How many weeks before you lost weight on TDEE -20%

I just started eating TDEE -20%. I hear you gain weight first before you lose. Just curious as to how many weeks you gained for before you started to lose? I know it's different for everyone but I want a general idea so I know when to start worrying ;)

I've been doing TDEE -20% for almost a week and gained 3 lbs. still working out really hard with cardio and strength training 5-6 days a week. And try hard to eat clean (but I don't totally deny myself, just moderation and portion control) but in general I eat clean.

How many weeks before I should be worried that I'm not losing?

Replies

  • Achrya
    Achrya Posts: 16,913 Member
    Took me 2 weeks, but its a good idea to give it at least 4, especially if strength training is a factor.
  • blleadon
    blleadon Posts: 187 Member
    I actually saw instant results when I did it. But it is still about the same as mfp calculations plus exercise calories except with tdee-20% I ate that exact amount and I seem to come out of my plateau
  • melissadsims
    melissadsims Posts: 59 Member
    I was eating 1200 plus eating back my exercise calories before so I was consuming around 1400-1500 depending on. Workout but ending at 1200. Now I'm aiming for 1700 and not eating the calories I burn off exercising. So far I have barely been able to get that amount. Usually I can get to consuming 1500 but I still gained 3 lbs. I definitely feel less hungry (before I was a bottomless pit after a workout) but I'm curious if this will even work for me! I'm gaining muscle and strength but I hit a plateau as far as losing fat (that I could tell from my weekly pictures at least) trying to boost the fat loss while maintaining my muscle building