Doing the Math

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OZZMUS
OZZMUS Posts: 8
in Success Stories
I sit here writing this today and think back 3 months to the start of our Biggest loser contest at work. I weighed in at 262, while not awful for a 6'5 male it was more than 50 year old knees need to carry.

As a compulsive researcher I looked for ways to help me win the BL contest. I was introduced to this site and found a wealth of information. The first thing I noticed was that everything comes down to a mathematical equation. X=calories consumed Y=calories burned Z=weight lost or gained.
It takes 3500 calories to burn a pound. So if you take your base burn rate and subtract the calories burned in exercise and add back the calories gained by eating you see how long it normally takes to lose a pound. I can tell you the math is very accurate.
Food = 1800 Calories a day (sane diet)
Base Burn =1800 Calories a day
Workout = 500 calories burned a day (brisk program 60 minutes on the treadmill)
1 week= Food (1800x7)= 12600 minus Base Burn (1800x7)= 12600 or a total gain of 0 minus Workout 500x7 or 3500calories or 1 pound per week.
Adjust your workouts and or diet to meet your needs and your there. Keep in mind even god needed to rest on the seventh day and I recommend you do also. (DO NOT GO BELOW THE MINIMUM CALORIES PER DAY INTAKE) just add more workout to adjust the math.
I admit that I took this to extremes to win the contest and I do not recommend the weight loss pace I maintained. That said I do recommend logging your data on this site and doing it 100% of the time. Knowing where you are in the equation is the best way to lose weight.
Do’s: log all meals and snacks, follow the guides when setting up your goals, and drink as much water as you can.
Don’ts: Do not try to starve yourself (if you do you will lose weight slower) and plan to diet like it will last 10 years. Do not over train. ( I did and it is not worth it), Do not worry about the small stuff the best thing I did was to take a vacation to Mexico and go wild, I ate sanely but I also indulged in the spirits. I came back 10#s heavier… But I went back to South Beach phase 1 and the #s flew off me. You just need to break up the routine.

Of course I could be completely full of it… but then again using this math alone I dropped over 40#s in less than 12 weeks. :smile:

Replies

  • OZZMUS
    OZZMUS Posts: 8
    Options
    I sit here writing this today and think back 3 months to the start of our Biggest loser contest at work. I weighed in at 262, while not awful for a 6'5 male it was more than 50 year old knees need to carry.

    As a compulsive researcher I looked for ways to help me win the BL contest. I was introduced to this site and found a wealth of information. The first thing I noticed was that everything comes down to a mathematical equation. X=calories consumed Y=calories burned Z=weight lost or gained.
    It takes 3500 calories to burn a pound. So if you take your base burn rate and subtract the calories burned in exercise and add back the calories gained by eating you see how long it normally takes to lose a pound. I can tell you the math is very accurate.
    Food = 1800 Calories a day (sane diet)
    Base Burn =1800 Calories a day
    Workout = 500 calories burned a day (brisk program 60 minutes on the treadmill)
    1 week= Food (1800x7)= 12600 minus Base Burn (1800x7)= 12600 or a total gain of 0 minus Workout 500x7 or 3500calories or 1 pound per week.
    Adjust your workouts and or diet to meet your needs and your there. Keep in mind even god needed to rest on the seventh day and I recommend you do also. (DO NOT GO BELOW THE MINIMUM CALORIES PER DAY INTAKE) just add more workout to adjust the math.
    I admit that I took this to extremes to win the contest and I do not recommend the weight loss pace I maintained. That said I do recommend logging your data on this site and doing it 100% of the time. Knowing where you are in the equation is the best way to lose weight.
    Do’s: log all meals and snacks, follow the guides when setting up your goals, and drink as much water as you can.
    Don’ts: Do not try to starve yourself (if you do you will lose weight slower) and plan to diet like it will last 10 years. Do not over train. ( I did and it is not worth it), Do not worry about the small stuff the best thing I did was to take a vacation to Mexico and go wild, I ate sanely but I also indulged in the spirits. I came back 10#s heavier… But I went back to South Beach phase 1 and the #s flew off me. You just need to break up the routine.

    Of course I could be completely full of it… but then again using this math alone I dropped over 40#s in less than 12 weeks. :smile:
  • heather0mc
    heather0mc Posts: 4,656 Member
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    great job!
  • Mommy2Girls
    Mommy2Girls Posts: 100
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    I totally get what you are saying.....But I really don't get it!!!:laugh: My math is horrible!!LOL

    So on a 1200 cal daily intake(7 days/week) and a 265 cal daily burn (7 days/week)what would my result be?
  • OZZMUS
    OZZMUS Posts: 8
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    Use the tool section of this site to calculate your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) this will give you your rate of bun for being alive and getting through your day :smile: add to that the amount of burn from workout and you get your total burn rate per day then subtract the calories you consume in a day and the number left over is the amount of caloires you burned off, multiply it by 7 for 1 week and if it is 3500 calories your looking at 1# keep in mind that water weight can come into play so I find it best to weigh in at the same time every week. I tend to weigh in after the Sunday workout/s

    Good luck.
  • LisaZaugg1976
    LisaZaugg1976 Posts: 1,144 Member
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    WTG on your loss!!!
  • TudorRose
    TudorRose Posts: 238 Member
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    Yep, I totally agree. It's all about the maths. I've created a "Projected and comparative weight loss" speadsheet (yes, I'm a speadsheet addict, and yes, I'm a geek) and not only does it give me a rough guide of where I need to be (of course, it doesn't take into account the body's little quirks and accelerated rates in some stages and plateaus), it's great motivation to see how calories equate to weight loss :happy:
  • MyaPapaya75
    MyaPapaya75 Posts: 3,143 Member
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    Science an Math 2 subjects I hated in school...However I find myself using them more and mre on this journey..:drinker:
  • Mommy2Girls
    Mommy2Girls Posts: 100
    Options
    Use the tool section of this site to calculate your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) this will give you your rate of bun for being alive and getting through your day :smile: add to that the amount of burn from workout and you get your total burn rate per day then subtract the calories you consume in a day and the number left over is the amount of caloires you burned off, multiply it by 7 for 1 week and if it is 3500 calories your looking at 1# keep in mind that water weight can come into play so I find it best to weigh in at the same time every week. I tend to weigh in after the Sunday workout/s

    Good luck.

    Awesome!THANKS!:flowerforyou: For me if I don't eat my exercise cals then I am down to 950 cal/day from my 1200, so I should continue to eat those to keep me above the 1200....
  • MOMOFTWO29
    MOMOFTWO29 Posts: 8,276 Member
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    congrats on your weight loss.

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