In ancient times, plump girls were considered a symbol of beauty, material wealth and attractiveness. Time passes, but the fashion for voluminous bodies is a thing of the past. Along with this came a new fashion for a slim and fit figure with a minimal amount of subcutaneous fat. Human nature is such that many people want to achieve a certain result in a short time. When it comes to burning excess fat, there are a number of factors that you should not rush into, which we will now discuss with you. We will also consider the question of whether how much weight can you lose in a month and what needs to be done for this.
Introduction
It is very easy to gain excess weight, especially for people who are genetically predisposed to this process, but getting rid of extra pounds is no longer so easy. Many who are interested in the topic of losing weight have heard more than once that optimal weight loss, which does not negatively affect a person’s health, lasts more than one month. Naturally, everything depends on individual parameters a certain person. For example, if you want to lose, for example, 4 kilograms, the weight loss process will last 4 - 5 weeks, since the best burning rate excess weight is 1 kilogram per week, and if a person needs to lose 20 kilograms, it will take several months. With all this, during the period of losing weight, you must adhere to certain rules so that the process is as natural as possible and does not negatively affect your health.
Most people will probably be outraged by such figures, because how can it be, that is, if you need to lose 20 kilograms, it turns out that you need to spend 4–5 months. Many will not believe it, because on the Internet, in various fashion magazines, they describe all kinds of diets, techniques, thanks to which a person loses 15 kilograms in a month, 5 kilograms in two days, and so on. A person may perceive such statements with hostility. Naturally, we all want quick results, some magic pills so as not to waste a lot of effort and time. However, the truth is that it is impossible to achieve results without putting any effort into it. Let's take a closer look at this topic and the process of losing weight.
How much fat can you realistically burn in a month?
Ability human body converting fat tissue into energy has its limitations. The problem is that adipocytes very “lazy” in terms of splitting, that is, they are very difficult to convert into a source of energy. This process, as you already understand, is very long and energy-intensive. Subcutaneous fat will not be burned quickly just because you wanted it. Firstly, in order to start losing weight, you need to start this process. To do this, you should reduce the calorie content of your diet, create a proper diet, and most importantly, start actively engaging in physical activity, preferably using aerobic exercise.
The fact is that fat is burned in mitochondria , which are very abundant in the skeletal muscles, and excess fat is stored in the so-called FAT DEPOT . To go such a long way from the depot to the muscle cells and there to break down fat into fatty acids, that is, to start lipolysis, you need to spend a lot of effort. The process, as I already said, is very labor-intensive, voluminous and long, so losing weight quickly cannot be achieved naturally. The only thing is that it can be speeded up a little. In the next article I will tell you how to do this, so I advise you to subscribe to our website so as not to miss the article.
The bottom line is that you can’t just burn fat like that; there are certain restrictions. Even if a person creates a huge calorie deficit, significantly limits himself in food, creates all the prerequisites for burning fat, even with this approach he will not be able to achieve results and lose 1 kilogram of fat per day. I’ll say more, you won’t be able to burn even 500 grams of fat mass. The thing is that the limitations I’m talking about are that our body is able to burn only 70 - 300 grams per day. As practice shows, the optimal value is somewhere in the middle and is approximately 100–160 grams per day; accordingly, with an integrated approach, the athlete will be able to burn approximately 500–900 grams of fat PER WEEK. By the way, an integrated approach means, first of all, a properly formulated diet, physical activity and normal recovery. Only compliance with all of the above aspects will give a positive shift towards splitting adipocytes into fatty acids, then converting them into energy.
Many may object by saying: “I heard that a friend lost more than 3 kilograms of weight in a week.” Yes, this is indeed possible, especially if a person exercises and leads an active lifestyle, however, half the weight he lost in a week is not fat.
