16 lbs in 14 days

foolforcarbos

Just want to say thanks to Myfitnesspal for allowing the use of this website, and that, thus far - it's working!

I started off at 177 lbs (not the 174 I put on my check-in as I was embarrassed) but now I am at 161 in just 14 days later. The first 8 days, I shed 12 pounds. The only wish I have, is they had a place to put in a belly measurement. I have gone from a 44 to a 39. My goal for that belly is 35 inches which should put my waist at a 30 inches or less.

But thanks to everyone who takes the time to fill out the labels - so we can just look up our foods, put in our measurements, and keep our goals. I do appreciate everyone guys and gals. : )

hannahm120

Congratulations on your progress! You can add your own "belly" measurement to check-ins from the website. On the Check-In tab under My Home, scroll to the bottom of the page and select "Track Additional Measurements." From there you can customize to your heart's content. Best of luck!

foolforcarbos

Thanks Hannah for the tip. Perfect!

erickirb

Wow, what did you do to lose so much so fast... please also keep in mind at your weight loss more than 1-1.5 lbs/week is not advised as a large % of your loss will end up being muscle, not just the fat you want to lose. fat cannot metabolize as fast as you have been losing. most of that initial loss is also probably water, not fat nor muscle.

TeaBea

erickirb wrote: »

Wow, what did you do to lose so much so fast... please also keep in mind at your weight loss more than 1-1.5 lbs/week is not advised as a large % of your loss will end up being muscle, not just the fat you want to lose. fat cannot metabolize as fast as you have been losing. most of that initial loss is also probably water, not fat nor muscle.

From the OPs name....... I'm guessing low carb.

OP - 1 pound of fat loss requires a 3,500 calorie deficit. If you lost 16 pounds of fat in 14 days, you had a daily 4,000 calorie deficit. Even if you ate zero calories, you didn't burn 4,000 calories every day (not at 177 pounds).

With a low carb diet there is a substantial "whoosh" of water weight loss. Be prepared for weight loss to slow down dramatically in the next weeks to normal levels. Also, the water weight loss is temporary.

merph518

Yikes. That's a lot of weight in a short time. Make sure you're getting enough food. Weight loss isn't a sprint, there's no rush.

For comparison: I lost 17 lbs in my first month and that was a lot for that timeframe. I was starting out at 386 lbs though, not 177.

foolforcarbos

I understand some of the initial is water. That said, for as much water as I consume a day, over 100 oz, I would say my urination frequency has not increased one bit. So I am not thinking all of this is water. In fact, I think I got through the water loss stage after 4 or 5 days.

I was eating around 500g of carbs a day at probably, around, 2,100-2,300 calories - lots of empty calories. Junk food. I am 56 and while I state that I am sedentary for the purposes of this website, I am actually more active. I walk around 3 miles a day and kayak three times a week now. But my kayaking is HIIT. But I haven't kayaked much in the last 8 months, till the last two weeks. I average around 5 mph. I am only 5 ft 5.5 inches tall. My belly was showing. Too much. I have lost 5 inches off that belly in 14 days. I plan on losing 5 more. Going from 44 inches down to 39 feels good.

The eating thus far has been simple. Take out all bread, sugar, and pasta. I've made a great version of my own pizza and other foods, meats, salads, fishes, and even chocolate mousses. I am adjusting well. I do not hit my macros and in fact, have elected to push more protein over fat to force my body to burn some fat. I still eat 60% fat over protein or carbs but that latter of the two, on some days, are about equal. Some days I eat 75% fat and few carbs.

When I was in Alaska for 2007-2010, I circumnavigated Alaska which took 4 years and I ate dehydrated food from Mt House. Think about this, all that food, while they do try to make healthy, was serious pastas. I was eating 4 servings a day and would start a season, mid April, after a fat winter, and by the end of the season, late Sept, be down to a lean 118 lbs. I was wearing kids shirts. So I would start at 170 lbs and in short order, would be down to 130 and then would be eating 50 Snickers bars a week, along with my dehy food, and still be losing weight. That's why I would end a season around 120 lbs or less.

In high school, I was never more than 125 lbs and a 27-28 inch waist all 4 years. I can tell you the following: At the following waist sizes, will be followed my weight. So at 28 inch waist, 125 pounds. Thirty inch waist, 136 lbs. 32=149, 33=157, 34=168, 35=175 so that lately, I was edging towards 180 (177 lbs) when I started to change. I had just purchased $100 of food that I gave away, went back to the store, and purchased $150 of healthy stuff. That was 14 days ago.

