Cutting calories is often recommended as a way to start a weight-loss regime, within certain limits. How much weight you lose and how quickly it comes off depends on how many calories you cut and your level of activity. The safest, most effective way to lose weight is by combining a healthy, low-calorie diet with exercise. Consult your doctor before beginning any weight-loss or exercise regimen.
Calories
You need a certain number of calories to maintain basic bodily functions, such as breathing, hormone replacement and cell growth. This number is referred to as your basal metabolic rate, or BMR. In addition, you need calories to provide fuel for any activity you perform, which includes anything from washing the dishes to running a mile. To lose weight, you need to expend more calories than you consume. You will start to lose weight, essentially, the first day you create any sort of caloric deficit, but to achieve a significant weight loss may take weeks.
Weight Loss
To lose 1 lb. of fat, you need to expend approximately 3,500 more calories than you consume. MayoClinic.com recommends starting a weight-loss program by cutting 500 calories from your daily consumption. Doing this will lead to a caloric deficit of 3,500 calories in one week; a 1 lb. loss. This takes into account that you are consuming, on a daily basis, the same amount of calories you are expending. If you drop 500 calories from a 3,000 calorie diet but are only expending 2,000 calories a day, you won't lose any weight.
Recommendations
Most experts, including MayoClinic.com and the Cleveland Clinic, recommend losing no more than 1 to 2 lbs. in a one-week period. This would include cutting the 500 calories a day from your diet, which would be half of the recommended limit. If you want to lose a second pound, it's best to do some form of exercise to burn the extra calories. Exercise not only burns calories, it also boosts your metabolism, which burns more calories when you are at rest. It also helps you sleep better and wards off disease. In addition, eating healthy foods and avoiding high-calorie treats loaded with sugar, fat and added salt will help keep calories lower and give you the proper nutrition you need to function efficiently.
Warnings
In an attempt to lose weight at a rapid pace, some people turn to very-low-calorie diets. These can be dangerous because if you drop below a certain number of calories, your body turns to the organs and valuable lean muscle for nourishment, which can be dangerous. In addition, many people turn to binge-eating because they are essentially starving, which often negates any weight loss. MedlinePlus.com, the National Institutes of Health's website, recommends men consume no fewer than 1,500 calories a day, while women should not go below 1,200 a day. The only exception might be if you are extremely obese. In that case, your doctor may prescribe a temporary very-low-calorie diet that is below those limits. Doctor-prescribed diets are often accompanied by further medical supervision.
References
- MayoClinic.com; "Fast weight loss: What's wrong with it?" ; Donald Hensrud, M.D.; November, 2009
- MayoClinic.com; Weight loss --- 6 strategies for success; December 2010
- MedLine Plus: Tips for Losing Weight
- ClevelandClinic.org: The Very Best Way To Lose Weight and Keep It Off
- MayoClinic.com: 7 Benefits of Regular Physical Activity; July 2009
- Mayo Clinic.com; Metabolism and Weight Loss --- How You Burn Calories; October 2009
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