When you go on any diet or start active training, you start the process of burning glycogen reserves accumulated in your muscle tissue. Of course, the polysaccharide itself, formed as a result of the accumulated residue of glucose in the muscles, is not so much, approximately 300 - 400 grams, however 1 glycogen molecule binds 4 water molecules. Accordingly, as a result of training and diet, you burned 300 grams of glycogen, and along with them 900 grams of water, that is, the total weight lost is 1200 grams. If you take into account the fat lost, you will be able to lose about 2 kilograms per week (1200 grams of water, glycogen and 1200 grams of fat).
What happens next, that is, due to what you lose weight at first. If you start to eat right, monitor your health, start training in the gym, your body will remove various “garbage” that has accumulated due to uneven and proper nutrition. These slags also have their own weight. In addition, as a result of losing weight, whether you want it or not, muscle tissue will also be burned, so in the end, in the first week or two of losing weight, you will be able to lose about 3-3.5 kilograms, of which only 800 grams of fat. It is clear that the larger the person, the more water, accumulation of all kinds of waste and the like, so this figure may vary depending on the individual parameters of the person. In the following weeks, the athlete will be able to lose about 1 kilogram in 7 days.
In addition to all this, if a person loses weight incorrectly, along with all the waste, toxins, fat, water, muscle tissue will also be burned, but in larger quantities, which is not good for you. I'll explain why. The fact is that in case of improper weight loss, using too strict a diet, or significant food restrictions, the process of burning muscle fibers occurs. As we already know, it is in them that the breakdown of fat cells occurs. The less muscle, the slower the weight loss process. Moreover, when incorrect balanced diet or long-term fasting, a person runs the risk of gaining even more excess weight at the end of the diet than he had before. This happens for one reason. After finishing a strict diet, a person managed to lose weight, however, his eating habits remained the same. That is, after a diet, a person begins to eat the same way as before the diet, as a result of which the weight returns, but fat replaces muscles. Thus, it worsens appearance, since fat is not as dense as muscle, which is why its size is two to three times larger. That is, a person may have the same weight, but the body will look different, depending on the percentage of muscle and fat. The more fat, the worse the appearance. In the picture you can clearly see what a person looks like with the same weight, but with a different percentage of body fat.
I want to lose a lot of weight at once
The following questions are discussed in detail:
- Acceptable rate of weight loss
Various ways and methods of weight loss
There is no doubt that losing weight in the vast majority of cases requires a relative reduction in the amount of adipose tissue by any of the methods or their combination:
- low calorie dietary food (),
- increasing physical activity: fitness training or fitness complexes,
- increase in metabolic processes in the body (medicinal complexes - “fat burners”),
- reduction in digestible products (medicinal complexes that reduce absorption or reduce the volume of food absorbed),
- surgical (liposuction, gastric volume reduction, etc.),
- psychological (hypnotherapy, reflexology, acupuncture) - although they are not considered serious, their effect on easily suggestible people cannot be discounted.
Moreover, all these methods (except liposuction) do not lead to the desired effect - Losing weight affects more than just fat tissue(only which it is desirable to get rid of), but also muscle tissue, connective tissue and, what is most unpleasant from the point of view of those losing weight, all body fluids (which are based on water, which is instantly replenished) - various ways losing weight. For example, visiting a steam room in a Russian bath will result in about a kilogram, although adipose tissue will not decrease by a gram.
Weight loss and volume reduction
In the process of losing weight over more than a week, using any method of losing weight (including fitness of training), the amount of adipose tissue will also decrease - of course, there will also be a loss of fluid in the body. Further weight loss at the same pace (with the same amount of calories consumed and expended) will force the body to adapt to new conditions (by saving calories in all ways - it will begin to change) - and this will mean that the rate of weight loss (in particular on one diet ) will decrease more the closer to the end of the diet.
On the other hand, at the same time, the ratio of muscle and fat tissue will also change. An additional factor here will be an increase (this especially applies to anaerobic fitness complexes and fitness training, which affect almost all muscle groups). But the density of muscle and fat tissue differs significantly - which implies a decrease in volume both visually and actually (even in the absence of weight loss).
