Estimating Calories

If you’re interested in weight loss, allow some data to help guide your efforts.

The main objective is to burn off more calories per day than you’re taking in through food.

Start by getting a sense of how many calories you’re burning per day in the equation below.

For example, a 50 year old woman who is 5’2” and 110 lbs with minimal exercise expends about 1,503 calories per day.

If you’re a 65 year old woman who is 5’2” and 110 lbs with minimal exercise, you’ll burn about 1,461calories per day. If you perform light exercise, you’ll burn 1,668 calories per day.

If you’re interested in losing weight, aim to consume a couple hundred calories less per day than the daily requirement. You’ll see the weight loss over 6 months.

Why cut carbs?

Calories come in 3 forms: carbohydrates, fats, and protein.
In general, your daily caloric intake should come from 45–65% carbs, 20–35% from fat, and 10–35% from protein.
Your body prefers to burn carbohydrates first.
If you take in excess carbohydrates every day, then you will likely not burn off your daily carbohydrate intake but also store the excess carbs as fat.
If you decrease your carbohydrate intake, then you’re able to begin burning off existing fat stores.

Where to start cutting carbs…