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I used to think this was a load of rubbish myself (being someone who thought I could eat anything and not gain weight as I usually can) until I tried an experiment whereby I actually measured the exact calories I ate and then overate 1000kcal per day and I gained the "predicted weight" based on this rule of thumb, and quicker than I thought I would. The thing is unless you actually measure every single calorie you eat a day you do not know how many you are eating and that's why people don't think this works as they are not having the discipline to measure and stick to a diet correctly.
The lose no more than 2 lbs a week is like saying don't eat more than 2,500 calories a day on average. It's a very vague statement. Plus burning 3,500 calories may equate to losing a figure of 'one pound', it doesn't mean you're losing one solid pound of fat. If that was the case people will see a very consistent fat loss but of course like already mentioned everyone loses differently.
If someone want to get technical, roughly 31 calories per pound of excess fat in your body can be burned off without the body utilizing other energy source. That's where the general "no more than 1-2 pounds" come from.
So say Mr. X weighs 250 lbs with body fat of 35%. Assuming the figure is accurate, 100 lbs of excess fat Mr. X carries can allow him to burn up to 2,712 calories a day. It doesn't also mean his body will automatically use the excess fat first and switch to other stores either.
Or take Ms. Z that weigh 120 lbs with body fat of 18%. She can burn up to roughly 670 calories. If she wanted to drop few percentage off, she can safely lose about a pound of fat without losing muscle mass and slow down her metabolism severely.
The more excess fat you have, you have the potential to lose more fat. If you're lean already obviously, the body isn't going to simply allow you to lose at the same pace as someone is losing healthy two pounds of healthy weight each week.
this is an utter stupid lack of data and proof myth.
what your food and fluids weigh is the weight you will gain eating unless you give time to loose between meals through fasting or excersize keep stacking on the weight. weight gain wich includes water supposedly "zero calories" at .5 lbs
per cup.
if you weigh yourself before and after eating a 700 calorie burger
from mcdonalds (double quarter pounder with cheese) you will find you gain
1 lb per burger if you sit and eat and do nothing.
it takes me 1 hour to drop .2 lbs (weather and activity levels can accelerate and slow weight loss)
wich is equal to about 140 calories or 16 wheat thins.
in 45 min of stationary at 700 calories I drop 1lb of bodyweight in 70 - 80 degree temperatures.
I maintain my weight at 1400 calories a day not 2000 with two cups fluids, more if im overworked, unaturaly tired
or its hot out.
work on maintaining your weight and dropping a little at a time by reducing food and fluid volume.
you can most likely acurately predict weight gain by using a person and food scale.
what your food weighs should be the weight increase including fluids (the food that goes into your stomach).
it takes me 6 hours of inactivity to drop 1.2 lbs
In order to loose weight you have to eat less in food weight than you loose in a given time period.
If i loose .2 lbs an hour, then in order to loose weight i have to eat less in food weight & fluid weight ( less than 140 calories
per hour).
In order to maintain weight you have to eat the same in food weight that you loose in a given time period.
example if i loose .2 lbs in an hour, in order to maintain my weight (weight the same) i need to eat .2 lbs of food weight
within that time period.
weight loss all the time is not healthy. weight loss causes fatigue, people eat to maintain your hearrate so you can
live and maintain energy levels. without food for 12 days we die and fatigue out, without water for 3 days
we also die. this is probaby exasorbated in high weather extremes.
its a good idea to learn how to maintain your bodyweight and drop a little at a time. 99% of nutritionalists
cannot maintain thier bodyweight. hopefully now you have the skills to do so after reading this.
70 calories = .1 lbs on a person scale estimated as 140 = .2 (shown by eating 16 wheat thins at 140 calories).
thier are ten .1 lbs per 1lb for a total of 700 calories per 1lb (70 x 10).
much of weight gain is caused by meal stacking (not giving enough time for weight to be lost between meals)
and fluid retention (overdrinking fluids) and not bothering to pay attention to how much time it takes to loose
weight and how what you eat is affecting your weight.
this is an utter stupid lack of data and proof myth.
what your food and fluids weigh is the weight you will gain eating unless you give time to loose between meals through fasting or excersize keep stacking on the weight. weight gain wich includes water supposedly "zero calories" at .5 lbs
per cup.
if you weigh yourself before and after eating a 700 calorie burger
from mcdonalds (double quarter pounder with cheese) you will find you gain
1 lb per burger if you sit and eat and do nothing.
it takes me 1 hour to drop .2 lbs (weather and activity levels can accelerate and slow weight loss)
wich is equal to about 140 calories or 16 wheat thins.
in 45 min of stationary at 700 calories I drop 1lb of bodyweight in 70 - 80 degree temperatures.
I maintain my weight at 1400 calories a day not 2000 with two cups fluids, more if im overworked, unaturaly tired
or its hot out.
work on maintaining your weight and dropping a little at a time by reducing food and fluid volume.
you can most likely acurately predict weight gain by using a person and food scale.
what your food weighs should be the weight increase including fluids (the food that goes into your stomach).
it takes me 6 hours of inactivity to drop 1.2 lbs
In order to loose weight you have to eat less in food weight than you loose in a given time period.
