How quick is TOO quick for weight loss

matthewlembke

I'm 296lb 6 foot and 32 years old. I have a large frame and people are always shocked to find out how much I weigh. At my worst I was 370lbs 1 month ago I was at 328 and that's where I've mostly been hovering for years. A couple weeks ago I finally had enough and in the middle of the week i decided I'm starting to change. I've started a diet that consists of 1000 +\- 100 calories per day. My diet consists of mostly chicken, veggies, light soup, and fruit. Im not drinking soda or eating sweets or eating bread or pasta. I don't have an overly physical job but I am on my feet the entire day and moving and lifting. I have been losing about 1lb per day on average. My fear is that I will end up with some nasty skin flaps. I am looking for some general tips and advice on how to avoid That.

mitch16

That's probably excessive for a guy your size and age--and it probably won't be sustainable.. Eat more--more like 1600+ calories per day--or you risk losing a lot of lean muscle mass too.

matthewlembke

I'm very reluctant to up the calories and I don't expect to sustain that level of loss. I'm having zero difficulty strictly adhering to the diet plan. I just plan to try to add more working out into the mix to help keep the loss going

sunnybeaches105

Is your goal just to lose weight or do you want to be musclar and lean(ish) at the end?

I don't think I could maintain a 1000 calorie diet for very long, I get cranky much below 1800 and it would be impossible to get the macronutrients necessary to sustain lean body mass and health at that level. You got about 100 pounds on me too so I'm guessing you're having (or will have) even more issues at that level. You might want to enter your numbers into MFP and see what it suggests for 2 pounds a week and for 1 pound a week. I'd personally go for 1 pound a week but if you want to try 2 then give it a go and see if you can keep at that level. After you've lost 20 pounds or so consider slowing it down to 1 pound a week. In any event, play with the numbers and see what works for you (and don't be afraid to tweek things as time goes by).

If you're goal is the latter, perhaps also try hitting about 240 grams of protein a day (that's about 0.8 grams per pound of body weight) and about 105 grams of fat per day (about 0.35 grams per pound of body weight). If you're over or under by a bit don't sweat it. The protein will help retain and possibly build some muscle mass, but it will very likely also help you feel full. Also get on a weight lifting routine if you're not already on one. Focus on a diet of meats, vegetables, fruits, fish, dairy, legumes, and nuts and fill in with starchy carbs as your macros and calories permit. Leave about 10%-20% of your diet for sweets, beer or the like (just keep alcohol consumption truly moderate).

ETA: Oh. Loose skin. Helps to read to the end. lol

jwcanfield

matthewlembke wrote: »

I'm very reluctant to up the calories and I don't expect to sustain that level of loss. I'm having zero difficulty strictly adhering to the diet plan. I just plan to try to add more working out into the mix to help keep the loss going

Why? But to answer your original question. Yes, that's too fast.

hollyrayburn

....I'm a 5'8" female weighing 243, and I eat 1590. That's before eating 20-50% of exercise calories back.

EAT!

st476

1000 isn't even enough for me, a 5'4 140 pound girl. I agree with mitch16, definitely eat more calories. It'll be way more sustainable. If you insist on eating 1000 calories though, definitely don't up your exercise unless you're going to eat those calories back

thunder1982

Well the min for guys is 1500 so you are well below the min.

Have you actually taken the time to set up your weight loss goals in MFP as it would have set you a calorie target for your weight loss goal. Are you sure your eating 1000 cal (eg weighing all food).

At 296lbs and using the 1% per week guideline for max safe weight loss you should be aiming to lose just under 3lbs per week. Using an online calculator I estimate that to maintain your current weight you would need to eat approx 3500-3600 cal per day. To lose about 3lbs a week you should still be able to eat 2000-2100 cal per day. I would personally up your calories to 2000 by coming up with a sustainable food plan that you will be live with for a long period of time, not sure what your goal weight is but with presumably 100lbs or so to lose, your looking at needing to be committed to a calorie deficit for the better part of a year.

