There is a reason why many people dub weight-loss a harrowing affair. You have to change the way you eat, drink, and sometimes even the way you live your life just to lose a few kilos. Lack of patience and grit often makes people give up midway; as a result many people go back to eating more junk food leading to calorie overload. So what are calories, and why are they so important? Calorie is a unit of energy, everything you eat results in energy, but extra calories lead to fat accumulation, because your body does not need that many calories.
All of our bodies are built differently, and hence calorie requirement of our bodies are also different. Hence, before you start cutting back on calories, it is a good idea to understand how many calories per day does your body requires. It is also a good idea to not fall for these common mistakes.
Some of the 'Don'ts' on a calorie-restricted diet by Sweedal Trinidade, Senior Officer Dietetics (HOD), P.D. Hinduja Hospital and MRC:
1. Under-report calorie intake: When assessed, you must take into account all the calories you have consumed in a day, including 'occasional' binges. "It is very important to accurately assess nutritional intake, identify RDA and caloric deficit required to yield desired weight loss under the guidance of qualified professional," Sweedal notes.
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To track your calories properly, make sure you note everything you eat in the day
2. Eliminate crucial nutrients: Do not start eliminating crucial nutrients without consulting an expert. Ketogenic diet, dairy-free, gluten-free diets are effective only for a certain body-type. Understand your body type and its demands.
3. Not drinking enough water: Drinking water does not add to calories, it keeps you hydrated and also improves digestion. Hence, keep drinking water.
4. Not Exercising: Weight loss could either occur due to fat loss, muscle loss or loss of water weight. Eating low-calorie diet must be complemented by good exercise strategy so that the fat is lost effectively, and you are able to sustain that weight loss too.
(Also Read: 10 Low Calorie Foods That Can Speed Up Weight Loss)
It is very important to exercise too with dieting
5. Not maintaining balance of carbohydrates and protein: Do not confuse low-calorie diet with starving; you have to give your body the required nutrients. A good balance of carbohydrates and protein helps you keep full, which can prevent bouts of over-eating and intake of empty calories.
6. Unable to identify empty calories: Eliminate empty calories, for example calorie-dense foods that are laden with sugar, oil, alcohol etc. They do not do much good to body but add excess calories.
(Also Read: Weight Loss: 5 Low Calorie Breakfast Ideas You Can Try)
Too much sugar consumption can contribute to weight gain
Photo Credit: iStock
7. Not Read Food Labels: Reading food labels is very important. A high fiber or high protein food may be loaded with fat and sugar too; zero sugar food may be loaded with high quantum of fat too. When was the last time you checked for the sugar content on the backside of your protein bar?
Follow these tips and lose weight the right way!
(This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.)