How long does it take for a dog to lose 3kg

You might have been detected and blocked as a crawler bot!

News Corp Australia uses software that manages crawler bot traffic on our websites. If you receive this message and are not a crawler bot (and are just a reader or subscriber), please try these steps first:

1. Temporarily disable any AdBlockers / pop-up blockers / script blockers you have enabled
2. Add this site in to the allowed list for any AdBlockers / pop-up blockers / script blockers you have enabled
3. Ensure your browser supports JavaScript (this can be done via accessing https://www.whatismybrowser.com/detect/is-javascript-enabled in your browser)
4. Ensure you are using the latest version of your web browser

If you still need to be unlocked as a reader, subscriber or crawler bot, please e-mail us at [email protected] and provide the IP address and reference number shown here along with why you require access. Your IP address is: 198.204.240.106 | Your reference number is: 0.8d382f17.1714126522.1d6cce9bNews Corp Australia.

How to Help Your Dog Lose Weight

This Is a Paid Advertisement for The Farmers Dog

In the U.S., 56% of dogs are overweight or obese, and that excess weight is tied to an astonishing array of health problems. When it comes to preventing dog obesity, or even the slow creep of excess pounds, simple awarenessknowing what your dogs weight should be, and keeping on top of any fluctuationsis the first step. Just a few pounds can make a big difference.

You can seek your vets counsel on your dogs ideal weight, but a quick way to assess good canine condition at home is to ask:

• Does your dog have an hourglass shape when you stand behind them and look at them from above?
• Do they have a waist?
• Can you easily feel their ribs?

If youre answering no for all three, theres a good chance your dog needs to lose weight. Now what? Here are some vet-approved tips for helping your dog safely shed excess pounds and keeping them in good condition.

The Food Factor

For dogs, as for humans, losing weight really comes down to two things: food and exercise. And for a dog owner trying to manage or reduce their dogs weight, food is most important by far.

Weight loss begins and ends at the food bowl for dogs and cats, Ernie Ward, DVM, and founder of the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention (APOP), tells us. Weight loss for humans and dogs is 60-70% diet and 30-40% exercise.

For dog owners who have active lifestyles, its easy to overestimate the impact of physical activity on weight maintenance. So even for active dogs, its important to establish clear guidelines for daily caloric intake.

Get Specific With How Much Youre Feeding

Heres where things can go sideways. Humans may or may not choose to count calories as a guide for what theyre eating, with some opting for other methods of keeping to a healthy regime (Do my pants fit? Great!). But when it comes to the long-term management of your dogs weight, its essential to establish a concrete benchmark for how much to feed. This means determining the number of calories your dog needs every day.

Its not a good idea to rely on the feeding guidelines on the average pet food package. There are many factors that will influence your dogs dietary needs, including breed, size, activity level, and whether theyre spayed or neutered. Standard kibble-bag feeding ranges are generally too broad for your dog, and many owners end up over-feeding based on too-generous and too-vague suggested portion sizes, typically measured in cups and scoops.

The feeding guidelines on pet food packages, says Ward, are based on active adult dogs for all life stages. Spaying or neutering, for example, reduces energy requirement by 20 to 30%, he says. So, if your pet is spayed or neutered, and not particularly active, you can already be overfeeding by 20 or 30% or more.

When it comes to determining the ideal caloric intake, its important to consider a number of factors. We take a couple of things into considerationwe look at body condition score, we look at muscle condition score, we look at lifestyle, and any concurrent medical conditions, Dr. Ward says. We start by determining, OK, how many calories should you be feeding?

As a starting place, there are also many tools online to provide rough feeding guidelines based on weight and breed. You might start by consulting the guide published by the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention.

For at-home calculating, you can use the Resting Energy Requirement (RER) formula. Take your dogs weight in kilograms, multiply by 30, and add 70 (or, take their weight in pounds, divide by 2.2, multiply this figure by 30, and add 70). You can then factor in a metabolic energy requirement (MER), depending on things like health and whether theyre spayed or neutered.

Typical MER factors include:

• Weight loss1.0 x RER
• Neutered/ Spayed Adult1.6 x RER
• Intact Adult1.8. x RER

Ask your veterinarian about the MER and calculating and determining how your dog can lose weight safely. Tools like the MER multiplier table on the web provide estimates, but every dogs metabolism is different, so be sure to keep monitoring your pets weight.