Congrats on the great start, now its time to plan for the long term.

itsbasschick

considering your height and gender, your body would need more than 1000 calories to sustain itself when in a coma. literally. losing a pound per day of fat would be pretty much impossible. what's happening at such a low calorie budget is your body will need to consume part of your muscle to fuel itself. not only will you end up with smaller muscles, which means your body will then burn less calories when resting, but the heart is a muscle and that could be a problem.

i'm a 5' 3" woman, and at 1000 calories per day, i became weak, dizzy and couldn't think clearly - working out lightly left me shaking. i didn't notice at first because - like you - i was so stoked to be losing that my adrenaline masked it.

many of us here have felt desperate to lose weight, but even if you lose weight without harming yourself, what will you do once the weight is off? you'll start eating the way you did before and gain the weight back - which is what most dieters do - or you'll eat less but your lower body mass from dieting will consume less, so you'll still gain the weight back.

why not learn to eat in a healthy way so you can lose weight and - when you're at your goal weight - you'll have a grasp on how to continue to eat so as to enjoy your food and your life without gaining the weight back?

SideSteel

You kind of look like Bryce Lewis.

SideSteel

I started writing a detailed post about potential concerns with rapid weight loss and whether or not it applied to you.

Then I deleted it because it had nothing to do with the question you were asking. LOL.

I honestly don't know if rate of weight loss effects loose skin. It may simply be the total amount lost regardless of what pace you lose it at.

pearceflint92

I'm abit bigger than you mate and I eat 1400 calories. My metabolism is all screwed up from prescription drugs over the years and if I eat any higher I don't lose. Eat how ever much you can I feel completely full at 1400. Some skinny people eat 2000 and are still hungry but some others can eat 1000 and be full it's just different for everyone

matthewlembke

My goal is 180 to 200. It largely depends what weight I feel comfortable at. Just to make sure there is no confusion, my current goal is to lose as much weight as possible as quickly as possible without resorting to some form of surgery. 1lb per week would take me 2 years to get where o want and I'm afraid that's just not even remotely acceptable. I am aware that 1000 calories a day is not overly healthy, but neither is being nearly 300lbs. Once I achieve my basic goal, I fully intend to change my diet to a higher calorie and high protein permanently sustainable plan. As I lose weight I will be increasing my work out levels and compensating my increasing my calories. But phase one is to lose weight fast. Phase 2 is to put muscle back on and sustain a long term healthy diet/workout plan.

hollyrayburn

matthewlembke wrote: »

My goal is 180 to 200. It largely depends what weight I feel comfortable at. Just to make sure there is no confusion, my current goal is to lose as much weight as possible as quickly as possible without resorting to some form of surgery. 1lb per week would take me 2 years to get where o want and I'm afraid that's just not even remotely acceptable. I am aware that 1000 calories a day is not overly healthy, but neither is being nearly 300lbs. Once I achieve my basic goal, I fully intend to change my diet to a higher calorie and high protein permanently sustainable plan. As I lose weight I will be increasing my work out levels and compensating my increasing my calories. But phase one is to lose weight fast. Phase 2 is to put muscle back on and sustain a long term healthy diet/workout plan.

Quick loss isn't the answer, though.

CharlieBeansmomTracey

for me I lost all but the last 15-24 lbs slowly and so far no skin flaps,no excess so far(but I was only 69lbs overweight). they say to lose it more slowly to give the skin time to bounce back(along with a decent amount of time). and the minimum for a male is 1500 calories and thats sedentary with no exercise. so you need to eat more or you will be harming yourself in the long run in many ways,loss of muscle,malnutrition, you could have dizziness,fainting,heart problems down the road,etc etc please plug in your stats into MFP and set it to lose 2lbs a week or less and eat that amount of calories. you should not be losing per day,especially 1lb unless its water weight

matthewlembke

Let me add that I appreciate all of the concern and input. I'm more than willing to compromise and change some points of my plans, but my primary concern right now will be losing weight quickly. If I do hit a point where I feel dizzy, overly tired, or really any other warning sign I will have to stop and reevaluate. I'm not really interested in killing myself with this, but I am willing to make short term sacrifice for long term success

daniip_la

matthewlembke wrote: »

1lb per week would take me 2 years to get where o want and I'm afraid that's just not even remotely acceptable. I am aware that 1000 calories a day is not overly healthy, but neither is being nearly 300lbs.

