Shoot... I'm feeling down...

thebobogrind

Sooo today was my fifth week weigh-inn, and in total I have lost 5.2lbs so far (started at 248lbs, female, 31, 5'7)...and I'm feeling a little sidiscoursged because in reading posts from other people who have lost 10 some 15lbs in just 1 month.
My husband alone has lost 11.2lbs so far just after 4 weeks...

I do have hypothyroidism but I take my daily medications and my numbers are now high normal- so I can't say it's that.

I work from home on the computer about 8 hours a day, but I do try to get out walking around the block 3-4tines a week (usually burn 300-400 calories when I do that). Oh and I'm eating 1650 calories ....

Bah... Is 5.2lbs 'good'?... Or should I be losing more weight at my size? Should I restrict eating certain foods to lose 'more'? Like lower carb or something? Nothing has been off limits so far...

Anyone with experience or knowledge that can provide me a few words?

Thanks,
bobo

thebobogrind

(Wow so many typos.. Sorry typing on my phone... )

dogcatac

5.2 lbs is something! you could have lost nothing or gained weight. weigh your food and make sure your portions are correct. log everything! keep pushing ahead, you will get there!

trbrmc

One pound a week is good! Everyone is different and don't compare you're weight loss to your husbands. Men tend to lose weight quicker, but that's genetic. It's best to not compare yourself you anyone else; it's not a race! Keep it up, you're doing good. I'd give it a bit more time before experimenting with different stuff, such as low carb. What you're doing is obviously working. One pound a week is 52 pounds in a year.

LeapingPandaWhale

I have gotten in to the habit of eating very few carbs after I work out. I don't like to deprive myself of the things that I want, so I tell myself that I can have those carbs as long as I go to the gym to burn them off. Then after the gym I eat something very protein- heavy (I eat eggs for dinner most nights). When we eat carbs, they turn to sugar and then fat if we don't move around enough to burn them off. Maybe try doing something like that for a week or so and see if it makes a difference? Also, it might be a good idea to set a timer and get up and walk around for a few minutes every hour. I also sit at a desk all day, and I've read that even just a few mins of movement for each hour we sit will make a difference.

katharineshalia

How can I work from home? I need help too.

arditarose

What did you set the app to lose at, 1 or 2 pound per week? If you chose one, then you are on track. If you chose two, you might be eating more than you think.

arditarose

Oh I just saw your current stats. How are you burning 300-400 calories "walking around the block"? Are you using a food scale to weigh your food?

5 pound loss is great, but yes-you could be losing faster.

goldthistime

I am purposely trying to lose weight slowly, but every once in a while when I see quick weight loss in a friend or on the forum, I start thinking about trying to speed up the process. Its not a race, your journey is your own, I tell myself but there's some competitor in me that gets antsy when I am watching others around me lose weight quickly. Imo, 5.2lbs in a month is perfect, and just so happens to match my weight loss in my first month

thebobogrind

@goldthistime really? How much have you lost so far??

Yes I weigh everything, and when I do go for a walk, it's about 3-4km walk each time.

MFP set me at 1560 to lose 1.5 lbs a week, but I increased the cals to 1650 because I was always going over...

So I guess I am right on track with that... Bah

Yah 1 lb a week is not bad I guess... I feel better now

arditarose

thebobo6740 wrote: »

@goldthistime really? How much have you lost so far??

Yes I weigh everything, and when I do go for a walk, it's about 3-4km walk each time.

MFP set me at 1560 to lose 1.5 lbs a week, but I increased the cals to 1650 because I was always going over...

So I guess I am right on track with that... Bah

Yah 1 lb a week is not bad I guess... I feel better now

Yeah, you're on track

CrazyMermaid1

Your calories for your walk seems high to me. How many minutes and how many miles per hour do you walk? Do you eat back those calories?

rankinsect

thebobo6740 wrote: »

@goldthistime really? How much have you lost so far??

Yes I weigh everything, and when I do go for a walk, it's about 3-4km walk each time.

MFP set me at 1560 to lose 1.5 lbs a week, but I increased the cals to 1650 because I was always going over...

So I guess I am right on track with that... Bah

Yah 1 lb a week is not bad I guess... I feel better now

I always think of it like this - how much would you weigh today if you weren't counting calories?

Even if it takes me over a year to burn everything I want - next year I'm going to be a year older no matter what. I could be a year older and obese or a year older and much more fit.

arditarose

CrazyMermaid1 wrote: »

Your calories for your walk seems high to me. How many minutes and how many miles per hour do you walk? Do you eat back those calories?

I do agree with this and was wondering the same.

thebobogrind

@kokocan thank u but I'm good using MFP

pstegman888

One pound a week is what I'm losing, and I'm happy that way. It's a nice steady pace at a sustainable calorie goal. I thought about lowering my cals at the beginning, but I was too hungry and fatigued. I'm at 1600 cals, and I usually come in a little under. I would rather be under than over! My starting weight was a little less than yours, and I am 16 weeks in, and 16 pounds down.

