You are burning calories 24/7, even when you’re not moving. Just by being alive — breathing, pumping blood, and sitting up — your body uses about 1,300 calories a day. This is known as your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR), the number of calories your body needs to maintain basic functions while at rest.
When you add in daily activities like walking, talking, eating, and basic movements in a mostly sedentary lifestyle, your body burns about 1,600 to 1,800 calories a day. This is known as your maintenance calories — the number of calories you need to eat to keep your current weight without gaining or losing.
To lose weight, you need to eat fewer calories than your body uses. Since you haven’t been tracking your food intake, let’s start by setting your daily calorie limit at 1,600 calories — your maintenance level. For the next 4 weeks, focus on consistently eating at this level and monitoring your weight.
After the month, we’ll assess: Did you lose weight, maintain, or gain? This will help us adjust the plan moving forward.