The science between weight loss and calorie consumption

Castine12
Castine12 Posts: 10
in Health and Weight Loss
**This may be a dumb question**

What is meant by we must burn more calories than we consume? For example, if I ate 200 calories for the day and jogged off 400 calories, would that be considered an ideal way to lose weight? That seems a little too extreme.

So, considering this, our bodies must burn calories naturally. How much does the body burn naturally through sedentary activity? I have a desk job sitting 8 hours a day M-F, and I try very, very hard to make up for it by the time I get home. I'm 5'0" and weigh roughly 107lbs. How many calories would someone my body type lose naturally?

Yeah, I know I can Google search this answer, but I want YOUR answers. :)

Replies

  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
    You are only considering exercise expenditure - there are four ways your body uses energy and is part of the Energy Balance Equation.

    1. Resting Metabolic Rate - amount of energy needed to maintain proper organ and system function at rest.
    2. Thermic Effect of Food - amount of energy needed to absorb food consumed.
    3. Thermic Effect of Activity - exercise calorie expenditure.
    4. Non-exercise Activity Thermogenesis - amount of energy needed for mundane daily activities unrelated to exercise.

    Because of your history, I would not focus on losing too much weight. You have likely already lost a significant amount of fat-free mass due to chronically restricting calories and yo-yo dieting. Your fat-free mass is everything other than fat mass (muscle tissue, connective tissue, bone mass density, water, etc). At some point, you will have to provide more energy needed to maintain weight to recover the fat-free mass you have lost and start lifting weights.

    Assuming you are about 26% body fat, I entered your data and got this for someone moderately active (exercising 3 to 5 days):
    TDEE: 1776 calories to maintain present weight.
    Eat: 1526 calories a day.
    Lose: 0.5 lbs per week.

    If you become lightly active and exercise 1-3 days:
    TDEE: 1576 calories to maintain present weight.
    Eat: 1326 calories a day.
    Lose: 0.5 lbs per week.

    Here is a link to educate you on the Energy Balance Equation:
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-energy-balance-equation.html

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