Wednesday, July 17, 2013

The Fat Loss Formula

It's a tricky thing, fat loss. If you don't get everything right whether it be eating or exercise or calories, something can go wrong. Maybe you don't lose weight at the rate you want to or maybe you hit a plateau or quite possibly you lose weight too quickly then can't keep it off and gain it back. It's a hard thing to do and even harder to understand. And not everyone is the same. Although advice & ideas are great to take from others, you have to find the perfect formula for you. Then when you think you finally have it, you have to change it up or you will plateau again....isn't it awesome! :/
 

It has taken me a while to figure out that formula and I still tweak with it a bit but the weight is finally starting to come off more consistently, a little slower than I would like, but at least I'm not gaining.


To start figuring out your formula, you have to come up with 3 things; Calculate your BMR, Calculate your Activity level & Determine how many lbs you would like to lose.

Formula for BMR:
Women: 655 + (4.3 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age in years)


Formula for Activity:
If you are sedentary : BMR x 20 percent
If you are lightly active: BMR x 30 percent
If you are moderately active (You exercise most days a week.): BMR x 40 percent
If you are very active (You exercise intensely on a daily basis or for prolonged periods.): BMR x 50 percent
If you are extra active (You do hard labor or are in athletic training.): BMR x 60 percent


You then add this number to your BMR. This total gives you the number of calories you can eat everyday to maintain your weight. If you want to lose weight, you then need to tweak your calorie intake by subtracting either food calories or exercise calories or both ideally. 
To lose 1lb, you need to have a 3,500cal deficit so if you take away 500cals per day you should lose a pound a week.
Now once you figure this out, play around with it. But try it for at least 2 weeks at a time. That way you can see if it's doing anything. And for gosh sake's, take measurements! That scale is a lying be-autch!


There is no secret to weight loss, no fast fix, no wrap or pill that are going to take the weight off & keep it off. You simply have to eat better & work your ass off! It's going to be hard and there will be times that you want to stop but in the end all the things that you went through to get to your goal will be worth it!

9 comments:

  1. Have you been using this formula? I got a similar formula from another blog, but it just freaks me out with the number of calories that I get. I run about 4-5 times a week (usually 5), but used "moderately active" -- it says I should eat over 1,900 calories a day. That just seems like SO much to me.

    I'm on WW and about 25lbs from my goal, so I've been eating (on WW), roughly 1,300 calories a day, with splurge points that I use throughout the week. I actually am currently plateauing at about 175, but it scares me to try to eat more!

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    1. So I followed this formula when I started up until I lost about the first 60lbs. Then I noticed that I wasn't losing very much so I had to adjust down to about 1500 and now I'm down to about 1200. I think this is definitely a good starting point and I know some days I do need more food. If you weight has plateaued, you may want to increase your cals by just a little....maybe just on the days that you workout harder. You could also just change up your workouts or the foods you are eating...sometimes just changing it up helps. I find that on the days I do weight training I am way more hungry than on days I just do cardio.

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  2. Great post! I am in the post-baby routine of trying to lose weight. I need to try something different to switch it up for myself and this sounds perfect! Great blog, can't wait to catch up on your other posts!
    www.babysaiz.blogspot.com

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  3. There is soooo much to weight loss. It is an intricate balancing act, for sure!

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  4. "You simply have to eat better & work your ass off!" I LOVE IT!!!!

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  5. I will definitely be trying this out! I've been using sparkpeople but honestly, I change my calorie goals nearly very week because I don't know how much I really should or shouldn't be eating!

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  6. I def agree on the work your ass off! LOL That's me after I leave the Y doing Dance it Out and Zumba. I look like I've been walking through the dessert after class. So now I need to tackle the other half of this formula...smh!

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  7. Weight loss is definitely about making changes, changes that you can maintain for life. Enjoyed your post.


    http://agutandabutt.blogspot.com/

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