Height: Tall enough for my feet to reach the ground
Is it realistic to....
Aim for consuming 1/2 of the calories you would normally burn in a day when you add basal, activity, lifestyle, ect in? So lets say I can ASSUME I would burn about 3000 calories per day based on "calculators" is it safe to consume 1/2 of that per day to achieve weight loss? Any thoughts?
Hm. I think you might not have gotten many replies to this because it's not really clear what you're asking - at least not to me.
With calorie counting, the first thing you want to do is make sure that you're getting enough calories. The bare minimum of 1200 calories is a level you should never drop below unless you're under medical supervision for an extreme diet. If you weigh more, you can get away with eating more to lose, although you'll have to readjust as you lose weight and your calorie needs become less.
If you're an average height female at 165lbs right now, it's more likely that your daily calorie needs are more around 1700 - 2000 than they are 3000. In fact according to the Mayo Clinic calculator, a 35 year old woman, 5'5", 165lbs, moderately active needs 2000 calories. Cutting that in half would put you well below the 1200 calorie minimum that you should be maintaining at the *very* least.
A good way to start out would be to use one of the calculators online to figure out your daily calorie needs and then maybe start by subtracting 300 - 500 calories or so. So if you need 2000 calories per day, try dropping down to 1700 or 1500. See how that does for a few weeks and then adjust from there. You can burn additional calories with exercise as well and that will help speed up the process.
Ultimately you need to burn an additional 3500 calories (or 500 cals a day) to lose 1 lb, whether you burn that by eating less, exercising more, or a combination of both is up to you (although I will say that you'll have greater success if you combine both exercise and diet).
Hope that helps.
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Last edited by PhotoChick; 05-03-2008 at 02:26 PM.
Scientifically I think you'd lose weight but I think it's best to do it gradually? In my experience, drastic change usually makes me think I'm starving.. Hope you figure it out though o.O
Height: Tall enough for my feet to reach the ground
I usually have 1300-1500 calories per day, i was just curious in general if a person would say burn (about) 3000 calories with daily living and added exercise if they should aim for 1/2 of those for food (with this example 1500 calories) or should a person go higher and just try to stay say 500-800 calories under per day of what your burning.
at 169, I think that 1300-1500 is a great range to try. Give it a few weeks and see how it goes. I try to stay under 1400 and I am steadily losing.
The key with a low calorie intake is to make sure that your calories "count". If you are eating 1300, there is no room for junk calories. If you can eat "clean", you should be fine. A multi-vitamin is probably a good idea too.
i was just curious in general if a person would say burn (about) 3000 calories with daily living and added exercise if they should aim for 1/2 of those for food
No. I'm gonna say no, if I understand what you're asking.
If a person really needs 3000 calories (and that's a helluva lot of cals - that's gotta be someone who is leading a very active lifestyle), then dropping by half is most likely going to leave them hungry and feeling weak. That's not a level they're going to be able to maintain for long.
If they need fewer than 3000 cals (which is more likely) then dropping by half is going to put them below the 1200 minimum "safe" level ... which will most likely leave them feeling hungry and weak.
A sensible, reasonable, sustainable reduction in calories is best. Cutting your food intake in 1/2 suddenly is really not a good thing to do. A lot of people do it I'm sure - especially when they start those meal substitution plans .. but I'd be willing to bet that not a lot of people can sustain it for very long.
I get what you're asking. I've tried to figure that one out myself, since I haaate exercise - I tend to eat even less calories than I probably "should" just to avoid working out. But regardless, it can't hurt to take into consideration what you're going to be burning in a day and eat somewhere in the neighborhood less than that... that's how pounds are lost, afterall.
Hey! The FitDay tracker (downloaded version) helps you set a calorie target based on your weight loss goal. I'm not sure whether the online version allows this--but it's worth checking out. Also TheDailyPlate has a tracker.
Rather than taking an arbitrary "half," you get an estimate of your resting metabolism (based on age, weight, and gender) and add to that your general level of activity throughout the day.
A pound is 3500 calories, more or less, so cutting 500 calories a day theoretically means a loss over time of 1 pound a week. So if you burn 3000 cals a day (which I have to say is pretty high), you could lose at that rate if you ate 2500 cals a day. For 2 pounds a week, it would be 2000. It's not considered healthy to lose more than 2 pounds a week, on average (some weeks one might lose more, and some weeks less).
I calculate my calorie burn based on a "sedentary" lifestyle because I sit at a desk all day. Then I add in any exercise I do as a kind of bonus.
Height: Tall enough for my feet to reach the ground
Photo, this is why I ask. I am only curious, I know I dont burn (most likely) 3000 calories in a day, I only used that number for easy math..lol I am not about the *do* this, but I was just thinking the other day about this theory.
I probably burn 2000-2200 per day, I stay fairly active so that is why I stay about 800 calories under (about) per day. But for some strange reason the day I posted this question I was just thinking if this would be realistic or even possible. I think Photo answered very good when saying it is "doable" but not feasable. I mean anyone can drastically cut calories for a day or two or even a week or so, but in the long run you really can not stick to it.
I hope you know this isnt what I am aiming for, I was just lost in thought about this subject one day and wanted other opinions other than my own....
Is it realistic to....
But regardless, it can't hurt to take into consideration what you're going to be burning in a day and eat somewhere in the neighborhood less than that... that's how pounds are lost, afterall. 
The FitDay tracker (downloaded version) helps you set a calorie target based on your weight loss goal. I'm not sure whether the online version allows this--but it's worth checking out. Also TheDailyPlate has a tracker. 
