Realistic to lose 50 lbs in 5 months?
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fitjerseygirl wrote: »I think everyone is right - I feel better already setting a goal at 30 and not 50.
I so don't want to be a debbie-downer, but even the 30 may not be entirely realistic, but I definitely agree that you should make this commitment and do your best! I would recommend eating a bit more, but I know you're looking for aggressive loss, so I'll stfu.
The reason I say 30 lbs may even be too much is because most places do your final fitting for your dress at least 6 weeks prior to your wedding, and then really, you'd rather maintain otherwise your dress may not fit properly.
The reality is, while you'd like to look your best for the wedding, you should look your reasonable best. You're going to look gorgeous whether you're 228, 175, or 130 on your wedding day.
A good friend of mine was married two summers ago at about the half way point of her weight loss journey and was incredibly frustrated that she hadn't hit her goal in time. So, her perfectly awesome hubby suggested that they do 1 year anniversary pictures in the their wedding attire -- a major dress renovation later, she's still got all her amazing wedding pictures plus the ones she and hubby did for their anniversary. Maybe an idea you could use?0 -
amandabullock129 wrote: »I think you should be eating more than 1200 cals. You will plateau so quickly because you are not feeding your metabolism. Track what you would normally eat in a week, then minus 500 cals. This way, you will be able to maintain your weight loss. Then when you hit a plateau, you have some cals to reduce. Set realistic goals! What you see on tv is not realistic. They lose 50+ lbs in such a short amount of time because they workout 3-4 hrs a day.
Good luck!!
No. Starvation mode is a myth, so quit it. I do believe that 1200 calories is too low, but not because it will do some magical bad stuff to her metabolism. It's just simply not enough to feed nearly any adult body even if a person is completely sedentary, or extremely small.
Also, it's totally possible to lose 50lbs in five months. I've done it myself, and not by working out 3-4 hours per day. However, I was 80lbs heavier when I started, and I am 6'1" tall making it much easier for me to be in a large deficit.
Don't forget that the closer a person gets to their goal weight, the slower they will lose weight naturally, not by starvation mode, but because they simply are smaller, and don't require as many calories as such. The more weight you lose, the slower the rest of the weight will come off.
I agree with anything anyone has said about weight lifting. You might not be able to lose that amount of weight in that time span (although, 30lbs should totally be doable like you said before), but you most certainly could lose inches.0 -
If you can create a caloric deficit of 1167 calories per day for 150 days, you'll be very close to 50 pounds down.
You need to know what you eat on average now. You can cut your calories by 800 per day, find a way to get 400 calories of physical exercise every day over your BMR, and get there in 5 months.
By the calculator I used, your BMR should be around 1800 per day---that is what that calculator estimated. Just daily functioning would probably require another 1000 calories just to maintain 228 pounds, but let's be conservative and say you 'need' 2400 per day to maintain 228 pounds. You say you are consuming 1200 per day now. You are there.
Make sure you are measuring EVERYTHING accurately.
You're on the right track if you continue doing what you are doing.0 -
Here for the people that are saying "no it's not possible." or my personal favorite, "no losing 2 pounds a week is too aggressive".
Yes it is possible. I lost 50 pounds in 4 and a half months with CICO. I'm not starving, dying, miserable, or weak. I eat on an average day 1400-1500 calories and exercise 4-5x a week. So it is do-able.0 -
^^Absolutely^^
I am averaging 4 pounds a week. From February 15 to today I have gone from mid-280s to 233.0 -
Yes you can do it in my non-professional opinion, just a personal one.....just exercise, eat properly, don't restrict the good stuff, avoid as much alcohol as possible and for the love of God, don't starve yourself!! I would start out with smaller goals first. Such as maybe lose 10 pounds by the end of a certain date. Or have two separate goals: fit into a certain size by this date. But remember, even if you don't lose 50 pounds, your garments will be looser because of all the fat you're burned and the muscles you've gained. So you may only lose 30 but can still lose inches. Good luck and congratulations!0
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Here for the people that are saying "no it's not possible." or my personal favorite, "no losing 2 pounds a week is too aggressive".
