Should I be concerned with this rapid loss?

Tctr

I started this calorie counting thing around 35 days ago. I was at 310 lbs. As of today I've lost approx 43 lbs! Six feet tall, 41 years old.

I started the C25K program a couple months ago and have only progressed to W5D1. I've repeated many days and run/jog every other day. I go to karate 3-6 times a week and have been going on the odd bike ride and hike.

I'm typically not hungry and maybe the only (noticeable) side effect is fatigue -- but only mild and probably due more to actually not getting enough sleep. Just to contradict myself a bit, I'd say jogging and karate have become easier (duh) and I feel like I have more energy while doing them.

Going to start or rather, return to lifting in a couple weeks as well. I'm assuming my appetite will increase then.

Like the subject says, should I be concerned with this or........?

smash1230

I'm no expert (by any means) when it comes to healthy diet and exercise, but I believe (and in NO WAY do I mean this to be offensive) that the more weight someone has to lose (ie. a heavier person vs. a less heavy person) the faster weight tends to come off in the beginning. Eventually you'll hit a plateau, but don't fret. A little tweaking to your food intake/exercise regime will kick you back into gear. It sounds like you're doing FANTASTIC so far. Keep up the great work! )

Tctr

Was kinda thinking along those lines too but 40+ in just over a month seemed "large".

thanks, btw.

Inshape13

I would have to recommend from personal experience that if you are losing that fast to definitely add in weights and resistance because the skin will become really loose if you keep it going at this rate. It has taken me MONTHS and so much work in the gym to tighten this up when I could have done it along the way so that is really the thing that kind of jumps out about the number.

dsjohndrow

As long as you are eating, exercising and drinking water, you are good. I think I lost 5 pounds a week for 3 months.

ze_hombre

Its a tad high, but like the previous response said you are heavier than I was and I only have myself for a baseline. When I first started with keto (low carb diet) and C25K I would regularly drop a pound or two a day, so you aren't too far off from what I saw. I think you are okay as long as you feel ok and aren't starving.

I don't know if it helps, but many people losing the weight you are aiming for have loose skin issues. I would recommend start using a quality skin lotion now to maybe help with that. I have eczema and constantly use lotions when I get out of the shower and have no loose skin issues.

kill3rtofu

I had the same problem with the fatigue and can tell you it's from not eating enough(rest is important too, get some more sleep!). Are you getting enough protein in your diet? Are you meeting your caloric goals everyday(or weekly)?

Saucy_lil_Minx

I'm no expert (by any means) when it comes to healthy diet and exercise, but I believe (and in NO WAY do I mean this to be offensive) that the more weight someone has to lose (ie. a heavier person vs. a less heavy person) the faster weight tends to come off in the beginning. Eventually you'll hit a plateau, but don't fret. A little tweaking to your food intake/exercise regime will kick you back into gear. It sounds like you're doing FANTASTIC so far. Keep up the great work! )

This is exactly what happens. your body has to use more energy to sustain a higher weight. The closer you get to your weight loss goal the slower your metabolism gets, because you will not need as much energy to sustain the weight. You do hit plateaus, and that is normal. Tweak your calorie intake approx. every 10 to 15 lbs. to minimize the plateau, and don't be discouraged if you hit one. Remember your body does not like change, and it works very hard to maintain. Keep going you will get there.

heybales

Consider perhaps 3-5 lbs was water weight from starting to watch your diet, and lost glucose stores that go with water.

Consider probably 2-3 lb weekly of fat loss if the math indicated that was happening.

Consider the rest is probably muscle mass.

Lost glucose stores with required water is part of LBM, so less is lost metabolism.
Lost muscle mass is of course lost metabolism, very hard to get back that.

Your mainly cardio routine is going to encourage muscle loss with a big deficit like you probably have.

And since muscle only provides 600 cal per lb compared to fat at 3500 cal per lb, much easier to lose a lb of muscle than fat.

I'd suggest that outside that initial water weight, if the other weeks have been much higher than the math would show (meaning you have 2 lb weekly goal and eat to reach the goal), then you are losing muscle mass and other parts of LBM.

carmy43

My first week I lost 16 pounds.After that it did slow down.Anywhere from 1-5 pounds a week.If I added more exercise it could possibly be more but I am content to lose slower but steady.Also are you weighing yourself on the same scale? i log my weight on the same scale at home always but there are times I am on different scales like doctors , weight watcher scale or fitness club scale and the loss is less.So instead of going crazy I just use my home scale for this site and weight watchers online.

77tes

You are eating at a pretty steep deficit.

Seanb_us

Check in with your doctor if you are worried!

Cheeky_0102

I started at 210 and lost about 15 lbs in the first month, i think your body is thanking you for giving it better food and shedding the stuff that was being held by salt and excess calories.

Just don't get discouraged when you reach a plateau later down the road! I have been bounding around the same 5 lbs for weeks now, and i don't mind because my overall health is better, and my lifestyle is awesome, so what if it takes a few more months to get to my goal, There is no prize at the end! you still have to eat well and work hard no matter what.

Quilled

Its a bit fast, but there are some big factors that play into it. One is 'water weight'. 8-10lbs of water weight dropping right off is not at all uncommon. The other part being, the more you have to lose, the more active you are, the more you are going to lose. Biggest loser contestants work out for hours upon hours everyday and you see big losses from them every week, more than the 1-2lbs suggested by doctors.

So from a basic equation perspective, yes, you can lose more than 1-2lbs a week, a lot of it is just about calories in and calories out. It sounds like you are probably burning quite a bit from exercise and if you have a lot to lose there will be bigger drops at first.

I would suggest slowing things down a little, as someone else mentioned, weight loss that fast has bad side effects. Plus the faster you lose the harder it is to sustain over the long term. Right now you are gung ho and exercising, dieting like a madman etc. When you are 'done' keeping up a pace like that is going to be very hard. So I suggest getting a schedule you can live with forever as far as exercise goes. Then if you feel up to doing some extra stuff for a week or something you can do it, but you want to build a base for your exercise that you can keep up with even on the busiest of weeks.

As far as food goes, your deficit is pretty steep for how much you are exercising. I can almost guarantee the fatigue is a side effect of your low intake. Increase your food intake, you will feel better, and probably sleep a whole lot better as well

jennifershoo

It's totally possible that at your starting wight, you had a lot of water retention. You need to understand that you didn't lose 40 lbs of fat and that this rate is going to slow down. How much do you eat? Is it enough? Have you changed your nutrition habits? Do you understand that it's a lifestyle change and not a diet? Is your current lifestyle sustainable for the rest of your life?

jennifershoo

And like other mentionned, you need to start lifting weights as soon as possible to minimize your lean mass lost and avoid too much loose skin (loose skin will happen more if you lose weight too fast).

Tctr

Thank you (all) for your replies.

I do use the same scale everyday and night.

Gym membership starts July 1st. Can't wait to get back into doing the stronglifts routine.

I appreciate all comments and am so glad to have found this site. I've tried losing weight before but this seems like the first time the changes to lifestyle actually make sense.