Summary Points
- It is vital to set an appropriate calorie and weight target for your body composition goal
- An appropriate time-frame for achieving your fat loss goal is vital to allow you to sustain your progress and avoid negatively impacting your well-being
- Measurement (DXA or weight measurement) is important but you must be consistent with that measurement
If the goal is to improve body composition a reasonable goal would be to target 1-1.5 pounds of fat loss per week. Greater losses in weight are likely to result in reduced muscle mass.
One pound of fat is equal to 3,500 kcal or 1kg is equal to 7700 kcal, to achieve this weekly target a daily energy deficit of 500 kcal is required, that is often easier said than done! Most people underestimate the time required to reduce body-fat. The level of calorie restriction when aiming to reduce % body fat depends on the person’s level of fat mass. For example if someone is aiming to reduce their fat mass by >5 kg then their deficit will be more severe compared to someone who is aiming to reduce fat mass by 2 kg.
The target calorie deficit for reducing fat mass is as follows:
- Conservative – 10% calorie deficit
- Moderate – 15% calorie deficit
- Aggressive – 20% calorie deficit
Here is an example of how a typical 80kg active male could achieve 1 kg fat loss over a 4 week period.
Gary is 81kg but wants to be 80kg. He exercises moderately 2-3 times a week but otherwise is relatively sedentary. His sleep patterns are consistent and he is in good general health.
Here is the math – You can use the Performance Calculator to set your calorie goal
Gary is currently doing a light level of physical activity 1-3 times per week
Average daily calorie needs for maintenance: 2464
Daily Calorie Deficit target: 15% of 2464 = 246 calories
2464 – 246 = 2218 daily calorie needs
Aim? Drop 1 kg fat mass which equals 2.2 lbs = 7700 calories.
Time frame = 30 days or 4 weeks
You will find an appropriate meal plan for fat loss that is easy to follow and nutrient dense in our meal plan section.
Your peak performance weight
It is important to accept that the weight you compete at when you are in your best physical shape is likely to be lighter than the weight you can sustain for long periods of time. What matters is not drifting too far from your competitive weight and maintaining a weight that you are comfortable with and happy with during non-critical phases in the season.
For context, a male athlete may be 85kg, 9-10% body fat and 73 kg lean mass during the most competitive phases of the season. In the off season or in less competitive phases of the season this athlete may be 12-13% body fat and 87 kg body mass which is certainly acceptable. Similarly for female athletes, a female athlete may be 24% body fat in the off season and may aim to target 22% in season. Seasonal body composition changes are normal in most athletes. What matters is not increasing body fat too much in the off season which may place the athlete at a disadvantage.
Should I weigh myself when aiming to reduce body fat?
Measurement is important in all aspects of performance, including changes in body composition. The gold standard measurement for tracking changes in body-composition is a whole body fan beam dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). DXA scanners can be difficult to access and expensive so in the absence of a DXA, skinfold measurements or indeed changes in body weight can be tracked. If you are only using your weight as a measurement for tracking changes it is worth also taking some girth measurements or simply taking some photos in minimal clothing as weight alone is not going to give you precise measurements of total body composition changes. The target in weight change, as mentioned previously is 1 lb per week.
If you are using a weighing scales use the following procedure for greatest accuracy:
- Use the same weighing scales
- Weigh yourself in minimal clothing
- Ensure you are hydrated, not dehydrated or over hydrated
- Weigh yourself in the morning after you have gone to the toilet
- Weigh yourself 2-3 times per week and take the average of the weights
