1000 Calorie Diet Muscle Loss
1000-Calorie Meal Plan For Weight Loss
Those who are not new to the weight loss world know that the basics of a successful and effective slimming include regular exercise and a healthy diet , which allows you to burn more calories than you consume ( 1 ). As the 1000 calorie meal plan is based on the principle of reduced caloric intake, it can be quite effective in helping you shed pounds. According to dietitians, an adult person requires approximately 2500 calories (for men) and 2000 calories (for women) a day ( 2 ).
You can calculate how many calories you require personally , to get more accurate information and improve the calorie counting process. Experts state that the most sustainable plan is to lose 1-2 pounds (around 0.5-1 kg) a week. This pace is considered the healthiest, as a quicker one may lead to different health problems, including malnutrition, gallstones, feeling tired, and others ( 4 ). 1 pound (around 0.5 kg) is about 3500 calories ( 5 ), so if you stick to a 1000 calorie meal plan, and your normal needs are 2000-2500 calories per day, you may burn as much as 7000-10 500 calories per week, thus losing from 2 to 3 pounds (1-1.5kg) a week.
It may look very appealing on paper, but is clearly not in line with the recommended guidelines. Does this mean you should completely discard the idea of following the 1000-calorie meal plan? This article aims to answer this and several other important questions regarding the 1000-calorie meal plan for weight loss.
So, is losing weight using a 1000 calorie meal plan healthy? What are its benefits and downsides? And what does a 1000 calorie meal plan look like?
The Basics Of A 1000-Calorie Meal Plan
As mentioned before, one of the main rules of the 1000 calorie meal plan is to consume only 1000 calories a day. Such a dieting approach is quite restrictive and may lead to a relatively rapid weight loss, which is usually not recommended by the specialists. As for most people, this number of calories is too little to obtain enough nutrients, and you should not follow the 1000 calorie meal plan for more than a week. Dieters should avoid highly vigorous physical activity during the dieting period.
This recommendation is necessary to mention since you burn significantly more calories while exercising. Consequently, your body needs more calories to maintain basic functions. That's why athletes can consume a lot of calories without getting fat. If you follow a 1000-calorie meal plan, your situation is exactly the opposite – you already consume much fewer calories than you need, and your body may simply not be able to withstand significant physical training. This can make following a 1000-calorie diet meal plan a very tiring and frustrating experience.
You may need to consume multivitamins and mineral supplements while on this diet. You also should consult with your doctor before starting to take any supplements or making any changes in your nutritional habits. Highly restrictive or low calorie diets normally require close supervision by a doctor to ensure that you are safe.
What To Eat And What To Avoid?
This diet is low in calories and requires careful meal planning. You should make sure that you consume enough essential nutrients to reach the desired goal in the healthiest way possible. It is recommended to consume low-calorie foods that are rich in proteins and fiber, as they will help you keep the hunger pangs at bay, and vitamin and mineral-rich foods to prevent nutrient deficiency. Your meals should include a lot of fruits (oranges, kiwi, pears, cantaloupes, and berries), vegetables (spinach, celery, zucchini, broccoli, artichokes, cabbage, cucumber, bell pepper, etc.), low-fat dairy products, and others. Consuming a wide variety of these foods is also key, as they are each rich in different nutrients that the body needs and therefore complement one another.
You should keep away from various fats and oils, such as butter, cheese, cream cheese, ghee, nut butter (peanut, cashew, almond), oils ( coconut , groundnut, walnut, palm, avocado), animal fat oil, and others. Dried fruits are also not recommended. The 1000 calorie meal plan bans even certain fruits, vegetables, and legumes, including avocado , mango, litchi, custard apple, potato, corn, lima beans, and soybeans. You should also avoid such protein-rich foods as beef, pork, lamb, and tofu. As this diet strictly limits the number of consumed calories you should keep all sugary drinks, such as soda, store juices, energy drinks, sweetened coffee and tea , and others at bay.
Making your menu as varied and healthy as possible is extremely important on a 1000-calorie meal plan. Since this diet restricts even healthy foods like nuts and avocados, it limits your intake of essential fats, proteins, vitamins, and micronutrients. This makes a 1000 calorie meal plan quite risky for your health, with food variety being crucial for health maintenance. Create your 1000-calorie meal plan with the utmost care to avoid negative health consequences.
