Losing more than 2lbs per week?

bettieb1988

Is this Ok to do? What if someone were to lose 4lbs a week is that too unhealthy?

briannarios60

You really wouldnt want to do that because while you will lose weight fast, you will eventually gain it all back, and then some, because its hard to keep up with all that. Aim for 1 pound a week. Slow is good

parkerpowerlift

If you are first starting out with losing weight, you will lose a lot of water weight initially. The more you have to lose, or the heavier you are, the quicker it will go in the beginning. After a bit, it will slow down.

It's healthier to lose weight slower or slowly and have consistent results (and keep the weight off) than it is to lose the weight quickly and regain it all. We have a lot of newbie MFP members such as yourself who joined in the past month or so (welcome!!!) and so you will figure it all out in time. There's a lot of good stuff out on here.

Good luck with your weight loss journey!

Laurend224

If you just started, and have a bit of weight to lose, your first week or two may see some big losses. It's water weight. After that it will level out, and if you are losing too quickly your deficit may be to big and ultimately, unsustainable.

I lost 6 lbs my first week. And I'm losing at about a pound a week now.

Laurend224

If you are consciously attempting to lose 4 lbs a week, I would say slow down a bit, it's not a race.

bettieb1988

Ok this is my first week with my diet and exercise program, I'm on day 4 and have lost 4lbs

Falcon

I tried it for a week and it backfired on me. Not a good idea. Start off with a 1 pound a week then if you're feeling really ambitious aim for a 1.5 pounds a week.

ana3067

You're clearly weighing yourself regularly. Chances are you will gain back a few lbs, otherwise you're just losing a lot of water weight. Which you may gain back later on.

Liftng4Lis

Don't worry about it, its water weight you're dropping. It will stable off.

waituntil

As long as you're not eating too little calories, then it's okay to lose more than 2 lbs a week. Usually the heavier you are, the faster you lose weight. When you get closer to your ideal weight, it slows down.

If you're eating a healthy amount of calories like 1500 a day (depending on your body type and height and activity level), then you might lose more than 2 lbs a week.

My first week I lost 14 lbs. The next week 10, the week after that 7. I was losing 7 lbs per week for a while. Now I lose about 16 lbs per month, every month.

And my doctors say that's fine, because I eat 1800 calories a day.

BWBTrish

briannarios60 wrote: »

You really wouldnt want to do that because while you will lose weight fast, you will eventually gain it all back, and then some, because its hard to keep up with all that. Aim for 1 pound a week. Slow is good

You gain weight when you eat to much. How fast you gain weight depends on how much you eat to much.


the whole myth about gaining fast when you lose fast is a crazy thought.

Eat in more calories than you burn = weight gaining
Eat less calories than you burn = weight loss

bettieb1988

This is my nutrition for the day but I am still lacking 331 calories for my goal according to this app! I'm having a hard time finding something to eat to make up for the calorie difference without going over too much on sugar and fat?

malibu927

If you have no medical reason to watch your sugar, don't worry about it. And the fat and protein macros are often viewed as minimums.

Falcon

TheOwlhouseDesigns wrote: »

briannarios60 wrote: »

You really wouldnt want to do that because while you will lose weight fast, you will eventually gain it all back, and then some, because its hard to keep up with all that. Aim for 1 pound a week. Slow is good

You gain weight when you eat to much. How fast you gain weight depends on how much you eat to much.


the whole myth about gaining fast when you lose fast is a crazy thought.

Eat in more calories than you burn = weight gaining
Eat less calories than you burn = weight loss

eating 1200 to 1300 cals a day is not enough. My dad consumed between 1400 cals a day and when he tried to maintain he gained 20 pounds back. At my height and my dads height 1400 cals is not enough. I eat around 1700 to 1800 a day and lose between 1.5 to 2 pounds a week respectively.

Plus I lift stuff at work as heavy as 40 pounds or more. If I eat 1300 a day, I end up losing muscle mass around my biceps. The more muscles you have the easier it is to burn calories.

bettieb1988

Your caloric intake depends on your height and weight though right? And how many pounds a week you'd like to lose?

segacs

Yes, exactly.