If i loose .2 lbs an hour, then in order to loose weight i have to eat less in food weight & fluid weight ( less than 140 calories
per hour).
In order to maintain weight you have to eat the same in food weight that you loose in a given time period.
example if i loose .2 lbs in an hour, in order to maintain my weight (weight the same) i need to eat .2 lbs of food weight
within that time period.
weight loss all the time is not healthy. weight loss causes fatigue, people eat to maintain your hearrate so you can
live and maintain energy levels. without food for 12 days we die and fatigue out, without water for 3 days
we also die. this is probaby exasorbated in high weather extremes.
its a good idea to learn how to maintain your bodyweight and drop a little at a time. 99% of nutritionalists
cannot maintain thier bodyweight. hopefully now you have the skills to do so after reading this.
70 calories = .1 lbs on a person scale estimated as 140 = .2 (shown by eating 16 wheat thins at 140 calories).
thier are ten .1 lbs per 1lb for a total of 700 calories per 1lb (70 x 10).
much of weight gain is caused by meal stacking (not giving enough time for weight to be lost between meals)
and fluid retention (overdrinking fluids) and not bothering to pay attention to how much time it takes to loose
weight and how what you eat is affecting your weight.
Utter nonsense! I see some misguided personal observation in this post, but no science.
The actual weight of the food has nothing to do with long term weight loss or weight gain. Yes, if you eat a one pound burger you will weigh one pound more until you have a bowel movement. But this has little to nothing to do with your body's overall metabolism and long term weight gain. This is disproved as easily as comparing celery and carrots to pastries. I guarantee the pound of pastries will have A LOT more calories. If you feed equal weights of carrots and celery to person A and pastries to person B, person B will be consuming more calories and gain more weight. Not to mention the fact that the highly processed carbs in the pastries will not be processed by your body in the same way as the carrots and celery. And water IS zero calories. If all you do is drink water (fast) you will be well hydrated, but you will lose weight.
3500 calories is not the measurement of a pound of body weight. It never was, no one is claiming it is, so insisting that it isn't, is pretty silly. Of course it's not.
3500 calories is the amount of calories in a pound of fat, not a pound of body weight. Your body consists of more than just fat; it is bone, blood, water, skin and other organs, waste, tendons, etc. etc. etc. None of them measure 3500 calories per pound. Only fat measures 3500 calories per pound.
Don;t eat anything that tastes good? Really? Is fat the only thing that tastes good to you? I lost 40 lbs eating lots of foods that I love (I do not love fast food, processed foods, tons of sugar). I was never hungry or wanting for anything. I ate smart.
Right on.
I am a fifty year old woman who is post menopause - in other words, one of those people who is supposed to be dumpy from here on out.
I have totally changed my eating habits over the past 6 months, to all natural foods, including REAL butter, whole milk, delicious cheeses, and REAL SUGAR. Yes, it's true. Organic, whole grains, lots of fantastic fruits and veggies, delicious recipes that include succulent meats, whole eggs, all that stuff that's supposedly so bad for us. I also drink the occasional glass of wine, or even (gasp) have a beer! And - when I want to, I even eat chocolate.
I don't do any weight lifting, zumba classes, or jogging. All I do is make sure I either walk at least 30 minutes a day, or do something like mow the yard or work in my flower beds for at least an hour. Oh - and I don't park in close parking spaces - oh the strenuous workouts!
I went on vacation to Virginia Beach this past week, and in addition to enjoying some beautiful king crab legs dipped in real butter, I had some fantastic grilled scallops - and a big plate of spaghetti and meatballs one night - with bread and blue cheese dressing on my salad!
I felt great the entire time, was in total control of what I ate, never felt hungry or deprived, and was amazingly active the entire time - when I go to the beach, I PLAY constantly - no laying in the sun for me. I'm in the water fighting the waves, or walking for hours along the shoreline in the sand looking for shells.
I gained two pounds which I lost within two days of coming home. Honestly I think it was water weight from flying - my ankles were all puffy and so was my face, which went away the next day.
About a month ago, I added tracking my food intake since I was now used to eating correctly. I am using Weight Watchers but any tracking system works. I was actually eating TOO LITTLE at first (about 1200 calories a day max) and was losing weight VERY slowly - some weeks not losing at all. Well, that is a life of deprivation. So when I went to WW they told me I needed to eat MORE and to eat more of a variety - so now I'm up to about 1400 - 1500 calories a day, and I'm losing two pounds a week! I've lost over 10 pounds in the past four weeks - and that includes my week of vacation!
Can I eat anything I want anytime I want it? No, of course not. But here's the really weird thing - all that stuff you hear about NOT WANTING the bad stuff when you're actually eating good foods, is true! I DON'T crave sugar or chocolate or even ice cream any more. I DON'T crave lots of bread or pasta. I've experimented and tweaked recipes using only wholesome, natural ingredients and I've truly discovered the joy of delicious salads and fruits and cooking with less red meat.