My problem, I hate veggies. So I eat green beans and salads, but most of my diet has been other things. It's working. I am not hungry. I do get the 9 pm, what can I have to eat before bed routine, but I manage.

But I would not say this is all water loss early on. Truthfully, all my quote "water", is actually unsweetened ice tea. I drink over 100 ounces of tea a day. It is just Lipton Cold Brew. My neck has lost half an inch, but my legs have lost more. My stomach, like I said, a decent loss at 5 inches, and my face, wow, major loss.

I know we are hear to talk about successes and while I am not trying to elude that my results are either typical or atypical, I am saying with the help of the website here, I am calculating and dropping. But I am eating some carbs still. How many? Between 37 on a good day, and 120 on a recovery day. I have readjusted my calories 5 times now. I started at 1,874 for a few days, and went down and down and am at 1450 right now. I did report some activities, like kayaking, but then you get quote "rewarded with more calories". I do the activity now, but not so much the reporting, or if I do, I don't eat the extra calories. I stay firm. There has been many days I didn't hit my calories, and only one day, maybe two, I went slightly over.

I knew I was a carbo sucking machine for the last year, and knew it was time to cut out some things. Sugars. Breads. Pastas. Though I do have a slice of Dave's Killer Bread from time to time, for the seeds. Wow, lots of seeds. I do slide here and there. And soon, will post some before and after pics. But what I am doing is the work. It's a lot of work. Don't kid there. I dropped 12 lbs in 8 days, then for the next few days, gained 1 pound and 1 inch on my belly, before dropping a bit more. Tomorrow, I kayak again. Today was a rainy day, so may only walk 2 miles, not 3.

I know it's easy to say you won't keep this pace up, but I don't plan to. My plan is to go from 1,450 calorie goal to 1,400 in a day or two, then 1,375 for two days, then back to 1,400 for a week. Then 1,500 for a week. Then 1,600 for a week. And then hover between 1,600-1,750 to start maintaining a weight around 148-150 lbs. But I won't know for sure till I get closer to 150 lbs, what my daily will end up being.

By the way, TeaBea, you may want to research, but not all pounds lost are 3,500 calories. I, personally, don't buy into that, and there is great research that because not all calories are alike, that this may not hold true. But I could take, as an example, which I have done 4 times, someone to Alaska, and within the first 14-21 days, they will lose 20-25 pounds on carbs. While yes, it is still calories in, calories out, and minusing carbs, there is still adding in HIIT, or in my case, very efficient kayaking, and walking, movement, and not sitting on a couch

foolforcarbos

One final note. There will be those that will state I am losing water, and point out that there have been studies that find one could lose up to 20 lbs of water. Reading further in these same studies, and they will talk about two more things: 1. after you return to your normal diet, the water weight comes back. 2. The water loss is only during the first week, then is generally fat, after that week. But they also point out one cannot lose more than 2 lbs per week. Lastly, the study will then give advice, like the following:

Avoid fad or crash dieting, since most will just result in water loss and will be gained back as soon as your regular diet is resumed. Instead, regularly consume a well-balanced diet consisting of lean protein, whole grains, fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy and unsaturated fat sources.

So where this goes wrong is A.) most people are making lifestyle changes here and not planning on returning to their old eating habits. So they will not be loading carbs and gaining water weight back. Do you honestly believe someone with a 5-8% body fat is retaining 12-20 pounds of water?? The nutrition in the study also goes on to suggest many things a keto lifestyle would say to avoid. Look at the suggestions: lean protein. Whole grains. Fruits. Low fat dairy. Unsaturated fats.

The problem here is this is old information. Even if it's published recently online. Lean meats? Are you kidding. Fruits? Only a small handful of fruits on a regimented list. Whole grains? Ha. Low fat? Never.

So I would suggest to folks here that it may not be best to cherry pick the positives of a keto regiment, and follow that up with cherry picking old studies on water weight and saying you will gain most of that back. No. Not unless you completely give up on the very lifestyle choices you made to lose weight. Albeit water or fat.

brendog79

I lost 26 lbs in the first 16 days. I was starting at 382 lbs eating 1300 to 1700 cal a day. One day was only 900. Weight loss slowed down when I began eating 1900 to 2500 cal. Mfp currently has my calories at 2420 with a 2 lb a week loss. I'm now down 47 lbs to 335 at 2 months.