Weight loss experiment with possibly unrealistic expectations lol

Dan__Cote
Dan__Cote Posts: 44 Member
edited February 2023 in Health and Weight Loss
Optimism at it's best here: Based on the average fat loss that I have had over the past 6 days, since changing my diet, I have lost 5.5lbs of fat, .3 lbs of water weight, no muscle mass (remained constant at 81.1lbs). I am feeling pretty confident that I can lose 34.1lbs of fat in 37 days. That will bring me down to 160-170lbs (water weight variable). Let's see if I can keep this progress up.
(figures via Galaxy Watch). Feel free to check my diet out and ask me questions, or just grab a stick and pop my bubble. The choice is yours!

(Edit)
Stats:
37 Year old male.
5'7"
204.2lbs (02/28/2023)
Daily calorie intake 1579-1600 calories
protein/fat/carbs 40/40/20 split
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Replies

  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,144 Member
    PAV8888 wrote: »
    to lose 1lb of fat in a day, which is close enough, you need a 3500 calorie deficit per day and I don't suspect your maintenance calories are 5100

    And even if your maintenance calories ARE 5100 a day--because it COULD possibly happen given the initial weight at an extremely above very active activity factor of about 2.05--this does not mean that a 68.63% deficit is, even remotely, a good idea.

    But saying so makes me feel like an evil bubble buster! :disappointed:

    If I were a young buck full of *kitten* and vinegar, I would be trying for a loss of somewhere between 0.5% and 1% of my body weight a week. As long as the deficit this required wasn't much more than 25% of my TDEE. But that's just me! :blush:

    For sure, not a good idea and stop bursting bubbles ok. ;)
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,053 Member
    edited March 2023
    Yeah, losing almost a pound a day is wildly overly optimistic. Also, losing weight too quickly can lead to burnout and binging. Suggest a more sustainable rate of loss.

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  • Dan__Cote
    Dan__Cote Posts: 44 Member
    Update: 3/3/2023

    I'm down another .8lbs since i posted this. Weight loss has slowed a little bit. Largely, because I haven't made my steps in a while. I'll be increasing my steps to at least 10K a day and keep my diet the same. Thank you bubble poppers. I'm strange and enjoy using my body for research and experimentation. Hunger is not a big deal. It has turned into background noise...like my tinnitus lol. I'm not worried about binge eating. It doesn't happen.

    And come on guys! 1600 calories a day isn't THAT bad. I mean, it sucks, but it's not horrible. I will keep everyone posted as time goes on. Does anyone want to see what my diet consists of?
  • tomcustombuilder
    tomcustombuilder Posts: 2,107 Member
    It’s not that 1,600 is crazy low however that would end up being about a 2 lb per week loss so much different from the claimed 9 lbs in 11 days. If you stay at around 1,600 consistently you’ll probably find that in 3 months your loss will be around 20 ish pounds when everything is considered
  • Dan__Cote
    Dan__Cote Posts: 44 Member



    Dan__Cote wrote: »
    Optimism at it's best here: Based on the average fat loss that I have had over the past 6 days, since changing my diet, I have lost 5.5lbs of fat, .3 lbs of water weight, no muscle mass (remained constant at 81.1lbs). I am feeling pretty confident that I can lose 34.1lbs of fat in 37 days. That will bring me down to 160-170lbs (water weight variable). Let's see if I can keep this progress up.
    (figures via Galaxy Watch). Feel free to check my diet out and ask me questions, or just grab a stick and pop my bubble. The choice is yours!

    (Edit)
    Stats:
    37 Year old male.
    5'7"
    204.2lbs (02/28/2023)
    Daily calorie intake 1579-1600 calories
    protein/fat/carbs 40/40/20 split
    you lost water and a tiny bit of fat, MAYBE. Don’t rely on those watches or other gadgets to be even remotely accurate. Wait a month and see how much you’ve lost. That is a lot better indication of how you’re doing rather than just going off your first week where it’s all water loss

    It's the technology that we have right now. I love the Galaxy Watch. I love to see the changes that I make day-to-day. A lot of people will just use a scale and think, "F%^k! I gained another pound since yesterday." when really, they could have gained muscle and water and even lost some body fat. Or maybe they just had more salt than usual and they added some water. They just don't know. The Galaxy Watch might not be perfect, but it is consistant. It also provides me with some much needed motivation during my diet. I see now that I'm not going to meet my original overly optimistic goal, but that's okay. Progress is still amazing. I'll be going back to the gym soon and will increase my calories by 200. Morning incline treadmill at 3-4mph for 40 minutes, and about 30 minutes of weight training in the evening. Nothing too crazy or intense. I promise, i will keep everyone posted. Thank you for motivating me.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,137 Member
    I notice in the other thread that you talk about bulking and cutting. Or, if you ever forget to train while bulking, or you bulk while injured, or while dealing with a sick relative, or life in general or what have you... it can also be getting heavier and losing weight. Or technically increasing and decreasing stored fat.

