Burning Calories - Weight Loss

dranzer01

What is a good / average benchmark to target regarding calories to burn? (7 days a week or 3 days a week worth of cardio on the treadmill or elliptical)

So far what I have been doing is trying to aim for around 500 calories to burn either on the treadmill or the elliptical around 3 maybe 4 times a week. 

Something within me is saying this isnt quite enough..........?

Grumpy_chap

Weight loss will happen whenever you are in a calorie deficit. 
You still want those calories to be health nutrition mix of carbs, fats and protein.
If you burn calories above your basic rate through cardio exercise but then eat more, the benefit in terms of weight loss of the exercise is reduced or even negated in full.
The idea of alternate exercise days with recovery days in between is an established technique.
I use a free app to track my calorie intake and it links to my fitness tracker so adjusts the available calories for exercise but also with the overall weight loss target in mind.  The app is called MyFitnessPal.  You can't really lose much by giving it a try.

dranzer01

Grumpy_chap said:

Weight loss will happen whenever you are in a calorie deficit. 
You still want those calories to be health nutrition mix of carbs, fats and protein.
If you burn calories above your basic rate through cardio exercise but then eat more, the benefit in terms of weight loss of the exercise is reduced or even negated in full.
The idea of alternate exercise days with recovery days in between is an established technique.
I use a free app to track my calorie intake and it links to my fitness tracker so adjusts the available calories for exercise but also with the overall weight loss target in mind.  The app is called MyFitnessPal.  You can't really lose much by giving it a try.

Thanks - 

So weight loss is all literally about calorie deficit. I may have been doing it wrong. I was going off of men need around 2,500 calories a day and I was doing a mental calculation of what I eat during the day (which is basically nothing apart from one meal in all honesty) , then Id do 30 mins treadmill and burn 500 calories.....

Saying all this, I think i need to get some sort of calorie tracker.

Does the above track/show your BMI? and the distribution of fat/mass/calories etc?

Sea_Shell

Also look up your personal BMR.  Calculators are available on line.

2500 cals is a catch all referred to similar to the "energy price cap".

You may need a completely different figure depending on your own personal circumstances.

A 500 calorie deficit a day, however achieved (diet or exercise or a bit of both), should result in steady and gradual weight loss.

Also ensure you're drinking enough water, as sometimes you can think you're hungry when really you may just be thirsty and a glass of water can make the feeling go away until your next proper meal, so avoiding snacking.

Grumpy_chap

dranzer01 said:

So weight loss is all literally about calorie deficit. I may have been doing it wrong. I was going off of men need around 2,500 calories a day and I was doing a mental calculation of what I eat during the day (which is basically nothing apart from one meal in all honesty) , then Id do 30 mins treadmill and burn 500 calories.....

Saying all this, I think i need to get some sort of calorie tracker.

Does the above track/show your BMI? and the distribution of fat/mass/calories etc?

Yes, weight loss (or gain) is all about calorie deficit (or surplus).
You still want that calorie balance to be healthy, so balanced nutritional value rather than just chocolate bars (or shakes / protein bars etc).

You may well be over-estimating your calories burned for the exercise as it can be surprisingly low.  My last run I did 5 k in 21 minutes and my tracker says that burned 249 calories.

The free app I mentioned is one of the tools I use.  To get the full suite of information you are after, I use three tools:
 - Garmin fitness tracker / smartwatch
 - Renpho scales
 - My Fitness Pal (MFP)
Together that gives me target calories, actual calories and nutritional split, weight, BMI, body fat %, body water %, BMR plus other parameters that I treat as secondary information. 
The Garmin auto-syncs to the MFP app but the scales don't - there are more expensive scales that will auto-sync.  I did buy the more expensive ones but they were faulty so returned for refund and the cheaper ones do the job satisfactorily but I do have to manually enter data across to the Garmin app and not all data can be so transferred.
I log everything into the MFP app and trim (or increase) my intake each day to match the target very closely.
You need to spend time to set everything up (so accurate initial body measurements)

I got the fitness tracker at the start of the first lockdown and the scales at the end of 2020.  The results have been that I feel better and fitter than I ever was (even when 10-years younger), my weight is within a narrow band around target, I am more beach body ready (though that is a challenge), and able to do far more exercise with lower heart rate.  It has also given me more self-confidence through being fitter and healthier so I will put greater effort into clothing and physical appearance which I never did before as I'd have been mutton dressed as lamb.

As @Sea_Shell mentioned, water is important.  I also limit caffeine to max three drinks per day and now avoid alcohol except for "events".  Good quality sleep is the other key factor to complete the package.

Good luck in your journey.

dranzer01

Grumpy_chap said:

dranzer01 said:

So weight loss is all literally about calorie deficit. I may have been doing it wrong. I was going off of men need around 2,500 calories a day and I was doing a mental calculation of what I eat during the day (which is basically nothing apart from one meal in all honesty) , then Id do 30 mins treadmill and burn 500 calories.....

Saying all this, I think i need to get some sort of calorie tracker.

Does the above track/show your BMI? and the distribution of fat/mass/calories etc?

Yes, weight loss (or gain) is all about calorie deficit (or surplus).
You still want that calorie balance to be healthy, so balanced nutritional value rather than just chocolate bars (or shakes / protein bars etc).

