In this article, we will talk about diet to lose weight, what it means, and how to organize it; for obvious reasons, we will be pretty concise despite the magnitude of the subject.
More precisely, the purpose of the article is to show an academic “classic method” aimed at a diet that allows the reduction of fat mass (FM) – in excess, not weight in the strict sense of the term.
The goal of a diet to lose weight must be an improvement in body composition, that is, the ratio of FFM (lean mass) and FM.
Therefore, health is not a simple reduction of weight, which can also obtain by feeding the person.
In addition, we are not talking about differentiated systems, such as:
- metabolic diet
- dissociated diet
- zone diet
- discharge diet
- Low carbs diet
- pH diet or alkaline diet
- paleolithic or paleo diet
- Scarsdale diet
- Gift diet
- Lemme diet
- Atkins Diet
- Mayo Diet
Remember that what we will explain has only an informative and informative function.
But, since diet is a severe discipline that requires years of study and practice or internship, for ad hoc work.
It is recommended to address the authorized professionals just like dietitians.
We will sum up to a very narrow point is a simple method of assessing your basic anthropometric characteristic.
Therefore your calorie requirement, the distribution in macronutrients, and the number of meals – with some practical reference.
Attention! Patients < 18 years, pregnant women, nutrition, and patients with diseases will not be considered. So, the basic anthropometric estimate and calorie requirement also exclude athletes and particularly muscle subjects.
To find out more:
Hypocaloric Diet
Data Detection for a diet to lose weight
The introduction of the medical history card helps to understand “who you are.”
In short, you need to mention the essential elements – “what do you do in life,” “possible presence of any disease, allergy or food intolerance,” and “what are objectives.”
Measurements and essential parameters for a diet to lose weight
Any suitable dietary protocol shall not be independent of the characteristics of the subject.
Summarizing:
- Age;
- Gender;
- Detected Staging in the morning (measured in centimeters or meters)
- Weight detected in fasting and after evacuation (measured in kilograms)
- Anti-dominant wrist circumference detected at the narrower point (measured in centimeters).
Fitness also gives room to unscientifically supported classifications such as somatotype (endomorphic, ectomorphic, mesomorphic) and biotype (clavicular, trapezoidal, etc.).
In theory, endomorphic subjects tend to gain weight and muscle mass more efficiently.
Alternatively, ectomorphic subjects are usually hard gainers in lean and fatty mass.
We will not dwell on the actual use of these catalogings, limiting ourselves to emphasizing that.
Especially for those who search for the optimization of the state of health, they are not essential.
Even if it was “limited” essential, it would be more helpful to measure the fat propagation by multiplication.
They can give, even without a specific algorithm for estimating body fat – fat (BF) – a precise idea of the effective catabolism of subcutaneous lipid reserves.
Bioimpedentiometry (BIA) is the fastest and least subject to operator error, however indirect and therefore potentially inaccurate. This provides more data, but it’s taken out of algorithms. Dehydration, power, and composition outside the algorithmic average would result in false assessments.
Suppose the person has an overview of obesity, metabolic diseases, or family history for them.
In that case, it becomes essential to estimate the distribution of fat.
Usually, it is enough to take an abdominal girth.
Very rarely, almost just for scientific research, you choose to make advanced imaging.
The attending physician’s agreement is helpful for hematological investigations with specific reference to blood glucose, cholesterol, triglyceridemia, uricemia, and possibly liver and kidney markers.
Physical activity level estimate
The level of physical activity (LAF) is a parameter that considers how much we move.
Specific working coefficients have been formulated and, multiplied by the basal metabolism (MB), will then allow us to calculate the total daily energy expenditure or caloric requirements.
Hence:
| Sex | Age | Physical Activity Level (see table below) | LAF (yes aus) 1 | LAF (no aus) 2 |
| Male | 18-59 | Light | 1.55 | 1.41 |
| Moderate | 1.78 | 1.70 | ||
| Heavy | 2.10 | 2.01 | ||
| 60-74 | 1.51 | 1.40 | ||
| ≥ 75 | 1.51 | 1.33 | ||
| Female | 18-59 | Light | 1.56 | 1.42 |
| Moderate | 1.64 | 1.56 | ||
| Heavy | 1.82 | 1.73 | ||
| 60-74 | 1.56 | 1.44 | ||
| ≥ 75 | 1.56 | 1.37 |
- Including the desirable activities, i.e., the exercise suggested to sedentary people for maintaining muscular and cardiovascular tone and whose cost is to be considered in the calculation of energy expenditure;
- Excluding desirable physical activities.