I also have limited ability to exercise because of some other physical issues, so I know I'm not going to be able to build a reserve of exercise calories to eat back, or exercise to make up for overindulgence. So having my cals at a higher level works better for me.

I am gradually lowering my calories in a natural way as I become accustomed to eating at a deficit, so I feel that as I need to further restrict my intake as I lose and have a lower BMR, it will be an easy transition.

The 16 weeks has gone by fast. I'm excited about the next 16!

thebobogrind

@ pstegmann888 thank you for your post! It is very encouraging.

I will see how I do this next month, but you're right 1 lb a week is not bad

VanillaBeanSeed

Its great!!!!! all progress is great!

holly_roman

Great Job! Any weight loss is amazing for your body and the best part is, if you lose 1lb a week you are more likely to keep it off then someone who does more. Don't get discouraged, you are doing a great job and you should feel proud of yourself. Someone told me what they do when they get discouraged is they take how much weight they lost ie 5lb and they go find something that weighs that amount ie 5lb (like potatoes etc) and they lift it up and take a moment to say to themselves..I have lost this amount of weight! I plan to do that too. Hard to see on your body but easy to see when you are holding it!

mia1984xxxxx

5.2lb is fantastic! I am a similar weight to you and I am the same age, also in a sit down job, its definatley good to aim for 1lb a week as you are more likely to keep it off then if you lose too much too quickly I know it can feel frustrating when you feel others are losing more but the scales do not tell the whole story, go by how your clothes feel too you will be surprised, you are doing awesome feel free to add me if you would like.

fiddletime

I lost quickly a year and a half ago and gained it all back and some in about 5 months. It was too quick, and I was always hungry. This time I'm losing about 0.8# a week for 13 weeks now. That's just over 10 pounds and I'm not starving. You're doing great.

sheermomentum

Its not a contest. A pound a week is absolutely a good rate of loss, and it sounds like its right in line with where you should be given your intake and level of exercise. If you are happy with those things, then just keep going right as you are. Faster loss would mean fewer calories or more exercise or both, so you'd have to decide whether its worth it to you, personally. There's definitely no reason to restrict any particular food groups.

chelleb1974

5.2lbs is great - it's a little higher than 1lb/wk. Today was my second weigh-in, been back tracking for a week, and lost 1lb. I suppose I expected more, and was disappointed...until I realized that it's better than gaining a pound, and I have my period this week (which most people seem to gain that week)...so I shook myself out of the funk I was getting in to and decided to be ok with a 1lb loss this week.

thebobogrind

I feel like I gained 5.2 million dollars with all your comments!

Thank you for those words of encouragement!

Bobo

knowles1989

5.2lbs is good! It's not a race, as long as you are happy doing it your way then don't worry about how others around you are doing! Do what suits you, a loss is a loss and a good one at that! Keep it up

thebobogrind

Yay! My weigh-inn was today and I lost another 2.3lbs... Total 7.5 in 6 weeks

brdnw

I posted this (http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10256705/my-weight-entries-from-285lbs-to-192lbs#latest) a while ago that shows my weight loss entries by date (for the most part) from 285 to 192. I lost weight somewhat fast (60lbs in 7 months and to this day am still annoyed i didn't do it faster as i could have been much better) so with that i do think you should be able to lose more than 7.5lbs in 6 weeks, to me i would think you need to adjust something...also walking around the block a few times a week probably burns so few calories that you won't notice it on the scale.

For me when i started to really lose weight it was because i was super focused on my food intake. I didn't allow cheat meals and i was very intentional about everything i ate. I primarily ate foods that i thought were filling but not calorie dense. I went from eating out for lunch at work every day, and fast food 2-4 times a week to preparing all my own food (which is good for u that you work from home as that should make meal prep easier).

I typically ate like: large salads w\a protein in it, soup, chicken breast, 99% lean ground turkey, instant oatmeal for breakfast, as much fruit/vegetables as i wanted. Things like that allowed me to eat alot of food w\out taking in too many calories. I certainly wasn't perfect as i still did drink on weekends and so forth..but i was motivated so i kept all 'bad' calories to a minimum and tried to offset drinking or less ideal food choices w\additional cardio the next day.

I say this as if it was super easy, but i also went from 285 to 220'ish back UP to 265 and then that's when I refocused and got down to 192. So certainly losing weight has it's ups and downs for everyone.

I also helped one of my coworkers go from 270 to 220 in 5 months doing similar to what i did. so my progress wasn't anything special or atypical.

but really it just comes down to what you want, are you content w\1lb a week and losing 50lbs in a year, or do you want to push yourself harder and get your goalweight within a year...bc whatever your goal is, it really is tangible.