Diet: What’s the best to lose weight in 2023?
Diet: are they all the same and what's the best for losing weight?
STRAIGHT TO THE POINT
The simple answer for the best diet for 2023 is, whatever diet you can stick too. No matter what diet you choose the only thing that matters is that you are in a calorie deficit.
WHAT’S MY OPTIONS?
There is so many diets around and they all claim to get you results. Some of the well known diets are Keto, Paleo, Weight-Watchers, Slimming-World, Intermittent Fasting, Juicing, Low Fats, No Sugar, Low Carbs, the list goes on! My big advice is if you can imagine being on the diet for life then its the wrong diet for you.
YOU DON’T HAVE TO CUT OUT FOODS YOU LOVE
Let’s start by changing the word diet to lifestyle.
If you live a lifestyle where you are partying everyday and only getting 4hrs sleep eventually you won’t feel too good but likewise, if you are spending all your time exercising and not socialising with friends and family, this too can have a negative effect. the answer is you need to have a balanced lifestyle.
Nutrition is the same. If you over-indulge you will struggle to lose weight but if you go to the extreme of cutting every food out then you won’t be able to stick to the diet for long and most likely will end up binging.
SO WHAT SHOULD I DO?
The best way to get results is to have a good plan. Now there is two types of people, 1. ones that will calorie count and 2. ones that won’t calorie count. I will share my tips for both types of people.
CALORIE COUNTING
The first thing you need to know is how many calories do I need to lose weight.
This is the calculation:
MALE: (10xweight[kg])+(6.25xheight[cm])-(5xage[years])+5
FEMALE: (10xweight[kg])+(6.25xheight[cm])-(5xage[years])-161
Multiply by scale factor for activity level:
Sedentary: x1.2 Less than 4000 Steps daily
Lightly Active: x1.375 4000-6499 Steps daily
Moderately Active: x1.55 6500-8999 Steps daily
Active: x1.725 9000-12499 Steps daily
Very Active: x1.9 More than 12500 Steps daily
Calorie counting doesn’t have to be a lifelong thing but its a great way of getting you started to understand what you are currently consuming, once you have an idea you can then gain a good idea of how many calories are in the foods and drinks you regularly consume.
Just remember when counting calories, you need to track all the calories, from coffee, teas, cooking oils and even them crisps that you just taste before eating the rest of the bag.
Calorie counting is a guide so if you find yourself still not losing weight or dropping body fat then you might need to drop your calories by 250 this should help to create the needed deficit.
Best calories tracker in my opinion is Nutracheck, this does come will a cost but you have a 7 day free trial, its easy to use and contains UK restaurant calories. Click link to start trial NUTRACHECK. The other option is Myfitnesspal which is free to use and one of the most popular calorie trackers, It does have a pro feature if you want to unlock more features in app. Click link to try MYFITNESSPAL.
NON CALORIE COUNTING
So you don’t want to track your calories. That’s ok, it’s not for everyone, I would highly recommend just trying for at least 2 weeks to gain an idea of where you are starting.
When someone doesn’t want to count calories my recommendation is focusing on portion control.
Imagine a 8inch plate, focus on using this system.
20% Protein (Chicken, Turkey, Quorn etc)
5% Nothing, this is because this will be symbolising your fats such as cooking oils.
If you focus on 3-4 plates a day with 1 snack of your choosing such as one “bar” or “square of chocolate or one pack of crisps etc this can help keep you motivated. Have 1-2 Coffee or Teas a day and also importantly have minimum 2litres of water a day.
This should help to create a calorie deficit, but if you find that the weight or body fat is not dropping then you will need to make your portion size slightly smaller.
Try to focus on high nutritional foods and drinks and limit any processed or high sugary foods, this does not mean you have to cut them completely. Also a bonus tip is when cooking use a low calorie cooking spray instead of the oil this will make it easier to limit the calories. If you drink a lot of fizzy drinks then go for the zero calorie drinks.
BIG TAKEAWAY
Whether you count calories or portion control enjoy the process, enjoy the food, enjoy the drink, be balanced.
A list of useful tools to help with your weight loss journey is at bottom of page with a link.
Let me know I you found this helpful.
Josh Brennan
Just Breathe Fitness Owner