One pound of body fat equals approximately 3500 calories.
So if you have a calorie deficit of 500 calories (meaning that you burn 500 calories more than you eat each day) you would lose approximately one pound per week:
500 x 7 = 3500 calories
Of course if you have a calorie deficit of 1000 per day, then you would lose approximately two pounds per week.
1-3 pounds per week is a healthy weight loss. You want to make sure you are eating enough calories – don’t starve yourself! If you don’t eat enough calories you are going to send your metabolism in a downward spiral.
REMINDER – You should never eat less than 1200 calories per day.