How Long Does It Take to Lose Weight?

Whether you want to lose weight for a special occasion or simply improve your health, weight loss is a common goal.

To set realistic expectations, you may want to know what a healthy weight loss rate is.

This article explains the factors that affect how long it may take you to lose weight.

Weight loss occurs when you consistently consume fewer calories than you burn each day.

Conversely, Weight loss happens when you consistently eat more calories than you burn.

Any food or beverage you consume that has calories counts toward your overall calorie intake.

That said, the number of calories you burn each day, which is known as energy or calorie expenditure, is a bit more complicated.

Calorie expenditure is composed of the following three major components (1Trusted Source):

• Resting metabolic rate (RMR). This is the number of calories your body needs to maintain normal bodily functions, such as breathing and pumping blood.
• Thermic effect of food (TEF). This refers to the calories used to digest, absorb, and metabolize food.
• Thermic effect of activity (TEA). These are the calories you use during exercise. TEA can also include non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT), which accounts for the calories used for activities like yard work and fidgeting.

If the number of calories you consume equals the number of calories you burn, you maintain your body weight.

If you want to lose weight, you must create a negative calorie balance by consuming fewer calories than you burn or burning more calories through increased activity.

Your initial body mass and composition may also affect how quickly you can expect to lose weight.

It’s important to understand that different absolute weight losses (in pounds) can correspond to the same relative (%) weight loss in different individuals. Ultimately, weight loss is a complex process.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Body Weight Planner is a useful guide to how much you can lose based on your initial weight, age, sex, and how many calories you take in and expend .

Although a heavier person may lose double the amount of weight, a person with less weight may lose an equal percentage of their body weight (10/250 = 4% versus 5/125 = 4%).

For example, a person weighing 300 pounds (136 kg) may lose 10 pounds (4.5 kg) after reducing their daily intake by 1,000 calories and increasing physical activity for 2 weeks.

Weight loss occurs when you consistently consume fewer calories than you burn each day.