Simply enter you current weight, your goal weight and the time in which you wish to achieve the weight loss and click calculate.
This calculator assumes that all your weight loss is fat loss. Alas, during weight loss people often lose water weight (especially if crash dieting), muscle mass and fat. However, if you are following the above guidelines and exercising (cardio and weights), you are probably losing mostly fat and gaining muscle (this will speed up metabolism). In this case, the calculator may underestimate your fat loss because you have added muscle weight. This is why scales are an unreliable tool in measuring your fat loss progress.
Remember that as activities become easier, you will burn fewer calories performing the same exercise routine. Therefore, mix it up and change your workout regularly. Do not let your body adapt and push yourself a little harder than the last workout. For example, don’t run the same distance in the same time every day, try to beat your time or increase the distance.
As you you lose weight, you burn less calories doing the same exercise. For example, someone who weighs 140 lbs, burns about half the calories in an hour long aerobics class than a person who weighs 300 lbs.
Minimum calorie requirements
- For optimal weight loss reduce your calories to 15 – 20% below maintenance (use the calorie calculator to find out what is should be).
- Reduce by at least 500 calories, but no more than 1000.
- Do not go below 1200 calories a day for women and 1800 for men or 1000 calories below maintenance level.
- Aim for 1-2 lbs of weight loss per week. If you lose weight any faster than this, it is unlikely to be FAT loss.
- Find out your approximate ideal weight, BMI or body fat percentage here.