Is it unwise to try and lose more weight at the beginning?

sugarfreesquirrel
sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
in Getting Started
If you had the time and resources to dedicate to losing weight for the first month or two of your weight loss journey, would it be stupid to try and lose as much weight as possible? Or is it always better to pace yourself? Assuming you will ease off after the first two months into a more attainable program.

Asking as someone who has 140ish pounds to shed

Replies

  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    Just wondering if there would be bad side effects or if you are likely to regain the weight once you return to a sustainable rate of weightloss.

    You hear about some people losing 1/4 of a pound a week while others are losing 4lbs a week. Or someone who loses 20lbs in a year and someone else who loses 200lbs in a year. Not sure how long it should take? it would be awesome to be at my goal by this time in twelve months.
  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    cmriverside wrote: »
    With 140 pounds to lose, you can lose quickly in the beginning, for sure.

    I think if you are wanting to go as quickly as possible you would be wise to involve a bariatric specialist and/or a professional Dietician (the Certified kind.)

    Thanks. I do not want to eat 1200 calories or less a day or have weightloss surgery.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,453 Member
    edited April 2023
    sugarfreesquirrel wrote: »
    cmriverside wrote: »
    With 140 pounds to lose, you can lose quickly in the beginning, for sure.

    I think if you are wanting to go as quickly as possible you would be wise to involve a bariatric specialist and/or a professional Dietician (the Certified kind.)

    Thanks. I do not want to eat 1200 calories or less a day or have weightloss surgery.

    No, I didn't mean to have surgery, just a consultation with a doctor to give you a goal for calories and necessary nutrition if you want to be as aggressive as possible. Bariatric means, “relating to or specializing in the treatment of obesity.”

    I think if you set this site at, "Lose 2 pounds per week," and, "Sedentary," for your Activity Level, it's likely to give you 1200 calories. That's a reasonable Goal with 140 pounds to lose, and you could expect to lose two pounds per week for a while (such as for that two months you mentioned,) but as you close the gap and get to a lower weight, you can't safely cut enough calories to lose two pounds per week so your weight loss rate slows to a pound a week or less as you approach a healthy weight BMI.

    HOWEVER, even if you are set at a base goal of 1200, this site expects you to add in more calories on days you do purposeful exercise. That can mean a few hundred more per day, so 1200 doesn't need to be the endpoint.
    __________
    RE your question -
    Some people lose 1/4 pound because they're either close to a healthy weight already OR they aren't really tracking their intake that closely.

    Some people lose 4 pounds because they're under-eating and/or they have a whole lot of weight to lose and it comes off rapidly when you are obese or morbidly obese and you cut calorie intake from 8000+ a day to 1800...

    Lots of other variables in between.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,453 Member
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  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    cmriverside wrote: »
    sugarfreesquirrel wrote: »
    cmriverside wrote: »
    With 140 pounds to lose, you can lose quickly in the beginning, for sure.

    I think if you are wanting to go as quickly as possible you would be wise to involve a bariatric specialist and/or a professional Dietician (the Certified kind.)

    Thanks. I do not want to eat 1200 calories or less a day or have weightloss surgery.

    No, I didn't mean to have surgery, just a consultation with a doctor to give you a goal for calories and necessary nutrition if you want to be as aggressive as possible. Bariatric means, “relating to or specializing in the treatment of obesity.”

    I think if you set this site at, "Lose 2 pounds per week," and, "Sedentary," for your Activity Level, it's likely to give you 1200 calories. That's a reasonable Goal with 140 pounds to lose, and you could expect to lose two pounds per week for a while (such as for that two months you mentioned,) but as you close the gap and get to a lower weight, you can't safely cut enough calories to lose two pounds per week so your weight loss rate slows to a pound a week or less as you approach a healthy weight BMI.

    HOWEVER, even if you are set at a base goal of 1200, this site expects you to add in more calories on days you do purposeful exercise. That can mean a few hundred more per day, so 1200 doesn't need to be the endpoint.
    __________

    Some people lose 1/4 pound because they're either close to a healthy weight already OR they aren't really tracking their intake that closely.

    Some people lose 4 pounds because they're under-eating and/or they have a whole lot of weight to lose and it comes off rapidly when you are obese or morbidly obese and you cut calorie intake from 8000+ a day to 1800...

    Lots of other variables in between.

    Thank you, that was helpful
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,649 Member
    I think it’s kind of natural for people with larger weight loss to lose quickly at first. It’s just a function of having so much to lose. It’s easier to lose at first when you’re heavier.

    For me, simply logging and paying attention to what I put in my mouth was so….revolutionary….that I lost much faster than expected at first.

    But as @cmriverside says, you’ve got to be super mindful.

    If you start feeling run down, hungry, have physiological side effects like the hair loss etc, reel it in.

    I am much more “aware” of myself and my dietary needs since beginning weight loss. For example, when I find myself crashing and falling asleep mid afternoon, I now recognize that as a clear sign of under-eating. If I feel “hunger pangs”, I’ve learnt that’s not hunger at all, it’s dehydration and I start guzzling water. Severe muscle cramps=dehydration and magnesium deficiency.

    I am a firm believer slower is better, learning new habits, learning about and implementing diet changes.

    But my personal experience, at a hundred pounds overweight- was it was SO easy to lose fast at first, I’ve had to be particularly mindful about maintenance. It’s like the old “every action has an equal and opposite reaction” thing. I equate fast loss to fast regain- and the “I’m back” kinda posts that fill these boards are proof of that.

