How many calories do I need to burn to lose 2 pounds per week?

How many calories do I need to burn to lose 2 pounds per week? - When you consume more calories through food than you expend through metabolic processes and physical activity, the body stores the excess calories as fat. Creating fat is a way for the body to store energy. To lose this fat, you will have to cut calories and burn more calories through exercise in order to create an energy deficit.

Calories in a pound

There are approximately 3,500 calories in one pound of body weight. Therefore, to lose a pound of fat in a week, you would have to create a caloric deficit of 500 calories each day. To lose two pounds a week, you would have to create a 1,000 calorie deficit each day. The deficit is created by cutting calories and exercising to burn them off. Severe caloric restriction is unhealthy and can put your body in "starvation mode" where it will want to store all the calories it receives.

Basal metabolic rate

If you are not sure how many calories to consume in a day, you need to first calculate your basal metabolic rate. Basal metabolic rate represents the number of calories your body burns during a rest day. After calculating this number, you can multiply it by an activity factor number that is based on how physically active you are throughout the day. Consult a doctor or fitness professional to determine an exact basal metabolic rate. There are also calculators online that can approximate this rate based on your age, gender, height, and weight.

Eliminate calories

One way to create a calorie deficit is to cut down on the calories you eat. This may not apply to everyone, especially people who already consume fewer calories than their basal metabolic rate. As a general rule of thumb, the minimum number of calories anyone should consume in a day is 1,200. Most people will have to consume more than 1,200 calories because your body needs fuel to function.

Drinking water instead of soda, consuming less processed foods, and watching your portion sizes are changes you can make to your lifestyle in order to consume fewer calories throughout the day.

Exercise

In order to create a 1,000 calorie deficit each day, exercise is essential. While it helps add small periods of activity throughout the day, like climbing stairs and parking farther from your office, burning 800 to 1,000 calories a day through exercise will require a long workout or two workouts a day. Your calorie burn can vary depending on your fitness level and exercise intensity. As an example, a 200-pound person will burn 346 calories walking for an hour or 728 calories jogging for an hour.

Caution

Losing two pounds of fat a week is within a healthy range, but it is the upper limit of one to two pounds a week recommended for weight loss. Consult a doctor or fitness professional before undertaking a severe diet or exercise change to ensure that your body is healthy and able to cope with increased exertion.