Healthy Weight Loss: When the usual formulas don't apply
Q. I want to lose 10-15 pounds, which would put me in the middle of the healthy weight range for my height. I've read that losing 1-2 pounds a week is healthy. However, when I used the daily needs calculator on your site, it said if I cut back to the recommended minimum of 1200 calories per day I could only lose .4 pounds a week. So which is right? Could exercise help explain the discrepancy? Thanks!
Q. It sounds as if the daily needs calculator estimates that it takes about 1400 calories to maintain your current weight. In order to lose one pound a week, you'd have to cut back to about 900 calories per day--and that's lower than we usually recommend that you go for more than a day or two because it increases the chances that you'll be falling short on important nutrients.
If you cut back to the recommended minimum of 1200 calories/day, you'll only be creating a 200 calorie per day deficit, which adds up to the slower .4 lb/wk weight loss.
Remember, though, that these guidelines are rules-of-thumb, designed for the average-sized person. Most people burn something closer to 1600 to 2400 calories per day. So if they cut back to 1200 calories, they create a much bigger deficit and lose the weight a lot faster. That's what the 1-2 pound/wk estimates that you see are based on.
But 1400 calories is pretty low--suggesting that you're either rather small, somewhat older, and/or fairly sedentary. Losing a half-pound a week might be a perfectly appropriate pace for you, especially if you are on the smaller side and this half pound represents a larger percentage of your total weight.
A nutritionist or dietician would be able to give you more personalized guidance about appropriate calorie intake for weight loss. But you're on to something: burning more calories with exercise will create a bigger deficit (without you having to dip below 1200 calories) and speed your weight loss.
Related content:
How many calories do I need?
Diet and Weight Loss Resource Center
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Posted by: weightloss secrets | Nov 7, 2009 6:21:51 AM
If you cut back to the recommended minimum of 1200 calories/day, you'll only be creating a 200 calorie per day deficit, which adds up to the slower .4 lb/wk weight loss.Thanks for sharing this point.
Posted by: weight loss | Nov 6, 2009 11:34:17 AM
Eating whole foods, drinking lots of water, taking vitaminsweight loss and a good probiotic and eliminating the synthetic and processed stuff from your home and life.
Posted by: Cyberslimcenter | Aug 20, 2009 2:05:33 AM
I agree 1400 calories is pretty low and burning calories with exercise for me is impossible.But if i do exercice one day yes and one day no i can do it.
Posted by: Palyn | Jun 20, 2009 9:51:14 PM
You should post more and more….it’s kinda interesting….pls keep It updated…
Posted by: Riz Din | Jun 19, 2009 12:01:11 PM
I love this blog but I have experimented on myself and come up with results that contradict some of the above advice.
- I recently cut back my calorie intake to an average of 650 kcal a day for 30 days and plotted all food intake and results here (http://thirtydaysdown.blogspot.com/) and discussed them on my blog (www.rizdin.com). I really have nothing to sell so I hope the links are okay. I lost over a stone, which is about right given the calorie shortage and my weight remains unchanged 45 days later.
- I found that after a few days of self-torment, skipping breakfast and lunch paid dividends. For sustenance and brain function I had more sugar of all things. Sugar in some dried fruit, sugar in tea, etc, and found a little sugar goes a long way to correcting the energy deficit. However, if I ate anything substantial in the day I desired more food a few hours later. By going without something happened to my body - still not sure what - that simply stopped wanting breakfast or lunch. I guess you can train it in this way. Also, to get my nutrients I had no room for any empty calories. I had zero chocolates, crisps etc over the period and piled in the vegetables. Also had cod liver oil tablets.
- Exercise proved largely counter effective as it simply increased appetite, making abstinence more difficult.
- I normally like to take a moderate approach but by going extreme I put my body and appetite on a new pattern and when I had my first chocolate biscuit after the project ended it was like an explosion of sugar in my mouth - not nice I have adapted back to normal after a few days.
- The only side-effect is that my taste buds were heightened over the period and everything tasted amazing, and I am now obsessed with food!
- I don't necessarily recommend this approach and it requires almost military discipline in the first few days, but after that, it's all too easy (perhaps dangerously so).
Admittedly with a sample size is 1, it is arguably a bit low, but I was still surprised at my results and my prescription for losing weight which is no or little fresh fruit, no exercise during the weight loss period, more sugar, loads of veg but less carby, starchy stuff, and no breakfast or lunch.
People say crash dieting doesn't work, but for me it has given me a much deeper self-knowledge and appreciation of the food and the body.
PS - I tested my cholesterol at the end of the 30 days and for the first time in my life and to my knowledge, my good cholesterol was nicely above the recommended level, and total cholesterol about 20% lower than earlier in the year. Body fat also fell from 16% to around 11%.
Posted by: Helen | Jun 19, 2009 6:22:52 AM
Can you please tell me for how long one can ahve this 1200 calories diet?
1 month? 3 months? 6 months?
can it become a "long-term" diet, for life?
Thanks
Posted by: Caroline | Jun 18, 2009 1:59:52 PM
I have been reading lots of articles and studies showing a relation between probiotics and weight management. I wanted to share that because the Vidazorb kids chewable helped our little boy so drastically with his allergies and Eczema, I decided it was important for the rest of our family to take them to with all of their benefits! I have been surprised that my appetite really has decreased and that I feel much more satisfied after eating. I have learned through everything with our son how important it is to live naturally. Eating whole foods, drinking lots of water, taking vitamins and a good probiotic and eliminating the synthetic and processed stuff from your home and life! I think this combination is good for not just weight, but also a long and healthy life!
