Can you lose 20-23 pounds in 3 months?

MKEgal

Hey guys I want to lose 20-23 pounds in about three months and I wanted to know if this was possible. I am 160LBS, female and 5"9'. About how many calories should I eat and how much should I workout to achieve this goal if its possible? Thanks.:happy:

Can _I_ do it? Yes. I have done it. But I'm also considerably overweight and you're not.
Could you do it? Probably, but not in a way that's healthy, & you'll make yourself miserable, and it won't be sustainable because you didn't make lasting behavioural changes. Also, you'll probably lose muscle because you're eating too little & exercising too much.

According to BMI http://www.shapeup.org/bmi/bmi6.pdf
at 5'9" you should be 130 - 165 lb.
So you're fine now, and 140 would still be in a healthy range for you, but you're not going to get there quickly.

To lose weight, multiply your healthy goal weight by 10 to get calories.
For you, that would be 1400.
To maintain weight, multiply your healthy goal weight by 15 to get calories. (See below.)
For you, that would be 2100.
Somewhere between those 2 numbers you'll lose 0.5 - 1 lb per week and get all your macronutrients and not feel hungry all the time.

http://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/HB_web/calorie-counting-made-easy.htm

multiply your current weight by 15 — that’s roughly the number of calories per pound of body weight needed to maintain your current weight if you are moderately active. Moderately active means getting at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day

Don't eat back exercise calories.
Work out at least 30 min per day (cardio) and 1-2 sets of weightlifting every other day or every 3rd day.
Lifting weights will tone your body, make you look skinnier, so maybe you'll be happy with how you look & feel without losing another 20 lb.

"Most weight loss occurs because of decreased caloric intake.
However, evidence shows the only way to maintain weight loss is to be engaged in regular physical activity."

http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/physical_activity/index.html

MKEgal

I'm 5'8 and 170, I want to lose about 20 lbs. I'd like to start by getting down to 165. You sound like you were very successful so I was wondering how your diet/fitness plan went and what it looked like. Could you share some of your tips?

From the second post:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets