Goal - amount of pounds to lose per week starting out?
k_e_l
Posts: 44 Member
Hey guys!
When starting out & chosing MFP settings, when it comes to how many pounds per week you wish to lose, what is a good start? I know the closer you are to goal, the less you can expect to lose. But I am a long way off from goal. I am 40 yrs old, 5'2.5, & 186 lbs. Would like to get down to 125 lbs (eventually). Since I'm bigger, I can probably expect to see a 2 lb weight loss per week starting out...so do I select 2 lb per week as my goal?
Thanks!
When starting out & chosing MFP settings, when it comes to how many pounds per week you wish to lose, what is a good start? I know the closer you are to goal, the less you can expect to lose. But I am a long way off from goal. I am 40 yrs old, 5'2.5, & 186 lbs. Would like to get down to 125 lbs (eventually). Since I'm bigger, I can probably expect to see a 2 lb weight loss per week starting out...so do I select 2 lb per week as my goal?
Thanks!
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Replies
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One general rule is no more than 1% of your current body weight - so that's 1.86 pounds.
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Personally, I wouldn't go that high. I lost about 1.5 per week when I was at 260 pounds. For me, it was about finding a comfortable calorie goal that left me at a sustainable deficit. Weight loss is a marathon, not a sprint.
The "rule of thumb" that I've seen is not to aim for more than 1% of your current body weight loss per week. From that, I would suggest that you set MFP for 1.5 pounds per week to start.
At the very beginning, you might have a quick water weight loss. After that, you'll likely settle into a lower rate of loss.3 -
What @TeaBea said. If you find that too difficult at first (ie not enough calories), put it at 1/lb a week, and after you get comfortable eating at those calories you can raise it back up.
I was at 2/week (legitimately, I got a lot to lose), but found I was struggling a bit so pushed it down to 1.5 for a bit. Ain't no shame in doing what you have to to make sure you succeed.
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Ok thank you!!!0
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When I set it at 1.5 per week, it gives me 1200 daily calorie goal. Gulp!0
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Sorry it keeps cutting off my whole reply!..will try to add some exercise for bigger calorie allotment1
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That is what being short does I'm 5' 2" and started at 168 and I average about 1600/week. It's because of my activity level. Make sure you eat back your exercise calories (or at least a good portion of them depending on how they are calculated). That makes life much better!
ETA: I've been losing about 1lb/week at this level.2 -
That is what being short does I'm 5' 2" and started at 168 and I average about 1600/week. It's because of my activity level. Make sure you eat back your exercise calories (or at least a good portion of them depending on how they are calculated). That makes life much better!
ETA: I've been losing about 1lb/week at this level.
Yes!!! Sucks being short haha. Exercise sounds like my answer!2 -
strongkelly0625 wrote: »When I set it at 1.5 per week, it gives me 1200 daily calorie goal. Gulp!
1200 is the MFP minimum for women. You probably won't get the 1.5 lb loss with that, but you should not go below that for net calories.
What does MFP give you as a number if you say you want to maintain?0 -
I set mine at 1 lb per week with 130 lbs to get to goal. I then set my exercise level to sedentary... and proceeded to start exercising and not eat back those calories. At 1720 calories/day (plus about 2-300 burned from walking most days) I started losing 2 lbs/week.
These days, it's still set to 1-lb loss. I'm eating back about half my exercise calories. I've also started exercising more (walks, fitness glider, and fitness tubes), and as the weight has gone down, so have my daily calories (now at 1470). And the weight? Coming off at 1-2 lbs/week. I still have 85 lbs to go, so a 2-lb loss isn't that aggressive. And with a CW of 209 lbs, if I go by the 1% of current bodyweight=maximum safe weekly loss, that's still 2.09 lbs, so I think I'm doing okay.1 -
Hello!
I'm also 5'2 but I started out at 188 pounds before I decided to lose weight. I was losing a pound a week, and I'm down to 155 pounds. Right now my rate of loss is closer to 0.5 pounds.
