How to calculate your magic weightloss number

Want a magic number to lose weight?

Here you go:
  1. Get your fat percentage by using a fat monitor. For example 25%. (that's pretty high)
  2. Get your lean weight. Take your body weight and subtract that fat percent (160-40=120)
  3. Now, get your daily calorie count. Take your lean weight (120) and multiply by the number: 13. 120x13= 1560

That's your magic number. It is how many calories you should eat to lose weight. For example, 1560 is the number if you weigh 160 and have 25% body fat.

How do you know how much you are eating? That's easy as well. Use MyFitnessPal to keep track of your daily calories. Make it easier by planning exactly what you are going to eat all day, making sure you hit your daily calorie count. Notice I did not say "make sure you don't go over your daily calorie count" I said make sure you hit it. Your daily calorie count is not only a maximum.

It's also a minimum.

Because if you go too low, your body will begin to store body fat in order to survive. Why body fat? Because body fat has 9 calories per gram versus protein and carbs which only have 4. So it hangs on to fat because it thinks you are starving yourself, which you are. And that's not good.

Once you plan out what you are going to eat, I recommend you eat that every day. Too boring? That's ok, change it next Sunday for the next week. That way you don't have to recalculate every day or even worse, every meal. Too tedious!

Doesn't matter if you weigh 160, 200, or more. Using the 3 steps above, you too can get exactly how much to eat per day. Now, that magic number (13) is just the start. It is not too aggressive. It's the beginning of limiting how much you will eat. If you want to lose body fat quick, you should lower your intake SLOWLY each week but not too low.
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Replies

  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    Wait a minute...I just realized that in your example, you said you were using 25% body fat, but in you equation, you used 40%...which made your whole calculation wrong anyway. Using your calculations, this fictional person at 160 with 25% body fat would have a "magic number" of 1,755, not 1,560.

    160-25=135
    135 x 13 = 1,755

    Not that it matters, but check your maths.

    I'm not in agreement with his logic for the math, but his math is correct. He's taking 25% of 160 (which is 40lbs) and subtracting that to get LBM.

    I see....yet his instructions say "subtract that fat percent", which is confusing at best.
  • Unicorn_Bacon
    Unicorn_Bacon Posts: 491 Member

    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    Want a magic number to lose weight?

    Here you go:
    1. Get your fat percentage by using a fat monitor. For example 25%. (that's pretty high)
    2. Get your lean weight. Take your body weight and subtract that fat percent (160-40=120)
    3. Now, get your daily calorie count. Take your lean weight (120) and multiply by the number: 13. 120x13= 1560

    That's your magic number. It is how many calories you should eat to lose weight. For example, 1560 is the number if you weigh 160 and have 25% body fat.

    How do you know how much you are eating? That's easy as well. Use MyFitnessPal to keep track of your daily calories. Make it easier by planning exactly what you are going to eat all day, making sure you hit your daily calorie count. Notice I did not say "make sure you don't go over your daily calorie count" I said make sure you hit it. Your daily calorie count is not only a maximum.

    It's also a minimum.

    Because if you go too low, your body will begin to store body fat in order to survive. Why body fat? Because body fat has 9 calories per gram versus protein and carbs which only have 4. So it hangs on to fat because it thinks you are starving yourself, which you are. And that's not good.

    Once you plan out what you are going to eat, I recommend you eat that every day. Too boring? That's ok, change it next Sunday for the next week. That way you don't have to recalculate every day or even worse, every meal. Too tedious!

    Doesn't matter if you weigh 160, 200, or more. Using the 3 steps above, you too can get exactly how much to eat per day. Now, that magic number (13) is just the start. It is not too aggressive. It's the beginning of limiting how much you will eat. If you want to lose body fat quick, you should lower your intake SLOWLY each week but not too low.

    Others have addressed some of the other misinformation, I would like to point out that the bolded is also gobbledygoo. Where in the world is your body going to get the extra calories to store fat when you aren't eating enough? It doesn't because it can't.

    I feel like there is so much misinformation in this post that nobody can address it all, we're just taking pieces of it. There's too much for any one person to comprehend it all in a single read.

    I didn't want to take too big of a bit. Too many calories.

    Hahaha 😆
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    ladyreva78 wrote: »
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    Want a magic number to lose weight?

    Here you go:
    1. Get your fat percentage by using a fat monitor. For example 25%. (that's pretty high)
    2. Get your lean weight. Take your body weight and subtract that fat percent (160-40=120)
    3. Now, get your daily calorie count. Take your lean weight (120) and multiply by the number: 13. 120x13= 1560

    That's your magic number. It is how many calories you should eat to lose weight. For example, 1560 is the number if you weigh 160 and have 25% body fat.

    How do you know how much you are eating? That's easy as well. Use MyFitnessPal to keep track of your daily calories. Make it easier by planning exactly what you are going to eat all day, making sure you hit your daily calorie count. Notice I did not say "make sure you don't go over your daily calorie count" I said make sure you hit it. Your daily calorie count is not only a maximum.

    It's also a minimum.

    Because if you go too low, your body will begin to store body fat in order to survive. Why body fat? Because body fat has 9 calories per gram versus protein and carbs which only have 4. So it hangs on to fat because it thinks you are starving yourself, which you are. And that's not good.

    Once you plan out what you are going to eat, I recommend you eat that every day. Too boring? That's ok, change it next Sunday for the next week. That way you don't have to recalculate every day or even worse, every meal. Too tedious!

    Doesn't matter if you weigh 160, 200, or more. Using the 3 steps above, you too can get exactly how much to eat per day. Now, that magic number (13) is just the start. It is not too aggressive. It's the beginning of limiting how much you will eat. If you want to lose body fat quick, you should lower your intake SLOWLY each week but not too low.

    Others have addressed some of the other misinformation, I would like to point out that the bolded is also gobbledygoo. Where in the world is your body going to get the extra calories to store fat when you aren't eating enough? It doesn't because it can't.

    I feel like there is so much misinformation in this post that nobody can address it all, we're just taking pieces of it. There's too much for any one person to comprehend it all in a single read.

    I didn't want to take too big of a bit. Too many calories.

    And I'm not sure how well you'd digest it. Wouldn't want to risk that kind of indigestion.

    I have an iron stomach, you'd be surprised what I can eat without suffering.

    According to my Fitbit (which has served me well these last 4-5 years), I burned an average of 2459 calories per day last week. This equation would have me eating 1211 calories per day. That's a pretty steep deficit for dropping these last 5 vanity pounds.

    But if you aren't suffering and weak from hunger, are you really making progress? /sarcasm

    What can I say? I like being able to stand upright. :lol:

    Weirdo. :tongue: :laugh:
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,913 Member
    Of course the TO has not come back
  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member
    People are very attracted to "magic" in weight loss.
  • jamloche
    jamloche Posts: 109 Member
    I've never seen a post with 54 disagrees before. I can't look away