17 pounds in 17 days!
Sorry folks, that was just to grab your attention...
Now, how much of your fat deposits can you lose in a week or a month, REALLY?
As you realized, losing fat and losing weight is not quite the same thing.
These days, practically every new diet book seems to set a higher weight loss goal in order to sell more copies, yet disregarding the physiology of the human body.
One kilogram of body fat stores 7'400kcal (31'000 kJ).
Equally, one pound of fat stores 3'400kcal (14'220kJ) of energy.
Humant body fat stores per kg/lb somewhat less energy than other fats - such as olive or corn oil, because unlike oil, human fatty tissue contains 10-15% water, but it still a considerable amount.
On the other hand, the break down of muscle tissue – mostly protein, yet with 60% of water - provides much less energy - only 600 kcal (2'500 kJ) per kg or 270 kcal (1'130 kJ) per pound, i.e. 12 times less than for fat. Unless you engage in exercise, you can realistically expect about 25% of your weight loss to be loss of lean tissue.
And avoiding carbohydrates for 2 days can make you lose easily 1.5 kg / 3.2 lb ...... of water, as the lack of carbohydrates in your diet acts by reducing your body's carbohydrate stores (glycogen) that bind water (in an approximate ratio of 1:4).
Much of the so-called weight loss ‘success’ during diets is due to the release of water, muscle loss and also, most worryingly, bone loss.
Even serious sources – such as governmental agencies or hospitals - speak of losing 2lb /1kg a week on a ‘sensible’ diet - as if nobody had access to a calculator.
At TheSlimSchool, we want most if not all of your weight loss to be fat loss, NOT lower hydration, lower bone mass or loss of muscle mass. So, you need to create a calorie gap of 7'400/ 3400 kcal in order for your body to lose 1kg/1lb of fat, all while taking measures to prevent losing bone and muscle.
Who can lose how much?
Count with us:
- in order to lose 0.5 kg fat in a week, you need to create a total calorie deficit of 3'700 kcal (15'500 kJ) - i.e. a deficit of 530 kcal (2'200 kJ) daily. To lose one pound in a week, the total gap needs to be 3'400 kcal (14'200 kJ), i.e. 480 kcal (2'000 kJ) daily.
- to lose 1kg of fat (7400 kcal/31'000 kJ of energy) in a month, you will need to create a daily calorie gap of 250 kcal (1'050 kJ). To shed 2 lb of fat (6700 kcal/28'000 kJ of energy) in a month, an effective gap of 230 kcal (960 kJ) every single day of the month is needed.
- for a 2 kg fat loss in one month, you need to have a deficit of 500 kcal (2'100 kJ) every day. Equally, for a 4 lb fat loss you need to sustain a 450 kcal (1'880 kJ) deficit on each day of the month.
Men have a definite advantage in this field: for a moderately active man, who weighs 95 kg /210 lb and is 190cm (6 feet 3 in) tall, cutting 500 kcal (2'100 kJ) means reducing his daily calorie needs (from a baseline of 2700 kcal*/ 11'300 kJ) by 18% - a sensible approach. Two kg or 4 lb fat loss in a month is feasible for him.
But if you are a petite, sedentary female carrying 65 kg /143 lb on a 160cm/5 feet 3 in frame, your daily energy intake needs are 45% lower (1'500 kcal */6'300 kJ) than in the above example. Cutting 500 kcal (2'100 kJ) means reducing your daily calories by 33% - a near impossible task for longer than several days.
Losing 1 kg /2 pounds of fat in a month is an excellent result for such a body frame, which may translate in half an inch on the hips and waist.
Additionally to the above, you need to consider that the resting metabolic rate as well as spontaneous movement will go down slightly during the dieting phase (for counting purposes, 5-10% of daily needs), unless you are very conscious about moving more. This reduction will disappear when the diet stops.
TheSlimSchool recommends acquiring long term habits, through which a daily gap of 5-12% of energy needs can be sustained over a longer time, as a strategy for losing fat.
If you prefer to embark on a diet, a gap of 15-25% of your daily energy needs is recommended.
TheSlimSchool goes the extra mile with you, so that you can use all the strategies available.
This means not only reducing the absolute calorie intake, but also lowering fat and carbohydrates absorption in the gut and enhancing body fat oxidation through optimal food composition, meal timing, body movement and a stable body metabolic rate. Subscribe now.
* using the Mifflin-St.Jeor equation for energy expenditure
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