You might wish to lose weight to improve your health, for a special occasion, or look lean and mean! Whatever the case, weight loss is a common goal that is often misunderstood. Yet, it’s good to know what health professionals consider a healthy weight loss rate to have realistic expectations.
But, how long does it take to lose weight?
The problem is there is not one single universal rate of weight loss. We all lose weight at different rates due to various factors.
This article explains the factors that affect how long it may take you to lose weight. By the end of reading this, you should have a clearer idea of how fast you may be able to lose weight and how much is too much.
Table of Contents
How Weight Loss Happens
Weight loss happens when you consume fewer calories each day than you burn. Weight gain, on the other hand, occurs when you consume more calories than you expend.
Any calorie-containing foods or beverages you consume count towards your total calorie consumption. However, calculating the number of calories you burn each day, also known as calorie expenditure or energy, is a little more difficult.
The three primary components of calorie expenditure are as follows:
- Resting metabolic rate (RMR) – refers to the amount of calories your body needs in order to maintain standard bodily functions, such as pumping blood and breathing.
- The thermic effect of food (TEF) – is the calories you use to digest, absorb, and then metabolize drinks and food.
- The thermic effect of activity (TEA) – refers to the calories we all use during exercise. TEA may include non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). NEAT accounts for calories you use for things like fidgeting and gardening.
You maintain your body weight if the amount of calories you intake equals the calories you burn.
In the weight loss process, you need to generate a negative calorie balance. Do this by either eating fewer calories than you burn or increasing your activity level.
Factors That Affect Your People’s Weight Loss
Several factors will affect a person’s weight loss. It’s unfortunate that some of them you won’t be able to control.
Yet, it would help if you focused on the factors you can control. This way, you may be able to speed up the rate of your weight loss – to healthy levels.
Some of the key factors that affect the rate of weight loss include:
- Age
- Gender
- Your current weight
- Calorie deficit
- Sleep amounts
- Medications
- Medical conditions
- Genetics and family history
- Dieting
All of these factors may play a role in your weight loss timeline. The length of time you will lose weight will depend on one or more of these factors.
A good idea is to look into various weight loss tips. Also, if you see a website that offers accessories and diets, check it out! It could help you on your personal weight loss journey.
So, How Long Does It Take to Lose Weight?
Asking the question of “how long does it take to lose weight?” is pretty vague. First, you need to know all the factors at play to start calculating how long it will take for you to lose weight.
Learn all the factors at play. Then start your weight loss journey armed with knowledge, and thus, power!
Thanks for reading, and please check out our blog for similar posts like this.