Good luck!1 -
Tacklewasher wrote: »strongkelly0625 wrote: »When I set it at 1.5 per week, it gives me 1200 daily calorie goal. Gulp!
1200 is the MFP minimum for women. You probably won't get the 1.5 lb loss with that, but you should not go below that for net calories.
What does MFP give you as a number if you say you want to maintain?
1860 for maintenance with sedentary lifestyle. i am home with my 2 year old all day..but I mostly sit with him & play...or watch cartoons with him...he's very clingy & wants me next to him all day lol
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strongkelly0625 wrote: »Tacklewasher wrote: »strongkelly0625 wrote: »When I set it at 1.5 per week, it gives me 1200 daily calorie goal. Gulp!
1200 is the MFP minimum for women. You probably won't get the 1.5 lb loss with that, but you should not go below that for net calories.
What does MFP give you as a number if you say you want to maintain?
1860 for maintenance with sedentary lifestyle. i am home with my 2 year old all day..but I mostly sit with him & play...or watch cartoons with him...he's very clingy & wants me next to him all day lol
That's why 1.5 pounds gave you 1200. MFP subtracts 250 calories per day off your maintenance calorie level for each 0.5 pounds per week you tell it you want to lose but the floor for women is 1200. 1860 - 750 = 1110 and that's lower than 1200 so you were given 1200. If you set your goal at 1 pound per week for now, you'd get a daily calorie goal of 1360.3 -
strongkelly0625 wrote: »Tacklewasher wrote: »strongkelly0625 wrote: »When I set it at 1.5 per week, it gives me 1200 daily calorie goal. Gulp!
1200 is the MFP minimum for women. You probably won't get the 1.5 lb loss with that, but you should not go below that for net calories.
What does MFP give you as a number if you say you want to maintain?
1860 for maintenance with sedentary lifestyle. i am home with my 2 year old all day..but I mostly sit with him & play...or watch cartoons with him...he's very clingy & wants me next to him all day lol
So, assuming that is close enough to real life, you will lose 1 lb a week for every 3500 calorie deficit per week, so 500 per day. At 750 calorie reduction, (1.5 lb per week) that would give you 1,110 (DON'T EAT THIS FEW), so you bottomed out at 1200.
I think you should go for 1 lb per week (so eat ~1350) and start taking your son to the playground and playing with him outside. I've got no parenting advice, but getting out and just walking will do wonders and may give you a couple hundred more calories to either enjoy as a treat or speed up your weight loss a little.
As always, see what your weight does over 6-8 weeks and then adjust if needed.6 -
estherdragonbat wrote: »I set mine at 1 lb per week with 130 lbs to get to goal. I then set my exercise level to sedentary... and proceeded to start exercising and not eat back those calories. At 1720 calories/day (plus about 2-300 burned from walking most days) I started losing 2 lbs/week.
These days, it's still set to 1-lb loss. I'm eating back about half my exercise calories. I've also started exercising more (walks, fitness glider, and fitness tubes), and as the weight has gone down, so have my daily calories (now at 1470). And the weight? Coming off at 1-2 lbs/week. I still have 85 lbs to go, so a 2-lb loss isn't that aggressive. And with a CW of 209 lbs, if I go by the 1% of current bodyweight=maximum safe weekly loss, that's still 2.09 lbs, so I think I'm doing okay.
Thats awesome!!! Good for you!!0 -
If you are at home all day with your 2 year old take him for a long walk in a stroller. Pop a cartoon on for him while you do an exercise video (free on you tube, I recommend 30 day shred only 25 mins). You can easily add an extra 200-300 cals per day with exercise this way.strongkelly0625 wrote: »Tacklewasher wrote: »strongkelly0625 wrote: »When I set it at 1.5 per week, it gives me 1200 daily calorie goal. Gulp!
1200 is the MFP minimum for women. You probably won't get the 1.5 lb loss with that, but you should not go below that for net calories.
