A new client of mine just lost 10 lbs! I am so excited for her!
So what did we do? We made some small simple doable adjustments to her current routine. With a wedding coming up and a dress to fit into yes, she does have motivation. She had just added 4 workouts to her weekly regiment but still wasn’t losing weight. Her sleep was off so we discussed how she might be able to improve that. Some suggestions reading, meditating or a warm bath before bed. Taking time for you and slowing your mind down is key. At this point she wasn’t gaining weight but she wasn’t losing either. So we needed to take a look at her diet.
I always like to start with water consumption. For your body to function properly half your body weight in oz of water is suggested. At 240 lbs I suggested 80 to 100 oz a day. This is very doable if you are mindful. 8 oz when you wake up since your body is a tad dehydrated after your nights rest. It is very easy to get 10 – 20 oz in on your way to work…. Do this instead of drinking a coffee. If you are mindful and have a water bottle on your desk you can easily get 32 oz in during your eight hour work day….so far we are at 60 oz. Another 10 – 20 oz on your way home and you are gold! Oh and if it is a work out day and you are working it, another 10-20 oz is a cake walk. Check out my blog on why water is so important here.
Next we took a look at her BMR (basic metabolic rate) which is the minimum amount of energy your body uses to complete its normal function like breathing, breaking down food and keeping your heart and brain working. This varies from person to person based on gender, age and weight. Her BMR including what it takes to maintain a sedentary state of activity was 2250, which after reviewing her food was her average intake calorically per day – thus a wash. Check this calculator to determine yours at http://www.exercise4weightloss.com/bmr-calculator.html
Now most of us know that a 3,500 calorie deficit is equal to 1 lb of fat loss. So to lose 1 lb a week we needed to get rid of 500 calories a day. For a 1 lb weight loss her caloric intake needed to be 2050…. We were able to get it down to 1800 by cutting out extra nuts (great protein but high in calories) and replacing some high calorie foods with some healthier choices. All things she was excited about and knew she could change without too much difficulty.
Lastly…. chances are you cannot cut 500 calories a day out in just food…. Rule of thumb you should never go under 1,200 a day. This need to be done in conjunction with a fitness program… So here is what got her to a 500 calories a day averaged deficit over the week….ready? We were able to cut about 300 calories out in food like I mentioned she was consuming way too many nuts… That’s about 2,100 calories a week. She also added in 4 workouts. Now because of her current weight she will automatically burn more calories than me at 135 lbs. My guesstimate was a 400 calorie burn per workout – this got her to 3,700 calories a week or about 530 calories a day deficit
At the rate she is going, I have no doubt she will reach her goal and get into that wedding dress this September…. What a gift and what a beautiful confident bride she will be.
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