How to work out your daily calorie goal for weight loss

That is a question you hear from so many people when they first embark on any healthy eating plan. For most they believe they need to be on a really low daily calorie allowance to lose weight. How long do you think you could continue to eat 800 calories a day? We all know the answer here, it's not healthy or maintainable and if you can't maintain that goal, the likelihood is that while you may lose a lot of weight, you will revert straight back to old way and regain all the weight you have lost and more.

Set A Realistic Calorie Deficit.

Far too many of us have been brainwashed into believing that to lose weight means restrictive low calorie meals and munching lettuce leaves for the rest of your life. It just isn’t true.

Realistically if you want to lose weight and keep the weight off, set yourself a realistic calorie goal, so long as you are in a calorie deficit (and don't have any health issues etc that can affect your hormones or metabolism) then you should lose weight.

It is a misconception that you need to be on 800-1000 calories a day to lose weight, a restrictive goal you far to often see applied to everyone. It's just not healthy or maintainable. Your daily calorie goal to lose weight should take into account your height, age, current weight and activity level.

What is TDEE? (Total Daily Expenditure)

This is daily maintenance goal based on your age, height and weight and includes your activity level i.e. Total Daily Energy Expenditure.

TDEE (Total Daily Expenditure) versus BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate)

To lose weight you need to be in a calorie deficit and this means eating less calories than your body burns.

However you don't want to eat above your TDEE or at your TDEE level as this is your maintenance calories.

Your BMR basal metabolic rate is the calories your body needs just to function - i.e. your bodies most basic life sustaining functions.

So going below your BMR while you will see weight loss, it is normally far too restrictive and not very healthy can mess up your metabolism and It is also not a maintainable goal.

You want to find the common ground between the two TDEE vs BMR.

How to work out your daily calorie goal for weight loss

This perfect calorie goal is usually your TDEE (Total Daily Calorie Expenditure) minus 300-500 calories (20%) ensuring it doesn't go below your BMR for the reasons outlined above.

Sound confusing? Well it isn't really.

There are lots of handy calculators out there to work out your TDEE and BMR.

I like this one here TDEE Calculator - make sure once you enter the info for your gender, age, weight and activity level and hit calculate that you select the cutting tab to see your daily calorie goal to lose weight.

Be careful when using some calorie counting apps, as they often set a daily calorie goal that is far too low for most.

When should I expect to see weight loss from being in a calorie deficit?

Most should see some weight loss within the first week. Don't expect huge weight losses each week. While this may be the case for some, it's not the case for everyone. There are many different factors that can impact how much weight you lose or don't lose in a week.

For example two males of the same age, height, weight and activity level could eat the exact same foods for one week, but they most likely will not lose the same weight, so try not to compare yourself to others. This is your journey.

Things that can Impact Weight Loss

There are many things that can impact your weight loss such as the following:

1. Not tracking calories accurately (either be mistake or deliberately, have you really tracked everything? Is there anything you may of weight or calculate incorrectly?)
2. Ilness can also impact weight loss, some may lose more than usual because they are not eating at all, others may crave all the stuff we shouldn't, there isn't a right or wrong here though, the main part is getting yourself feeling healthy again. Sometimes when ill you just have to eat what you can.
3. Ongoing or undiagnosed health issues - if you have been in a calorie deficit for a while and are tracking accurately and not seeing any results. It may be time to speak to your family doctor, just to rule out any issues that may affect your ability to lose weight.
4. Depression/Anxiety/Stress - for many these are one of the biggest culprits for not losing weight. Many of us resort to food when we feel low, anxious or depressed, plus our cortisol levels are affected when our stress levels are high. Food can be one of the biggest comforts for many. So if you find yourself struggling no matter how hard you try, speak to your doctor about things you can do to try and help you.
5. Forgetting to recalculate your calorie goal. This will change as you lose weight, so always revisit your TDEE and BMR if weight loss stops, to ensure you are at the correct goal still for you.

These or course are just a few things, there are many others. It's not always simply just a case of eat less than you burn and you will lose weight.

Need some help with meals? Check out some of these:

• Full Slimming Eats Recipe Index - over 900 delicious recipes all with full nutritional calculations
• Meal Plans - need a weekly meal plan? Slimming Eats has lots to choose from.
• Tips for Healthy Eating and Portion Control - a useful post for how to naturally control portions if you find calorie counting restrictive and hard to maintain.
• Slimming Eats Cookbooks - love a cookbook to follow recipes from? We have a couple of Sunday Times Best Selling Cookbooks that would be great to add to your collection.
• Slimming Eats Facebook Community - need to join a friendly and supportive online community to help you on your healthy eating journey? Then come join our facebook group.