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Sherdog is replete with "Critique My Diet" threads, wherein the poster essentially lists out the foods they eat in an attempt to receive feedback. Many posters believe that simply "cleaning up their diet" by replacing certain foods with others is the answer to all of their weight loss woes. This is a wrongheaded approach for most because dieting is less about what one eats as opposed to how much one eats. Too few people understand that dieting is about calorie and macronutrient manipulation, and not strictly about dietary exclusion of certain foods. (Read this for more information on macronutrients, written by Alan Aragon). If one eats fewer calories than one expends, and their macronutrient ratio (i.e. how much carbs, protein, and fat one eats) is sound, then weight loss will be steady and comprised mostly of fat loss. However, even if one has poor macros, the most critical aspect of weight loss still lies in setting a proper calorie deficit. In order to set a deficit, one must first determine their maintenance calories, or how much one can consume such that there is neither weight loss nor weight gain. Thus the first step in designing a successful diet is determining how much to eat, and the second step will be dedicated to what one should eat.
There are a few ways to determine one's maintenance calorie level, and these will be listed according to effectiveness.
1. The most effective way to determine maintenance caloric intake is to buy a BodyMedia FIT or similar device. (Here is a review done by Lyle McDonald, the man from whom I learned 95% of what I know about dieting) These are somewhat expensive, but they work marvelously. They provide an interactive chart of activity throughout the day. Here is a screenshot from my BodyMedia Activity Manager:
It also explains activity levels throughout the day, how many steps taken, and how much sleep (as well as sleep efficiency).
2. "The Counting Method"
I learned about this method from Lyle McDonald's book "A Guide to Flexible Dieting." A Guide to Flexible Dieting is the greatest book ever written for beginners on the subject of dieting, in my opinion, and it is a must-read for just about anyone who wants to learn about the essentials of dieting. The Counting Method requires a bit of math, but a fifth grade education should be sufficient enough to figure it out. The Counting Method relies on basic body weight multipliers, so it's very easy to figure out. Once one gets a basic overlay of their caloric needs, then one can see how much they need to adjust their calories by simply looking at the scale a few times per week and adjusting up or down based on the amount of weight gained. For example: if a 1 lb. weight gain is exhibited, then the appropriate number of calories to cut per day from the predicted maintenance is 500 because it takes 3500 calories above maintenance to gain 1 lb (the converse is true for losing weight, which will be covered later). This gain would not include the immediate water weight spike accompanied by increasing calories from deficit levels, or the return to normal carbohydrate consumption after prolonged low-carb dieting. Due to the fact that everyone's activity level is different, the multipliers are also flexible.
Activity Level Bodyweight Multiplier (cals per lb of total weight):
Desk Jockey: 10-11
Lightly Active: 11-12
Fairly Active: 12-13
Very Active: 14-15
Extremely Active: 18-19
Someone with the "Desk Jockey" label would be anyone who lives a sedentary life, and performs very little activity. The next step up is the "Lightly Active" category, which encompasses those who do low-intensity aerobic work (heart rate 130-150 beats per minute throughout the entire 60-90 minute session) up to three times per week. Those in the "Fairly Active" category include people who train up to 3-4 hours per week who do either resistance training, or higher intensity aerobic work (Heart rate 150+ beats per minute throughout; typically under 60 minutes). People in the "Very Active" category are typically athletes who do a significant amount of both aerobic work and resistance training. The last category, "Extremely Active" is reserved for endurance athletes, and those crazy fighters who do 2 skill training sessions per day along with weights.
After figuring out how many calories are necessary to neither gain nor lose weight, one must determine how much less to eat than that. In order to lose or gain a pound, one must eat either 3500 calories under or over their maintenance. Most bulking diets are based on setting a daily caloric intake of 500 calories above maintenance such that 1 lb. can be gained every week (500 calories over maintenance x 7 days per week = 3500). Dieting works the same way, only in reverse. The only problem is that unlike bulking, which has no negative hormonal side-effects, dieting can cause negative hormonal changes. As such, it requires more careful planning than to simply subtract 500 calories per day from one's maintenance. The most effective way to set a deficit is to base it off of percentages of maintenance. Lyle McDonald recommends a 10-20% deficit. For a smaller man or woman who needs 2000 calories per day, a 10-20% deficit means a deficit of merely 200-400 calories per day, or 1600-1800 calories total. For a large man needing 4000 calories per day, an appropriate deficit would be 400-800 calories, or 3200-3600 calories per day. As a smaller person, the weight loss expectations per week should be lower.
