Yes, and we'll explain why.
Eating 3,500 extra calories will make you gain one pound.
To lose excess weight, you'll need to be in a calorie deficit. This means that you'll either have to:
Lower the number of calories you consume, or You'll need to burn more calories.You can, and should, use both of these techniques to improve your body composition.
Calorie Counting Pitfalls
A common misconception is to think that you have to starve yourself to lose weight, but this is unhealthy and dangerous. Eating a low amount of calories will trigger the body's starvation response, which contributes to yo-yo dieting.
Setting Up For Success
Instead of not eating at all, you should slowly reduce the number of calories you eat in a day.
Tip: Lowering your caloric intake by 500 calories each day is a safe way to lose weight. This should result in you losing one pound every week, which is a healthy rate of weightloss.
Preventing Plateaus
If you notice that you stop gaining or losing weight, you might be experiencing a weight plateau. This occurs when your body adjusts to the amount of calories that you consume.
To counter this, you can boost your metabolism by doing cardio, weight training, or by eating high-calorie foods every once in a while, called cheat meals.
Ideally, you should have one every seven to 14 days during periods of strict dieting.