What does MFP give you as a number if you say you want to maintain?
1860 for maintenance with sedentary lifestyle. i am home with my 2 year old all day..but I mostly sit with him & play...or watch cartoons with him...he's very clingy & wants me next to him all day lol
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xchocolategirl wrote: »Hello!
I'm also 5'2 but I started out at 188 pounds before I decided to lose weight. I was losing a pound a week, and I'm down to 155 pounds. Right now my rate of loss is closer to 0.5 pounds.
Good luck!
Thanks!!! And congrats on your weight loss!!!0 -
Hi there! I started with almost your exact stats (5'2", 183) and decided to go with 1lb per week because 1200 was misery for me. It gave me 1360 for that goal as you previously mentioned and that was completely doable! It's worth noting that I lost more than 1lb per week on average over the first two months. My loss has slowed to about that rate over the last month. I've lost 23 pounds total since January 1st.
Let me know if I can help in any way. Sending you a friend request for motivation and support!2 -
CassondraKennedy wrote: »Hi there! I started with almost your exact stats (5'2", 183) and decided to go with 1lb per week because 1200 was misery for me. It gave me 1360 for that goal as you previously mentioned and that was completely doable! It's worth noting that I lost more than 1lb per week on average over the first two months. My loss has slowed to about that rate over the last month. I've lost 23 pounds total since January 1st.
Let me know if I can help in any way. Sending you a friend request for motivation and support!
Aw thanks Cassondra!! That would be awesome! Congrats on your weight loss too! What is your activity level set at?0 -
strongkelly0625 wrote: »CassondraKennedy wrote: »Hi there! I started with almost your exact stats (5'2", 183) and decided to go with 1lb per week because 1200 was misery for me. It gave me 1360 for that goal as you previously mentioned and that was completely doable! It's worth noting that I lost more than 1lb per week on average over the first two months. My loss has slowed to about that rate over the last month. I've lost 23 pounds total since January 1st.
Let me know if I can help in any way. Sending you a friend request for motivation and support!
Aw thanks Cassondra!! That would be awesome! Congrats on your weight loss too! What is your activity level set at?
Sedentary, as well. Should have mentioned that. I do walk to work most days which gives me a bit of wiggle room with calories, but my desk job keeps me in the sedentary category.0 -
_runnerbean_ wrote: »
If you are at home all day with your 2 year old take him for a long walk in a stroller. Pop a cartoon on for him while you do an exercise video (free on you tube, I recommend 30 day shred only 25 mins). You can easily add an extra 200-300 cals per day with exercise this way.strongkelly0625 wrote: »Tacklewasher wrote: »strongkelly0625 wrote: »When I set it at 1.5 per week, it gives me 1200 daily calorie goal. Gulp!
1200 is the MFP minimum for women. You probably won't get the 1.5 lb loss with that, but you should not go below that for net calories.
What does MFP give you as a number if you say you want to maintain?
1860 for maintenance with sedentary lifestyle. i am home with my 2 year old all day..but I mostly sit with him & play...or watch cartoons with him...he's very clingy & wants me next to him all day lol
Thanks for the tip! I was actually checking out the fitness blenders on youtube. i'll look into 30 day shred, thanks! i was taking him for a daily walk, but then the weather got crappy. he tends to get tired on our walks, so i end up carrying him back home, but hey, i guess carrying a 28 lb toddler is a pretty good workout! haha2 -
strongkelly0625 wrote: »_runnerbean_ wrote: »
If you are at home all day with your 2 year old take him for a long walk in a stroller. Pop a cartoon on for him while you do an exercise video (free on you tube, I recommend 30 day shred only 25 mins). You can easily add an extra 200-300 cals per day with exercise this way.strongkelly0625 wrote: »Tacklewasher wrote: »strongkelly0625 wrote: »When I set it at 1.5 per week, it gives me 1200 daily calorie goal. Gulp!
1200 is the MFP minimum for women. You probably won't get the 1.5 lb loss with that, but you should not go below that for net calories.
