Need to lose 0.45-1 kg per week. How long does it take to see results? Eating back calories?

[Anonymous]

I have been going to the gym for the past two weeks and have lost inches but no weight. I should be eating 1200 calories to reach my target weight in a given amount of time. So I burn off 500 calories at the gym and usually eat back those calories... but I am not losing weight. Will I be able to lose 0.45-1kg per week if I don't eat the calories back? I really need to start seeing results. Thanks! :-)

[WhiteSteve]

Your looking at it all wrong, unless you're trying to make a specific weight for something. The inches are what matter! You're going to put on muscle when you work out, and fat will be burned off. The muscle weighs more than the fat did, so you may maintain or even gain weight. If you're just trying to tone up and look good, keep at it. Watching calories is ok, but more important is the quality of calories. 100 calories from one food doesn't necessarily equate to 100 calories from another. Just try to eat balanced, low-fat, high protein foods, and space your meals out to every 2-3 hours, just smaller portions. And ALWAYS eat breakfast. The trick is get your metabolism burning faster by keeping the nutrients coming in. Eat once a day and your body will respond by not burning it off as efficiently and storing it as fat, because your body is unsure of when the next meal is coming. Get it going early with breakfast, so it's already cooking early on and ready to burn off calories from later meals.

I let myself go for about a year and a half. I was in good shape through my 20s but I took a new job where I traveled a lot, and I found different food spots in each area and I just went nuts, haha. Plus I was driving half the day, vs running around all day at my previous job. Anyway, I started at a pretty muscular 215 lbs, and blew up to a soft 225 and looked like 50 lbs of shit in a 10 lb bag. Step one was to stop eating like an asshole, haha. Cut way back on pizzas and cheeseburgers and buffalo wings. The thing is, you can still have them, just not all the time. Soda? Done. Liquid fat. Drink water. Didn't go to the gym until 6 weeks after the diet change, and I lost 10 lbs by then. So I started working out again and was a floppy 215-220 lbs, depending on the day. Now 5 months later I look a lot closer to my old self, and guess how much I weigh? 215. So don't out too much stock in the number on the scale, just use it as a guideline. I used to do personal training, and I...

[WhiteSteve]

... always told my clients "pay a lot more attention to mirrors than scales." Congrats on losing those inches and good luck, keep at it! :-)

[Asker]

Thanks so much for you reply:-) Makes sense! Yeah I eat rather healthy... but i guess I'm building muscle... which i actually don't really want... My aim is to lose 2-3 kg in be lean. But you are right! Thanks!