How to lose 1kg a week and keep it off
Want to know how to lose 1kg a week? Then follow this simple advice from the New Body Plan founders! Jon Lipsey lost 10kg of fat in just eight weeks during his own transformation to ditch his dad bod and become a Men’s Fitness cover star. And Joe Warner used New Body Plan to shift stubborn belly fat and get six-pack abs at the age of 40! Use their tried-and-tested advice so you can start to build your best-ever body!
How to lose 1kg a week the smart way
If you want to know how to lose 1kg a week then you need to understand that there are several ways to lose weight. Some of those ways are better than others. And some of those ways are more sustainable than others. Because, let’s face it, it’s no good losing 1kg in a week only to put it back on (and more) a week later.
It’s also worth pointing out that you’re not just aiming to lose 1kg a week. You’re really aiming to lose 1kg of fat. You could easily lose 1kg of water just by dehydrating yourself. But that won’t change your body composition. And it certainly won’t make you look, feel or perform better. In fact, you’ll look and feel terrible!
Find your perfect fat-loss plan!
Take the New Body quiz!
Can you lose 1kg a week of fat?
The good news is that the answer to the question ‘can you lose 1 kg in a week of fat?’ is “yes!” It is possible to lose weight fast. But it’s not necessarily easy. It’s also not safe if you do it in the wrong way.
For example, starving yourself by going on a very low calorie diet might help you hit your target. But it won’t do your long-term health any favours. Going very low calorie, for example, can suppress your metabolism. That means your body will burn fewer calories at rest. And that, in turn, can actually make it harder to lose weight in the future.
Can you lose 1kg a week safely?
In theory, yes, you can lose 1kg a week safely. You can do it by combining some smart nutrition adjustments with a challenging exercise plan.
Whether you can lose 1kg a week safely over the long term depends on a few factors. Clearly you can’t do it forever. But if you are carrying a fair amount of excess weight then you might be able to lose 1kg a week for a number of weeks without doing anything that harms your long-term health.
How many calories to lose 1kg?
The convention of how many calories to lose 1kg is that a calorie deficit of 3,500 calories will lead to approximately 1lb of weight loss. So, if you want to know how to lose 1kg in a week, you need to create a calorie deficit of approximately 7,000 calories over the course of the week. This means you need a calorie deficit of approximately 1,000 calories a day.
How to lose 1kg a week without doing anything extreme
The best strategy for how to lose 1kg a week is one that is neither extreme nor unsustainable. That’s why it has to be a combination of both diet adjustement and increased activity.
If you wanted to create the deficit through exercise alone you’d need to burn an extra 1,000 calories a day. That’s about 90 minutes of intense exercise a day. And that’s more than most people can recover from safely.
Instead, aim to do about four intense exercise sessions a week of about 45 minutes to an hour – like the ones in my New Body Plan programmes.
That will burn about 500 calories during the session. And you continue to burn extra calories after the session as your body undertakes the recovery process. Walking more during your day and generally being more active can also easily add an extra 300 calories of energy expenditure a day.
Reducing your calorie intake by about 400 calories a day will plug the gap and get you to that one 1kg fat loss in a week.
How to lose 1kg a week with simple diet adjustments
If you’re thinking about how to lose 1kg a week you might expect that you need to overhaul your entire diet. That’s not the case. You just need to make a few simple tweaks.
The first is to minimise alcohol consumption. The second is to generally avoid drinking calories. The third is to make sure you get plenty of fibre by eating more fruit and vegetables. That will help you to feel fuller for longer so your calories will feel like they go further.
The same goes for eating more protein. Include a good protein portion such as chicken, fish or meat with each meal. You don’t have to cut out carbs. Just make sure you’re sensible with portion control.
Can you lose 1kg a week for multiple weeks?
This depends on several factors. You need to exercise intensely and consistently. You’ll also need to follow the nutrition guidelines set out above.
The other element is your starting body composition. If you haven’t got much body fat to lose, then losing a lot of weight consistently is going to be tricky. Equally, if you’re very out of shape, you may also find that it takes your body a period of time to adapt to the exercise and nutrition adjustments you’re making.
The people who are most likely to find it easiest to lose 1kg a week for multiple weeks are those who’ve been in decent shape in the past but have added a bit of body fat over time. Generally speaking, you might be able to sustain 1kg a week fat loss for four, six or even eight weeks. After that it’s probably going to become progressively more challenging.
How to lose 1kg a week over multiple weeks
The secret for how to lose 1kg a week over a period of time is consistency. You need to be consistent with how often and how hard you train. And you need to be consistent with how you eat.
A lot of people take drastic measures to drop a significant amount of weight quickly. But they struggle to sustain that approach. That’s why it’s really important that you use exercise, diet and general activity as a three-pronged attack.
It may also help for you to have a specific weight-loss target in mind. You may, for example, aim to lose 6kg in six weeks. You can also help yourself by setting yourself up for success. Doing simple things like planning sessions in advance and committing to the process will make hitting your targets a lot easier.
Find your perfect fat-loss plan!
Take the New Body quiz!
Burn fat and lose your belly with the best cardio for weight loss
7 ways to eat for fat loss and get a leaner and stronger body