What does MFP give you as a number if you say you want to maintain?
1860 for maintenance with sedentary lifestyle. i am home with my 2 year old all day..but I mostly sit with him & play...or watch cartoons with him...he's very clingy & wants me next to him all day lol
Thanks for the tip! I was actually checking out the fitness blenders on youtube. i'll look into 30 day shred, thanks! i was taking him for a daily walk, but then the weather got crappy. he tends to get tired on our walks, so i end up carrying him back home, but hey, i guess carrying a 28 lb toddler is a pretty good workout! haha
Have you considered a carrier so you can go for long walks with him on your back? My sons 18lb i front carry him every day in a connecta and when i hike on weekends he goes on my back in a wrapahula2 -
I use my phone as a pedometer to count steps and encourage me to get moving. Either Google Fit (for android) or Stepz (for iPhone) can help you know how much exercise you're getting walking around during your day.
It's also just fine to pick a rate of loss that gives you enough calories to feel like it's a sustainable lifestyle. Losing 1 lb/week or losing 1.5/week - either way, it's going to take a few months. It needs to not suck.3 -
If I could go back in time, I would have aimed for 1lb per week from the beginning. I spent 5 months losing 2+ per week at 1200 calories. While it was motivating and exciting to some degree, I also ended up with a pretty decent Vitamin D deficiency. As I close in on the back half of my goal loss, it definitely is slowing down--and probably moreso than had I not lost so early so fast. Who's to know for sure, though. I definitely felt some unintended consequences of being at 1200 for a while. I had a LOT to lose (started at 252+) and am now at 184, fighting for a pound a week for another 30lbs or so. I'm a good 4" taller than you.
It's a very hungry life at 1200.2 -
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Have you considered a carrier so you can go for long walks with him on your back? My sons 18lb i front carry him every day in a connecta and when i hike on weekends he goes on my back in a wrapahula [/quote]
You know what...we do have one! We got it years back for our other 2. Forgot we had it! Gonna have to break it out now! I think he would love it! He would probably laugh the whole time too! lol3 -
fitoverfortymom wrote: »If I could go back in time, I would have aimed for 1lb per week from the beginning. I spent 5 months losing 2+ per week at 1200 calories. While it was motivating and exciting to some degree, I also ended up with a pretty decent Vitamin D deficiency. As I close in on the back half of my goal loss, it definitely is slowing down--and probably moreso than had I not lost so early so fast. Who's to know for sure, though. I definitely felt some unintended consequences of being at 1200 for a while. I had a LOT to lose (started at 252+) and am now at 184, fighting for a pound a week for another 30lbs or so. I'm a good 4" taller than you.
It's a very hungry life at 1200.
Yes!! 1200 is so few to work with!0 -
annacole94 wrote: »I use my phone as a pedometer to count steps and encourage me to get moving. Either Google Fit (for android) or Stepz (for iPhone) can help you know how much exercise you're getting walking around during your day.
It's also just fine to pick a rate of loss that gives you enough calories to feel like it's a sustainable lifestyle. Losing 1 lb/week or losing 1.5/week - either way, it's going to take a few months. It needs to not suck.
Ohh good idea!! I would love to know how many steps I do walking up & down basement steps carrying laundry, back & forth to the kitchen (preparing food for 3 kids total), etc, even grocery shopping. I'm sure it all adds up to something! and yep, it def needs to feel sustainable!1 -
Maybe it's worth adding: whatever weight loss target you pick first will be a guess. You're not stuck with it forever. So you should make the best guess you can, see how it goes, and change it if it's too hard/too easy. Don't give up the whole exercise just because the first guess was wrong.
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Maybe it's worth adding: whatever weight loss target you pick first will be a guess. You're not stuck with it forever. So you should make the best guess you can, see how it goes, and change it if it's too hard/too easy. Don't give up the whole exercise just because the first guess was wrong.
Thanks! Very good advice! :-)0
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