RedGage

 Starting a new diet can be super tricky. You have to figure out how many calories you should be eating a day, how much protein your body needs for building muscle, how many servings of different food groups you should have, etc. There are many different aspects you have to look at so I am going to break it down in multiple entries.

     First I want to start with calorie consumption. Now this is a hard one. You have to figure in how active you are, how much exercise you are doing. Heck you may not even be able to eat the same amount of calories each day!

     It all comes down to “Calories In, Calories Out.” Obviously you do not want to be consuming more calories than you are burning, nor do you want to be burning an excessive amount of calories over what you are consuming. It is suggested to have a deficit of no more than 500 calories a day. However, on shows like “The Biggest Loser” contestants eat about 1,100 calories and work out for about six hours a day. This leads to a couple thousand calorie deficit, hence the shows controversy.

     For myself (an active 118lb 20 year-old female) I typically try to aim at 1,700 calories a day. That number is not going to be good for everyone though. I recommend using the internet for this one. If you go to sites like CalorieCount (http://caloriecount.about.com/) you can put in all your information such as height, weight, activity level, etc. and they will compute a target goal for calorie intake per day.

     Now after you have your “number” the hard part of forming a balanced diet comes into play: Figuring out how to eat foods that will get you to that number.  To get an idea of what I do here is an example of my diet:

Breakfast:

  Jimmy Dean Turkey Sausage Sandwich                          260 cal

  Banana                                                                            70 cal

Snack:

                Yogurt                                                                         140 cal

Lunch:

                Veggie Burger                                                              220 cal

                Oven Baked Fries                                                        150 cal

                Grapes                                                                           60 cal

Snack:

                Protein Bar                                                                   230 cal

Dinner:

                9oz Grilled Chicken Breast                                            250 cal

                Wild Rice                                                                      150 cal

Snack:

                Protein Drink                                                                 130 cal

Total:                                                                                           1660 calories

     So today I am a little under my goal so maybe with one of my snacks I will add in an apple. It is all about give and take. You just have to mess around with the foods and eventually you will have a perfectly planned out day. The whole process does take a little planning each morning. I have to sit down and write out everything I am going to eat that day. It does pay off though. Every night before I go to bed I feel so proud of myself for sticking to a great nutrition plan. So now when you are thinking about what to eat, remember to plan it all out so you can have a balanced day!