Generally, passes unevenly- with diets, the maximum occurs in the first three days of the diet (due to body fluids), and the minimum on. Weight loss may stop, but then there will be a decrease in volume(including during fitness training - Fitness training).
Problem of weight gain (normalization of metabolism)
From the point of view of modern dietetics, up to a certain limit the rate of weight loss is determined by the difference between calories absorbed and calories burned. It is clear that the lower one will be determined by calorie consumption during complete fasting - the body will begin to use up its own reserves (mostly from fat tissue). That is, the more you spend (for regular activities, for Fitness, for shaping - Shaping), the faster you lose weight and the fewer calories you consume from food, the faster you lose weight. Everything seems to be simple.
But in practice, another aspect of losing weight appears. A rapidly decreasing amount of adipose tissue (and at the same time an increasing amount of muscle during fitness training - Fitness training or aerobics - Aerobics) at high rates of weight loss will not have time to affect the surrounding tissues and organs of the body (especially for), as well as stabilize their new state (a striking example would be serve sagging skin for those who lose weight quickly). The same applies to processes (and stabilization). The body needs time to adjust to a new regime after a diet (but usually this does not happen, since immediately after the diet we return to the old habitual diet). And the weight quickly returns (at a rapid pace of weight loss) - and not just returns, but returns in excess, so that by the next period of food restriction the body has more fat reserves (the body does this beyond our desires - like, for example, bears) - but for us this is extremely undesirable.
These indicators indicate that the rate of weight loss, on the one hand, should be maximum (the psychological aspect of losing weight), and on the other hand, its value should not exceed the rate of normalization of metabolism and the transformation of other tissues and organs of the body. Then the body should not perceive weight loss as a temporary phenomenon and after losing weight it will no longer increase - the weight will stabilize at the same level.
Medical Aspects of a Healthy Weight Loss Rate
Numerous studies provide different numbers for how safe weight loss is for the body, such as:
- from 500 to 900 grams per week
- up to 2 kilograms per week
- about 1% body weight per week
- from 2% to 3% of the original mass per month
- from 2 to 3 kilograms per month
- from 3 to 5 kilograms per month with an ideal diet
The values given vary significantly. Moreover setting specific values of permissible weight will not be entirely correct- a girl whose weight is 1-2 kg. exceeds the norm, this value will be one, and for a man weighing 150 kg. this value will be different (on average, men have no more than 18% adipose tissue, women 25%).
This suggests that the safe rate of weight loss is:
- will be different for men and women (with proper weight loss due to adipose tissue - including during fitness training: Fitness training)
- should be expressed as a percentage of initial body weight
Moreover, all nutritionists without exception are unanimous in the opinion that Diets with a daily calorie content of less than 1000 kcal pose a health risk if used for long periods of time.
Of all the percentage values, the strictest is limit 2-3% of initial body weight per month- in this case, the lost weight will not be perceived by the body as a temporary phenomenon.
Are effective weight loss diets safe for your health?
All fast diets characterized by limiting salt in food - this leads to the removal of about three liters of fluid from the body. This will indicate that the actual weight loss during the diet due to adipose tissue will amount to 3 kilograms - and this figure is close to the value of 3% of the initial body weight per month. As for the caloric restriction of less than 1000 Kcal per day, this
Many people want to get rid of extra pounds, and even more would like to lose weight without training or dieting. However, if you suddenly find that your favorite jeans are starting to fall off of you, and the scale shows a reading that you could only dream of, think about it. There are many reasons for sudden weight loss, but it is worth remembering that not all of them are terrible - only in some cases, severe weight loss may indicate serious health problems.
First of all, let’s define what exactly is considered sudden weight loss. If you have lost about 5% of your weight in six months without resorting to diets or exercise, then you should at least consult a doctor. If you are initially light weight, then losing fewer kilograms may be a cause for concern.
