2lb/week?

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mehreen_xo
mehreen_xo Posts: 78 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey guys so I know that if you have ~20lbs to lose then it is not recommended to be losing at a pace of 2lbs/week but I wanna know why is this? If it's doable for someone why should the rate be 0.5-1lb a week? Thank you

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  • mehreen_xo
    mehreen_xo Posts: 78 Member
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    Derf_Smeggle wrote: »
    It has to do with the amount of adipose, or fat, tissue that is lost versus the amount of lean muscle tissue that is lost.

    A person with a lower amount of body fat composition tends to lose that body fat more slowly

    Ohhhhh I see! So if your weekly loss is too aggressive it could be that it's actually more muscle that's being broken down rather than fat? Makes sense now if that's the case
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    mehreen_xo wrote: »
    Derf_Smeggle wrote: »
    It has to do with the amount of adipose, or fat, tissue that is lost versus the amount of lean muscle tissue that is lost.

    A person with a lower amount of body fat composition tends to lose that body fat more slowly

    Ohhhhh I see! So if your weekly loss is too aggressive it could be that it's actually more muscle that's being broken down rather than fat? Makes sense now if that's the case

    Among other reasons, yes. To lose 2 pounds a week you would need to create a 1000-calorie deficit. Someone who has 100 pounds to lose generally has a much higher TDEE than someone who only has 20 pounds to lose, so it's easier to create that size of a deficit. The one with 20 pounds to lose would risk not getting enough nutrients/calories to fuel their body. This is why there's a 1200/1500 calorie minimum in place based on your gender.
  • sunfastrose
    sunfastrose Posts: 543 Member
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    It's also a matter of math. As your weight lowers the gap between eating at maintenance (not losing) and eating at minimal healthy calorie intake narrows. So if I used to weigh enough to maintain at 2000 calories and start losing weight, my maintenance calories drop, and the difference between that number and the 1200 minimum (as I am a short woman) narrows.
  • WendyLeigh1119
    WendyLeigh1119 Posts: 495 Member
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    Yeah, mine is set at 2lbs per week, but was never set at a 2lb deficit on MFP because it won't go below 1200. If your estimated maintenance calories are below 2200 (mine was less than 2000)...you'd need to be at 1000 or 1100 calories (or whatever the case) per day and MFP won't "allow" it. It's kind of ridiculous since 1000 calories is the medically accepted lowest "safe" weight loss for women without the aid of a doctor.

    But I guess they base it on men (who's lowest is 1200). Starting at 172lbs and 5'7 myself... I think it was ridiculous for MFP to bump me up to 1200 like a weird, overbearing parent. I had a solid 20 lbs to lose before I should have been setting it at 1lb for the last 15ish lbs. Especially since my goal weight of 134lbs is still on the higher end (I'm at 145lbs now starting around 172.5 lbs March 15th).

    If you think MFP is giving you stupidly high calories, just use the Fitbit App as back up because that WILL allow a true 2lb per week loss and give your real numbers.
  • katydougherty
    katydougherty Posts: 29 Member
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    From what I have been reading, ONE pound is 3,500 calories. They say a woman's usually right under 1800 calories in a day (should be), so if you drop to 1200 calories a day, that's a 600 calorie difference. Multiply that times a week and you have lost 4,200 calories which would be a little over a pound. Throw in some exercise, say 300 calories burned per day times 7 days and that's another 2,100 calories lost for a total of 6,300 which is almost 2 lbs per week. If you are less than 1,200 a day and work out more, you can lose more. If you eat too few calories though, you can make your body go into starvation mode and it will slow down your metabolism and defeat your purpose. Everyone is different though and I am just going by what I read, but it seems fairly accurate. I started my weight loss journey 33 days ago and have a long way to go, but I am down 11.8 pounds. My family is supportive, but I have one co-worker that is also fat but is wayyyy shorter than me and weighs a little more than me that has been trying to sabotage my progress. Three times in a week she brings in cookies, cake and pie and asks me repeatedly if I want some knowing that I am trying to diet. Why are people such a**holes? That's ok, when she blows up like hungry, hungry hippo and I get skinny, I will have the last laugh!!

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