It's okay to lose 4lbs in a given week, because some of that is water weight initially, or fluctuation.

However, I'd say that you shouldn't be targeting a 4lb/week weight loss, which would involve a 2000 calorie per day deficit. For most people, that deficit is much, much too big, and, even if they could do it, would result in eating far too few calories and doing themselves very serious health damage.

As long as you've signed up to MFP entering your stats and you're targeting a reasonable loss rate, don't worry too much about the fluctuations; some weeks might look like a bigger drop, some weeks might be steady or up a bit. It should average out to the loss you targeted.

TimothyFish

Some doctors say that is okay if it is done in a healthy way.

ahoier

every diet plan i've ever used (which wasn't successful.....hence the reason i am now here) always had the standard disclaimer, not to lose more than 2 lbs of weight per week, after the first week.....now, the first week it's okay if you drop 5 pounds......etc....cause that first week it's basically water weight going gone...

you gotta realize, as you burn calories, that skin and fat has to go somewhere......vitamins and nutrients are stored in fat cells.....if you lose the weight too quickly, you could get sick.....from the fact that by burning the fat, those vitamins consumed ages ago, are now being re-activated and burned off......from the fat stores.....at least that's the layman's terms i've heard...lol......and the reason for the disclaimer(s)


not to mention, everyone i know, that lost weight Quick.....ended up with very loose, excess skin......knew a guy in high school, he was big.....he tried out for football and lost like 75 lbs.....with all the running they had them doing.....well, he now has the classic 'wings' under his arms, loose, flabby skin, etc....saggy stomach, etc......from losing the weight too quick.....he didn't give his body enough time to 'elasticize' the skin back in place.....

and this is another reason, i recommend everyone to aim for half your current body weight, in fluid ounces....of WATER per day......that's fine if you have coffee/tea in the morning, but that does not count towards your WATER intake.....for example, i weigh 179.....i'm currently shooting for 89.5 fl. oz. of water per day......which if you think about it sounds like a lot, but it's only a little over 11 cups of water......so i start my day off with a big 24 oz. shaker bottle of water.....and a typical day at work, i'll drink 2 of those cups (48 oz there.....), the biggest thing is to spread it out.

Falcon

ahoier wrote: »

every diet plan i've ever used (which wasn't successful.....hence the reason i am now here) always had the standard disclaimer, not to lose more than 2 lbs of weight per week, after the first week.....now, the first week it's okay if you drop 5 pounds......etc....cause that first week it's basically water weight going gone...

you gotta realize, as you burn calories, that skin and fat has to go somewhere......vitamins and nutrients are stored in fat cells.....if you lose the weight too quickly, you could get sick.....from the fact that by burning the fat, those vitamins consumed ages ago, are now being re-activated and burned off......from the fat stores.....at least that's the layman's terms i've heard...lol......and the reason for the disclaimer(s)


not to mention, everyone i know, that lost weight Quick.....ended up with very loose, excess skin......knew a guy in high school, he was big.....he tried out for football and lost like 75 lbs.....with all the running they had them doing.....well, he now has the classic 'wings' under his arms, loose, flabby skin, etc....saggy stomach, etc......from losing the weight too quick.....he didn't give his body enough time to 'elasticize' the skin back in place.....

and this is another reason, i recommend everyone to aim for half your current body weight, in fluid ounces....of WATER per day......that's fine if you have coffee/tea in the morning, but that does not count towards your WATER intake.....for example, i weigh 179.....i'm currently shooting for 89.5 fl. oz. of water per day......which if you think about it sounds like a lot, but it's only a little over 11 cups of water......so i start my day off with a big 24 oz. shaker bottle of water.....and a typical day at work, i'll drink 2 of those cups (48 oz there.....), the biggest thing is to spread it out.

