Q: How many calories are equal to one pound of body fat?
A: One pound of body fat is equal to 3500 calories. Therefore, if you want ot lose one pound per week, you would need to create a calorie deficit of 500 calories per day (500 x 7 = 3500). This can be accomplished by consuming 500 fewer calories per day, increasing calorie expenditure by 500 calories per day, or a combination of the two.
To give you some perspective, 500 calories is equal to one Quarter Pounder w/Cheese or one large fries at McDonalds. To burn off 500 calories, a 175 pound person would need to walk a moderate pace (3 mph) for about 2 hours! Makes you re-think the burger and fries, doesn't it?
Want to find out the calories of over 40,000 different foods? Use the Calorie King Food Search found on our welcome page. Want to calculate calories burned for a variety of different exercises? Check out this great website...
Q: How do I lose weight from a specific place on my body?
A:There is no way to target weight loss to a specific area of the body because your body decides where it wants to put on weight and where it wants to take it off. The midsection is a common "problem" area for many people.
The best way to lose fat is through cardiovascular exercise. It is important to do a variety of exercises to strengthen these areas, but until that excess fat is gone, you will not see the muscle definition. For example, if you’re not doing cardio, crunches are not going to help get the 6-pack you’ve been hoping for. Regular cardio exercise at a level that’s challenging for you is your best bet.
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