The specialist will ask you several questions about your health and lifestyle. For example:
- have you had any problems with your teeth recently (long-term treatment can affect appetite - many people simply find it difficult to eat their usual food in the usual quantities);
- whether you have suffered from diarrhea, nausea or vomiting;
- whether you are constantly stressed and whether there have been any serious upheavals in your life recently;
- do you eat as before or your appetite has decreased;
- Do you smoke or drink alcohol?
- Do you have any other complaints?
It is worth telling your doctor whether you are taking any pills, dietary supplements, herbal teas or other similar products. Most likely the doctor will prescribe general analysis blood and other studies - this will eliminate or confirm suspicions he has about the causes of weight loss.
The first thing many people start thinking about when they discover that they have lost a lot of weight is oncology. Many people associate sudden weight loss with cancer. Doctors, however, are more optimistic and explain that weight loss will most likely not be the only sign indicating the presence of a tumor in the body, and there will be other signs in addition to weight loss.
In addition, sudden weight loss may be associated with other medical conditions, including celiac disease, depression, diabetes, metabolic disorders, lung disease, heart problems, or gastrointestinal tract and tuberculosis.
Severe weight loss without obvious reasons is a serious cause for concern. Even if you think you feel great, consult a doctor - the sooner the cause of sudden weight loss is determined, the sooner treatment will be prescribed and the more effective it will be.
A person should plan weight loss to improve their health, and not set the goal of temporarily losing weight on the eve of some event, notes nutritionist Natalia Suslova. Many young ladies on the eve of the New Year consider it necessary to lose weight in order to look more impressive at a corporate event, party or photo shoot.
Some “sit” on kefir and buckwheat, others on apples, bananas, even chocolate. Extreme people generally go hungry. However, the lost kilograms are returned in abundance. How to avoid this and achieve the desired result?
— Girls and women come to me when they have tried all the methods, but they did not help them, or when they are experiencing side effects from diets,” says nutritionist Natalia Suslova. “Unfortunately, our people do not have the habit of seeking qualified help from medicine; first of all, they look for information on the Internet. They try all possible quick diets for weight loss - banana and chocolate diets, sit on kefir, and starve.
Unfortunately, everyone wants quick results, and doing this in a short time is harmful to health. Such mono-diets give the effect of rapid weight loss due to the loss of water and muscle, which is negative for the body. To look good, you don't need to exhaust yourself so much. People should regard any weight loss as improvement.
You should not set the goal of temporary weight loss for good looking to some event, says Natalya Suslova. It will be better for health if there is, albeit excess, but constant weight than when a person suddenly loses 10 kg and then gains 20 extra kilos. Let's look at the factors that influence weight loss:
Optimal speed of weight loss
“The most correct diet for weight loss allows you to lose 3-5 kg per month - this is comfortable for the body, you just need to adjust your diet,” explains the nutritionist. “And a quick loss of 10-12 kg is indicated only in exceptional cases, for example, when a person is being prepared for surgery because there is a threat to life. The optimal rate of weight loss is achieved thanks to the following points:
You should not drink while eating, because there is a danger of overeating and, as a result, gaining excess weight. The stomach is like a ball; it has the ability to stretch. The water creates additional pressure and stretches it, quickly pours out, and the stomach remains distended. Then the person’s feeling of hunger does not disappear.At your next meal, you will want more food to feel full.
Consequences of lack of sleep
The best diet for quick weight loss will not help if a person does not get enough sleep, the doctor notes. - You need to go to bed no later than 22-23 hours - during that period, which is the most calm, promotes the production of hormones.
Those who sleep little are more likely to overeat, the so-called eating of problems and worries. Such a person will have a problem with excess weight. It is much more difficult to correct the weight of these people with nutrition.
The benefits of physical activity
Don't forget about physical activity. Forcing everyone to go to the gym is not entirely correct, because everyone has their own preferences and temperament,” notes Natalya Suslova. “But walks are available to everyone.” You can get off before reaching the stop when you are going to or from work; after eating, do not lie down or sit down, but move around. You can plan this for yourself.