    From a perspective of a few decades beyond you... get off the treadmill of continuous weight loss and regain and stay on a more even keel at, or around, "normal" weight levels... it's much easier on the body and the mind if you can swing that: no need to be chasing the scale like a dog chasing his tail and wondering which side is doing the wagging! :wink:

    As for how many calories of deficit are required to lose a lb of stored fat, the "laws" of physics are still valid and 453.6 * 9 = about 4,000. Luckily there appear to exist a few lower value structures associated with the storing of 1lb of fat and the value of 3500 works for many people within the parameters of the general levels of approximations we all use.

    If anything the argument exists that because of AT (which is exacerbated by extreme deficits among other issues and by time on deficit), the value of how many calories are needed to lose a lb of fat increases as time goes by though even the increased value is not enough to make the 3500 reference un-usable for most--for a good dynamic approximation check out kevin hall's work on the bodyweight planner.

    Anyways. I do wish you success!
  • Dan__Cote
    Dan__Cote Posts: 44 Member
    Dan__Cote wrote: »


    Dan__Cote wrote: »
    Optimism at it's best here: Based on the average fat loss that I have had over the past 6 days, since changing my diet, I have lost 5.5lbs of fat, .3 lbs of water weight, no muscle mass (remained constant at 81.1lbs). I am feeling pretty confident that I can lose 34.1lbs of fat in 37 days. That will bring me down to 160-170lbs (water weight variable). Let's see if I can keep this progress up.
    (figures via Galaxy Watch). Feel free to check my diet out and ask me questions, or just grab a stick and pop my bubble. The choice is yours!

    (Edit)
    Stats:
    37 Year old male.
    5'7"
    204.2lbs (02/28/2023)
    Daily calorie intake 1579-1600 calories
    protein/fat/carbs 40/40/20 split
    you lost water and a tiny bit of fat, MAYBE. Don’t rely on those watches or other gadgets to be even remotely accurate. Wait a month and see how much you’ve lost. That is a lot better indication of how you’re doing rather than just going off your first week where it’s all water loss

    It's the technology that we have right now. I love the Galaxy Watch. I love to see the changes that I make day-to-day. A lot of people will just use a scale and think, "F%^k! I gained another pound since yesterday." when really, they could have gained muscle and water and even lost some body fat. Or maybe they just had more salt than usual and they added some water. They just don't know. The Galaxy Watch might not be perfect, but it is consistant. It also provides me with some much needed motivation during my diet. I see now that I'm not going to meet my original overly optimistic goal, but that's okay. Progress is still amazing. I'll be going back to the gym soon and will increase my calories by 200. Morning incline treadmill at 3-4mph for 40 minutes, and about 30 minutes of weight training in the evening. Nothing too crazy or intense. I promise, i will keep everyone posted. Thank you for motivating me.
    if things like your smart watch keep things fun and motivating then they are worth it regardless of the accuracy. It sounds like youve come to grips with reality so good luck and I hope all goes well.

    I'm an optimistic fool! lol. I know. I had a really good feeling that I wouldn't be able to sustain that kind of loss. Now I need to start tweaking my routine and finding that happy median. I legit enjoy both gaining and losing weight. It's kind of my hobby. And I realize that the watch isn't perfect. I get it. It's better than the digital scale that I have and i sure as poop can't afford to dunk-tank myself all the time.

    While on my most recent bulk, my blood panels came back and I was not happy with them. I had to stop. I was 226.4 lbs( I was huge!) back on December 8th, 2022 and have had consistant gradual weight loss until February 22nd, 2023 when I significantly restructured my diet and calorie intake. Then the weight just fell off. I don't know.

    Thanks for the continuous responses.

    Is there a way to share our daily food logs on here from the myfitnesspal app???
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 33,735 Member
    Dan__Cote wrote: »
    Dan__Cote wrote: »


    Dan__Cote wrote: »
    Optimism at it's best here: Based on the average fat loss that I have had over the past 6 days, since changing my diet, I have lost 5.5lbs of fat, .3 lbs of water weight, no muscle mass (remained constant at 81.1lbs). I am feeling pretty confident that I can lose 34.1lbs of fat in 37 days. That will bring me down to 160-170lbs (water weight variable). Let's see if I can keep this progress up.
    (figures via Galaxy Watch). Feel free to check my diet out and ask me questions, or just grab a stick and pop my bubble. The choice is yours!

