One pound of fat equals 3500 calories. Want to lose a pound a week? Then you need to consume 3500 calories less per week than you use. That's about 500 calories a day. By cutting out 500 calories a day from your normal daily diet, while keeping your activity level the same, you can lose approximately one pound a week.
All right - that doesn't sound like much, especially if you're more than 25 pounds overweight. Study after study has shown, though, that those people who lose weight gradually - at a rate of 1-2 pounds per week -are far more likely to keep the weight off and maintain a normal weight for a lifetime.
So how much exactly IS 500 calories? If you're going to reduce your daily intake by 500 calories, it helps to know what you need to cut out, right? Here's how easy it is to lose 500 calories a day:
* Use milk instead of cream in your coffee. Savings? 50 calories per cup.
* Drink fruit-flavored water instead of a 16 ounce soda. Savings? 200 calories
* Skip the Big Mac and have a salad instead. A Big Mac weighs in at a whopping 460 calories. A fresh salad with a light dressing? Less than 100! Savings? 360 calories
* Pass by the bag of potato chips. An average snack size bag of chips has over 300 calories. Savings? 300 calories
* Eat your corn on the ear. A 1 cup serving of canned corn has 165 calories. An ear of corn has 85. Savings? 80 calories.
* Switch to low-fat cream cheese on your bagel. Savings? 90 calories per ounce.
* Love those fries and can't give them up? Swap the skinny fries out for thick steak-cut ones. Thin French fries absorb more oil than the thicker, meatier ones. Savings? 50 calories per 4 ounce serving
If you'd rather look at losing weight from an exercise perspective, you can also lose one pound a week by upping your activity level by 500 calories a day. How easy is that to do? Take a look:
* Take a half-hour walk around the park. Aim for a pace that's a little faster than a stroll, but not fast enough to be breathless. Burn: 160 calories.
* Get out your bike and take a ride. Tackle a few moderate hills and aim for about five miles total. Burn: 250 calories
* Go dancing - and really DANCE. The longer you're out on the floor instead of at the table drinking up high-calorie drinks, the more you'll get out of it. Dancing that makes you breathless and warms up your body will net you a nice calorie savings. Burn: 400 calories for one hour
* Swimming is great for you, and a lot of fun, too. The water resistance means you burn more calories, and you avoid the stress impact on joints from aerobics, dancing or walking. Do a few laps at a slow crawl - if you can get up to an hour you'll be doing great! Burn: 510 calories
* Get out into your garden. An hour of gardening tasks that includes bending and stretching can burn up to as many calories as a brisk walk. Burn: 250 calories.
* Play a game of tennis. Hook up with a friend for a weekly tennis game and you'll be amazed at the difference. One hour of vigorous tennis is one of the best calorie burners around. Burn: 800 calories
It's important to keep in mind that all exercise/calorie numbers are based on a woman weighing 130 pounds. If you weigh more, you'll burn more. Want an added bonus to burning calories through exercise? When you exercise, you build muscle by converting it from fat. Three guesses which kind of body tissue burns more calories - even when you're not exercising. You got it - your body uses more energy to maintain and feed muscle than it does fat.
For best lose weight results, mix and match food savings with exercises that burn calories. Do keep in mind that eating less than 1000 calories a day for more than a few days will convince your body that it's starving and slow your metabolism. Keep calorie ranges reasonable, and consult a doctor if you want a quicker, more drastic weight loss.
Tracy Price is a staff writer at lose weight This article may be used as long as the links remain live and the resource box stays with this article.
For free tips and tricks to loss weight please visit lose weight
eco-friendly cleaning service Buffalo Grove ..1. Increase your water intake to at least 1 gallon... Read More
If you're always on a diet you probably spend half... Read More
Fat burning exercise is not merely one that will burn... Read More
I thought I could avoid this when we moved to... Read More
Whew! So how did you do on that last lesson?... Read More
Looking for Diet Programs on net is like looking for... Read More
Why has Phentermine stopped helping me lose weight?Many people are... Read More
Have you ever decided to take a trip somewhere relatively... Read More
"How do I lose 5 kg or 30 kg?""How do... Read More
In order to lose weight, your body must burn more... Read More
I'm sure you have heard it before, but one of... Read More
"I'd love to lose weight, but I don't have the... Read More
To say that Americans are obsessed with dieting is an... Read More
At the University of Illinois, a new research found that... Read More
AND SAVE MONEY IN THE PROCESS. The secret is simple... Read More
Are you tired of getting the same old advice when... Read More
1. Persistence!Violate this step and you'll never achieve permanent results.... Read More
ATTITUDESIT'S NOT ABOUT YOU!Exercising has so many physical benefits that... Read More
Cellulite is a condition for which cures are commonly sought.... Read More
Before you try starving yourself or turning to diet drugs... Read More
If anyone knows anything about fitness, it's that a low... Read More
I have tried many "diets" here in the USA and... Read More
Every day, it seems, a new study pertaining to weight... Read More
I am approaching 70 years of age very quickly and... Read More
One of the hardest aspects of getting yourself into shape,... Read More
express cleaning service Arlington Heights ..There are several theories on the origins of Valentine's Day.... Read More
Dieting is not easy. If it were, we would probably... Read More
A client wrote, "Help me! I thought I was finally... Read More
With so many diets and fads being offered on the... Read More
For many years, the experts, including our government have been... Read More
While the gastric bypass may seem like the perfect solution... Read More
Hold the onions! Let's talk "liver". No, not beef liver,... Read More
"The kind of thoughts that you plant in your mind,... Read More
Have you ever just felt like you were doing everything... Read More
You can overcome the desires of your sweet-tooth by incorporating... Read More
1. Quit snacking in between meals. Do not fall for... Read More
Getting enough of the good fats will help you lose... Read More
I just came back from three days in Las Vegas.... Read More
If all we have to do is exercise to live... Read More
Food manufacturers can easily manipulate a whole population by the... Read More
Resistance training, also known as strength training, does not require... Read More
If you are about to begin a diet, the number... Read More
Lose Weight - Grab A GlassIn childhood, we heard it:... Read More
The answer to the title of this article is "none."... Read More
Fat has had a lot of bad press and for... Read More
You don't realize it, but in the next few minutes... Read More
On the market at any given time, there are hundreds... Read More
In the early nineties I had the opportunity to work... Read More
This year, we all made some of the typical New... Read More
I clearly remember how much I loathed having my picture... Read More
Weight Loss |