I like numbers, a lot. I'm an accountant so it makes sense.

ANYWAY!

I was looking back and feeling gross about myself considering I'm obese with a BMI of 32ish. I need to lose about 15-20 pounds to be just overweight. I kept wondering how I got here. Then I also thought about how long it took me to get here.

The lowest I ever remember is 135ish, though I know it's been lower than that. I know in high school I was decently in shape. It's been a while since I've been in high school. So I decided to do a little math.

I've been gaining weight (and losing) for approximately 5 years. I've gained about 40 lbs. Which means that in 5 years, I've consumed 140,000 calories
MORE than I should have. Which is approximately an extra 537 calories a week.(77 calories a day!)
I know to lose weight I need to create a deficit of 3500 calories a week. That's 4000, less than what I was supposedly use to. (577 LESS calories a day) to lose a healthy 1lb a week. It's like taking away one meal.

Here's the fun thing. Every day I get a coffee. Either from my own house or a coffee shop with sugar and milk (approximately an 80 calorie drink, I like sugar). Not that it works this way, but it's fun to think that if I didn't have coffee every day for 5 years, I might not have made all those extra calories.

Another fun thing. I LOVE LOVE LOVE noodles and company. I LOVE the truffle mac. The truffle mac is approximately 1200 calories! For the past year, I've probably had it AT LEAST once a week. (I really love it, and it's on campus).A normal meal now (while watching calories) is about 400 calories. If I had NOT had the truffle mac for the past year once a week, I would have replaced it for a 400 cal lunch. Taking away 800 calories a week! I might have been LOSING weight if not for this meal. (Yes, I know it doesn't quiet work that way... but mathematically it totally does!)

Anyone else like to play with the numbers? Look at the calories they would have had to consume to get here, then look at a favorite meal they have once a week?

I've done this.

When I first learned that a pound was 3500 calories I thought to myself "there's no way I could have eaten enough to create that gain". But, in reality, all I had to do was eat 300 calories over my maintenance calories every day for the past 8 months to see that gain.

That's not that much....it's scary how little it takes on a day-to-day basis to see a gain over time!

I love running the numbers, too! I mostly do approx. how many calories I need to eat to lose X lbs, and I often have a flexible time goal, so that adjusts the calories, too. I even make charts and stuff to keep track (which I find really fun).

How did I get here? No favorite meal a week, just too much enjoyment of too much food.

But I have gained about 10 lbs a year pretty consistently since I was 13 at 130 lbs. And then I started losing weight at 21 and about 210 lbs.

So, that's 35000 calories more than I needed each year.

Which is about 675 too many calories a week.

And about 96 too many calories a day.

I used to love fruit snacks (still do!), and I'd eat at least one a day. They're about 100 calories each. If I hadn't eaten that, I might not have gained 10 lbs a year.

Or, I used to also love rich soups. I'd have at least two bowls a week most weeks. That's easily over 675 calories a week. If I hadn't done that, I may have even lost weight.

And like you said, OP, I know it doesn't exactly work this way, but it IS a lot of fun to run the numbers.

Katbot24 It is a little crazy how little it takes to gain. 300 calories is one sugar latte at Starbucks a day. Or an extra helping of Mashed potatoes at dinner. Or having 2 eggs and bacon on the side. Crazy! It makes me thing about random calories I have now. Like when I load syrup on pancakes.

LiannaKole I LOVE SPREAD SHEETS!
I feel like Monica Geller when she organizes because I love excel. I'll make anything in excel. The more complex, the more fun! I love making sheets for budges (calculates interest and everything).
I also made some for my weight. Has a goal graph that is matched with the actual graph. If I ever decided to change my goal to .5 lbs instead of 1, then it changes everything automatically. I LOVE it.

It's funny, I wonder if I didn't drink all that coffee where I would be. Or if you didn't eat fruit snacks. Maybe not "perfect weight" but possible 10lbs less? I don't know, it's fun to think about...

I like running the numbers too. It's a little scary! I gained over 80 lbs during my first pregnancy. He was born at 37 weeks... So I gained over 2 lbs a week! 1,000 extra calories a DAY. YIKES. I didn't lose after I had him, either... I just kept on gaining. I won't be THERE, EVER again.

From one accountant to another...yes I've run the same numbers