Setting Goals - Losing Fat

1. Calculate your BMR.


2. Determine how many calories you burn during daily activity.


3. Add #1 and #2 to get your total calories, i.e. how many calories you need each day to maintain your current weight.


4. Reduce that amount by about 250 to 500 calories, but avoid going lower than about 1200 calories (depending on your height) so you don't end up starving your body.


5. Record how many calories you eat and how many you burn each day. If that number is higher than your total calories, you know you need to reduce the calories you're eating and/or increase your exercise to create a calorie deficit.
   

   The Simple Truth

   
   

   To lose a pound, you have to burn approximately 3500 calories. If you burn a total of 500 calories with exercise AND diet each day, you'll lose a pound in about 7 days.

   
   


6. If you're eating more calories than you're burning, you need to either workout more, eat less or a combination of the two.

Example:
If my BMR is 1500 calories and I burn 500 calories while exercising, I need 2000 calories to maintain my current weight. To lose a pound a week, I'll need to eat about 1500 calories a day and burn 500 calories a day with cardio and weight training.

Quick Tips:

• Eating a balanced diet means getting all the nutrients you need so that you feel good all day and you have enough fuel for your workouts.


• Keeping track of what you eat will help you avoid mindless snacking and eating when you're not really hungry


• Stay hydrated. Thirst sometimes presents itself as hunger pains.


• A complete workout includes strength training, cardiovascular exercise and flexibility exercises.


• If you're hungry throughout the day, you're either not eating enough or your meals aren't satisfying you. A combination of carbs, protein and fat will help you feel full for a longer period of time.

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