    (Edit)
    Stats:
    37 Year old male.
    5'7"
    204.2lbs (02/28/2023)
    Daily calorie intake 1579-1600 calories
    protein/fat/carbs 40/40/20 split
    you lost water and a tiny bit of fat, MAYBE. Don’t rely on those watches or other gadgets to be even remotely accurate. Wait a month and see how much you’ve lost. That is a lot better indication of how you’re doing rather than just going off your first week where it’s all water loss

    It's the technology that we have right now. I love the Galaxy Watch. I love to see the changes that I make day-to-day. A lot of people will just use a scale and think, "F%^k! I gained another pound since yesterday." when really, they could have gained muscle and water and even lost some body fat. Or maybe they just had more salt than usual and they added some water. They just don't know. The Galaxy Watch might not be perfect, but it is consistant. It also provides me with some much needed motivation during my diet. I see now that I'm not going to meet my original overly optimistic goal, but that's okay. Progress is still amazing. I'll be going back to the gym soon and will increase my calories by 200. Morning incline treadmill at 3-4mph for 40 minutes, and about 30 minutes of weight training in the evening. Nothing too crazy or intense. I promise, i will keep everyone posted. Thank you for motivating me.
    if things like your smart watch keep things fun and motivating then they are worth it regardless of the accuracy. It sounds like youve come to grips with reality so good luck and I hope all goes well.

    I'm an optimistic fool! lol. I know. I had a really good feeling that I wouldn't be able to sustain that kind of loss. Now I need to start tweaking my routine and finding that happy median. I legit enjoy both gaining and losing weight. It's kind of my hobby. And I realize that the watch isn't perfect. I get it. It's better than the digital scale that I have and i sure as poop can't afford to dunk-tank myself all the time.

    While on my most recent bulk, my blood panels came back and I was not happy with them. I had to stop. I was 226.4 lbs( I was huge!) back on December 8th, 2022 and have had consistant gradual weight loss until February 22nd, 2023 when I significantly restructured my diet and calorie intake. Then the weight just fell off. I don't know.

    Thanks for the continuous responses.

    Is there a way to share our daily food logs on here from the myfitnesspal app???

    You can make your food diary MFP-public and invite people to look at it, if you want to do that.

    Personally, I feel like eating strategies are pretty individual, but it's always interesting to see others' choices, even if they're very different from mine. They often are, and I don't mean that to be self-congratulatory at all. :D Diversity is fun, part of what makes life interesting.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Dan__Cote wrote: »
    Optimism at it's best here: Based on the average fat loss that I have had over the past 6 days, since changing my diet, I have lost 5.5lbs of fat, .3 lbs of water weight, no muscle mass (remained constant at 81.1lbs). I am feeling pretty confident that I can lose 34.1lbs of fat in 37 days. That will bring me down to 160-170lbs (water weight variable). Let's see if I can keep this progress up.
    (figures via Galaxy Watch). Feel free to check my diet out and ask me questions, or just grab a stick and pop my bubble. The choice is yours!

    (Edit)
    Stats:
    37 Year old male.
    5'7"
    204.2lbs (02/28/2023)
    Daily calorie intake 1579-1600 calories
    protein/fat/carbs 40/40/20 split

    Sorry...not remotely realistic. You didn't lose 5.5 lbs of fat and .3 Lbs of water...flip those and you have something far more likely. Most of that 5.5 Lbs was water.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Dan__Cote wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    Dan__Cote wrote: »
    Optimism at it's best here: Based on the average fat loss that I have had over the past 6 days, since changing my diet, I have lost 5.5lbs of fat, .3 lbs of water weight, no muscle mass (remained constant at 81.1lbs). I am feeling pretty confident that I can lose 34.1lbs of fat in 37 days. That will bring me down to 160-170lbs (water weight variable). Let's see if I can keep this progress up.
    (figures via Galaxy Watch). Feel free to check my diet out and ask me questions, or just grab a stick and pop my bubble. The choice is yours!

    (Edit)
    Stats:
    37 Year old male.
    5'7"
    204.2lbs (02/28/2023)
    Daily calorie intake 1579-1600 calories
    protein/fat/carbs 40/40/20 split

    Sorry...not remotely realistic. You didn't lose 5.5 lbs of fat and .3 Lbs of water...flip those and you have something far more likely. Most of that 5.5 Lbs was water.

    Well whatever it is, I look better naked. That's all that matters.

    Of course you do, 5 Lbs of water either way will make a difference in your aesthetics...that's why bodybuilders dehydrate before shows and cut carbs, etc so they can dump as much water as possible for the stage
  • Dan__Cote
    Dan__Cote Posts: 44 Member
    edited March 2023
    Then eat a crap ton of Reeces and no water before they go on stage (Jay Cutler).

    I'm drinking more water now. Am eating less carbs, and eating less salt (on average). Maybe the Galaxy Watch is off a little bit on the numbers. It's the best I can do with my budget. But luckily for me, and in the immortal words of the goddess Shikira "My hips don't lie." I'm seeing very noticable changes in vascularity and muscle seperation. Regardless of technilogical faults, or skepticism, the weight is coming off and my energy hasn't suffered. This will be maintainable.

    I'm calling it: by April 7th, I will weigh 180lbs. If I'm feeling extra froggy I will weigh 170 by May 4th. GRAB YOUR STICKS! POP THOSE BUBBLES! LMAO!!!