Calorie deficit is one of the most common approaches to losing weight. It basically means burning more calories than you consume. It involves two routes: one with nutrition, eating fewer calories and the other is with working out, meaning putting in extra hours at the gym to create the calorie gap, burning more calories. But did you know you can implement a calorie deficit through nutrition alone? While you still need to do your regular weight loss exercises, you do not need to go the extra mile at the gym to create the gap, because you are already doing so with the help of nutrition.
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Raj Ganpath, a Chennai-based fitness trainer with 18 years of experience, founder of the Slow Burn Method, co-founder and head coach at Quad Fitness, and author of Simple, took to Instagram in a video, dated January 21, to reveal how one can easily follow a calorie deficit plan by just focusing on diet. Let's take a look at the various facets of nutrition-related calorie deficit hacks.
Here are the five tips from his end that will assist in creating a calorie gap:
1. Eat more vegetables
The first recommendation from the trainer is to eat more veggies. This means the plate needs to have more quantity of vegetables than anything else. Why does it help? Raj reasoned, “Because vegetables are high in nutrients, high in volume, high in fibre, high in nutrients, low in calories. When you eat a lot of vegetables, you feel full without consuming too many calories, and that certainly helps you create a calorie deficit.”
This has multiple benefits. You are not only getting more nutrients, but the fibre content is keeping you full for longer periods.
2. Eat at least 1.5 grams of protein
Make sure you are hitting your daily protein intake. Raj suggested that one should eat at least 1.5 grams of protein per kilo of your bodyweight everyday. Because protein helps in appetite regulation, you stay comfortably full for a longer time and don't give in to your cravings that often.
3. Drink enough water
Hydration also plays an important role in building a calorie deficit. The trainer recommended an intake limit as per body weight, just like protein, which is about 25 to 30 ml per kilo of body weight every day. How does this help? It keeps dehydration away, as he emphasised many times, you may mistake thirst for hunger.
4. Don't get too hungry
While refraining from overeating is good, letting yourself stay hungry and become absolutely ravenous is not recommended. The trainer flagged this behaviour.
He explained the reason behind this, "Don't let yourself get too hungry, because when you get extremely hungry, you lose control, you eat too much, you eat too fast, and naturally, you end up over-consuming calories.
So the key is to space the meals correctly so that you are not famished.
5. Eat slowly
The last tip deals with the pace at which you eat. Refrain from scarfing down food. Occassionally that occurs when one is too hungry, stressed or in a hurry. The trainer instead insisted on slowly eating, chewing every bite thoroughly. “ When you do this, you are calm and in control,” Raj remarked.
Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.