Asking for advice

samuelgina91

Good morning,

I have tried multiple weight loss approaches including CICO, strength training, tons of cardio and now doing IF (4d/week at 12/12, 16/8, & 22/2). They all had their benefits and drawbacks: CICO left me crazy about food and with headaches but my "weight" lowered. Strength training reduced my inches, but my weight went up and my hunger didn't increase. Tons of cardio like HIIT left me feeling like I would destroy a grocery store in my quest to devour everything without weight changes, but IF seems to be working with all the lean muscle I built, and keeping my mind focused and less on hunger/eating. However, I have been plagued by not moving down the scale for close to two months, which is when I started IF. Suddenly this week my weight has dropped 5 lbs in a week. Is this normal for IF/breaking through a plateau, should I expect to cap out? My goal is to lose 40 lbs more (total of 52 lbs), but I do want to do this within a span of several months and this acceleration has me a little worried. No, I don't have any hormonal thyroid issues, and my kidney function is excellent.

NovusDies

First off all weight loss is driven by a calorie deficit so all working approaches use the simple CICO formula. There are different ways of getting there but it is always about eating less than you burn.

Secondly it is normal for weight loss to finally show up in what is often referred to as "whooshes". It have lost 5 pounds or more in a week many times but when you average my rate of loss over many weeks it is fine

LyndaBSS

I've lost 30 pounds so far using only a calorie deficit. I've lost 5 pounds this week after a stall.

Good luck with your journey!

kimny72

samuelgina91 wrote: »

Good morning,

I have tried multiple weight loss approaches including CICO, strength training, tons of cardio and now doing IF (4d/week at 12/12, 16/8, & 22/2). They all had their benefits and drawbacks: CICO left me crazy about food and with headaches but my "weight" lowered. Strength training reduced my inches, but my weight went up and my hunger didn't increase. Tons of cardio like HIIT left me feeling like I would destroy a grocery store in my quest to devour everything without weight changes, but IF seems to be working with all the lean muscle I built, and keeping my mind focused and less on hunger/eating. However, I have been plagued by not moving down the scale for close to two months, which is when I started IF. Suddenly this week my weight has dropped 5 lbs in a week. Is this normal for IF/breaking through a plateau, should I expect to cap out? My goal is to lose 40 lbs more (total of 52 lbs), but I do want to do this within a span of several months and this acceleration has me a little worried. No, I don't have any hormonal thyroid issues, and my kidney function is excellent.

I assume you mean "counting calories" rather than CICO. Counting calories, working out to burn calories, doing IF or any other schedule, all will cause weight loss if they put you in a calorie deficit (CICO).

With 40 lbs left to lose, you should probably expect to lose 1 lb - 1.5 lbs per week on average. But weight loss isn't linear, so some weeks you might gain a lb and other weeks you might lose 5 lbs. The scale shows the weight of everything in your body, not just the fat, and water weight fluctuates all the time.

These threads might be useful:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10084670/it-is-unlikely-that-you-will-lose-weight-consistently-i-e-weight-loss-is-not-linear/p1

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

kshama2001

samuelgina91 wrote: »

Good morning,

I have tried multiple weight loss approaches including CICO, strength training, tons of cardio and now doing IF (4d/week at 12/12, 16/8, & 22/2). They all had their benefits and drawbacks: CICO left me crazy about food and with headaches but my "weight" lowered. Strength training reduced my inches, but my weight went up and my hunger didn't increase. Tons of cardio like HIIT left me feeling like I would destroy a grocery store in my quest to devour everything without weight changes, but IF seems to be working with all the lean muscle I built, and keeping my mind focused and less on hunger/eating. However, I have been plagued by not moving down the scale for close to two months, which is when I started IF. Suddenly this week my weight has dropped 5 lbs in a week. Is this normal for IF/breaking through a plateau, should I expect to cap out? My goal is to lose 40 lbs more (total of 52 lbs), but I do want to do this within a span of several months and this acceleration has me a little worried. No, I don't have any hormonal thyroid issues, and my kidney function is excellent.

Sounds like when you were calorie counting you were 1. creating too aggressive a deficit and/or 2. not focusing of foods that satiate you. For me satiating foods are protein and fiber, but for others it is carbs, and yet others find fat the most filling.

Re # 1, with only 40 more pounds to lose, don't set your weekly weight loss goal for more than a pound a week.



When you were doing tons of cardio, what percent of the calories you earned from exercise were you eating?

Unlike other sites which use TDEE calculators, MFP uses the NEAT method (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis), and as such this system is designed for exercise calories to be eaten back. However, many consider the burns given by MFP to be inflated for them and only eat a percentage, such as 50%, back. Others, however, are able to lose weight while eating 100% of their exercise calories.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/818082/exercise-calories-again-wtf/p1

samuelgina91

Thanks for the advice, I just wanted to get some feedback if anyone else was having sudden drops like this so I would be less worried.

samuelgina91

NovusDies wrote: »

First off all weight loss is driven by a calorie deficit so all working approaches use the simple CICO formula. There are different ways of getting there but it is always about eating less than you burn.

Secondly it is normal for weight loss to finally show up in what is often referred to as "whooshes". It have lost 5 pounds or more in a week many times but when you average my rate of loss over many weeks it is fine

Thank you I looked up "whooshes"