Am I being impatient?

classicalguitar1
classicalguitar1 Posts: 27 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So I am having my first real shot at shedding some weight and have so far lost 14 lbs.
For the last 7 weeks I have been eating healthy and exercising almost every day, my exercises usually consist of a fairly intense 40 minute bike ride followed some HIIT jump rope for around 10 minutes.
I am eating around the 2000 - 2200 calorie mark each day and I'm not really sure how many calories I'm burning during my exercises but guess it can't be much more than 500.
Now for the first 3 weeks the scales did not move and then into the 4th week I went down 7 lbs and then the week after another 7 lbs.
So from this I figured that I may have kick started the fat burning process and it would continue to fall, but I have not lost another pound since! Have I plateau'd?
Also (because I didn't fully trust the scales) I was taking measurements around my body and also using skin fold calipers to measure my body fat, but they also have not moved from the start!

Am I missing something?
I know it's good that I'm losing weight but to be honest I don't really care about the weight I just want to slim down.
Here are my stats,
Male
30 years old
6ft 2inches
Was 259 lbs (18.5 st)
Now 245 lbs (17.5 st)
Am I just being impatient?
And also how can it be that the scales did not move for almost a month and then suddenly drop 14 lbs?
Someone please advise.

Many thanks
Dan

Replies

  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    Yes you are being impatient. Plateau's are 4-6 weeks at a minimum. But for fun, how many calories do you eat? Also, for future, you can only expect 1-2 lbs per week.... the first several weeks you probably had a good amount of water retention from exercise which your body got rid of the past few weeks, thence the huge drop.
  • classicalguitar1
    classicalguitar1 Posts: 27 Member
    I'm eating around 2000-2200 calories and I'm being told (by my fitness pal) that my BMR is around 2300.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    Your about good. I am 5'11, 186lbs, 31, desk job and 6 hours of exericse a week and i eat 2400-2600. Since you have more body fat, then a little less in terms of calories is cool but once you get near 30 lbs over, then up your calories. Also, I would make macro's around 40% carbs, 30% protein and fats so you can get hit 1g of protein and .35g of fat per lb of lean body mass.
  • pavrg
    pavrg Posts: 277 Member
    1) It's going to be hard to notice a 5.5% weight change, even if you take measurements.
    2) The body does funky things with weight loss and things like water retention, glycogen stores, etc. can affect weight day-to-day.
    3) try lowering your calorie intake to about 1800. You want to give yourself some wiggle room because most people under-estimate the calories they eat anywhere from 10-20 % (ocd about weighing everything) to 50% (used measuring cups but no weight) (this was shown by a study someone posted in another thread).
    Also, I would make macro's around 40% carbs, 30% protein and fats so you can get hit 1g of protein and .35g of fat per lb of lean body mass.
    Why? He doesn't lift weights...
  • classicalguitar1
    classicalguitar1 Posts: 27 Member
    1) It's going to be hard to notice a 5.5% weight change, even if you take measurements.
    2) The body does funky things with weight loss and things like water retention, glycogen stores, etc. can affect weight day-to-day.
    3) try lowering your calorie intake to about 1800. You want to give yourself some wiggle room because most people under-estimate the calories they eat anywhere from 10-20 % (ocd about weighing everything) to 50% (used measuring cups but no weight) (this was shown by a study someone posted in another thread).
    Also, I would make macro's around 40% carbs, 30% protein and fats so you can get hit 1g of protein and .35g of fat per lb of lean body mass.
    Why? He doesn't lift weights...

    Hi, to be honest 2000-2200 calories may be a slight overestimate.
    Also, regarding what you said about the body doing funky things during weight loss, if most of that first 14 lbs i lost was water weight then does that mean that I was not losing any fat weight? Do you lose water first and then fat?
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    1) It's going to be hard to notice a 5.5% weight change, even if you take measurements.
    2) The body does funky things with weight loss and things like water retention, glycogen stores, etc. can affect weight day-to-day.
    3) try lowering your calorie intake to about 1800. You want to give yourself some wiggle room because most people under-estimate the calories they eat anywhere from 10-20 % (ocd about weighing everything) to 50% (used measuring cups but no weight) (this was shown by a study someone posted in another thread).
    Also, I would make macro's around 40% carbs, 30% protein and fats so you can get hit 1g of protein and .35g of fat per lb of lean body mass.
    Why? He doesn't lift weights...