Yes it is possible. I lost 50 pounds in 4 and a half months with CICO. I'm not starving, dying, miserable, or weak. I eat on an average day 1400-1500 calories and exercise 4-5x a week. So it is do-able.
I should also mention I started at 218 pounds. Dedication is really all it takes.0 -
That's what I'm trying for, for a cruise on 9/27. Depends on your starting weight. I've lost 11 lbs. in 7 days. But, I'm pretty heavy starting out.0
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For real, January 14 and the second one is April 12, and I am down another 15 pounds since then.0 -
Here for the people that are saying "no it's not possible." or my personal favorite, "no losing 2 pounds a week is too aggressive".
Yes it is possible. I lost 50 pounds in 4 and a half months with CICO. I'm not starving, dying, miserable, or weak. I eat on an average day 1400-1500 calories and exercise 4-5x a week. So it is do-able.
I think the majority of people aren't saying that it's not possible, but at the same time, it's not entirely realistic. That's a huge daily deficit to create when the OP has already said that exercise is an issue for her - both in physical ability and time management.
Add in the stress associated with last minute wedding plans and the food related events close to the wedding (cake and dinner taste testing menus, potentially a wedding shower, celebratory dinners and drinks with friends leading up the event, a bachelorette party, etc).
I'd rather commend someone for the effort they want to put in, but acknowledge that the reality is they may not meet that goal in that period of time. It doesn't mean you can't try, but it's not worth worrying about on your wedding day (or at any of the hopefully once in a life time events leading up to it).0 -
I had a lot more weight to lose than you, but I lost 50 pounds in around 4 months at the beginning of my weight loss. I lost the 2nd 50 pounds in about 5 months. I worked out a LOT and watched my calorie intake a lot better than I do right now. It did get a lot harder after that though and still is!0
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azulvioleta6 wrote: »fitjerseygirl wrote: »Thanks everyone. Yes, I would be happy with 25-30 lbs - anything to look a bit trimmer in my wedding pics!!
I am curious about trying to lose weight without exercise. I have lost a considerable amount of weight in the past (70+ lbs) and always did it with diet and exercise - usually around 1,200 calories per day and a half hour on the elliptical plus walking about 30 mins per day. I found the weight came off at first, but over time not as much. I wonder if I was stressing my body too much?
I am going to experiment this week and next with eating around 1250 calories and just getting 'normal' exercise (I work in a city so have to walk around a lot) and see what happens.
And yes, I have found it SO HARD to keep off. I lost 75 lbs in my 20s and then again about 2 years ago - and have put it back on TWICE. I just can't keep up that lifestyle (low cal/working out) forever. I need to adjust/find something that I can do forever.
Thanks again!
I wonder if, for you, the solution might be to eat a bit more and to lift weights.
30 minutes of walking and 30 minutes of elliptical is certainly NOT stressing your body too much--you are barely getting your heart rate up doing those things and you are probably still not even over 10,000 steps for the day. Experiment to see what works for your body, but you may find that you need to do more intense exercise to see the kind of loss and maintenance that you are looking for.
That's a ridiculous assertion. There are confounding factors you're not taking into account.
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mamapeach910 wrote: »azulvioleta6 wrote: »fitjerseygirl wrote: »Thanks everyone. Yes, I would be happy with 25-30 lbs - anything to look a bit trimmer in my wedding pics!!
I am curious about trying to lose weight without exercise. I have lost a considerable amount of weight in the past (70+ lbs) and always did it with diet and exercise - usually around 1,200 calories per day and a half hour on the elliptical plus walking about 30 mins per day. I found the weight came off at first, but over time not as much. I wonder if I was stressing my body too much?
I am going to experiment this week and next with eating around 1250 calories and just getting 'normal' exercise (I work in a city so have to walk around a lot) and see what happens.
