What is the need for Low
Calorie Diet Recipes?
Perhaps one of the most
popular and effective weight loss diets is the low calorie diet. Because
of the public’s growing interest on how they too can make use of this
diet, low calorie diet recipes are highly searched for in the
internet and most read in magazines and cook books. When you are planning on
making low calorie diet, there are also several guidelines we may make use of
to come up with healthy and tasty low calorie diet recipes.
What are Low Calorie Diet
Recipes really for?
One of the main purposes why these recipes are made is mainly for people who
want to shed off those extra pounds. The point of making recipes that are low
in calories to help a person lose calories more than what he/she consumes. If a
person loses more calories than his/her intake, that person will lose
weight slowly or rapidly. But take note that these recipes are not the
only reason why a person may drop weight. There are other factors to consider
as well such as the person’s body type, how much weight he/she wants to lose, etc.
What’s in Low Calorie Diet Recipes?
Low Calorie Diet Recipes
Basically, low calorie diet
recipes require the dieter to consume 1,000 to 1,800 calories. But as mentioned
earlier, the amount of calories to take in will vary according to the person’s
body type and the amount weight that the person aims to lose.
How do I start coming up
with Low Calorie Diet recipes?
There are hundreds of recipes out there that are low in calories. Coming up
with these kinds of meals are actually not that hard at all. It will require of
us to first understand the principle behind low calorie diets before we start
making meals that this type of diet requires. A low calorie diet works behind
the principle that calories give us energy in order for us to do our daily
activities and allow our bodies to function properly. Having said that, a
person who lowers the intake of calories will let our body burn the stored fat
we have making it as its energy resource thus weight loss happens.
Going back to the question,
how do we start coming up with this kind of recipes? Here’s how:
- Understanding the Calorie Counter
It is very crucial to
understand which foods are high in calories and which ones are not. These days,
there are lots of books and articles on various websites that help us
understand about calories. Find out more about calories and you will later on
realize how much easier it is to tell which foods to eat and which ones should
be taken with limits.
- Find out the amount of calories you
will be consuming daily
A low calorie diet will require an inactive woman to consume 1,500 to 1,800 calories daily and for men with the same lifestyle, around 2,000 to 2,200. For people who are active and always on the go, from the numbers mentioned earlier, you may need to add 600 to 800 calories per day.
- Make reading food labels a HABIT
Now that you have understood how calories work, the amount you need to take in and the rest of the essential information, reading food labels won’t be such a daunting task. Be cautious if the calories that packed food has is quoted per pack, by weight or per portion.
- Make your meals interesting by being
involved with planning it with a dietitian
If you find it really hard to come up with your own low calorie diet recipes, you may actually ask assistance from an expert dietitian. You need to be hands-on in coming up with your weekly plans so that you know what foods you will be eating and the dietitian may help you include your favorite foods as well and still staying with in your calorie limits.
- Make your own food diary
Your food diary will serve as a dual purpose. Here, you can write down the foods that you ate for that day and figure out how much calories you consumed. This way you can monitor your caloric intake. Its other purpose is where you can write down different recipes that you may come across with that you happen to see on TV, while you were browsing the web or you’ve seen in a magazine somewhere.
How do I cut out the
calories in my diet?
By now you understand that in a low calorie diet you must consume few calories
but burn more of them. If you plan on making your own low calorie recipes you
may combine low calorie foods or even make sure that the recipe you are making
is low calorie.
Go for low-calorie foods
that are high-calorie tasting
Most people who are on low calorie diet tend to b “too safe” that they fear
exploring other types of foods which are surprisingly low in calories. Examples
of these foods are:
- Lobster = 3 ounces contain 83 calories
- Shrimp = 12 large pieces contain 60
calories
- Whipped cream = one tablespoon contains
8 calories (perfect finish for fresh fruit desserts)
Pair high-calorie foods
with low-calorie ones
Your recipes don’t necessarily have to be bland. You can actually combine a
spoonful of ice cream with a bowl of fresh fruit. You may even have some chips
for snacks paired with fresh salsa. Your fresh garden salad can become
interesting by filling it with a little grated cheese.
Appreciate water
There’s no problem with drinking a glass of soda or fruit juice but no matter
what, water will always be the best choice. There are even studies that showed
sugary drinks despite the calories it contains do not give a sense of fullness
compared to eating food and water is the best thirst quencher and does not add
up to your caloric intake.