It's good to go for long walks on weekends. It’s also good to take a walk before bed on weekdays. Then the best night's sleep will be, your metabolism will improve and the excess calories that you accumulated during the day will decrease thanks to a walk, and you will be guaranteed normal weight loss when losing weight.
If a person is healthy, then baths and saunas are also effective. It is a mistake to think that by visiting a sauna you will lose weight, because only water is lost, but at the same time metabolism is stimulated, blood circulation and lymphatic drainage are improved.
— The skin is also an excretory organ. And those ballast substances, breakdown products that are released during the process of losing weight, come out through the skin. Therefore, it is very important to cleanse the skin both in the sauna and to exfoliate at home. This has a positive effect on the body. If you take into account more than half of the recommendations from this list, then the result will be. It may not be as fast, but it will be a positive thing for the body, because it will improve your health and well-being.The result will encourage you to continue healthy eating and after the holidays.
Mono-diet: review from a nutritionist
Weight loss when using mono-diets is a loss of fluid and muscle, explains the doctor. - For example, they drank only kefir all day, stood on the scales and said that they lost half a kilo. But losing 0.5 kg per day from adipose tissue is impossible so quickly. The body becomes dehydrated, the person loses muscle, but the amount of fat tissue remains the same. Perhaps her cells are slightly reduced in volume.
And when a person returns to his usual diet, instead of maintaining those three to five kilograms of minus, he has another plus six kilograms in weight. Therefore, such diets can be used once or twice a week with a break of a day. According to the nutritionist, this is the so-called fasting-dietary therapy, or fasting-dietary nutrition. That is, a 24-hour fast on water, juice therapy, a vegetable or fruit day, depending on what the person likes and is not contraindicated for him.
– we calculated how much weight you can lose if you limit calories minimally, by only 10-15%. Spoiler: in a week a woman weighing 60 kg loses about 200 g of fat, and a man weighing 80 kg loses about 300 g of fat with a calorie deficit of 10-15% of the daily requirement. At the same time, loss of water, muscles, etc. not taken into account. At the very beginning of a diet, it is the loss of water that can give a much greater minus on the scales. But after a week or two you will lose weight more slowly, at about the same rate as described above.
FAT LOSS CALCULATOR IN A WEEK
Daily norm, kcal:
Calorie deficit, %:
Please enter a value
Approximate rate of weight loss: kg per week
Average Calorie Deficit
20-25% daily value
Losing weight at an average pace is the most common approach. It is recommended by nutritionists and fitness trainers.
Weight loss at a deficit of 20-25%
Calculation of daily caloric intake (how many calories a person spends per day to maintain weight) can be done using the formulas described in the article
This rate of weight loss (0.5 - 0.7 kg per week) is recommended by most doctors, but for this you need to reduce your diet more than with a deficit of 10-15%.
In most cases, a 20-25% deficit is easiest to create through a combination of dietary restrictions and increased physical activity (fitness classes, outdoor activities).
Pros:
- 50-300 calories from diet plus 250-300 calories from fitness is a doable task that does not require too much effort - very strict dietary restrictions or exercise 2 times a day. However, you can achieve such a deficit solely through diet - by further restricting yourself in nutrition, but without buying a membership to a fitness club or taking a bicycle from the balcony.
- Since weight loss goes faster, the diet ends earlier. Although those who need to lose a lot (more than 25 kg) will still have to follow the diet for about a year. But at least you won’t lose weight as slowly as with a deficit of 10-15%.
- There is a chance that you will make mistakes when counting calories. For example, you forget to enter 250 calories in your food diary when your total deficit is 500 kcal. This will not prevent you from losing weight, but it will slow down the process. It is for this reason that sometimes a person cannot understand why he lost only 1 kg in a certain period of time, while according to the plan he should have lost 2 kg.
Cons:
- More serious dietary restrictions than with a low calorie deficit, which already feels like a “diet”, unless of course the deficit is created only through sports.
