SuzayLogan

Okay.. I've heard that you need to burn more calories than you eat to lose weight. So say I have a 1200 calorie a day diet. How do I burn more than 1200 in a day? At the gym I burn 240 or just under or just above. That's in 30 minutes, I don't really know how to burn even 1000.. I'm so stuck. Will I still lose weight if I only burn that much? I go 3 days a week. 20 minutes on the treadmill 20 minutes on the bike. When I come home I do 3 sets of 12 arm curls, 2 sets of 12 push ups, 2 sets of 12 situps.

I generally eat on a daily basis; Kelloggs Special K, lentil Soup, boiled Chicken, red pepper, onion, canned peas, canned carrots, canned sweetcorn (Good) Pasta with tomato sauce, baked chips, curry sauce, subway sandwich (white italian bread, hot chilli sauce, lettuce, chicken), cheese and ham toastie with white bread, gravy sauce (Moderate/Unhealthy?)

I don't like most vegetables or healthy sauces. I also don't have the money/time/patience to prepare lots of foods for a dinner or lunch, I don't like most of the things anyway.

I wouldn't mind eating the ready meals from Tesco/Asda but I've heard they're bad for losing weight.

That's sort of my diet and food plan I have. I usually don't have 1200 calories, I have below. If I decide "Oh I need to add a few more calories" I end up snacking on something fattening because they have the most..

Just, some help please? I can't burn more calories than I intake but can I still lose weight quickly and healthily?

I'm not going to say my weight, but I'm not overweight or anything. I'm a healthy weight, I just want to lose belly/thigh fat.

I'm 18 and 5'1.

mecompco

Suzay, you first need to figure out your basal metabolism. This is how many calories you body burns daily just to survive, given your height, current weight, age and "lifestyle".

Once you have this number, and it is an estimate, you can then decide how many calories per day you can eat to meet your weekly weight loss goal. Any exercise, in addition to your basal metabolism number will either increase the amount of weight you lose or allow you to eat more.

This is called the "calorie deficeit". Since we know it takes about 3500 calories to burn one pound of fat one can easily estimate the amount of weight one will lose in a given time period.

Example (me):

Basal metabolism w/1 mile walk per day: 3,100 calorie burn
Amount I eat per day: 1,500
Average daily calorie deficeit: 1,600

Now to figure estimated weekly weight loss:
Weekly calorie burn: 3,100 x 7 = 21,700
Weekly calorie intake: 1,500 x 7 = 10,500
Weekly calorie deficeit: 1,600 x 7 = 11,200
Calculated weekly weight loss: 11,200 / 3,500 = 3.2 pounds

Now, if you overestimate your burn, and/or underestimate your intake, your calculations won't be accurate and could result in no loss, or even a gain.

Do you weigh/measure your portions? From your list, I estimate that is more than 1200 calories. Also, there seems to be some processed items there, as well as simple carbs. You might consider trying to get some more protein in there, as well as fresh fruits and veggies and reducing the white bread and pasta.

What you ideally want to do is find a calorie level at which you can stay comfortable and that provides you with enough of a calorie deficiet to lose weight.

If you have questions, don't hesitate to ask!

Regards,
Michael

PS My daughter is your height and is 17. She, too, struggles with weight issues--it is a challenge but I know you can meet your goal if you put your mind to it!

PPS Other than by physically removing body parts (liposuction), it is biologically impossible to lose weight if you take in more calories than you burn--sorry.

SailorDoom

Maybe you're forgetting the number of calories you're burning though daily activity. FitDay has a tool to calculate this. This is calculated by taking your resting metabolic rate (RMR), which describes how many calories your body needs for basic function (think: sitting on the couch doing nothing but breathing, pumping blood, etc.) and using a "lifestyle" multiplier (the more active you are at school, work, chores or whatever, the higher it will be) to get a base amount of calories you need to do daily activities without exercise. For me (5'3", 135 lbs, 27yo female with an active job) it’s about 1800 calories. So I need 1800 calories to go about my life as usual -- your workout generally should not be figured into this equation, and is more "icing on the cake". To lose weight you would need to create a calorie deficit. Here’s how:

Using my own example, let’s say I ate 1600 calories on a given day through a calorie-restricted diet and worked out hard enough to burn 300 calories. I'd take that base number of 1800 (based on caloric need for bodily function and active lifestyle) and subtract the 500 calories of deficit that I created with my diet and exercise efforts. My total net calories for the day would then be 1300 (which is 1800-500). Doing this for about a week should create a one pound weight loss (because you need create a 3500 calorie deficit to lose one pound). In theory. It’s different for everyone and the 3500 calories is really just a guideline. My example is also pretty simplified. Also, be aware that FitDay's estimates for calories needed tend to be a little high. I'd recommend cross-checking it with a few different sites to get a more accurate estimate. Also, remember this is really all a big experiment with yourself -- if what you're doing isn't working, change up your routine! Give your body time to see if your strategy is actually having an effect. If not, tighten up your diet, hit the gym harder, and/or be honest with yourself about your goals and expectations. Be ready and willing to tweak things – the take home point is that while FitDay seems numbers-oriented and scientific, its just an educated estimate of what you can expect. No computer program can compete with personal dedication, honesty, and a willingness to adapt!

You mentioned that your goal is to lose body fat since you're already at a healthy weight. this can be tricky. Losing body fat is not the same as losing body weight. There's a saying that washboard abs are made in the kitchen, and that's where I'd start. I'd recommend taking a really close look at your diet. Make sure you're eating healthy, whole foods (the less processed, the better). The list you mentioned in your post seems pretty highly processed to me. Learning to like certain foods and how to cook them might be worth the rockin' body awaiting you. Also, I would hit the weights a lot harder. Weightlifting burns way more body fat than most traditional steady state cardio. Focus on “big” movements like squats, lunges, push-ups (which you’ve got under control), and pulls, all of which use multiple muscle groups. This is discussed in many other posts here on FitDay. You can compliment your strength routine with short sessions of high intensity cardio (HIIT) to get the most bang for your buck. You may also need to increase the number of calories you're eating, helping you get a great workout through increased energy and really stoking the fire that is (or will be) your metabolism.

Keep tweaking your routine and you can do it!


EDIT: Sorry for the repeated info -- Michael got to the reply while I was typing hat wall 'o' text. Good info in his post!!

mecompco

Ha ha--nothing wrong with a few different points of view. Your example is closer to Suzay's situation than mine is. Good show!

Regards,
Michael

rpmcduff

Sailordoom and mecompco have already given you some great ideas. To supplement what they have already mentioned you may consider some of these tweaks. Instead of the white bread try whole grain or whole wheat. If you need to add calories consider whey protein shakes make with milk and a little crushed ice for a healthy treat. Nuts like almonds are high in calories because of the healthy fats they provide.