Diet and Health Info

Each pound of fat on your body represents approximately 3,500 calories of stored energy. So using 3,500 more calories than you eat would result in the loss of a pound of fat. Even though this appears to be a simple formula your body is a thinking organism that is designed to protect itself.

If you did reduce the amount of calories you take in by the whole 3,500 in one day, an alarm would register in your body triggering a state of emergency. Immediately your metabolism would slow resulting in no loss of weight. What you need to do is spread your calorie reduction out over a week, so that your goal becomes losing one to two pounds per week by reducing your caloric intake by 3,500 to 7,000 calories over the period of a week.

Also it’s generally accepted that it’s not safe to attempt the loss of more than two pounds per week. Attempting to lose more than 2 pounds per week through calorie reduction may cause health risks and besides it’s also likely to fail.

There is a basic method of calorie counting you can use to help you accomplish your goal of losing two pounds per week. The first step you’ll need to do is to figure out how many calories you need in a day based on your age, sex, and current weight. (Note: the next article in this series will show you how to calculate your daily calorie requirements.) Then you subtract 500 from that amount and alter your diet so that you reduce that many calories.

For example, if you determine you ordinarily need to consume 3,000 calories a day, you would follow a 2,500-calorie a day diet. Next, you need to figure out how much exercise a person of your weight would need to perform in order to burn 500 calories a day. Then begin an exercise routine to achieve that goal.

The simple result is 500 fewer calories consumed and 500 extra calories burned which equals a 1,000 calorie a day reduction. Over the course of a week that adds up to 7,000 calories less - and the loss of two pounds. Although individual results will vary, the bottom line is since you’re consuming fewer calories than you’re using weight loss will result.