+1

Moiz_SK

Don't try to lose 4lbs/ week, you'll hit a plateau very soon & you'll definitely be losing lean muscle. 1.5lbs/2lbs is a good & quick rate, preserving lean muscle mass because that muscle burns extra cals

Patrice120

Most people lose a larger amount in the first week because you may be losing water or lowering inflammation. Don't get discouraged if the scale says you've lost very little in week 2. Keep track of it over the long haul on average because water and hormones will affect your weight as well. When I was diligent on weight watchers, I had a pattern of losing 0.2 for three weeks in a row and then 3 pounds in the fourth week. Rather than focusing on 1 pounds per week, target 1% to 2% per week since people starting at a higher weight will lose faster and then it slows down as you get smaller.

bettieb1988

Thank you for the tips everyone. I am 3 months post partum from my second child. Durin pregnancy I ballooned from 126lbs to 186lbs! I'm currently at 158lbs and I'd like to see myself back to 126lbs where I have been pretty much my whole life. My body is so different after the baby and adjusting to normal I was not sure what to expect. But I guess it could be worse then needing to lose 30lb

hislittlelights

I would add to the already good advice given that, if you are nursing especially, you make sure to pay close attention to your calorie intake and your milk supply. Too low calories and your milk supply will drop (at least it did with me). Also, your body is still healing from the pregnancy and delivery and adjusting to new hormone levels. All good reasons to make sure that every bite counts and that you consume enough calories. Good luck!

Neshmi

Just keep tracking and eating healthy. Your body will do the rest!

arb037

waituntil wrote: »

As long as you're not eating too little calories, then it's okay to lose more than 2 lbs a week. Usually the heavier you are, the faster you lose weight. When you get closer to your ideal weight, it slows down.

If you're eating a healthy amount of calories like 1500 a day (depending on your body type and height and activity level), then you might lose more than 2 lbs a week.

My first week I lost 14 lbs. The next week 10, the week after that 7. I was losing 7 lbs per week for a while. Now I lose about 16 lbs per month, every month.

And my doctors say that's fine, because I eat 1800 calories a day.

^^^
This
My story is similar, if you have a significant amount of weight (fat) to lose then it can be done. It doesnt mean youre going to gain it all back, that is false dogma.
I dropped 4-5lbs a week for 3 months, and as others have said it will level off. The body makes adaptations, and the reduced body size requires less calories to sustain itself. In my case I was still eating 2300 calories a day, with a high protein intake to preserve lbm.

The biggest reason for people recommending the 1lb a week is for sustainability, aka something that people can stick to for a good amount of time, anything too aggressive can make it difficult mentally.
Just keep realistic goals and expectations, and make sure youre getting appropriate nutrition and calories

PinkPixiexox

I haven't read the other posts so forgive me if I'm repeating anything already mentioned (which I likely am!)

If you are in the first month or so of your plan, you are likely to lose at a faster rate. In my first month, I lost 11 lbs. After that, it 'slowed' to around 6-8lbs per month. Generally, after your first month - anything between 0.5 - 2lbs a week is expected!

Werk2Eat

briannarios60 wrote: »

You really wouldnt want to do that because while you will lose weight fast, you will eventually gain it all back, and then some, because its hard to keep up with all that. Aim for 1 pound a week. Slow is good

This makes no sense. If you can exercise enough per week to have a 3-4 lb deficit ans still have energy then you can do it. I have and still do this. You are not going to gain it back unless you eat at a surplus. CICO.


[Edited by MFP Mods]

blankiefinder

Zombie post from January.

amusedmonkey

Werk2Eat wrote: »

briannarios60 wrote: »

You really wouldnt want to do that because while you will lose weight fast, you will eventually gain it all back, and then some, because its hard to keep up with all that. Aim for 1 pound a week. Slow is good

This makes no sense. If you can exercise enough per week to have a 3-4 lb deficit ans still have energy then you can do it. I have and still do this. You are not going to gain it back unless you eat at a surplus. CICO. People that make these statements are idiots.

I think she means rebound binge eating. Regardless, having a big enough deficit to lose 3-4 pounds a week is not recommended unless you are really obese. For those who are merely overweight it means netting nearly zero calories a day which is not enough to fuel body functions regardless of your "energy" (not to mention overtraining injuries).