Classification of professional activities
| Lightweight | Moderate | Heavy |
| Employees | Housewives | Duties as in the moderate-heavy group but in poor mechanization conditions |
| Administrative and managerial | Domestic collaborators | |
| Freelancers, technicians or similar | Sales staff | |
| Tertiary |
Physical activity above normal
There is, however, a small loophole for calculating the calorie requirement of people who practice sports at a load greater than 3 40% weekly sessions.
First of all, the LAF No aus must be chosen, so it does not involve sports activities.
Secondly, there will be detailed research on the specific sport practice expenditure (swimming, running, cycling, bodybuilding, etc.).
By multiplying the coefficient for minutes and considering actual body weight, you can then trace the energy commitment for each session.
This will then be multiplied by weekly sessions and displayed daily (divided by seven days) or will allow you to change the diet of workout days.
Diet to lose weight Habits Questionnaire
This is the last data collection stage.
By dividing – for convenience reasons – all foods into the VII food groups and additional subgroups, a short table should be compiled.
Specifying which foods we prefer, how often we consume them, and what portion.
Some might argue that this is limited to professional practice, but this is not the case.
When assessing your diet, everyone is influenced by what they “want to do,” fueling the memory of what they have done.
Moreover, the “spirometric” assessment of portions is almost always underestimated.
Taking the balance is therefore highly instructive.
To be honest with yourself and write what actually “combines” at the table (or bar) is certainly a great help.
In this regard, rather than relying on memory, some prefer to fill a dietary diary.
With modern software and phone apps, each will translate their daily or weekly diet into nutrients.
This will be useful to us later on.
Data processing and evaluation
The data processing aims to estimate daily calorie requirements, the breakdown of macronutrients, and the breakdown of meals.
Constitution and morphological type
First of all, it is necessary to evaluate the constitution and morphological type, for which wrist and stature circumference is necessary.
The tables below are used for accurate estimation.
To estimate the constitution, it is sufficient to contextualize the wrist’s circumference in the first table.
| Woman | Constipation | Man |
| <15 | Slim | <17 |
| 15-16 | Normal | 17-18 |
| > 16 | Robust | > 18 |
To estimate the morphological type, it is necessary to divide the height into centimeters for the circumference of the wrist and contextualize it in the second table.
| Woman | Constipation | Man |
| <9.9 | Slim | <9.6 |
| 9.9-10.9 | Normal | 9.6-10.4 |
| > 10.9 | Robust | > 10.4 |
Body Mass Index (BMI)
Let us now calculate the actual body mass index (BMI) or body mass index (BMI).
The formula, which is a ratio, requires two values: weight measured in kilograms (dividend) and stature measured in meters (divider) elevated to square: BMI= kg/h2
| Underweight | <18.5 |
| Normal weight | 18.5-24.9 |
| Overweight | 25.0-29.9 |
| Obesity | ≥ 30 |
The result can already be presented in a table, but this gives us a very approximate assessment because it does not count the skeleton. Let’s say you can confirm an overweight or underweight, but in online border cases, it is not very reliable.
To put it all together, this system does not even consider muscle mass.
But, as we have said earlier, athletes and bodybuilders must be excluded a priori.
Desirable physiological BMI
But we also want to understand what the right BMI should be, which is the desirable physiological one.
Therefore, considering what has been evaluated in the estimation of the constitution and morphological type, we now need to cross-reference the data in the following table to obtain this figure.
| Slim Long-limbed | 18.5 |
| Slim Normoline | 19.3 |
| Slim Cobby | 20.1 |
| Normal Long-limbed | 20.9 |
| Normal Normoline | 21.7 |
| Normal Cobby | 22.5 |
| Robust Long-limbed | 23.3 |
| Robust Normoline | 24.1 |
| Robust Cobby | 24.9 |
Desirable physiological weight
Having a more specific BMI is crucial.
This is because it allows, in a reverse calculation, to go back to what our desirable physiological weight should be, which is the goal of the diet.
For accuracy, you need to multiply the specific BMI obtained at the height of the height in meters squared: Desirable physiological weight = specific BMI * h2.
Basal Metabolism (MB) and Daily Heat Requirements
We have to calculate the basal metabolism, which, as anticipated, will serve us – multiplied at the LAF – to get the daily calorie requirement.
