Getting started with weight loss
In this article i want to cover the basics of losing weight. I want to keep it rather simple but actionable. I would like anyone reading this to be able to start weight loss tomorrow. Maybe I am exaggerating a bit but you catch my point.
1) TDEE
First you need to estimate your TDEE. Your TDEE is your total daily energy expenditure. This is the number of calories you consume every day. It has 2 components. The basal metabolic rate and the expenditure itself.
The BMR(basal metabolic rate) is how many calories you would consume even if you were bedridden. If you wake up but do not get out of bet and watch TV for 14h straight and go back to bed, that is your Basal Metabolic Rate.
The expenditure is anything on top of that. For this I use this calculator.
I prefer to put sedentary and use the resulting TDEE.
2) Calorie Intake
Now that you have your TDEE you need to calculate your intake. How much energy you get through foods and drinks. Use an app like myFitnessPal to track everything you eat.
3) Tracking your progress
Make an excel with the following columns. Date, Kg, Calorie Intake, Calorie Expenditure, Deficit. This is the part I assume many of you will be too lazy to do but it is very important. Let me explain why.
Weight loss is a long, boring process. It is hard to stay motivated and keep going. It feels like it is going too slow. You are dieting for 2 weeks, you check the mirror and you do not see Henry Cavill. You get upset. Step nr 3, the one with the Excel will keep you going. For kg just weigh yourself every morning. For calorie intake just input what myFitnessPal tells you.
For Calorie Expenditure I prefer to do a different thing. I use the calculator above using sedentary, I track my steps with my phone(it's an automatic process) and at the end of the day my Calorie Expenditure will be TDEE + CaloriesBurnedBySteps.
To calculate CaloriesBurnedBySteps just use this CaloriesBurnedBySteps. It is much more accurate than what your phone/watch says. This is why I use it.
The Deficit = Calorie Expenditure - Calorie Intake
4) What should you eat?
I will tell you what I eat but most importantly what I never eat. Never is a strong word, let me use a different one. What i rarely eat and by rarely I mean less than 1/3 months.
Sugar in any shape or form(soda, icecream, chocolate bars, candy), fast-food stuff, fruit juices. Any kind of liquid calories. Bread, pasta and alcohol are things I also like to avoid.
An example day of eating. I like to have 4 meals but sometimes I skip one.
Breakfast: 2 egg + 4 egg white omlet with 1/2 avocado
Lunch: Chicken breast + 200grams of boiled potatoes(or mashed potatoes)
Between lunch and dinner: 40g of some kind of nuts, macadamia, walnuts, anything really
Dinner: salmon/trout + 200grams of boiled/mashed potatoes or the same 200grams of rice(normal rice, not rice with parmesan)
Notable substitutions. I do not eat the same things every time. For protein I eat anything from the following list: turkey breast, pork tenderloin, chicken skewers, salmon, trout, dorada, sea bass, tilapia.
The important thing is that they are grilled or from the oven and do not come alongside sauces. Usually sauces are the hypercaloric food that ruins an honest man's diet.
For side dishes, except the already mentioned I like any kind of steamed vegetables, broccoli, brussel sprouts, mushrooms, carrots, asparagus, really anything.
5) What deficit should you aim for?
1kg of fat is burned by a 7700 kcal deficit(aproximately). This means you can take the amount of time in which you want to lose 1kg and divide the 7700 by the number of days. I think it is reasonable to lose 1kg of fat in about 3 weeks if you are already lean or 2 weeks or less if you are fat(25%+).
Let's take the 3 weeks example. That means we need a 370 kcal daily deficit. This is quite easy to achieve.
6) Is that all? No tips? No supplements? No secret sauce?
Yes, that is basically it. I will write about tips, supplements, hormones, blood tests and other weight loss related stuff in future posts.
Stay tuned.