And yes, I have found it SO HARD to keep off. I lost 75 lbs in my 20s and then again about 2 years ago - and have put it back on TWICE. I just can't keep up that lifestyle (low cal/working out) forever. I need to adjust/find something that I can do forever.
Thanks again!
I wonder if, for you, the solution might be to eat a bit more and to lift weights.
30 minutes of walking and 30 minutes of elliptical is certainly NOT stressing your body too much--you are barely getting your heart rate up doing those things and you are probably still not even over 10,000 steps for the day. Experiment to see what works for your body, but you may find that you need to do more intense exercise to see the kind of loss and maintenance that you are looking for.
That's a ridiculous assertion. There are confounding factors you're not taking into account.
Also, it depends on what you're doing on the elliptical. I get my heartrate up by 10-15bpm higher on the elliptical than I ever do jogging on the treadmill for 30 minutes.
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So, I posted a picture earlier...and then realized I am wearing the same shirt today as I was in my 'before' picture lol
Early February to 15 minutes ago.
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TheLegendaryBrandonHarris wrote: »So, I posted a picture earlier...and then realized I am wearing the same shirt today as I was in my 'before' picture lol
Early February to 15 minutes ago.
You're not making the face though. I'm not sure we can accept the picture without the facial expression.
NOPE. I REFUSE TO BELIEVE.
(Honestly though, great work! Huge difference)0 -
mamapeach910 wrote: »azulvioleta6 wrote: »fitjerseygirl wrote: »Thanks everyone. Yes, I would be happy with 25-30 lbs - anything to look a bit trimmer in my wedding pics!!
I am curious about trying to lose weight without exercise. I have lost a considerable amount of weight in the past (70+ lbs) and always did it with diet and exercise - usually around 1,200 calories per day and a half hour on the elliptical plus walking about 30 mins per day. I found the weight came off at first, but over time not as much. I wonder if I was stressing my body too much?
I am going to experiment this week and next with eating around 1250 calories and just getting 'normal' exercise (I work in a city so have to walk around a lot) and see what happens.
And yes, I have found it SO HARD to keep off. I lost 75 lbs in my 20s and then again about 2 years ago - and have put it back on TWICE. I just can't keep up that lifestyle (low cal/working out) forever. I need to adjust/find something that I can do forever.
Thanks again!
I wonder if, for you, the solution might be to eat a bit more and to lift weights.
30 minutes of walking and 30 minutes of elliptical is certainly NOT stressing your body too much--you are barely getting your heart rate up doing those things and you are probably still not even over 10,000 steps for the day. Experiment to see what works for your body, but you may find that you need to do more intense exercise to see the kind of loss and maintenance that you are looking for.
That's a ridiculous assertion. There are confounding factors you're not taking into account.
I just think the idea that people barely raise their heart rates on either piece of equipment is absurd. It all depends on the person and what they're doing.
Sure, I see some cardio bunnies barely doing anything on the elliptical, and there are others REALLY pushing it who must have their resistance turned up and are going at a good clip. They're drenched with sweat.
As for walking? I can get my heart rate up walking, just by challenging myself to walk fast. I'll work in some speed or incline intervals. I'm also old (52) and sedentary outside of the gym.
There's this one guy in my gym, he speed walks on the treadmill. You should see the sweat pouring off him.
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Probably not . . . and you have to keep in mind your dress, and whether or not you'll be able to get it altered in time (because if you hit your goal weight the day before your wedding you'll be screwed as far as your dress fitting goes). Should have started thinking about this when you got engaged!0
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THIS. Also, with that kind of loss, unless your genetics are really good, you're more than likely to lose a good amount of lean muscle too.ceoverturf wrote: »Possible, yes. Realistic? Probably not.
You can probably lose 6-8 lbs a month now, but it will likely slow down as you approach your goal.
What you lose for weight does matter. It's gonna be water, fat and lean tissue. You want to keep the lean tissue. Extreme deficits can cause lean tissue to be lost at a higher rate.
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