Read More: Does Coffee Break A Fast: Science-Backed Take On Coffee And Its Effect On Fasting
1000-Calorie Diet Meal Plan
Here is a sample of a 3-day 1000 calorie diet meal plan:
Day 1
- Breakfast: a cup of oatmeal with half of an apple and a teaspoon of cinnamon, and a cup of unsweetened coffee
- Lunch: one scrambled egg and a slice of low-fat cheddar cheese on whole-wheat toast
- Snack: 15 almonds
- Dinner: half of a cooked chicken breast, a big portion of vegetable salad (lettuce, cherry tomatoes, bell pepper, red onion, lemon juice), and a cup of unsweetened herbal tea
Day 2
- Breakfast: a cup of low-fat or non-fat yogurt with half of a cup of berries, and a cup of unsweetened green tea
- Lunch: one wholemeal roll willed with half of a cup of tuna, and a cup of vegetable salad (lettuce, red sweet pepper, spring onions)
- Snack: a cup of sliced fruits
- Dinner: a half of a baked medium-sized fish, half of a cup of roasted sweet potatoes, a cup of steamed broccoli and cauliflower, and a cup of unsweetened herbal tea
Day 3
- Breakfast: 2 boiled egg whites, a cup of vegetable mix (cucumber, lettuce, cherry tomatoes), and a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice
- Lunch: two cups of vegetable soup and a slice of whole-wheat bread
- Snack: a cup of yogurt with nuts and berries
- Dinner: a cup of chicken and rice stir-fry, half of a cup of peas, and a cup of unsweetened herbal tea
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Benefits Of A 1000-Calorie Meal Plan
If followed properly, a 1000 calorie meal plan may offer you the following benefits:
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Effective At Weight Loss
If you need to shed pounds fast and don't expect the long-term result, the 1000 calorie meal plan may help you with that. As mentioned at the beginning of this article, this diet can help you lose 2-3 pounds (1-1.5 kg) a week, which is quite fast. It can also be quite effective for people who suffer from obesity, causing even bigger weight loss. But you should make sure to discuss your diet with a specialist before deciding to make any adjustments in it.
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Relatively Balanced
This diet emphasizes the consumption of vegetables and fruits that are rich in nutrients, including water and fiber, and are the inseparable part of healthy nutrition. This makes the 1000-calorie meal plan significantly more beneficial than various juice cleanses and one-product diets. So, if you are confident in your decision to lose weight as quickly as possible and are willing to take risks, a 1000-calorie meal plan is what you should go for.
Read More: The Fundamentals of a Balanced Diet: Foods, Benefits, Weight Loss
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Quite Affordable
The foods that are allowed by this dietary plan are accessible and affordable. You can find everything you need at any supermarket. This makes planning not too difficult, which is extremely important for those who do not have a lot of time to select products and cook dishes. This diet is compatible with a full-time job, making it appealing to a wide range of people.
Downsides Of A 1000-Calorie Meal Plan
Despite being quite effective at helping you shed pounds, the 1000 calorie meal plan is not the best choice due to the following aspects:
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Causes Lack Of Nutrients
Low-calorie diets that allow less than 1,200 calories a day may lead to constant hunger, potentially leading to overeating ( 3 ). Another downside of such restrictions is the lack of certain vital nutrients that provide your body with energy. When followed for a longer period it causes nutrient deficiencies and dehydration, which leads to a lack of energy, hair loss, weaker nails, slower heart rate, and loss in muscle mass. This makes the 1000-calorie meal plan quite risky for your health, especially if you choose to stick with it for more than a week. If you don't want to harm your health, you can only follow this diet for a short time. This makes it quite specific – indeed, there may be times when you need to quickly lose weight, for example, for an event. But if your goal is long-term weight loss and better health, this diet shouldn't be recommended.
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Slows Metabolism
Based on the abovementioned, you should not expect the long-term results from this diet. The critical calorie restriction may slow down your metabolism. This in turn causes the rapid weight to regain after you return to your normal caloric intake. Whether this kind of result is satisfactory is up to you to decide.
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Doesn't Support Intense Exercising
This nutrition plan is surely not for everyone. It may work quite well for women who have a small frame, as their bodies usually require fewer calories. For men and those whose routine involves vigorous exercise, this diet is not the best choice for you. Those who are used to exercising regularly may end up wearing their body down when consuming only a 1000 calories a day while keeping up with their workout schedule. Other negative effects of a 1000-calorie meal plan can include bad mood, fatigue, and insomnia. On top of that, exhaustion as a result of this diet can lead to an increased risk of injury.
