Are you looking around for a quick way of reducing those unnecessary pounds so that you can fit back into your old pants? There are many diets out there that claim to provide miraculous weight loss results. As a trained dietitian and nutritionist, I feel compelled to shoot down such outlandish claims. If you wish to drop some body fat in a controlled and healthy manner, I would strongly recommend the low calorie diet plan. This is one of the most well-studied and relatively easy diets that work.

Let me tell you more about the basic terminology before we go further into this diet. The energy that we require for our daily bodily functions come from the food we eat and this can be calculated in calories(kcal). So what's with all the hype about calories? You will put on weight if you do not watch your calories and eat more than what your body needs.

Calorie in > Calorie out = Weight gain

Here is a 3 step strategy to the low calorie diet plan to make it work well for you.

Step 1: Determine your daily calorie requirement

The amount of calories your body needs is a combination of your basic metabolic rate (BMR) and activity level. You can calculate your BMR based on the following equations.

Women:
BMR = 655 + (9.6 X weight in kilos) + (1.8 X height in cm) - (4.7 X age in years)

Men:
BMR = 66 + (13.7 X weight in kilos) + (5 X height in cm) - (6.8 X age in years)

You can then do a rough evaluation of your daily calorie needs by using these formulas:

Sedentary (Your only exercise is typing on the keyboard)
(BMR x 20 percent) + BMR

Lightly active (You exercise 1-3 times a week)
(BMR x 30 percent) + BMR

Moderately active (You exercise 3-5 times a week)
(BMR x 40 percent) + BMR

Very active (You exercise intensely on a daily basis)
(BMR x 50 percent) + BMR

Extra active (You do hard labor or are in athletic training)
(BMR x 60 percent) + BMR

Let's not kid ourselves. Majority of us will be in the category of lightly active. Let me show you how it works. The estimated calorie requirement for a 47 year old sedentary woman who is 68kg and 163cm tall will be:

BMR = 655 + (9.6 X 68) + (1.8 X 163) - (4.7 X 47) = 1380 kcal

Total daily calorie requirement = (1380 x 0.2) + 1380 = 1656 kcal

A regular western diet contains about 3000-3500kcal and that is much more than what an average female needs to have daily. It is not hard to imagine why the percentage of obese and overweight individuals is steadily increasing every year.

Step 2: Determine how many calories you will cut out from your diet

For your weight to come off, you need to eat less calories than required. You can aim for a calorie deficit of about 300-500kcal.

So to put it in simple terms, the lady who requires 1650 kcal will lose approximately 1 pound after a week if she consumes approximately 1150 kcal per day. This is in theory. Try to keep your daily calorie intake to more than 1200kcal or your body will react by holding on to the fat cells more stubbornly.

3500kcal deficit = 1 pound of weight loss

If you goal is to lose 20 pounds, there will have to be a calorie deficit of 70000kcal. Do note that a sudden huge calorie reduction is not good for the body as tempting as it might be. Make it a point to decrease calories steadily.,.

A healthy weight loss diet is one that helps you lose 1-3 pounds per week. Anything more is too much

Step 3: Keep a food journal

You will get better success from your diet if you note down what you eat. You might think that you are rigorous with your diet but the food diary might prove you wrong.

Make it a point to note down what you have eaten for 3 straight days. Try to be as detailed as possible. Do include condiments that you consume (e.g. salad dressings, sugar).

There are many internet tools that can then help you estimate the amount of calories you are having based on your food intake.

From your food journal you will be able to have a clearer picture of your eating habits. You will also be able to identify what you can easily eliminate from your diet to create the calorie deficit I was explaining about above.

As with all dietitians, I love to write meal plans. Here is a sample of a nutritionally balancedlow-calorie meal plan.

Breakfast:

Half a wholegrain bagel with a thin spread of light cream cheese (300kcal)

1 glass of low fat milk (90kcal)

Mid-morning snack:

1 cup of Low-fat yoghurt (130kcal)

Lunch:

Wholegrain sandwich bread, with a spread of mustard, salad veggies and lean meat (chicken/beef) (350kcal)

1 serving Minestrone soup (150 kcal)

Afternoon snack:

1 serving of fresh fruit (70 kcal)

Dinner:

Half cup of pasta with tomato sauce + 1 palm size grilled meat/fish or chicken OR half cup of lean mince (400kcal)

Side salad with fat-free dressing (70 kcal)

1 serving of fresh fruit (70 kcal)

Total Calories: 1630 kcal

The example above is just a simple meal plan which you can tailor to your own dietary taste or needs. If you follow through with the food diary activity and get yourself familiarized with the general calorie content of foods, you would have already known by now what are the high calorie foods that you need to reduce your intake of.

Here are a number of tips which you can employ to create a calorie deficit

1) Substitute your regular soda with the diet/light version

2) Use low fat sauces and dressings

3) Less fruit juice and more real fruits

4) Use healthier cooking oils like sunflower or olive oil for cooking

5) Choose the lean cuts when buying meat

6) Reducing your portion sizes by a quarter

7) Drastically reduce your fried food intake

8) Transitioning to low fat dairy products

9) Reduce your alcohol intake

Consistency is key for the low calorie diet plan to be successful. Treat yourself to a yummy small snack after you have lost a couple of pounds. Don't be too hard on yourself if you happen to consume more calories than your daily requirement. Continue to push on even if you slip up on certain days. Do not give up and you will find yourself looking thrilled in the mirror three months down the road.