To lose a pound of weight, you need to create a deficit of about 3,500 calories with diet and exercise.
To lose a pound of fat, you need to balance your personal body scale by taking in fewer calories and doing more activity. The best weight-loss program will show you how to do both. At eDiets, we help you lose the weight by adopting a healthy lifestyle, so you can maintain your weight loss permanently. Aim for one to two pounds of weight loss weekly. You may lose more in the initial weeks as your body adjusts to your new meal plan and activity. Your scale is not always the best indicator of your progress — if you add weights to your workout, you can actually transform your body to a more muscular and fit you.
Full article of myths and facts at Diet and Nutrition Information at eDiets.com.
To make it simple, that translates to cutting 500 calories a day through your diet AND/OR workout, to lose a pound in a week on a 2,000 calorie diet. In my world my calorie intake is less, but I know still that this means only now am I close to that high goal. And that’s okay, and very informational. After learning more and more, I’m no proponent of anyone doing anything for a quick fix or to get skinny, but have learned it’s really all about changing your lifestyle. Personally I know limiting any sort of eating out to once in a blue moon has had a huge impact.
www1.istockphoto.com
Cat Killfoil 
you sound like an ad for ediets
It’s the cut and paste. 😉
Calorie restriction does seem to be the key to losing weight. I lost an average of a pound per day (40 lbs in 45 days) using a 500 calorie diet and taking HCG to stave off feelings of hunger during the same period. Being male… I’m guessing I would normally consume 3,000 calories per day so I was operating at a deficit of 2,500 per day… resulting in a pound per day lose.
Rob Fore
http://www.naturalweightlosscures.com
This is really good to know.
It’s HARD to change your lifestyle. I’ve been at it for a short while now, and I feel like I’m eating so much less than I used to, and getting a lot more exercise — but I aint seeing no weight loss! Not sure how old you are — but for myself, I definitely feel like now that I’m over the 30 yr mark, it’s a hell of a lot harder to shed those pounds.
Anyway, thanks for the information and inspiration. And thanks too for being the first ever commentor to my blog. I appreciate it!