How To Make The Best Experience Out Of The 1000-Calorie Meal Plan?
If you do decide to follow this plan, there are some tips to make it as enjoyable and rewarding as possible.
Walk
First, while vigorous workouts are strongly discouraged, that doesn't mean you have to lounge around all day long. Go for walks in the park or do light exercise with minimal strain.
Walking is not usually considered a "serious" type of exercise, but daily walks can be remarkably effective if you're striving to lose excess pounds. 30 minutes of brisk walking burns up to 300 calories and clears your head as a bonus. Supplementing your 1000 calorie meal plan with regular walks will also improve various health markers. First, walking helps you maintain muscle mass. This is especially important if you're following a restricted diet like the 1000 calorie diet meal plan, which entails risks of muscle mass loss. Aside from that, walking reduces the risk of heart attack, strengthens your bones, and improves your mood.
Manage Your Diet
Include as wide a variety of fruits and vegetables as possible, and never skip meals – you already consume less calories than your body requires.
Aside from that, skipping meals makes you extremely hungry which causes eventual overeating. Planning your meals and sticking to the schedule is a way to succeed.
Also, try to eat at the table, not at the TV. When you don't pay attention to what you eat, you automatically eat more. Plus, if you eat too fast on your 1000 calorie meal plan, your body has no time to realize it's already full, so you eat too much once again. So put your smartphone aside, turn Netflix off and concentrate attention on your food. You can try mindful eating – a pretty fun way to cut down on your calorie intake and develop your sense of taste.
Destress
One of the main causes that may prevent you from torching calories is stress. On the one hand, stress can lead to emotional eating, so you eat when you're stressed and anxious, not when you're truly hungry. This, of course, leads to weight gain. On the other hand, stress affects various physiological processes in your body, again leading to weight gain in most cases. So if you are striving to lose weight with a 1000 calorie meal plan, use a variety of stress reduction techniques.
For example, try different types of meditation. Meditation reduces the risk of high blood pressure, improves heart function, improves memory and attention, and strengthens the immune system. You can also try yoga , which is effective in terms of weight loss as well. Finally, small practices like a gratitude journal can help reduce stress. To make each day more positive, start by writing down what you are grateful for today in a journal.
Drink Water And Sleep Well
Finally, remember to drink water and get enough rest.
There are multiple reasons why you absolutely need to drink enough water. Water helps you lose weight, improves skin and hair condition, relieves joint pain, and reduces the frequency of headaches. In addition, water can reduce your appetite if you drink a little when you feel hungry. This is because you can confuse hunger with thirst and eat when your body is actually thirsty. Drink a glass of lemon water in the morning to start your day energetically on a 1000 calorie meal plan.
Sleep is equally important in achieving your weight loss goals. Poor sleep significantly increases the risks of obesity. Also, your appetite increases and you tend to crave for fatty snacks since your body doesn't get enough energy from sleep. Plus, poor sleep makes you less in control, which puts you at greater risk of dropping out of your 1000 calorie meal plan. Finally, lack of sleep lowers metabolism, leading to muscle loss. Try to get enough sleep so that weight loss leads to better health instead of muscle degradation.
Conclusion
A lot of people want to lose weight as fast as possible, sometimes resorting to different unhealthy methods, such as starvation, very-low-calorie diets, etc. However, a very rapid weight loss is not sustainable and may cause a lot of negative consequences. The 1000 calorie meal plan is quite restrictive, cutting your required daily caloric intake in two. You shouldn't follow this diet for more than a week. It promises to help you slim down quite fast but may not be for everyone. Those who tend to regularly perform vigorous physical activity should steer clear of this nutrition plan. Men also should avoid it. If you are determined to start following this dietary plan, please consult your doctor first.
DISCLAIMER:
This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not address individual circumstances. It is not a substitute for professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. Any action you take upon the information presented in this article is strictly at your own risk and responsibility!
SOURCES:
- Counting calories: Get back to weight-loss basics (2020, mayoclinic.org)
- Cut down on your calories (2018, nhs.uk)
- Getting past a weight-loss plateau (2020, mayoclinic.org)
- Should you lose weight fast? (2019, nhs.uk)
- Why do doctors recommend a slow rate of weight loss? What's wrong with fast weight loss? (2020, mayoclinic.org)
Source: https://betterme.world/articles/1000-calorie-meal-plan/
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