How long does it really take?

Trafty024

How long does it really take to gain or lose a lb of fat? I know that 3500 cal equals one pound, but how long does it take to 'build' that pound or burn it? For example, lets say I consumed 3500 cal over my goal for the day (and no, I didn't do that!)... it doesn't mean that I will have an extra lb of fat the next day right? It's got to take some time for it ti build.

I'm just curious becuase I've always belived that a bad day takes a few days to catch up with you. So if I were to consume 3500 cal over, it might take several days before I saw a gain on the scale. But just curious if that's true. Or again, if I were to burn 3500 cal in a day (theoretically , of course) I wouldn't see the loss the next day. It would take a few days...right?

Anyone have any thoughts? Any links to articles with this info?

khrys1

I think you're right- it would take a few days to see "the result" of gaining/losing..... That's probably why it's recommended that we only weigh in once a week!

JennLifts

Your body takes several hours to digest the stuff that goes in. While you will see something the next day.... it's probably not going to be that pound. But let me tell you.. you will feel like crap ha! After everything has a bit to go through you would most likely see a change. Not to mention you'd be surprised how hard it is to consume that amount of food

cem789

i think when you burn, that must happen quickly as the energy store is used up. i have never really thought about how long it takes to gain - i always assumed it would be pretty instant as in less than 12 hours. im really not sure, interested to find out!

Trafty024

I shouLd clarify that I don't Plan to consume that much in one day. I'm more curious about it because I hear a lot of people state that what they ate the day before caused then to gain on the scale the next day. But really that is just bloat and not real weight? Or peoe who starve themselves the day before a weigh in....it doesn't burn fat that quickly?

GabrielMaestas

Believe it or not there are an enormous amount of factors that determine the answer to your question! ha...for example, fat loss depends on several elements including nutrition split, mode of exercise, rate of fat oxidation and exercise intensity, and of course GENETICS. If the mode of exercise for fat loss is cardio (60-80% of max heart rate, full body or at least loer extremeties and for a duration of at least 20 min) most of the calories burned are from the 3500 calories making up one pound of fat. BUT, there is a percentage that are protein and carb stores. I'd estimate (once again depending on the individual) at least 80% of the calories will be from fat, as long as the duration is closer to 30 or 40 minutes of cardio. Nutrition plays a large roll in the loss and gaining of adipose tissue (fat). For example, if you overeat mainly fatty foods the body can easily store some 97% of those calories as the 3500 calories in once pound of fat. BUT if you overeat protien the body may barely store some 40% of those calories as fat. THis is becasue the conversion of protein into fat is extremely energy demanding. In short, it takes some time to achieve any number of fitness goals cuz this aint a TOTALLY exact science BUT, MFP does a really good job at the organization of it all )

Athena413

Your body weight can fluctuate around 3 lbs/day depending on how well your body digests food and how much water you're retaining. If you have a "bad day" that doesn't necessarily mean you're going to instantly gain weight...it's when bad days become an every day thing that you really have to worry. I see a dietitian and a wellness coach on a regular basis and they both tell me that it's an 80/20 thing. Be "good" 80% of the time and "bad" 20% of the time...otherwise your body is going to feel deprived and hoard any extra calories it gets. Plus, if you're trying to be perfect all the time, eventually you're going to fail and be down on yourself and there's a lot higher chance that you'll get bored with it and go back to your old ways of being lazy and eating whatever. Losing weight and being healthy isn't about perfection; it's about progress.

And don't focus solely on pounds. Muscle weighs more than fat, and if you're exercising regularly, you're going to gain some muscle which in turn means your weight loss may not be as much as you want to see. And if you're not exercising at all and only cutting back on calories, that's not good, either, because then some of that weight you are losing is probably muscle and you NEED muscle to burn fat and really lose weight.

I have a wealth of resources on all this kind of stuff because I work for a hospital and they push wellness hardcore, so if you have any questions, let me know, and I can probably try and come up with an answer from my dietitian or wellness coach. Hope some of that helps.

Athena413

I shouLd clarify that I don't Plan to consume that much in one day. I'm more curious about it because I hear a lot of people state that what they ate the day before caused then to gain on the scale the next day. But really that is just bloat and not real weight? Or peoe who starve themselves the day before a weigh in....it doesn't burn fat that quickly?

They don't gain that weight or lose that weight immediately...it's probably just water retention, especially if they ate too much the day before...there's a good chance all that food had way too much sodium, which causes you to retain water and therefore weigh more. And starving yourself doesn't do any good either, because then your body hoards extra calories and muscle depletes, not fat.

When trying to lose weight, I think inches lost are more important than pounds lost...especially since inches are visible to everyone else...pounds are only visible to you when you step on your scale, and your scale can be very deceiving.