Is 3,500 Calories a Pound a Lie?
A Little About The 3,500 Calorie Rule
They’re a few answers to this one. The Idea is that if you reduce your calorie intake by 3,500 calories you should lose 1 pound of fat. But there are a few things that can affect the accuracy.
( Understand these numbers are estimates and can vary from person to person)
First – The Major One
People tend to not take into account their calories needs change as they progress through their diet planning. Your body uses calories to sustain itself and this is directly related to your weight. The more weight the body has to sustain the more calories the body needs. So your calorie intake should change as you progress though your weight loss planning. This means that as you begin to lose weight your calorie needs will change as well. You have to make sure that you adjust your calorie needs to your weight and activity levels.
Second – The Hard One
This is a Big one and it can really sneak up on you. This hits Runners and Cyclist the hardest. When ever your body does a repetitive activity, the body has an amazing ability to adapt to it. This means the body then becomes more efficient at doing the activity and uses less calories.This is great for your body but can really wreck havoc on your plans. You will experience this the most when you start a new exercises.
You will usually notice this the most the first few times you go for a bike ride or walk/run. You will notice that the first time you go out you probably didn’t even make it nearly as far as you originally had planned for. Or what ever amount of exercise you did manage to accomplished. You will notice that it was much more difficult than you originally expected. But usually very quickly you will notice that these activities can become easier even day by day. So, even though something may feel difficult at the start make sure you give new exercises a fair chance.
Third – The Obvious One
I know that you have probably heard this too many times. But it has to be said again, everyones body is different. Some people have amazing metabolisms and then there are others like me that don’t have those metabolisms. This is why its important to make sure you monitor your calorie intake with your weight and measurements. This way you can adjust your diets and workout plans to make sure you don’t lose weight too fast or too slow.
How Many Calories Should I Eat
How to Weigh and Measure Yourself
Fourth – Your body Has A Mind Of Its OWN!
This one is pretty much impossible to calculate for and you just have to monitor you diet, calorie intake, and exercise. Especially depending on what you eat, your body can react in ways that you may have not accounted for. Your body can react to your dieting in a few ways. When people attempt ultra low diets, this can send your body into a “Survival Mode”. Your body can start trying to store as much fat as possible and because it sorta thinks it’s starving, it can slow your metabolism and cause so many other side effects. Great Planning! by your body, but terrible on you diet planning. This is Why you should take care to include a healthy diet and workout plan to you Weight loss Plans. Aside from this Ultra Low Calorie Diets can be just unhealthy and shouldn’t be attempted unless prescribed and monitored by a Certified Dietitian and a Medical Doctor.
Our Calorie Diets Vs Other Diets
Conclusion
The “3,500 Calories Per Pound” is a rule that was made in 1958 by Max Wishnofsky. This number is great to work around but make sure you understand that your body is extremely good at adapting to changes in activity and diets. Understanding that everyones body is different, you can use this number as a good guide line as it does work for many. But, make sure you record and adjust your calorie intake and exercise plans as you progress through your Weight loss planning, especially if you reach a plateau in progress.