But today I had a brief chat with a personal trainer, and he told me that If I am eating 1200 calories a day and want to lose weight, I need to burn around 1700 calories A DAY, so should be in the gym 1-2 hours every day for an intense workout. Isnt that too extreme, having to spend 2 hours a day, 7 days a week just to lose 1 pound a week?