The Simple Subtraction for Weight Loss You NEVER Hear About
There’s a lot of rhetoric and a lot of approaches in the weight loss community. Fad diets, workout programs, equipment. Hell, even entire societies (Weight Watchers, etc.) exist around it. Everybody claims to have the answer, and yet, everybody’s answer is different. And many people who try just as many answers find little or no success. So what gives?
I’m going to cut the bullshit for you right now. Weight loss comes down to a very simple math equation. It’s so simple you shouldn’t even need a calculator for it. It’s basic math that we all learned very early on in our school career. Are you ready? Here it is.
Calories In (eaten) – Calories Out (burned) = Net Calories
Now, if net calories is a POSITIVE number, weight gain occurs. If net calories is approximately zero, you stay the same weight. If it’s NEGATIVE, that’s where weight loss starts to occur. Science has agreed that a pound of fat is about 3,500 calories. We all know 7 x 5 = 35. Therefore, if you want to lose one pound of fat per week, you need to be burning 500 more calories a day than you are eating. So, how do we figure this out? How, exactly, are we supposed to measure what we burn? That gets a little complex, but here’s the simplest way.
Resting (Basal) Metabolic Rate
Every person has a different resting (basal) metabolic rate, or RMR/BMR. Simply put, your RMR is the number of calories your body burns in a day to maintain all of your organs, brain, body functions, etc. It’s what you would burn if you did nothing but lay in bed all day. BMR is what you burn in what is a normal day of activity for you. While it’s not possible to figure this number out exactly, we can get close by using a few measurements and estimation of your daily activity. That can be a bit complicated; there are a lot of calculators online. I like NASM’s Calorie Calculator – it takes some things into account and will help you with macros for healthy weight loss. So, that’s what our base number is for ‘calories out’. Now what?
Calories In
You have to count what you’re eating. I know, I know – it’s a pain in the ass. Honestly, it’s not really as bad as it used to be. Cellphones and technology have advanced a lot. Honestly, you might even have a smartwatch that can help you get a more accurate reading on that last part (BMR). Likewise, you’ll use all this fancy tech to make measuring your daily intake easier.
I cannot say enough good things about the Fatsecret Calorie Counter App. This thing has a HUGE database of food – and a built in barcode scanner that uses your phone camera. It even has menu items from the majority of popular restaurants added, so you can add that McDonald’s double cheeseburger you bought in a moment of weakness. All you do is scan or search, tell it how many servings of each thing you ate, and BOOM. Easy peasy.
The Last Part – Creating the Negative Number
Now, We know what we’re taking in, we know what we burn. SO what if the number is POSITIVE? Well, we have two options. One, we can decrease the amount of calories we take in through eating. Two, we can increase the number of calories we burn through exercise. This means strength training or cardio (and probably some of both). We’ll rely on that shiny new technology in our pocket once again for this part. In paticular, I like Under Armour’s take on this, because they have a whole suite of free apps in their “Map My…” series for whatever type of activity you’re doing. Running, cycling, strength training…they’ve even got an app for kayaking. They all pair with your smartwatch. They’re all free, and you can even enter challenges for a chance at scoring some Under Armour gear.
The End Result
All that remains is to put these things together. Remember, 500 calories a day less than you burn is good for about 1 pound per week of fat loss. Now, the final caveat: your RMR and BMR will change during this process. If you start exercising more, your metabolism will likely go up over the course of a few months and you’ll burn more calories at rest. If you eat less, your body might respond by slowing your metabolism down to prevent weight loss. That’s why it’s always recommended to do both diet and exercise for a successful weight loss journey.
So, you have the tools. You have the subtraction equation. Also, you have the desire to change. Now, do you have the determination? Remember, I never said this wouldn’t require some work. I said it’s a simple subtraction problem. Now, it’s up to you. Will you put these tools to use? Are you ready to learn some things about yourself, and change your life?