    The other drawback of fast loss is, at some point, baby, it’s gonna slow down. You’re rockin and rolling and the sizes are coming off and you’re feeling all Miss Thang, and then BAM! You hit a different kind of wall and frustration kicks in that it’s no longer merrily dropping off. I hit a plateau that lasted a couple of months.

    Thankfully, wonderful people here warned me to expect it, helped me navigate it (the NSV thread is AMAZING ), and cheered me when I came out the other side. I felt like other people here pulled me through.

    Know that it’s going to happen, be prepared for it, and don’t let it kick all your newfound habits to the side.

    I lost ten pounds a month the first six months. I lost 37 more over the next twelve. I intentionally gained some back after overshooting, too.

    Be flexible, be body and nutrition aware, educate yourself, and be aware of that Body Dysmorphia demon, which is a whole ‘nother discussion.


  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    springlering62 wrote: »
    I think it’s kind of natural for people with larger weight loss to lose quickly at first. It’s just a function of having so much to lose. It’s easier to lose at first when you’re heavier.

    For me, simply logging and paying attention to what I put in my mouth was so….revolutionary….that I lost much faster than expected at first.

    But as @cmriverside says, you’ve got to be super mindful.

    If you start feeling run down, hungry, have physiological side effects like the hair loss etc, reel it in.

    I am much more “aware” of myself and my dietary needs since beginning weight loss. For example, when I find myself crashing and falling asleep mid afternoon, I now recognize that as a clear sign of under-eating. If I feel “hunger pangs”, I’ve learnt that’s not hunger at all, it’s dehydration and I start guzzling water. Severe muscle cramps=dehydration and magnesium deficiency.

    I am a firm believer slower is better, learning new habits, learning about and implementing diet changes.

    But my personal experience, at a hundred pounds overweight- was it was SO easy to lose fast at first, I’ve had to be particularly mindful about maintenance. It’s like the old “every action has an equal and opposite reaction” thing. I equate fast loss to fast regain- and the “I’m back” kinda posts that fill these boards are proof of that.

    The other drawback of fast loss is, at some point, baby, it’s gonna slow down. You’re rockin and rolling and the sizes are coming off and you’re feeling all Miss Thang, and then BAM! You hit a different kind of wall and frustration kicks in that it’s no longer merrily dropping off. I hit a plateau that lasted a couple of months.

    Thankfully, wonderful people here warned me to expect it, helped me navigate it (the NSV thread is AMAZING ), and cheered me when I came out the other side. I felt like other people here pulled me through.

    Know that it’s going to happen, be prepared for it, and don’t let it kick all your newfound habits to the side.

    I lost ten pounds a month the first six months. I lost 37 more over the next twelve. I intentionally gained some back after overshooting, too.

    Be flexible, be body and nutrition aware, educate yourself, and be aware of that Body Dysmorphia demon, which is a whole ‘nother discussion.


    Thanks, that's really helpful as well. I guess I really want dress sizes to come off quickly. I'm a size 20 and would love to be a 14 or 16 within the next six months.
  • JaysFan82
    JaysFan82 Posts: 853 Member
    So I started at 388.6 and lost 165 over the past 14 months and am at my goal weight.

    You're gonna lose a lot fast but it'll slow down. You don't want this to be a chore because it can definitely feel that way if you aren't eating enough. You'll be hungry with no energy and trust me you don't want that.

    Make a sustainable change.
  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    JaysFan82 wrote: »
    So I started at 388.6 and lost 165 over the past 14 months and am at my goal weight.

    You're gonna lose a lot fast but it'll slow down. You don't want this to be a chore because it can definitely feel that way if you aren't eating enough. You'll be hungry with no energy and trust me you don't want that.

    Make a sustainable change.

    Thank you <3
  • JBanx256
    JBanx256 Posts: 1,479 Member
    I realize this (study linked below) isn't EXACTLY what you're asking, but I believe there are some nuggets of wisdom to be gleaned here:

    Efficacy of progressive versus severe energy restriction on body composition and strength in concurrent trained women
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36802029/

    What's the TL;DR?
    1. 14 resistance-trained women were randomized into two groups: a severe energy deficit group (25kcal/kg of fat-free mass per day) or a progressive energy deficit group (40kcal/kg of fat-free mass per day, decreasing by 5kcal/kg every two weeks) for eight weeks.
    2. After eight weeks of dieting combined with resistance and cardiovascular training, there were no significant differences between groups for changes in body composition or performance.
    3. Notably, the severe energy deficit group was prescribed a greater net energy deficit for the eight weeks observed; however, they did not lose more fat or body mass. Thus, likely due to poorer adherence, the intended greater net energy deficit did not occur.

    Dr. Eric Helms summed up the review with this: "Fast weight loss, or at least the intention to lose weight faster, can backfire. As
    shown in the present study, trying to follow a larger deficit doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be able to. You might get to the same place you would have with a less aggressive approach, but with more frustration. Even when you can stick to a more aggressive deficit, the quality of your body composition changes might be poorer than if you’d lost the same amount of weight over a longer time period. While there are times this trade-off might be worthwhile, a weight-loss rate of 0.5-1% of body mass per week is generally a better choice to improve adherence and body composition outcomes"
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,260 Member
    With the amount of calories required to maintain someone that is 140 lbs overweight you probably could fairly safely reduce your caloric intake by 1000 but eventually you'll have to revisit that strategy. Cheers.

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