My Weight is Extra Stubborn

reginah

Hi all! So I'm not new to myfitnesspal as I have now twice lost a good chuck of weight but been unable to keep off. So here I am third times a charm right... 😁 My question is am I the only one that doesn't ever lose the estimated weight I'm "projected" to in the 5 week estimate you get when you complete your daily diary? I am following my calories and exercising to a tee. I'm 90 days in not once hit my 5 week estimate.

AnnPT77

The 5 week estimate is inherently dumb, IMO. Notice how it says "if every day were like today"? It never is. We may log the same calories, but some days we go to the mall and get extra steps, or do more housework, and move more so burn more calories; other days we maybe watch more TV or take a nap and burn fewer. Some days, we maybe forget to log something, or guess wrong at restaurant calories. At best, it's a very rough thing.

On top of that, some people thing they can/should have "cheat days" where they don't log. That's a choice some people can make, but they should not expect the projections to be close if they do. (I'm not saying you're doing that!)

But yes: The MFP settings and projections are based on statistics about the average person who's similar to us (height, weight, age, etc.). None of us is exactly average. Most people will be close to average, but some can be noticeably higher or lower in calorie needs (for no obvious reason). A rare few will be surprisingly higher or lower in calorie burn than the average person.

What we can do is personalize the goals. After 4-6 weeks sticking with a specific calorie goal faithfully, we look at our actual weight change. (If a woman is of the age/stage to have menstrual cycles, she should compare body weight at the same relative point in at least two different cycles.) We don't lose scale weight evenly each week, so we need multiple weeks like that to get a reasonable average.

Once we have that personal data, we can use a little arithmetic, plus the assumption that 500 calories daily is a pound a week, and adjust our calorie goal to dial in a sensibly moderate weight loss rate that recognizes our individual calorie needs experience.

The 5-week projection still won't be right (probably), but that's because it makes dumb assumptions (IMO). I don't even close my diary, so I don't see it. I used to see it, and it's never been even close to right for me. But, using the process described above, I was able to reach a point where my weight gain/loss was very predictable, as a multi-week average. That's made loss (class 1 obese to a healthy weight) and maintenance (7+ years since) quite straightforward.

So: I suggest ignoring the projection, and looking at your own actual real-world experience as a guide.

Best wishes!

TracyL963

A couple of really helpful posts come to mind (below). Many people choose to ignore this feature.

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1052177/weight-loss-is-not-linear

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