How many calories is it safe to burn?

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  • ixap
    ixap Posts: 675 Member
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    So I can keep burning a lot, as long as I am eating to keep up?
    Yes, but what you need to watch out for is injury and burnout. It's not the calories burned that will be a problem, it's the inflammation and/or tears in your joints/ligaments/muscles that can result from ramping up your training too fast. People who go from sedentary to lots and lots of exercise in a matter of weeks often end up with plantar fasciitis, iliobtibial band tightness or tears, knee pain, achilles tendonitis or rupture, calf strain, hip pain, etc. etc. etc.

    You say you are training for your first 5K, which is awesome. You will just want to increase your mileage slowly. This can take some self-control. Your cardiovascular system and energy level and motivation, for example, might enable you to double your mileage within the month, and you might feel okay for a while, but you'd be at high risk for injury. Instead you'll want to add on the mileage slowly, in a controlled way, even if you feel like you can/should be able to handle much more. The same would be true for any other form of exercise that you're doing.

    Good luck, and congrats on your excellent progress!!
  • dsjohndrow
    dsjohndrow Posts: 1,820 Member
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    Just burn all of them!
  • Kenan102
    Kenan102 Posts: 11
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    So I can keep burning a lot, as long as I am eating to keep up?
    Yes, but what you need to watch out for is injury and burnout. It's not the calories burned that will be a problem, it's the inflammation and/or tears in your joints/ligaments/muscles that can result from ramping up your training too fast. People who go from sedentary to lots and lots of exercise in a matter of weeks often end up with plantar fasciitis, iliobtibial band tightness or tears, knee pain, achilles tendonitis or rupture, calf strain, hip pain, etc. etc. etc.

    You say you are training for your first 5K, which is awesome. You will just want to increase your mileage slowly. This can take some self-control. Your cardiovascular system and energy level and motivation, for example, might enable you to double your mileage within the month, and you might feel okay for a while, but you'd be at high risk for injury. Instead you'll want to add on the mileage slowly, in a controlled way, even if you feel like you can/should be able to handle much more. The same would be true for any other form of exercise that you're doing.

    Good luck, and congrats on your excellent progress!!

    Thanks for all the advice!

    I still cannot run for anything. I can do an hour non-stop on the elliptical, burn 700 cals and everything. But when I get on a treadmill, I last maybe 3-4 minutes

    I just cannot run on the treadmill. I don't even know if I am going to be able to run the entire thing
  • kairisika
    kairisika Posts: 131 Member
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    Thanks for all the advice!
    I still cannot run for anything. I can do an hour non-stop on the elliptical, burn 700 cals and everything. But when I get on a treadmill, I last maybe 3-4 minutes
    I just cannot run on the treadmill. I don't even know if I am going to be able to run the entire thing
    I like running. But I find treadmills horrific. Can't do it. (Also not realistic when your race will not be on a treadmill.)
    Try running somewhere more inspiring? Have a city park?
    Doing a 'run 3 minutes, walk 1' cycled 5km is still a great accomplishment.
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
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    Another question you can ask is: how many calories from fat can you potentially burn in a day?

    A woman around average range body fat percentage can lose 2 lbs per month of true fat. The higher the body fat percentage, the more true fat she can burn - up to about 7 lbs per month if she has is the size of The Biggest Loser contestants. If she is leaner than average, then she can expect about 1 to 1.5 lbs per month.

    A man, due to his higher lean body mass, can lose 4 lbs per month of true fat if he is around average range body fat. The maximum is 8 lbs per month if he needs to lose substantially over 150 lbs of fat. If he is leaner than average, then he can expect closer to 2 to 3 lbs of true fat loss.

    To calculate, there is a formula: 31 x lbs of body fat = maximum amount of true fat that can be oxidized in 24 hours

    Example: 160 lb Woman with 30% bf has 48 lbs of body fat
    48 x 31 = 1488 max calories from fat oxidation

    Keep in mind, this is not a goal to reach, its just when you can no longer oxidize fat and start utilizing other energy sources such as muscle. Realistically, most people will not even come close to that estimate because it will create too large of a sustainable deficit.

    Here is the study on it:

    www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15615615
  • dustygn
    dustygn Posts: 28 Member
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    Thanks for all the advice!

    I still cannot run for anything. I can do an hour non-stop on the elliptical, burn 700 cals and everything. But when I get on a treadmill, I last maybe 3-4 minutes

    I just cannot run on the treadmill. I don't even know if I am going to be able to run the entire thing

    Running and cycling uses different muscles. I trained for a half marathon, finished it without walking, but then i jump on a bike a week or so later and still find cycling 3 km at a decent speed a challenge. While cross training is great, it would be best to spend most your training running. It's likely you are trying to go too fast on the treadmill. Try slowing it down and getting the distance sorted, then you can worry about speed.
  • Kenan102
    Kenan102 Posts: 11
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    Thanks for all the advice!

    I still cannot run for anything. I can do an hour non-stop on the elliptical, burn 700 cals and everything. But when I get on a treadmill, I last maybe 3-4 minutes

    I just cannot run on the treadmill. I don't even know if I am going to be able to run the entire thing

    Running and cycling uses different muscles. I trained for a half marathon, finished it without walking, but then i jump on a bike a week or so later and still find cycling 3 km at a decent speed a challenge. While cross training is great, it would be best to spend most your training running. It's likely you are trying to go too fast on the treadmill. Try slowing it down and getting the distance sorted, then you can worry about speed.

    The treadmill is terribly disorienting for me. I run a lot better when I get to run outside but as a single mom of a young child, I rarely get the chance to run alone.
  • Martina_Who
    Martina_Who Posts: 172 Member
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    Skys the limit as long as you are healthy and eat a god chunk of your exercise calories back on average!
  • DylanJM1985
    DylanJM1985 Posts: 3
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    Honestly it depends on your goal... if you are trying to gain muscle then yes, burning almost 1000 calories a day would be too much. If your first step before gaining muscle is to lose body fat, then it no if you’re doing it right! It’s ok to burn a lot of calories but also depends on your daily calorie count your setting for yourself. It’s important to eat enough calories based on your calorie burned count (that is healthy). I burn over 1000 calories some days, and because I’m pregnant, I’m already eating 300-400 plus calories extra a day. If I’m burning more calories than I eat, that’s not good. I make sure I stay at 1500 calories a day after burning calories so I know I’m getting enough food and nutrition in my diet for my baby and me. Same goes for you, stick to your calorie count but don’t push it and burn more than you eat, and the goal you set each day. If you do it the wrong way and burn more than you eat your body will eventually weaken and break down and will have a harder time gaining strength then getting the results you’re looking for long term. Basically what will happen if you burn more than your healthy calorie count per/day you will not only be burning body fat, you will be burning your body lean mass (muscle). That being said will then only slow your metabolism more, and will more likely be gaining fat back when you eat than gaining muscle while maintaining to try to burn your body fat. The faster you lose weight the faster gained back. So do it the right the first time around. “Progress is key, no matter how slow”-Plato. Don’t learn the hard way like I did. Stick to your goals, keep a good diet (70%) of your success and stay passionate about your fitness results. Good luck! -Dylan

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