Is weight loss really as complicated as we make it out to be? I think not! Please excuse my subsequent
lengthy and somewhat opinionated understanding of the subject. If we want to loose weight
by loosing that fat body mass we have accumulated then we have to eat fewer calories than we burn
and the sustained difference between the calories eaten and calories burned will determine how much
fat we burn off the body over a period of time. Its really that simple;count your calories; I'm speaking
in generalities of course. The average male adult requires approximately 2,500 calories per 24 hours
and most of that caloric burn is consumed in bodily functions and digestion and little in physical work.
To lose one pound of fat the equivalent of approximately 3,000 calories you would have to run a
marathon race (26miles); that's how efficient the human body is. A pound of body fat has about the
same volume and density as a pound of butter at room temperature. If you want to loose a pound of
your body fat then you have to consume 3,000 calories of your reserve energy stored as fat the
equivalent volume of a pound of butter.
Lets say that you are an average male requiring 2,500 calories per day and you want to loose 10 lbs.
and you have determined that you can comfortably or uncomfortably which ever the case may be live
on a 1,800 calorie intake per day. The body will be forced to consume or burn 700 calories from your
stored energy (fat) per day to maintain your daily requirement of 2,500 calories. Maintaining that
negative difference of 700 calories per day of intake and burn thereby will take you 43 days to lose 10
lbs. (1 lb. of body fat = 3,000 calories x 10 lbs. = 30,000 calories divided by 700 calories = 43 days.)
Conversely according to theHarvard Medical School, on average, caloric burn ranges from 90
calories per hour of moderate training by a 125-pound person to up to 266 calories per hour of
vigorous effort by a 185-pound person.therefore the average caloric burn for any of us would be
somewhere between 180-200 calories per hour of training or the equivalent calories contained in
4-Oreo cookies.For that reason any notion that you are going to loose a significant amount of fat
through exercise which is work, is a misconception of how efficient the human body burns energy.
According to this Harvard study at a 266 caloric burn per hour of vigorous effort by a 185 person
it would take eleven hours to burn off one pound of fat (3,000 calories). Is anybody ready for that
workout? On the other hand if that same person did one hour of vigorous exercise per day then he/she
would burn off 3,000 calories or one pound of body fat in 11 days.
Exercise which is work, builds strength by increasing muscle mass as well as stamina and that is all
good, exercise also gives that leaner younger look some of us strive for.Ian Lee, fitness specialist for
Askmen.com. More muscle mass can also help create a leaner, toner look, even if you weigh the same
as you did when you were a lot flabbier.So my advice is; keep up with your exercise, build your
strength and stamina, but for heavens sake if you want to lose weight start counting caloric intake
and develop a sustainable diet plan; something you can live with from now to eternity. Eliminate high
sugar foods and drink, curtail saturated fatty acid foods, use monounsaturated fatty acids found in high
concentrations in olives and olive oil, flax seed oil, peanuts and peanut oil, nuts and nut oils, and
avocados. Eat more vegetables, fruits, nuts, lean meats, and drink more water-water-water. Begin by
recalling what your mother taught you or was it what my mother taught me? Eat slowly and chew your
food completely! The key to your success in maintaining health and fitness over the long run will be; to
slow down and consciously become aware of what you are doing and become the witness to your
actions and not the actor. Good health and fitness is our most valuable possession and if we don't take
care of ourselves no one else is going to.................Your friend in health and fitness, Leonenude