I'm curious, is being 300lbs putting you in immediate danger? Because I'm the same height as you, same starting weight, but my current weight is a little higher than yours. And my weight is not causing me any problems. I'm active (walked 7 miles today before and after work), I have an active social life, and my weight causes me no problems (besides the ones that may be cause later in life if I stayed this size forever).

It doesn't cause me to become malnourished, light headed, have migranes, or have no energy. Those are all things I've experienced in the past when dropping my calories too low. I'm now losing around 3lbs a week while eating about double what you eat, and I feel terrific.

So I guess I'm just curious as to why losing 2lbs a week (which, for me, means I'll reach my goal weight in about 1.5 years) is so unacceptable? Unless your health is in immediate, life-threatening danger, I can't see where your argument holds up.

CharlieBeansmomTracey

matthewlembke wrote: »

Let me add that I appreciate all of the concern and input. I'm more than willing to compromise and change some points of my plans, but my primary concern right now will be losing weight quickly. If I do hit a point where I feel dizzy, overly tired, or really any other warning sign I will have to stop and reevaluate. I'm not really interested in killing myself with this, but I am willing to make short term sacrifice for long term success

but that is what you are doing losing so quickly and eating so little. even if you start having those symptoms it could be the damage is already done by then or wont be reversible.you are basically starving yourself,and if you are burning a lot of that off working then you are consuming even less. you will get long term success from long term goals,you have to learn that this weight loss is for life. if you dont learn how to eat enough now,you will gain a lot of it right back, but hey if you want to harm yourself that is on you. Im not being rude but no way most people could live on 1000 calories without exercise,let alone with exercise

vivelajackie

I started off at over 400lbs. About 130 gone now and I can say that I never dipped below 1500 calories. 1000 is seriously not enough and may do more harm than help. More importantly, as you lose weight you have to decrease calories. You're literally giving yourself no wiggle room. You could probably manage.something close to double what you're taking in now like another poster said. Congrats on making a decision to be healthier! Seriously though, you will have healthier, sustainable weight loss eating more.

AllOutof_Bubblegum

matthewlembke wrote: »

Let me add that I appreciate all of the concern and input. I'm more than willing to compromise and change some points of my plans, but my primary concern right now will be losing weight quickly. If I do hit a point where I feel dizzy, overly tired, or really any other warning sign I will have to stop and reevaluate. I'm not really interested in killing myself with this, but I am willing to make short term sacrifice for long term success

Sorry, but long term success will NOT be achieved by a male of your size consuming 1,000 calories a day. That's just asinine, sorry to be harsh. There is no way you can be getting the appropriate nutrients and macronutrient levels a body your size needs on that. There's just no way. Long term, this will only serve to damage your health: weaken your heart, cannibalize your lean muscle for fuel, and that does include loose skin.

Slow down. I know you're excited to lose weight very quickly, but just because you can and you don't feel sick, does not mean it isn't wreaking terrible havoc on your body.

You didn't put on a pound of fat a day when you gained your weight. Let's not be silly and think it's reasonable to lose it that fast. a 2lb per week weight loss goal is a much more sustainable and health-conscious, long-term goal for you.

justinrye

When I started my journey at the beginning of January I was 258 now I am 194. I have been eating 1600 calories and I know I could not go any lower as it would just not be healthy. I suggest increasing your calorie intake.