what food is best for weight loss? Meal prep?

Question

Hi ladies 
So I’ve been working on my self a lot recently, I’ve been going to the gym sticking to less than 1000 calories but I get stuck? What foods are good to eat for meal prep, what shall I drink? Any tips? What do I need to do at the gym?

Answer

I’m sitting on 1944cals a day to maintain muscle and shed fat and I’m still hungry. When I was on 1000 calls a day it ruined me, I lost muscle and I gained fat actually , i am a personal trainer and have my diploma in health and nutrition, I do fitness comps aswel. You need to calculate your Macros in order to find out how much carbs, fats and proteins you need to lose weight. This will help to understand how much you need to eat to shed weight and be healthy at the same time.
Example: (this is in kgs not lbs so you may have to convert  it into lbs)
Step 1. Calculate your BRM (Basal Metabolic rate)
Your BMR or the amount of calories your body burns at rest is literally the amount of calories your body would burn if you were to lay in bed all day without moving a muscle.
I get this number by doing the following:
Body weight in Kgs x 22 = BMR calories
E.g. 65kgs x 22 = 1430
Here I would be burning 1430 calories in a day if I didn’t move, its what my body needs just to carry out its normal functions to survive.
Step 2. Calculate your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure)
Your TDEE is the amount of calories burned in an entire day depending on your physical activity).
To determine this number it will depend on a scale of how physically active you are in your week.
TDEE: BMR x scale
Pick a number on the scale here that best reflects your weekly activity level
Activity Scale
•BMR x 1.2 Sitting or lying all day
•BMR x 1.3 Seated work, no exercise
•BMR x 1.4 Seated work, light exercise (leisurely walking for 30-50 minutes 3-4 days/week, golfing, house chores)
•BMR x 1.5 moderately physical work, no exercise
•BMR x 1.6 moderate exercise 3-5 days per week (60-70% MHR for 30-60 minutes/session) •BMR x 1.7Active individuals (exercising 6-7 days/week at moderate to high intensity (70-85% MHR) for 45-60 minutes/session)
•BMR x 1.8 Heavy physical work and Active Individual
•BMR x 1.9-2.4 for the extremely active individuals (engaged in heavy/intense exercise like heavy manual labour, heavy lifting, endurance athletes, and competitive team sports athletes 6-7 days/week for 90 + minutes/session)
Most people sit within the 1.5-1.7 range.  Again don’t over think it, it’s a starting point so pick which one resembles your lifestyle the most.
Example
BMR x 1.7 = TDEE
1430 x 1.7 = 2431
The number we now have is our calculated maintenance level. This is the predicted number of calories I would need to maintain my weight if I was exercising to the level of “1.7” on the scale.
However, we now need to tweak this according to our goals, whether that is to lose body fat or gain lean mass.
If you want to maintain your weight where it is then you can just stay here. Sometimes I do also recommend doing a week on your predicted maintenance calories before you adjust your intake depending on your goals as this can help you get a better idea of whether your metabolism is slower or faster than predicted. 
Step 3. Calculate your calories for fat loss or lean mass gain
Here you need to determine your goal and increase or decrease your calories by a certain percentage to get your recommended caloric intake. The usual rule of thumb has been to add or subtracting 500 calories from your calculated TDEE. However I don't use this method because it is not realistic for all calorie intake, for example, someone on a 1500 calorie diet would end up on 1000 calories which is a huge portion of their intake, and someone on 3000 calories would end up on 2500 calories which is not a huge chunk of their intake. Hence, why I work on percentages instead.
Fat Loss
Mass Gain
Fat Loss – reduce calories anywhere from 15-25%.
15% - Conservative (TDEE x 0.85)
20% Moderate (TDEE x 0.8)
25% Very aggressive and not recommended ( TDEE x 0.75)
E.g. 2431 x 0.8 = 1944 calories per day for Fat Loss.
Mass Gain – Increase calories anywhere from 5-15% or more
5% Conservative (TDEE x 1.05)
10% Moderate (TDEE x 1.1)
15%+ Aggressive (TDEE x 1.15)
E.g. 2431 x 1.1 = 2674 total calories per day for mass gain
As you can see I prefer to stick with moderate scales to start with because you can always adjust calories if needed. The aim would be to lose fat on as many calories as possible, or to gain mass with as little fat gain as possible.
Now that we have calculated your daily caloric intake it's time to find your macro split.
To keep things simple I am going to use my number from the Fat Loss Calculation.
Step 4 – calculate your protein intake
1.8-2.8g per Kg Or 0.8-1.25g per LBS
These are large ranges and they vary depending on the individual but also a preference to how much protein one likes to eat. I base this off targeting 4-5 doses of 25-40g protein per day. Hence, the minimum would be 100g of protein.
I personally like to work on the higher end from 2-2.6g per kg.
65kg x 2.5 = 162.5 grams of protein
162.5g x 4 = 650 calories from protein (you will need to remember this number for later).
Step 5 – calculate your Fat intake
Fat intake is largely dependent on personal preference. To put it simply if you like to eat more fat then use a higher percentage, if you like to eat more carbs then use a lower fat percentage.
15-40% of total calories should come from fat. However do not go any lower that 0.5g of fat  per KG when losing body fat. You need fat for your hormones to function optimally.
My personal preference here is 25-30% of calories from fat.
Our TDEE was 1944 for fat Loss
Fat calories = 1944 x 0.3 = 583 calories from fat
Fat yields 9 calories per gram.
583/9 = 65 grams of fat intake per day
Step 6 – Calculate remaining calories from carbohydrates
Now we have our protein and fat intake its time to work out our carbohydrates. This is where we need all of our numbers we have previously calculated.
TDEE for fat loss = 1944 calories
Protein = 162.5g = 650 calories
Fat = 65g = 583 calories
So all that is left is carbs. If you did not know that 1g of carbs yield 4 calories 
So how many calories do we have left? We simply take our TDEE and take away our calories from protein and fat.
1944- 650 - 583 = 711 calories remaining
711/4 = 178 g of carbohydrates
...and you are DONE!
We have calculated the following:
If I am 65kgs and my aim is moderate fat loss then this is my daily macro intake.
Calories = 1944
Protein = 162.5
Carbs = 178
Fat = 65
From here hit your intake by tracking your food in an app like My Fitness Pal. And adjust macros weekly according to your weekly progress.

