Instead of featuring meat as the main attraction on your plate, serve smaller portions and add a lot of veggies, grains and fruits to the menu. Fats, oils and sugars fill in the smallest tip of the food pyramid, to be used sparingly. Because of nutritional deficiencies and large drops in metabolism, women should not consume fewer than 1,200 calories a day and men no fewer than 1,500. At times, you will want to break the barriers and go for the fried chicken and hot fudge sundae. What matters is what you do most of the time.
Exercise plays an important role in weight management.
There are about 3,500 kilocalories in one pound of fat. To lose one pound of fat a week, you need to have a negative balance of 3,500 kilocalories. The most efficient way to do this is by increasing caloric expenditure through physical exercise and moderately reducing the caloric intake. For somebody just beginning an exercise program, I would suggest walking. Variety, balance and moderation are the three keys to a healthy diet.