My life doesn't revolve around dieting or food anymore. What a relief!
Oh, one more hint - I honestly believe that getting more sleep contributes positively to our health and to weight loss. I've lost a total of 22 inches in one month - including 4 in my bust, 4 in my waist, and 2 in my hips. So - though ten pounds isn't amazing - those inches lost around my middle sure are! All my pants and shirts feel nice and loose and comfortable now instead of tight. I contribute a lot of my success to striving for 8 hours of sleep a night.
If you had told me when I was 42 and weighed 225 pounds that I would feel and look this good at 50 (I've actually lost a total of about 40 pounds since those fat days) I am not sure I would have believed you. I am tall and muscular so I can carry weight well. I still want to lose 25 more pounds - that will put me where I was in college and well within my healthy weight range. I can't wait!
It can be done. Eat less, exercise more - but most importantly we have to EAT RIGHT and make healthy lifestyle choices.
I'm just saying, when a fat person wants to lose weight and fails, it's on them. There are a billion and one diets, tips, routines, and advice columns which are totally reasonable, accessible, and can be successful when followed. When a fat person following one of these methods fails to lose weight, it's not on the diet it's on the dieter.
Most of the time, yes.
When I was in my late 30s, I developed a condition where my uterus produced WAY too much lining, which is loaded with estrogen. I began to pile on weight. I gained 50 pounds in about 5 years. Of course, I didn't realize what was going on - I just thought I was getting fatter with age. To top that off, to put it bluntly, I was bleeding most of the time like a period. I was MISERABLE. After two years of testing and trying other approaches - and when abnormal cells began showing up on my pap smears - my doctor recommended a hysterectomy.
Within a year, I had lost 40 pounds. Now - as some of that weight began dropping off, and my health improved, I began to feel a LOT better, so I became more active. This encouraged me to monitor my food intake better, so that also contributed to my weight loss. BUT - I gained that weight primarily due to a health issue.
I kept most of it off, till I tore my Achilles tendon about a year and a half ago. Long story short, I ended up in a big heavy plastic boot and then a cast and then a boot again, complete with crutches and scooters, the whole nine yards, for over 8 months. Consequently, I gained about 20 pounds.
Now - both times that I put on the weight, I realize in retrospect that in addition to my health issues, I also was eating out of an emotional need - due to a certain level of depression with my physical limitations. The first time (hormonal) I think most of the weight gain was from physical abnormalities, because it largely corrected itself when the physical problem was addressed. But the second time, it was my forced inactivity and subsequent boredom (and lots of eating out because it's a hassle to cook when you have crutches or a cast!) that caused me to gain weight.
Either way, neither of these physical issues was an excuse - and both made it extremely difficult for me to lose weight.
Because of those experiences, I have empathy for those who struggle with weight gain. I don't know what they're dealing with so I don't judge them harshly.
I am successfully getting the 20 pounds off though, by exercising or doing strenuous activities every day, and by PORTION CONTROL - not deprivation. In other words, small, daily choices and patience. It will probably take me 6 months to lose weight at a slow, healthy pace and I am perfectly fine with that.
^^ Really, I laughed out loud at the "run slowly for an hour" idea.
I wouldn't be able to run for five minutes, let alone an hour. I can WALK for an hour (but usually do it for 30 - 45 minutes, which is a lot more realistic on a lunch hour.
Maybe the article is for 20-somethings, but often people are skinny in their 20s and it's when you get older that the weight goes on. No one's going to start running in their forties.
But the OP has the very basics of weight loss down. 1 pound does indeed equal 3500 calories, and there's no getting around it--you have to expend more calories than you take in to lose weight.
I simply refuse to jog or run after my experience a few weeks ago.
When I was in my twenties, I ran about 4 miles a day. I could eat whatever I wanted to.
Eventually, I began suffering from shin splints. As time went on, like you, I switched over to walking for about 45 minutes a day. That has worked MUCH better for me.
I am fifty. About a month ago, I decided to give running a try again since I enjoyed it when I was younger and I know it really burns the calories. Surprisingly, I was able to jog for about 15 or 20 minutes - so I did so for about a week nearly every day, and then walked the rest of the time. (I even bought fancy schmancy running shoes.)
OMG. Mistake. My knees began hurting. My achilles tendons began hurting (I injured one a while back but thought it had healed - I had the doc's OK to jog on it). By the end of the week, my knees were hurting so badly I couldn't even WALK without limping - let alone run!
I backed off from that, and had to actually give myself about a week of NO activity in order to recover - I was afraid I had truly messed myself up!
Today is the FIRST DAY since then (about a month ago) that I actually have no pain when walking.
Definitely not worth the risk in my opinion. Even with a doctor's OK, it didn't work for me at all, and I'd much rather walk briskly and minimize the chance of injury, than start jogging and then be out of commission entirely due to an injury.
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