Mathematically, a person that weighs 140 pounds, running ten minutes at a speed of 6 miles/hour (something between jogging and running) will burn 106 calories. One gram of fat equals 9 calories, so roughly a ten minute run will burn 12 grams of fat. Loosing 30 pounds (13,607g) would take 1,133 days. If you run 30 minutes a day, it will take 377 days.
Please don’t despair… that was just to say, nobody can give you an exact answer. Exercising regularly will (1) increase you body average metabolic rate for a few hours after exercising, which means you will burn more calories than usual after exercising, and (2) as it promotes increase in muscle mass, that will also increase the number of calories your body burns 24 hours a day (even when you sleep). Loosing 30 pounds won’t take a year for sure!
From another angle, a healthy weight loss is something between 1-2 pounds a week, which roughly means a deficit of 500-1000 calories per day is the maximum a person should aim at in order to loose weight healthily. Deficit means the calories you burn by exercising plus the calories you cut out of your average daily intake needed. If an average sedentary person needs 2000 calories and only eats 1500, that’s a 500 calories deficit. Add ten minutes exercising, that’s 600 calories deficit.
That taco bell could average 500 calories, same as a burger or 100g of french fries, so minding what you eat is the key. Healthier foods with less fat and less sugar, and lots of whole grains, fruits and vegetables, that contain fibre that will help sweep bad fats and toxins from your body.
At the beginning it will be hard, but as you get used to exercising the endorphins created by exercising (the feel good hormone) will make you like it. Some other pointers can be:
- make exercise enjoyable, or to say, exercise in any way you can enjoy it
- to be safe and avoid injury, do not increase more than 10% exercise per week.
- vary what you do: run slower for longer, or faster in less time, or interval training (go fast/slow/fast/slow in one session), uphill/downhill (will help you build strenght, and speed).
- if you can, try walking (for double the time for same results as running), or swimming, or cycling. Varying your exercise in any way prevents your body from getting used to it, and help you burn more calories
- have one day off a week (to help your body recover), and always stretch after exercising
- cut fats and sugar out of your diet gradually, so you won’t feel deprived, and will be less likely to crave them
- one trick is, whatever you’re having, have 1/3 less than usual. Even if it goes in the garbage bin and you waste money, remember, your body is not a garbage bin. You’re not saving money by eating everything you buy, you’re just transforming money into fat that will make you unhealthy
- try to find new, more healthy things to eat, i.e., try to learn new recipes, or if you go to restaurants or have lots of takeaway, try different cuisines. You’ll be surprised how many things taste batter than taco bell. Fat and sugar can taste good, but spices and herbs can make a healthy meal absolutely delicious.
- by all means, set yourself some goals, and whenever you reach them, give yourself some reward.
- keep away from anyone that won’t fully support you. People that mock you because you’re exercising or dieting, or that are always motivating you to eat or try to keep you away from exercising are not bad people and don’t mean you harm, but their behaviour will surely help you fail all the way.
