Know Your Numbers – How to Begin a Weight Loss Program!

Know Your Numbers – How to Begin a Weight Loss Program!

Knowing the statistics of where you are is key to beginning a weight loss program. How can you plan where you’re going and what changes you need to make if you don’t understand the meaning of your numbers and the caloric requirements required to maintain your weight?

Crunching numbers and finding out the many ways you can add, subtract, multiply and divide them to make sure your calculations are correct, has always fascinated me. Auditing, bookkeeping and accounting are of particular interest and play a major role in my professional career. Perhaps this is why I am so intrigued with our individual numbers and how the number crunching of weight loss plays a pivotal role in our weight loss success.READ MORE...

The more we become familiar with our current weight as it relates to our goal weight, our Body Mass Index (BMI) and targeted BMI and the caloric needs to maintain our weight and what kind of calorie deficit is needed to shed those unwanted pounds, the better our success. As we broaden our knowledge of what these numbers mean, it allows us to set realistic expectations for our healthy weight loss.

WHERE ARE YOU NOW?

Do you know your “ideal” body weight? This Ideal Body Weight Calculator , from Diet and Fitness Today, provides your ideal body weight range, BMI, current weight classification and estimated time to achieve normal BMI.

At 183 pounds and 5 feet 6 inches tall, here are my statistics:

Ideal Weight Range – 114.62 to 154.89 pounds
Current BMI – 29.53
Current Classification – Overweight
Estimated time to achieve normal BMI – 12 weeks

This basically means I have 29 pounds remaining to enter the normal range; I’ve elected a goal of 154 pounds. To some, it might be disappointing to be in the “overweight” classification with a BMI of 29.53; however, you have to compare it with where I started. My starting weight was 330 pounds with a BMI of 53.26, a classification of obese (actually morbidly obese) with an estimated 79 weeks to achieve a normal BMI.

When we are significantly overweight, it can be problematic and disheartening to look at the total amount of weight that appears in this calculator. It is most important to remember that you didn’t add this weight overnight and it is unrealistic to think it should come off that way. Slow and steady, like the tortoise and the hare, is the way to achieve a lifestyle change. It has taken me significantly longer than the estimated 79 weeks from where I started, but I am fine to take my time and enjoy this passage. What we learn and experience on this journey is, by far, as much a reward as the weight loss that culminates this experience!

Try rethinking your expectations and take baby steps. Focusing on these tiny steps was the only way I achieved my weight loss, as it was absolutely overwhelming to consider losing 176 pounds. Look at setting small goals of 2-5 pounds, accomplish them, celebrate your success and then set another goal. This helps you stay motivated and provides encouragement as you move forward in your journey.

CALCULATORS

The Internet offers many calculators to assist us in knowing our numbers and we’ve gathered the calculators needed to assist you in compiling this information. In order to use these calculators, you will need a few basic statistics - height, weight, age, sex and activity level.

Calorie Calculator – This calculator, from Mayo Clinic, provides you with the number of calories needed to maintain your current weight. This is most essential because it establishes the baseline from which we begin to build our plan for victory.

It should be noted that we must create a calorie deficit of 3,500 calories to lose 1 pound. This can be done by lowering your caloric intake below those needed to maintain your current weight and by burning calories through exercise. So, if you cut back 500 calories a day, you should lose one pound a week. Since exercise also plays a dramatic role in weight loss, it is important to know how many calories are expended for the activities we are performing. (This will be addressed in the next calculator below.)

It is important to use the Calorie Calculator often with adjustments made for changes in weight and activity levels. As I recovered from my recent surgery, my activity level fell and I had to adjust my maintenance calorie level down to 1,800 in order to maintain my weight. Now that I have been able to increase my exercise, my maintenance calorie level has been increased to 2,000. Here are my statistics as shown in this calculator:

1,800 Calories if inactive – never or rarely includes physical activity in your day

2,000 Calories if somewhat active – Includes light activity or moderate activity 2-3 times a week

2,200 Calories per day if active – Includes at least 30 minutes of moderate activity most days of the week, or 20 minutes of vigorous activity at least 3 days a week

2,550 Calories per day if very active – Includes large amounts of moderate or vigorous activity in your day

Remember this figure already takes into account your exercise level. To lose 1 pound per week, you need to cut your caloric intake by 500 calories, thus my meal plan should be 1,500 calories per day. If I’d like to lose more weight or eat more calories, I need to increase my current level of activity to create an additional calorie deficit.

Calories Burned - In providing your current weight, selecting the type of exercise performed and the time spent engaging in the activity, this calculator from Health A to Z, determines the calories burned. This can be used towards your daily calorie deficit.

By adding 30 minutes of general aerobics to my current activity level, I can burn an additional 249 calories per day. This will allow me to lose close to an additional ½ pound per week (249 calories x 5 days per week = 1,295 calories. Towards the 1,750 calories to lose a ½ pound) or allow me to consume an additional 249 calories per day. So, for every day I elect to add 30 minutes of general aerobics, I am left with these options:

Eat 2,000 calories = 1 ½ lb average weekly weight loss OR

Eat 2,249 calories = 1 lb average weekly weight loss

Losing 1 to 1 ½ pounds per week is a normal, healthy way to lose weight. You do not want to cut your calories further because your body can enter starvation mode. In this stage your body protects it’s fat stores as a defense against starvation and can use lean muscle and tissue to provide the calories to keep functioning. This can lead to heart muscle damage and lowers you basal metabolic rate.

Weight Loss Calculator - This calculator, from Health MSN, takes our current and goal weights and provides us with the total pounds to be lost and an anticipated achievement date. Mine are shown below.

Weight to Lose – 29 pounds
Recommended average weight loss – 1 lb per week
Achievement Date – March 12, 2009

PHYSICS OF WEIGHT LOSS

The science of weight loss is really pretty simple; it is physics.
Calories ingested - calories burned = weight loss/gain

JOURNALING

Now that you have a basic understanding of your numbers, there is one final process to get you started. Implementing a food journal allows you to record the numbers that comprise your daily caloric intake. People journaling their food intakes have significantly more successes than those who don’t. By writing down everything you eat, it aids you in being accountable and responsible for your choices.

For additional calculators you may find use, please visit us here.