Here, too, statistical processing provides us with a helpful table for contextualizing data, an authentic collection of prediction equations of basal metabolism.
| Females | Age | Males |
| 14.7 * weight + 496 | 18-29 | 15.3 * weight + 679 |
| 8.7 * weight + 829 | 30-59 | 11.6 * weight + 879 |
| 9.2 * weight + 688 | 60-74 | 11.9 * weight + 700 |
| 9.8 * weight + 624 | ≥ 75 | 8.4 * weight + 819 |
Finally: daily normal caloric requirement = MB * LAF.
Note: for those who have compiled a nutritional diary, it could be highly educational to compare the data obtained by the nutritional translator with the value of daily caloric requirement estimated above.
If they are comparable and your weight is constant, the work is reliable.
Hypocaloric Diet to a lose weight
The low-calorie diet has to basically adhere to two principles:
- Nutritional balance: This is intended to distribute energy macronutrients, which we will see below, and a supply of all other nutrients and nutritional factors. These include vitamins, minerals, cholesterol (not more than 300 mg per day for healthy subjects), fiber, water, etc.
- Sustainability: This has a lot to do with the previous point. Your caloric cut may not be excessive. Let’s say that for a passive, the low-calorie slimming routine corresponds to 70% of the regular calorie. At the same time, for an engaged athlete, it would be better not to fall below 90%.
Breakdown of energy macronutrients
Estimated on the regular caloric intake mentioned above.
We know that carbohydrates provide 3.75 kcal / g, 4 kcal / g proteins, and 9 kcal g lipids.
We also know that carbohydrates primarily have an energetic function, that lipids are very caloric.
Still, there are also essential nutrients (fatty acids and vitamins).
The proteins have many other metabolic tasks.
However, none of the three can be excluded.
They should be consumed in a more or less determined quantity – with a large margin of tolerance.
For their plastic function, the proteins can be estimated on body weight in two ways: on the desirable physiological weight if you are underweight or overweight, and on the actual one if you are in normal weight or with large muscle mass.
Let’s say that the ratio can vary depending on the level of physical activity.
A sedentary can avoid deficiency with 0.9-1.1 g/kg, while for the muscle growth of a bodybuilder, it is also used 2.2-2.4 g/kg of real weight; the gap is widening.
We will not go into that in more detail, except to say that, to ensure optimal biological value.
At least one-third of the food will have to come from animal sources or supplements.
On the other hand, Fats should constitute 25% of the daily caloric requirement (about 2.5% from PUFA).
While carbohydrates should cover all the remaining energy, no more than 10% should come from added sugar – including sucrose used in recipes such as cakes, cookies, brioches, etc.
Inverse Calculation
There is also the possibility of making the reverse calculation, which estimates the daily energy intake by energy macronutrients according to weight. It’s a very approximate method, but one that’s used mostly by non-employees.
We don’t even spend our daily calorie requirement here.
Known body weight, for a low-calorie diet, the 3 coefficients of macro-energy are set, for example, 0.5 g of fat/kg, 1.5 g of carbohydrates/kg, 2.5 g of protein/kg.
The sum of their caloric intake will give the total caloric intake.
Breakdown of meals
Here one can be shocked, in the sense that the meals of worker tourists will never be as manageable as those of a municipal employee.
Self-management is therefore very useful.
For several reasons, the distribution of calories between meals is considered optimal when close to the following values: breakfast 15% of kcal, snack 5%, lunch 40%, snack 5%, dinner 35%.
This is because the habits of the Americans are still vivid at the consumption of lunch and dinner as the main ones and because the calories are concentrated in moments of high engagement and recharge – but without exceeding before sleep.
The index and glycaemic and/or insulin load (for those who believe in it), with this breakdown, taking care of performing meals of mixed composition, can be ignored.
Of course, as anticipated in the premise, everything depends on rhythm, needs, and lifestyle as a whole.
Food Choice for a Diet to lose weight
For the layman, it is necessary to use software, which is now widely available in both app and pc form, to ensure nutritional balance.
We will not be spending too many words on this because, as we have said, it should take into account subjective preferences.
The choice of food should be of a “health” nature. Low-fat, whole-fat, unprocessed, water-rich foods are preferred – with the exception, of course, of some products such as seasoning oil, pasta, and dry legumes.
A special focus for those who work out will be on the digestibility of foods before training and the prevalence of macro-energy in the previous meal (mostly carbohydrates) and consecutive (protein-rich).
The use of health supplements depends on what you cannot achieve with your diet.