If you want to lose weight, you can start making small changes that you’ll hardly notice. Many people start on huge changes and end up not succeeding due to being overwhelmed.
When you start small, you have a greater chance of forming new habits.
The way to lose weight is to create a calorie deficit each day. That is, consume less calories and expend more energy.
Here’s how that works.
If you want to lose one pound, then you would need to burn 3,500 more calories than what you are eating.
It’s not just about reducing calories. Combine that with exercise and you get even better results.
Just by reducing your daily calorie intake by 100, you would lose about a pound in a month. That adds up to about 10 pounds in a year.
You can do the math and double the numbers but for now, let’s focus on some easy ways for you to reduce your calorie intake by 100 calories per day.
Reduce Calories by 100 Per day to Lose Weight
Fad diets don’t work for the long term but there are plenty of them out there! What does work is creating healthy habits that can last a lifetime.
I have some easy ways for you to cut 100 calories out of your life each day.
As for the food you eat, remember that you can eat food that is high in calories and low in nutrition. OR you can eat food that is lower in calories and higher in nutrition. Keep that in mind as you make food choices.
If you want to lose more than a pound a month, you can double that number to reducing your calorie intake by 200 to lose about 2 pounds a month.
Let’s dig in.
1 – Drink your coffee black
This has to be the simplest way to cut 100 calories out of your diet. If you love those cafe lattes, you care adding nearly 200 calories to your intake.
It adds up and can actually cause weight gain over time. Many flavored lattes have sugar added which makes it even worse.
If you switch to black coffee, you get just 5 calories! You’ll save on calories and money.
2 – Stop Drinking Soda
A typical serving of soda adds up to about 155 calories. Most of that is from added sugar.
Soda has no nutritional value at all. All you get is calories and sugar.
A better choice is to grab water and hydrate your body. Water is the best thing you can consume and has zero calories. Add a little lemon or lime to it for taste.
Imagine if you just quit drinking soda? That is equal to seven pounds less of sugar in a year!
I have not had soda in over 20 years and don’t miss it at all. I switched to water and feel so much better!
3 – Eat Snacks in Moderation
Snacks are a huge problem for me! I can eat an entire bag of chips in one sitting.
Sometimes, if we grab a bag of chips, it’s easy to eat them all without thinking about it. Junk foods are designed that way!
If you avoid it altogether, you can save about 400 calories per day. If you love your snacks, you can buy the individual serving bags or portion it out yourself.
Either way, you’ll save about 100 to 150 calories per day by sticking to eating just one serving size.
4 – Swap Veggies in for Rice and Pasta
Do you love rice and pasta as much as I do? They can really pack on the calories!
Instead, you can lower your calorie intake by replacing with vegetables. They are lower in calories and you’ll get tons of vitamins too!
I started doing this for my meals and it’s already making a difference. By eating vegetables instead of rice or pasta, you can save up to 180 calories!
Try it. I bet you’ll love it!
5 – Prepare Foods at Home
The best thing about preparing foods at home is that you know and can control exactly what is on your plate!
People who cook at home usually eat fewer calories than those who eat out. I know it’s tempting to grab some food while you are out or taking a lunch break at work.
You can prepare a healthy lunch that you can take with you to work or healthy snacks that you can eat throughout the day.
Cooking at home can save you about 140 calories and you’ll save a bunch of money too!
Conclusion
Making a few simple changes can help you reduce your calories by about 100 each day. It’s a great way to start out on your weight loss journey.
Be sure to add in exercise to get even better results.