You can also sign up for a fresh-food plan (like the ones offered to customers of The Farmers Dog). A plan like this makes it easy to determine the correct total caloric intake and food portions based on your dogs very specific requirements, and also makes it easy to adjust daily calories based on changing weight-management needs.

Food Quality Is Also Key

In addition to calorie counting, another important part of weight maintenance or weight loss is feeding lower-carb, whole, fresh food.

Many ultra-processed dog foods are full of carb-based fillersas Dr. Ward has noted, when you actually break down the ingredients on the label, many of them top out at over 60% or more carbohydrates. Fresh diets provide quality protein, but also the fiber and moisture that can keep your dog satisfied, without carb-y fillers.

Feeding nutrient-dense, bioavailable food will keep your dog healthy as they reduce their overall intake of food.

Treats Count, So Count Them

Another way to help your dog drop some extra weight is by controlling, and possibly reducing, their treat intake. Here, again, quality and quantity matter.

Nobody wants to deny their dog treats, as they are often helpful training aids, and its fun to see the excitement they generate. But its important to keep a close eye on how many treats your dog actually eats in a day and what their caloric impact is. Treats should be factored into, and comprise no more than, 10% of total daily calories.

Dog owners who feed their dogs healthy food, yet still feed them highly processed, high-carb, high-calorie treats, are potentially missing a big source of weight gain and health issues. And if you feed your dog too many treats (more than 10% of their daily intake of food), you can undo the benefits of the balanced diet youre feeding.

Many vets recommend using single-ingredient treats like fresh veggies and fruit. Baby carrots, celery, broccoli, green beans, cucumbers, blueberries, apples, and bananas all make healthy treats and, unlike mystery-meat treats, can contribute to your dogs health (use apple and banana in smaller amounts due to higher sugar content).

As for peanut butter, make sure its truly a special (rare) treat, and doled out in limited amounts; this dogand humanfavorite has a hefty 100 calories per tablespoon. Also, ensure that the peanut butter youre using doesnt contain Xylitol, which is toxic to dogs. For a lighter, and perhaps better, substitute, try plain canned pumpkin, which weighs in at just five calories per tablespoon.

Its also worth stepping back and considering why youre giving your dog treats. Our bond with our dogs is so special, and every dog owner wants to see the happy excitement a treat brings. But you can get that joyful response with healthy treats, or with smaller portions. I typically tell owners that dogs get the same enjoyment, and you can get the same reaction, from a small piece of a treat as you can from the whole thing or a handful, says Alex Schechter, DVM. There are many ways to show love and bond with your pet. It doesnt have to be all about food.

Safely Increase Exercise

Food is key, but no weight loss plan, or health maintenance plan, is complete without exercise. The most obvious, and important, activity for your dog is walking. Regular walks dont just exercise your dogs body; they provide crucial mental stimulation and that all-important opportunity to sniff. The amount of walking your dog needs, or wants, depends on their breed and general health. But while conventional wisdom says that some dogs need less exercise than others, all dogs need to move.

While the recommended minimum of daily exercise is 20 minutes, twice a day, many dogs will need much more. For many breeds, an hour of exercise a day is a good target. If your dog needs to lose weight, try to increase the amount of exercise they currently do. So, if thats none, or barely any, start with short intervals of walking. If youre already exercising, try lengthening your walk or other activity by 10-20%.

Ask your vet about the best types of activities based on your pets breed, age, gender, and current physical condition. Introduce new activities slowly to avoid injury. And, unless your dog has been trained for or slowly introduced to these kinds of activities, leave the extreme sports to your own weekend hourstoo-vigorous, or repetitive activity can put your dog at risk of joint problems. Also, keep weather conditionslike high sunin mind if your activities are outdoors. The sun creates the potential for heat stroke and burnt paw pads.

Rule Out a Medical Condition

If youve established and are staying within caloric boundaries and youre still not having any luck helping your dog lose weight, a visit to the vet could be in order to rule out a medical condition. Weight gain and lethargy can be symptoms of conditions like hypothyroidism and Cushings syndrome. The latter, also known as hyperadrenocorticism, usually occurs in older dogs, and can also cause frequent urination, hair loss, and weakness.

