How to Develop a Low Calorie Diet

No matter what you call it -- points, counting carbs, limiting fats -- it all adds up to decreasing your calorie intake. A basic knowledge of portion sizes and standard nutritional measurements equips you to develop a low calorie diet that fits your personal lifestyle. No matter how you package it, the only way to lose weight is to change your eating habits to decrease your daily calorie consumption. However, you do not have to give up all your favorite foods to make this work for you as long as you watch how much and how often you eat them.

Instructions

1

Consult your doctor or a registered dietitian to assess your weight goals, activity levels and medical conditions. Determine a healthy level of reduced calorie intake that will protect your well-being while allowing you to shed the weight you need to lose.

2

Educate yourself on how many calories (carbohydrates, proteins and fats) are contained in standard portion sizes of your food choices. A standard serving of most foods runs between 1/2 and 1 cup (four to eight ounces) but the calorie content varies widely among different foods. The American Dietetic Association provides exchange lists that can help you identify these important nutritional facts when planning your diet.

3

Divide your recommended daily calories into three to six meals or snacks spaced throughout the day. Allow more for morning and afternoon when your body most needs the energy to burn for your daily activities. A smaller evening meal rounds out your necessary calorie intake to keep your body healthy without leaving excess calories to linger in your system while you sleep when slowed digestion can contribute to weight gain.

4

Design a template menu that indicates how many servings of what types of food you can have at each meal to stay within your set calorie limits. For example, a 500-calorie breakfast might include: three lean meat servings (3 ozs., 175 calories), one fruit serving (1/2 cup, 60 calories), one starch serving (1 oz., 80 calories), two fat servings (2 teaspoons to 2 tablespoon, 90 calories), one low-fat milk serving (1 cup, 90 calories) for a total of 495 calories.

5

Create a personal repertoire of menus for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks that include your personal food preferences while staying within the calorie limits for each meal. For example, you could complete the breakfast plan above with 3/4 cup cottage cheese, 1/2 cup peaches, 1/2 bagel with 4 teaspoons of peanut butter and 1 cup of low-fat milk. Making several options for each meal ahead of time saves the tedious hassle of having to count calories at each meal, which discourages you from continuing to follow the diet plan. Including some of your favorite foods encourages you to stick with it.