Question:
Tom, I know it will probably be different foreveryone, but I find it hard to set weekly goals for bodyfat percentage because I don’t know what an average body fatpercentage drop in a week is supposed to look like. I’m a30 year old female. Any input?
Answer:
I recommend setting a fat reduction goal of abouthalf a percent per week (0.5%). Based on many years of testingclients in person with skinfold calipers, I’ve concludedthat this is about average.
This is an honest number that reflects not just the outliersin the top success stories, but an average of everyone.That’s what makes this figure a good realistic weekly goal
Chris, for example dropped 9% body fat in 7 weeks. That’snot typical… but its possible in a highly motivatingenvironment like our Burn the Fat body transformation contests]
To calculate realistic, average weekly fat loss:
If your body fat measured 24.6 percent on day one of weekone, then 24.1 percent would be your goal for the end ofthat seven-day period. That will be an impressive 6% dropin your body fat if you keep that up over 12 weeks.
If you’re more ambitious and you want to shed body fateven faster, it’s certainly possible, although it doesdepend on body size. Larger people can often lose largeramounts of weight and body fat.
When someone is already lean and wants to get even leaner,there is less fat remaining so it becomes more difficultto lose large amounts every week.
I’ve seen many people drop 0.6 percent or 0.7 percent bodyfat per week if they worked hard, usually doing multiplecardio sessions per week on top of their weight training,combined with excellent dietary compliance.
I’ve even seen people shed 0.8 to 1.0 percent body fat perweek, but more often than not, those were temporary spikesin progress, reflecting one exceptionally good week, or inconjunction with a highly motivating event, like one ofour burn the fat challenge contests, (where the reward of aluxury trip to Maui is dangling in front of you)
If you lose less than a half a percent per week, as longas you made some forward progress, you should celebratethat as success.
It’s more normal for results to vary from one week to thenext than to drop the same amount every week, so anoccasional slow week is nothing to get upset about.It’s just feedback.
After a below average week, to bring the rate of fat lossup to average or better for the next week, you’ll need to:
(a) re-establish compliance if you had a bad week (get backon the wagon! … and start tracking food intake moremeticulously if necessary) or
(b) make adjustments to your nutrition and training toincrease your caloric deficit and optimize body compositionchanges.
Last but not least, if you want to be one of those”not typical” people, then remember this:
* Above average results require above average effort.
* Extraordinary results require extraordinary effort.
Train hard and expect success! (because summer is coming!)
Burn The Fat, Feed the Muscle is the most detailed, one-stop guide to fat burning nutrition you’ll ever find.That’s why so many people call it the fat loss bible.
COMMENTS