts,…), berries (raspberries), and grain products such as oatmeal.
. Here is a list of the best high-fiber foods.
- Dietary fibers ensure longer-lasting satiety and have positive effects on our intestinal health. Adequate intake is therefore highly recommended even during weight loss.
Sport to lose weight – yes or no?
Of course, you don’t have to exercise to lose weight.
Hopefully, everyone is aware that sport can have an extremely positive effect on the success and our health.
So if you enjoy a sport, it is, of course, good to practice it regularly while losing weight. Strength training, in particular, can have an enormously positive effect on our body during a weight loss phase thanks to the muscle-preserving or muscle-building effects.
If you are an absolute couch potato and don’t enjoy sport at all, you should at least try to walk a few distances or go for a long walk once or twice a week. This is healthy and, of course, also increases your calorie consumption.
- Remember: You can lose weight successfully even without exercise. However, everyone should know that sport and exercise are beneficial for calorie consumption and thus for weight loss and also have enormously positive effects on our health!
Lose weight successfully – things you don’t need at all!
You don’t need any expensive products to lose weight successfully.
Most have not been scientifically proven and are therefore useless.
There are very few valuable products that studies have proven to help you lose weight. However, omega three fatty acids* and vitamin D* can be worthwhile in terms of health.
https://healthidem.com/2022/04/18/11-high-fiber-foods-to-include-in-your-weight-loss-meal-plan/