Well, this is cyborg workshop and the definition of a cyborg has to include some biological component, so don’t be so surprised. I have created a spreadsheet in open office that my wife and I have both used to a great degree of success to shave off some weight. I recently converted it to google docs and have decided to share it out. You can find a copy of it here. Remember to save off a copy for yourself because you won’t be able to edit the one in that link. You only need to fill out the cells that have a white background, everything else will auto populate. This sheet will provide a couple of key pieces of data. First,
- It will calculate your metabolism or the number of calories you need to consume on a daily basis based on your activity level. Use this number to set your weight loss goals.
- It will calculate the day that you will reach your goal. Need to drop 10lbs in a month? With your metabolism number, you can tweak how many calories you are consuming on a daily basis to reach that date.
- It will tell you how many pounds you are set to lose, or gain, in a week and alert you if that number goes over 3lbs. 3lbs a week is the high end of safe weight loss. Beyond that, you start to get into dicey territory where you risk damaging your body or going into an unsustainable starvation mode.
- Pretty graphs on page 2 showing you how you are doing. The graphs aren’t great, but google still has some limitations in that area.
- And lastly, if you fill out the sheet faithfully, you’ll see that no matter what diet you are on, it all comes down to counting calories.
Give it 10 days worth of data to get accurate measures on your metabolism. Good luck and have fun!