- A deficit of 20-25% slows down. But this cannot be avoided on any diet (since fat loss affects the release of hormones (for example, leptin)).
To sum up, we can say that with the exception of those who have a lot to lose large number weight, for most people it is the average degree of calorie deficit that is suitable. This approach has more positive aspects than negative ones (comparing low and high degrees of deficiency).
High calorie deficit
more than 25% below the daily norm
Weight loss at 50% deficit
Pros:
- The biggest plus is fast weight loss. For those who have more than 25 kg of excess weight, weight loss will go even faster, perhaps even 2-3 kg per week. This is what most people dream of – losing weight quickly.
- Weight that usually takes 2-3 months to lose can be lost in one.
- Some lucky people note that over time, on a strict diet, the feeling of hunger “dulls,” and a large amount of vegetables in the diet helps them stay full.
- Also, in situations where you need to "lose weight in 10 days" - before a wedding or a high school reunion - cutting your calories in half can help achieve maximum weight loss.
- For people who are very overweight, starting to lose weight by quickly changing the number on the scale is easier psychologically. When a person sees significant weight loss in the first week, it gives him the motivation to continue. Those who need to lose 25 or more kilograms may be unhappy if they lose just one in a whole week of dieting. A large calorie deficit can help them see up to 5kg in the red on the scale in a week (some of this will be water loss). Later, you can switch to a medium calorie deficit.
- For those who want to avoid losing muscle mass during a diet with a large calorie deficit, you need to take care of a sufficient amount in the diet and also continue.
- For athletes, quickly ending a diet can mean a quick return to training at full strength (there is much less energy on a reduced calorie diet).
- Starting with greater restrictions, you can dramatically change your eating style, switch from abusing sweets and fatty foods to less high-calorie, but healthy products. These will be vegetables and fruits, lean meats, cereals, low-fat dairy products, etc. Such changes will contribute not only to weight loss, but also to improved health.
Cons:
- A large calorie deficit is mainly created due to a strong reduction in diet; sports alone cannot do this.
- Since the total calorie content of the diet will be low, the choice of products is small. With such restrictions, a diet with a small amount of food is suitable. Protein is needed to maintain muscle mass, and there won't be much room left for carbohydrates and fats.
- Limit yourself greatly long time hard enough. You can include in your regime cheating (allow yourself something high-calorie once a week), refeeds (a whole day, when the amount of carbohydrate foods and calories in general increases noticeably), and also take breaks in the diet (a week or two at a time). But this is not suitable for everyone - for some, cheating/refeeding can turn into a diet break.
- You can't be at a high deficit for too long - it not only greatly slows down your metabolism, but also has a bad effect on your overall health.
- Sometimes, even with wise food choices and a transition to a moderate caloric deficit, people find it difficult to recover from a strict diet. There is a breakdown, rollback and weight return. If you have this experience, it is better not to try to lose weight quickly and consider a more gentle approach - moderate or even calorie restriction.
- It is possible that a person has reduced calories only by greatly reducing food volumes (for example, a chocolate bar + a sandwich for the whole day). Then, when switching to a mode with a moderate deficit or to a maintenance mode, a person will not know what foods to eat so that the weight does not return. Just adding another chocolate bar won’t work; it’s impossible to eat like this for the rest of your life. If the diet is left the same as before losing weight, the weight is gained again (calorie content has returned to high level, which was before the diet!), often bringing with him a few more kilograms.
As a result, to lose weight on a diet with a large calorie deficit (i.e. you need to severely limit yourself in nutrition) you need:
- change nutrition (choose);
- exercise regularly (from 3 times a week);
- work on existing eating disorders (bulimia, anorexia, eating during stress - “problem eating”);
- include refeeds, cheating, breaks in the diet (for example, allow yourself something “extra” once a week).
Materials used:
Setting the Deficit – Small, Moderate or Large by Lyle McDonald
Loading...