Eat 5 or 6 meals a day
rather than three large meals (this includes snacks)
A 1999 South African study showed that men who ate their breakfast at intervals
over 5 hours consumed 30% lesser calories at lunch. There are also other
studies that showed that even if you ate same number of calories but
distributed this way will let your body release lesser insulin helping you
achieve a steady blood sugar level.
There are lots of low
calories diet recipes out there that you can use for your daily meals. But it
would really be best if you understood more about the diet and calories in
order to not only lose weight in line with the diet but also with your
lifestyle.
Low Calorie Diet
What’s in a LowCalorie Diet Menu?
Perhaps one of the secrets
to succeeding in losing weight is having a good diet plan and from there, you
are sure to have a healthy and balanced low calorie diet menu. A lot of people tend
to think that as long as they eat and exercise they will eventually lose weight. Although there is nothing wrong with this,
the thing is, it will take time plus your exercise will only be put to waste if
you do not pair it with a good diet menu.
If you really want to
succeed in losing
weight, it would be ideal to lower your caloric intake by 25% than what you
usually eat. An easy way to do this is by knowing what low calorie foods are to
incorporate in your low calorie diet menu.
What is a Low Calorie Diet
Menu?
A low calorie diet
menu is a guide for dieters who want to keep track of their caloric
count towards their goal of losing weight. Your diet menu would be much easier
to follow if you also have with easy to prepare dishes. A low care diet menu
comes in different ways as there are those that are also low in carbs while
some are particularly low in saturated and trans fat.
Low Calorie Diet MenuSample
Low Calorie Diet Menu
It is important that you
understand why a low calorie diet menu is very crucial. Nothing beats a
well-planned low calorie diet menu. Most people tend to take this essential
step for granted which is why they end up buying fast food, processed foods and
frozen dinners. These kinds of pre-packed food will not help you in losing
weight because they are not only high in calories but are also poor in
nutrition. The best low calorie diet menu is one that is filled with a variety
of foods from different food groups.
- Breakfast
Ideally, a healthy caloric intake should be around 1,300 to 1,500 calories per day so a low calorie breakfast should contain around 300 to 400 calories. You may start your day with a regular-sized bowl of cereals with a cup of skim milk or you could also have a small packet of oatmeal with a half cup of skim milk and add in a tablespoon of natural peanut butter.
- Lunch
It should also contain 300 to 500 calories per meal. For your lunch, you may have a cup of vegetable soup just make sure its low on sodium and for a filling touch, drain a pack of tuna. You can also your tuna to around 3 cups of washed spring greens with a tablespoon of low fat dressing. For your side, you can have fresh fruits or vegetables such as apples, grape tomatoes or a few sticks of baby carrots.
- Dinner
Just like the rest of the meals, your dinner should include 400 to 500 calories. You can also have salads during dinner but this time include ½ chicken breast (just be sure to remove the skin) and toss in spinach, 5 pieces of orange slices, a handful of toasted almonds and a low fat dressing.
- Snacks
Let’s face it. There will always be days when we just feel hungry in the middle of the day and because we are already at planning a low calorie diet menu, might as well include snacks in you calorie counting. In order to stay on track, you may have to limit your calories between 100 to 250 but make sure to eat up on healthy foods even during snacks. Best choices are fresh fruits, low fat yogurt with a few fresh fruits on it, whole grain cereal and skim milk and vegetable sticks dipped in hummus.
Tips and Advantages on
coming up with a Low Calorie Diet Menu
- It is highly recommended that you get
hands-on when planning your low calorie diet menu. You may start off by
coming up with a grocery list. This way you don’t get tempted to grab
unnecessary foods and you get to stick your budget plus you don’t miss out
on anything.
- If you have everything with you in your
“low calorie pantry”, there is that lesser chance of ending up in
take-outs or eating fast foods.
- Always choose organic fruits and
veggies as much as possible.
- You may have to be savvy when it comes
to food labels and avoid unhealthy ingredients such as fructose corn syrup
and hydrogenated oil to name a few.
- Don’t be afraid to include a wide
variety of food groups in your low calorie diet menu just be sure to not
go over your required daily caloric intake which is between 1,200 to 1,500
calories.
We have to admit that there
are times when we tend to be so determined to losing weight while on a low
calorie diet that we often end up in unhealthy habits. Having said that,
it is important that we stick to our low calorie diet the healthy way by having
a balanced low calorie diet menu which is rich in fats, oils, fiber and complex
carbs. A successful weight loss while on a low calorie diet is by carefully
planning it to come up with a good diet menu in hand with good exercise.
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