You may well be over-estimating your calories burned for the exercise as it can be surprisingly low.  My last run I did 5 k in 21 minutes and my tracker says that burned 249 calories.

The free app I mentioned is one of the tools I use.  To get the full suite of information you are after, I use three tools:
 - Garmin fitness tracker / smartwatch
 - Renpho scales
 - My Fitness Pal (MFP)
Together that gives me target calories, actual calories and nutritional split, weight, BMI, body fat %, body water %, BMR plus other parameters that I treat as secondary information. 
The Garmin auto-syncs to the MFP app but the scales don't - there are more expensive scales that will auto-sync.  I did buy the more expensive ones but they were faulty so returned for refund and the cheaper ones do the job satisfactorily but I do have to manually enter data across to the Garmin app and not all data can be so transferred.
I log everything into the MFP app and trim (or increase) my intake each day to match the target very closely.
You need to spend time to set everything up (so accurate initial body measurements)

I got the fitness tracker at the start of the first lockdown and the scales at the end of 2020.  The results have been that I feel better and fitter than I ever was (even when 10-years younger), my weight is within a narrow band around target, I am more beach body ready (though that is a challenge), and able to do far more exercise with lower heart rate.  It has also given me more self-confidence through being fitter and healthier so I will put greater effort into clothing and physical appearance which I never did before as I'd have been mutton dressed as lamb.

As @Sea_Shell mentioned, water is important.  I also limit caffeine to max three drinks per day and now avoid alcohol except for "events".  Good quality sleep is the other key factor to complete the package.

Good luck in your journey.

Thanks for all the info and I will be buying all these things in the next days - 


Just to confirm.... If I don't eat anything in the morning (maybe 3/4 bananas and then I take a metabolism tablet and around 2/3pm i have a snack , go to the gym around 6pm, burn 500 calories and then eat 4/5 chicken thighs with broccoli) , no matter if i am burning 500 calories everyday on the treadmill, I NEED to be consuming less than 500 calories as I've just burnt 500 calories...?


I ask because my friend was doing KETO and I know for a fact he didn't go to the gym. One day he was quite big ish and then couple of months later he was quite slim with little to no belly... he said he was just eating salads/fish/chicken etc......


So I am trying to think even if I consume a whole load of protein (lets say) and I cut out heavy or all carbs/sugars/saturates, wont that make me drop belly fat in no time also....?

Sea_Shell

That all sounds a bit "faddy" to me.

Also be aware that throwing money at the problem via gadgets is not the answer, when all you really need is a set of ordinary bathroom scales, pen, paper and a calculator.

Have you actually sat down and worked out what your daily food consumption actually IS, over at least a week?

Where are you getting 500 burnt from, the treadmill itself or online calculator?

dranzer01

Sea_Shell said:

That all sounds a bit "faddy" to me.

Also be aware that throwing money at the problem via gadgets is not the answer, when all you really need is a set of ordinary bathroom scales, pen, paper and a calculator.

Have you actually sat down and worked out what your daily food consumption actually IS, over at least a week?

Where are you getting 500 burnt from, the treadmill itself or online calculator?

500 burnt from treadmil or elliptical (may use one one day and the other another day)

i havent yet sat down and calculated everything out

Sea_Shell

dranzer01 said:

Sea_Shell said:

That all sounds a bit "faddy" to me.

Also be aware that throwing money at the problem via gadgets is not the answer, when all you really need is a set of ordinary bathroom scales, pen, paper and a calculator.

Have you actually sat down and worked out what your daily food consumption actually IS, over at least a week?

Where are you getting 500 burnt from, the treadmill itself or online calculator?

500 burnt from treadmil or elliptical (may use one one day and the other another day)

i havent yet sat down and calculated everything out

I trust you input your weight into the equipment?


Once you know your actual calorie intake (no cheating!😉), and your BMR, then you'll have a better idea of what you need to change.

dranzer01

When you input your weight into the treadmill/elliptical, what does that actually do....? Ive always wondered that

dranzer01

Sea_Shell said:

dranzer01 said:

Sea_Shell said:

That all sounds a bit "faddy" to me.

Also be aware that throwing money at the problem via gadgets is not the answer, when all you really need is a set of ordinary bathroom scales, pen, paper and a calculator.

Have you actually sat down and worked out what your daily food consumption actually IS, over at least a week?

Where are you getting 500 burnt from, the treadmill itself or online calculator?

500 burnt from treadmil or elliptical (may use one one day and the other another day)

i havent yet sat down and calculated everything out

I trust you input your weight into the equipment?


Once you know your actual calorie intake (no cheating!😉), and your BMR, then you'll have a better idea of what you need to change.

Sea_Shell said:

dranzer01 said:

Sea_Shell said:

That all sounds a bit "faddy" to me.

Also be aware that throwing money at the problem via gadgets is not the answer, when all you really need is a set of ordinary bathroom scales, pen, paper and a calculator.

Have you actually sat down and worked out what your daily food consumption actually IS, over at least a week?

Where are you getting 500 burnt from, the treadmill itself or online calculator?

500 burnt from treadmil or elliptical (may use one one day and the other another day)

i havent yet sat down and calculated everything out

I trust you input your weight into the equipment?


Once you know your actual calorie intake (no cheating!😉), and your BMR, then you'll have a better idea of what you need to change.

 I do correct,