Answer

Less than 1000 calories? Gurl, I’m hungry for you.

Answer

1. Foods
Fish, chicken and eggs for proteins; vegetables for fiber; unless your on a low carb diet: rice, oats and certain other grains. Fruits are always welcome.
2. Drinks
Absolutely no soda (replace with water). 
   What works for some, don't always works for others. You have to test your metabolism and figure out what's best for you.
P.s. For weight loss: 
calories intake < calories spent.

Answer

What about intermittent fasting?

Answer

I think most medical offices only recommend less than a 1200 calorie/day diet if you are being monitored. Otherwise,  you should probably be eating more. Just focus on making better food choices. Stick to the periphery of the grocery store where all the foods are fresh (I.e. meat, dairy, vegetables and fruits). There is no "super food" that will help with weight loss. Only hard work, motivation and consistency. Do you feel that you can continue eating 1000 calories per day a year or even 5 years from now? If not, then rework your meal prepping and consider the changes you make in your diet a "lifestyle change" and not a diet. Most people fail on fad diets because the diet plan isnt manageable long term.

Answer

For each person it’s different but for me carbs actually work like quinoa, brown rice, millet, chickpeas, corn (in different forms for example gluten free pasta made of corn, polenta, nachos...), green peas, potatos (don’t use sunflower oil, only olive oil).
I also eat some fats like yoghurt, bit of cheese and milk. 
There are also lots of healthier recipes for sweets. And the most important rule of all- always read the ingredients on a package when you’re shopping groceries. Usually foods marked with “healthy” “sugar free” and other stuff are all packed with sugar and palm oil, so be careful.
I love acai bowls but it’s packed with calories so leave room for them if you’re planning on eating acai bowls. They are healthy calories but still watch your number (not strictly). 
Fruit as snacks (sometimes in a smoothie form) and veggies alongside carbs i listed above. 
Strength exercise mixed with cardio minimum three times a week.
I have some healthy recipes for pancakes and ice cream. Let me know if you want them.

what food is best for weight loss? Meal prep?

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