There you have it. That's how to set a deficit. It's that simple. The next step in a successful diet is to determine macronutrient ratios, or how much protein, fat, and carbohydrates are needed.
There are a few ways to determine one's maintenance calorie level, and these will be listed according to effectiveness.
1. The most effective way to determine maintenance caloric intake is to buy a BodyMedia FIT or similar device. (Here is a review done by Lyle McDonald, the man from whom I learned 95% of what I know about dieting) These are somewhat expensive, but they work marvelously. They provide an interactive chart of activity throughout the day. Here is a screenshot from my BodyMedia Activity Manager:
It also explains activity levels throughout the day, how many steps taken, and how much sleep (as well as sleep efficiency).
2. "The Counting Method"
I learned about this method from Lyle McDonald's book "A Guide to Flexible Dieting." A Guide to Flexible Dieting is the greatest book ever written for beginners on the subject of dieting, in my opinion, and it is a must-read for just about anyone who wants to learn about the essentials of dieting. The Counting Method requires a bit of math, but a fifth grade education should be sufficient enough to figure it out. The Counting Method relies on basic body weight multipliers, so it's very easy to figure out. Once one gets a basic overlay of their caloric needs, then one can see how much they need to adjust their calories by simply looking at the scale a few times per week and adjusting up or down based on the amount of weight gained. For example: if a 1 lb. weight gain is exhibited, then the appropriate number of calories to cut per day from the predicted maintenance is 500 because it takes 3500 calories above maintenance to gain 1 lb (the converse is true for losing weight, which will be covered later). This gain would not include the immediate water weight spike accompanied by increasing calories from deficit levels, or the return to normal carbohydrate consumption after prolonged low-carb dieting. Due to the fact that everyone's activity level is different, the multipliers are also flexible.
Activity Level Bodyweight Multiplier (cals per lb of total weight):
Desk Jockey: 10-11
Lightly Active: 11-12
Fairly Active: 12-13
Very Active: 14-15
Extremely Active: 18-19
Someone with the "Desk Jockey" label would be anyone who lives a sedentary life, and performs very little activity. The next step up is the "Lightly Active" category, which encompasses those who do low-intensity aerobic work (heart rate 130-150 beats per minute throughout the entire 60-90 minute session) up to three times per week. Those in the "Fairly Active" category include people who train up to 3-4 hours per week who do either resistance training, or higher intensity aerobic work (Heart rate 150+ beats per minute throughout; typically under 60 minutes). People in the "Very Active" category are typically athletes who do a significant amount of both aerobic work and resistance training. The last category, "Extremely Active" is reserved for endurance athletes, and those crazy fighters who do 2 skill training sessions per day along with weights.
After figuring out how many calories are necessary to neither gain nor lose weight, one must determine how much less to eat than that. In order to lose or gain a pound, one must eat either 3500 calories under or over their maintenance. Most bulking diets are based on setting a daily caloric intake of 500 calories above maintenance such that 1 lb. can be gained every week (500 calories over maintenance x 7 days per week = 3500). Dieting works the same way, only in reverse. The only problem is that unlike bulking, which has no negative hormonal side-effects, dieting can cause negative hormonal changes. As such, it requires more careful planning than to simply subtract 500 calories per day from one's maintenance. The most effective way to set a deficit is to base it off of percentages of maintenance. Lyle McDonald recommends a 10-20% deficit. For a smaller man or woman who needs 2000 calories per day, a 10-20% deficit means a deficit of merely 200-400 calories per day, or 1600-1800 calories total. For a large man needing 4000 calories per day, an appropriate deficit would be 400-800 calories, or 3200-3600 calories per day. As a smaller person, the weight loss expectations per week should be lower.
There you have it. That's how to set a deficit. It's that simple. The next step in a successful diet is to determine macronutrient ratios, or how much protein, fat, and carbohydrates are needed.
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