    He still does resistance type training. Biking and HIIT provide resistance and even if you do NOT lift, protein is critical to retaining muscle. Lowering protein and doing a ton of cardio is a recipe for muscle loss. It's hard enough to retain muscle (since it's very inefficient in it's natural state) so why do something to make it worse?

    Dropping calories will just make things worse. And why suggest lowering calories if in 7 weeks, he has lost 14 lbs? That is just wreckless in my opinion. The expectation to lose more than 2 lbs, especially when not morbidly obese, is a bit crazy.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    1) It's going to be hard to notice a 5.5% weight change, even if you take measurements.
    2) The body does funky things with weight loss and things like water retention, glycogen stores, etc. can affect weight day-to-day.
    3) try lowering your calorie intake to about 1800. You want to give yourself some wiggle room because most people under-estimate the calories they eat anywhere from 10-20 % (ocd about weighing everything) to 50% (used measuring cups but no weight) (this was shown by a study someone posted in another thread).
    Also, I would make macro's around 40% carbs, 30% protein and fats so you can get hit 1g of protein and .35g of fat per lb of lean body mass.
    Why? He doesn't lift weights...

    Hi, to be honest 2000-2200 calories may be a slight overestimate.
    Also, regarding what you said about the body doing funky things during weight loss, if most of that first 14 lbs i lost was water weight then does that mean that I was not losing any fat weight? Do you lose water first and then fat?

    You likely lost 90% water, and some fat. It's hard to tell the combination as you are still new and I wouldn't get caught up in the semantics to much. Really, the only way to figure out what you lost is before and after dexa scans.
  • Greenrun99
    Greenrun99 Posts: 2,065 Member
    7 weeks, 14 lbs.. Yes you are being impatient.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Some people lose in patterns. You didn't lose for three, lost for two, now not losing again. I would keep doing what you're doing and see if you lose again in a couple weeks. If not, reevaluate your calorie intake.
  • zeebruhgirl
    zeebruhgirl Posts: 493 Member
    I've been feeling the same lately but you just have to keep pushing!
  • MzManiak
    MzManiak Posts: 1,361 Member
    7 weeks, 14 lbs.. Yes you are being impatient.

    My thoughts exactly.

    Weight loss is not linear. It's important to look at the big picture. You are averaging 2lbs/ week. When you go 4-6 weeks without losing, then reevaluate, but for now... just keep on truckin.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    You're being impatient. It sounds like you're doing great so far! Keep at it.
  • schondell
    schondell Posts: 556 Member
    Keep going that's 2 lbs a week, amazing! I feel as though I lose weight in a pattern as well.. Weight loss is not linear. Also, if you fear being in a plateau try eating less on some days!
  • WaterBunnie
    WaterBunnie Posts: 1,371 Member
    Mine drops erratically too, but it does drop. See where you stand in a month's time.
  • tracieangeletti
    tracieangeletti Posts: 432 Member
    Patience. Patience. And even more PATIENCE. :-)
  • JaxDemon
    JaxDemon Posts: 403 Member
    Learn to throw your body off so it don't get stuck in the same routine. Stuff like switching diets around so for me I'll switch to keto for a few month then switch back to adding carbs. In the Gym I will change sets from like a 5x5 to a pyramid system.

    You gotta keep your body guessing and don't get too down if you stall. It's all about making that lifestyle change and making consistent changes. It's not a game.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Some people lose in patterns. You didn't lose for three, lost for two, now not losing again. I would keep doing what you're doing and see if you lose again in a couple weeks. If not, reevaluate your calorie intake.

    This^^^...this **** aint linear.
  • bridgie101
    bridgie101 Posts: 817 Member
    I don't think you'd notice much change from one stone loss at that level. I know I didn't notice myself stacking this last 10kg on. Erk.

    as to when you lose it: don't worry. Scales can be sticky. Water can be retained and released. Your gut can be full of food, or empty. So many variables. So long as the general trend of your graph is downward and not upward, all is good. Carry on like you're doing.

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