.5 lbs/every 25 lbs to lose

TiJoGa

Where did that come from? The idea that your weight loss goal should be .5 pound loss per week for every 25 pounds you have lose? That's so vague to me. 25 pounds you have to lose to get to your random number you've set as goal? 25 pounds til your at a healthy bmi? It's thrown around like gospel truth around here. You can interpret the 25# in so many ways that I question whether people are just saying it because it's the thing to say or if they have anything to back that up.

Thoughts?

Liftng4Lis

I think it's a guide they use to keep people that have 10 pounds to lose from trying to lose 5 pounds a week. Also, if people would just slow down, they have the opportunity to learn a sustainable way of losing and their chances are most likely better, for keeping it off.

MakePeasNotWar

I don't think the numbers themselves have any special magic, but I guess if you look at it as x pounds from a healthy weight, the less you have to lose, the lower your metabolic rate will be (all else being equal) and the less of a deficit you'll be able to sustain safely and comfortably. I'd think it would also help people ease into maintenance by lowering their deficit incrementally as they get closer to goal and get used to the calorie level.

I find there are a lot of hard and fast numbers used here that don't really have a specific scientific backing, but are very useful rules of thumb most of the time.