Weight Loss (and Maintenance) Is a Long Game

If you determine that youre overfeeding, work with your veterinarian to create a weight-loss schedule based on the appropriate calories so that your dog doesnt lose weight too fast, which is unhealthy.

Overall, the best weight management strategy is to develop good habits that are applied, consistently, long-term.

People (humans) want to rush weight loss, says Dr. Ward. Thirty days to bikini season! But this is a long process. Its years of making small decisions that help. When youre deciding on sharing your pizza crust with your Pomeranian, if you do it once, OK. But if you do it once a week for five years, thats a problem.

This article was vetted by a vet. Reviewed by Alex Schechter, DVM, founding veterinarian atBurrwood Veterinary.He was previously founding veterinarian atPure Paws Veterinary Care.

How Long Does It Take to Lose Weight?

Factors like age, gender, and your starting point can affect how long it takes you to lose weight. The timeframe can also depend on how many calories you take in relative to how many you spend.

Whether you want to lose weight for a special occasion or simply improve your health, weight loss is a common goal.

To set realistic expectations, you may want to know what a healthy weight loss rate is.

This article explains the factors that affect how long it may take you to lose weight.

Weight loss occurs when you consistently consume fewer calories than you burn each day.

Conversely, weight gain happens when you consistently eat more calories than you burn.

Any food or beverage you consume that has calories counts toward your overall calorie intake.

That said, the number of calories you burn each day, which is known as energy or calorie expenditure, is a bit more complicated.

Calorie expenditure is composed of the following three major components (1):

• Resting metabolic rate (RMR). This is the number of calories your body needs to maintain normal bodily functions, such as breathing and pumping blood.
• Thermic effect of food (TEF). This refers to the calories used to digest, absorb, and metabolize food.
• Thermic effect of activity (TEA). These are the calories you use during exercise. TEA can also include non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT), which accounts for the calories used for activities like yard work and fidgeting.

If the number of calories you consume equals the number of calories you burn, you maintain your body weight.

If you want to lose weight, you must create a negative calorie balance by consuming fewer calories than you burn or burning more calories through increased activity.

SUMMARY:

Weight loss occurs when you consistently consume fewer calories than you burn each day.

Several factors affect the rate at which you lose weight. Many of them are out of your control.

Gender

Your fat-to-muscle ratio greatly affects your ability to lose weight.

Because women typically have a greater fat-to-muscle ratio than men, they have a 510% lower RMR than men of the same height (2).

This means that women generally burn 510% fewer calories than men at rest. Thus, men tend to lose weight quicker than women following a diet equal in calories.

For example, an 8-week study including over 2,000 participants on an 800-calorie diet found that men lost 16% more weight than women, with relative weight loss of 11.8% in men and 10.3% in women (3).

Yet, while men tended to lose weight quicker than women, the study didnt analyze gender-based differences in the ability to maintain weight loss.

Age

One of the many bodily changes that occur with aging is alterations in body composition fat mass increases and muscle mass decreases.

This change, along with other factors like the declining calorie needs of your major organs, contributes to a lower RMR (4, 5).

In fact, adults over age 70 can have RMRs that are 2025% lower than those of younger adults (2, 6).

This decrease in RMR can make weight loss increasingly difficult with age.

Starting point

Your initial body mass and composition may also affect how quickly you can expect to lose weight.

Its important to understand that different absolute weight losses (in pounds) can correspond to the same relative (%) weight loss in different individuals. Ultimately, weight loss is a complex process.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Body Weight Planner is a useful guide to how much you can lose based on your initial weight, age, sex, and how many calories you take in and expend (7).

Although a heavier person may lose double the amount of weight, a person with less weight may lose an equal percentage of their body weight (10/250 = 4% versus 5/125 = 4%).

For example, a person weighing 300 pounds (136 kg) may lose 10 pounds (4.5 kg) after reducing their daily intake by 1,000 calories and increasing physical activity for 2 weeks.

Calorie deficit

You must create a negative calorie balance to lose weight. The extent of this calorie deficit affects how quickly you lose weight.

