How many calories equal ONE POUND?

Question

How many calories do you have to burn each day or week to lose weight?
I know that it takes eating 500 calories less per day to lose one pound a week!

If I ate 1000 calories per day, and burned around 400-500 calories per day with exercise....how much weight would I lose per week?

Right now I am 166 pounds and Im 5'2 (in case you were wondering)

Answer 1

Well for one, it's not eating five hundred calories LESS per day, it's eating five hundred calories below the normal level (the number of calories you can eat without losing or gaining weight.) a day to lose a pound a week... I.E. If I can eat 2000 calories a day and not gain or lose any weight, than I need to eat 1500 a day, if I am the norm, to lose a pound a week.

Anyway, 500, times the seven days that are in a week. 3500.
I don't know what your natural metabolism is, so I can't tell you exactly how much what you're doing will make you lose. If you give me the weight you lose or gain on average and how many calories you were eating at the time you lost or gained it, I could give you a rough estimate.

I.E.- If you don't gain or lose weight consuming 1500 calories a day and not burning any more than usual, then you would lose about two pounds a week on your plan.

And just a note, losing weight that fast would be incredibly unhealthy for you. You do need some energy, some calories, some carbs, etc. They're the energy that fuels you. Unless you have a rediculously low metabolism, leaving yourself with only 500-600 calories a day could be more detrimental to your health than anything else. I would NEVER advise that you aim at any more than a pound a week. Determine your metabolic level, eat 300 calories below it, and burn off any extra. What you're suggesting, even if you avoided aenorexia / bolemia, could be incredibly detrimental to your health.

I can't stress this enough. Calories are NOT a unit of measure for weight! Don't think like that. They are a unit of measure for ENERGY. The energy that your body needs to perform ANY task. Depriving your body, and especially your BRAIN, of the energy it needs to do it's base functions is INCREDIBLY detrimental to your physical and mental well-being- and not just in the sense of developing a disorder. Your brain needs energy to function just like the rest of your body. The reason you cut some calories out of your diet is so your bodies will burn away at the fat you already have stored for energy, but unfortunately if you cut away TOO much at a time than your body may burn protein as well- which your muscles need.

Also, be sure what calories you do cut back on you cut back on by eating healthier foods, not just eating less food. If all you do is eat less food, then you're going to deprive yourself of the vitamins and minerals your body needs (Not all of which can be acquired through supplements.)

There are no 'tricks' or 'secrets' to losing weight. If something really makes you lose weight at a rate of a pound or week or over, it is INCREDIBLY unhealthy for your body. There are a few pills that CAN help, but they all come with risks. When it comes down to it, it takes time and effort. What it all comes down to is figuring out how many calories your metabolism burns on it's own and either consuming just below that or burning off calories. If your day-to-day metabolism burns 2000, than the calories you consume minus the extra calories you burn should equal... I'd say around 1600-1900 for you to lose weight in a healthy manner. You should never go hungry, but you should never eat until you feel stuffed, bloated, or in any way lethargic. Spacing out your meals helps, too- if you eat all in one go, than your body has no choice but to store the extra in fat, as it can't use it all. It's much easier to burn it before it turns into fat.

If you honestly stick to all of that and really don't lose weight, than you need to see a nutritionist or a health expert of some swort.

Answer 2

There are 3500 calories in one pound of fat. You don't need to only eat 1000 calories per day to lose weight, that is a little much if you ask me. There is a little secret I learned... your body works VERY well at adapting to new circumstances. If you start out at 1000 calories your body will get used to it in probably two weeks and you will stop losing weight. I started off at 1800 calories and lost 8 pounds in the first week! The next week I lost 9 more, 17 pounds in 14 days! The third week I only lost 3 pounds. I lowered my intake to 1500 calories and every week after that I would up my intake and lower my intake to "trick" my body. I lost 70 pounds in less than 5 months and did it all on my own. No pills, not much exercise except for walking. I also ate whatever I wanted, I just didn't go over 300 calories per meal. I ate mini meals every three hours. It worked very well. The lowest amount of calories I ate during my diet was 700 calories one day and I didn't mean for that to happen. I couldn't eat because we were driving all day and going everywhere and I didn't have much time and fast food was OUT of the question... I did however allow a "cheat" day where I didn't count calories for one day, but still watched what I ate and only ate when I was truely hungry.

Answer 3

1 pound = 3,500 calories. It is impossible to predict accurately like you are trying to do, as everyone is different, you may have a slow metabolism, but I have a feeling that you are in danger of being to hard on yourself - a sure way of not succeeding. Stick to around 1500 cals a day, but honestly the best and most successful way is to eat healthily, exercise much more and don't count calories. My friend got anorexia doing that and becoming obsessed. Put the calculator away in a drawer and get moving.!!!! Always picture in your mind how great you will look and feel if you can change the way you eat for life - don't do faddy diets - they end up slowing your metabolism and then you revert to the junk food again, and put on more than ever.

Answer 4

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
How many calories equal ONE POUND?
How many calories do you have to burn each day or week to lose weight?
I know that it takes eating 500 calories less per day to lose one pound a week!

If I ate 1000 calories per day, and burned around 400-500 calories per day with exercise....how much weight would I lose per week?

Right now...

Answer 5

3500 calories are equal to 1 pound

Answer 6

3500=1lb is what experts are saying.
Chris Aceto explains if you cut caloric intake too much it lowers metabolism. The secret is moderation. Dieting in moderation helps keep the weight off too.
Read the article here:
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0801/is_11_65/ai_n6247612
If you want more information on caloric intake of certain foods.
Visit: http://diet.ivillage.com/.
They also have nutrition advice and calories burned through certain activities.
Good luck with your weight loss program!

Answer 7

I've lost 5 kilos in my first week. It's my 10th day and I have included salad with some protein (eg. egg/ lean chicken) as you suggested. After 4 years of trying, the fat is finally coming off. It truly feels like magic!

Get started today!

Answer 8

The body is usually getting rid of many unhealthy calories, along with physical exercise makes you burn off these people more rapidly

Answer 9

Think about what you can add to your diet, not that which you must take away. Integrate tasty veggies into your meal, rather than serving them on the side. Not only will they offset the fat as part of your chicken or meat, but the phytochemicals in fresh produce are which could prevent diseases.

Answer 10

eat a fiber filled apple before a meal to help you feel full faster