Version 1.0 Documentation
Target Weekly Change	See an Example

Maybe you saw it in a magazine, or an infomercial, but you don’t really think taking off 14 pounds in two weeks is healthy, do you? A healthy weight loss rate is between 0 to 2 pounds per week. The body likes equilibrium. Fat is the body’s natural defenses against starvation. If weight loss is too rapid, the body can go into starvation mode, preferring to burn muscle for fuel, to protect its fat stores. Your diet will be for naught.

Target weekly change is the amount of weight you wish to gain or lose in one week. If you want to maintain your current weight, your target weekly change amount is 0. Use a negative value to perform the calculation to lose weight. Add a positive value if your target is to gain weight.

There is nothing mystical about loosing weight. Calories in equal calories out. To reduce fat, you need to create a deficit between calorie intake, and your body’s caloric needs. You can do this by either eating less (reducing intake), exercising more (raising needs), or both. It takes about 3500 calories to burn a pound of body fat. Eating 500 fewer calories than you need per day will result in about a pound of weight lost per week. Eating the remaining calories correctly can encourage your body to use its fat reserves for the needed energy, rather than muscle, which it can also burn if needed.

Remember, weight loss is not the only measure of body fat loss/lean muscle gain. If the bathroom scale is acting stubborn after months of healthy eating and exercising, get out the measuring tape. Since muscle is heaver than fat, your thinner waist, hips, and/or thighs may not show up on your bathroom scale.

Target Weekly Change Example

If your weight change target is to lose one half pound per week, you will enter a value of -0.5 into the Target Weekly Change text box in the Simplebean Health Guide. If you wish to maintain your current weight, enter a value of 0.

This page is a help entry for the Free Simplebean Health Guide. To plan a healthy diet, use this MS Windows software to quickly calculate important health info such as your BMI, BEE, personalized daily calorie requirements and targets in carbs, proteins, and fats, and the target weight for your build. It is great for weight loss or maintenance. Click here for additional Help Topics.

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More about Body for Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength by Bill Phillips This is a great motivational book. It will encourage you to believe that you too can get in the best shape of your life. It provides the details of the challenge that has helped thousands develop healthy habits, and obtain a lean, happy body.

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