For example, consuming 500 fewer calories per day for 8 weeks will likely result in greater weight loss than eating 200 fewer calories per day.

However, be sure not to make your calorie deficit too large.

Doing so would not only be unsustainable but also put you at risk for nutrient deficiencies. Whats more, it might make you more likely to lose weight in the form of muscle mass rather than fat mass.

Sleep

Sleep tends to be an overlooked yet crucial component of weight loss.

Chronic sleep loss can significantly hinder weight loss and the speed at which you shed pounds.

Just one night of sleep deprivation has been shown to increase your desire for high-calorie, nutrient-poor foods, such as cookies, cakes, sugary beverages, and chips (8, 9).

One 2-week study randomized participants on a calorie-restricted diet to sleep either 5.5 or 8.5 hours each night.

Those who slept 5.5 hours lost 55% less body fat and 60% more lean body mass than those who slept 8.5 hours per night (10).

Consequently, chronic sleep deprivation is strongly linked to type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and certain cancers (11, 12, 13).

Other factors

Several other factors can affect your weight loss rate, including:

• Medications. Many medications, such as antidepressants and other antipsychotics, can promote weight gain or hinder weight loss (14).
• Medical conditions. Illnesses, including depression and hypothyroidism, a condition in which your thyroid gland produces too few metabolism-regulating hormones, can slow weight loss and encourage weight gain (7, 15).
• Family history and genes. There is a well-established genetic component associated with people who have overweight or obesity, and it may affect weight loss (16. 17).
• Yo-yo dieting. This pattern of losing and regaining weight can make weight loss increasingly difficult with each attempt, due to a decrease in RMR (18).

SUMMARY:

Age, gender, and sleep are just a few of the many factors that affect weight loss. Others include some medical conditions, your genetics, and the use of certain medications.

With innumerable weight loss diets available all promising impressive and quick results it can be confusing to know which one is best.

Yet, though creators and proponents deem their programs superior to the rest, theres no single best weight loss diet (19, 20).

For example, low-carb diets like keto may help you lose more weight initially, but studies find no significant differences in weight loss in the long term (21, 22, 23).

What matters most is your ability to stick to a healthy, reduced-calorie eating pattern (24, 25).

However, following a very low calorie diet for long periods is difficult for many people and the reason why most diets fail (26).

To increase your chances of success, only moderately reduce your calorie intake, individualize your diet according to your preferences and health or work with a registered dietitian.

Combine diet with exercise, including both aerobic and resistance training, to maximize fat loss and prevent or minimize muscle loss (27).

By eliminating highly processed foods and incorporating more healthy, whole foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, healthy fats, and proteins, you can further promote weight loss and your overall health.

SUMMARY:

Adhering to a weight loss diet is difficult for most people. Regardless of your goals, choose a dietary pattern based on your individual preferences and health status.

While most people hope for fast, rapid weight loss, its important that you dont lose too much weight too quickly.

Rapid weight loss can increase your risk of gallstones, dehydration, and malnutrition (28).

Other side effects of rapid weight loss include (29, 30):

• headaches
• irritability
• fatigue
• constipation
• hair loss
• menstrual irregularities
• muscle loss

Though weight loss may occur faster at the start of a program, experts recommend a weight loss of 13 pounds (0.451.36 kg) per week, or about 1% of your body weight (31).

Also, keep in mind that weight loss is not a linear process. Some weeks you may lose more, while other weeks you may lose less or none at all (32, 33).

So dont be discouraged if your weight loss slows or plateaus for a few days.

Using a food diary, as well as weighing yourself regularly, may help you stay on track.

Research shows that people who employ self-monitoring techniques, such as recording your dietary intake and weight, are more successful at losing weight and keeping it off than those who dont (34).

SUMMARY:

Losing weight too quickly can lead to problems like gallstones, muscle loss, and extreme fatigue. Experts recommend a moderate weight loss of 13 pounds (0.451.36 kg) per week, or about 1% of your body weight.

Weight loss occurs when you eat fewer calories than you burn.

Many factors affect your weight loss rate, including your gender, age, starting weight, sleep, and the extent of your calorie deficit.

Aiming to lose 13 pounds (0.451.36 kg) per week is a safe and sustainable way to reach your goals.