I'm becoming impatient, need some advice!

Conchiron

I've been a MFP member for well over a year now tracking calories and losing fat, but now as I only have about 20lbs of fat to lose, I'm becoming really impatient and want to reach my goal weight ASAP.

I'm 5'10, 180lbs, have a little muscle, maintenance is around 2600 to 2700kcal plus cardio. Eating at 1600kcal plus roughly what I burn from running, consistently lose 2lbs per week.

When I hit my goal weight, I plan to maintain for 4 weeks before going on a 200-300kcal surplus whilst weightlifting then cutting again. I've already proved to myself many times during my journey that I can't trust myself not to count.

So basically, what I need help with is these questions:
--What caloric deficit do YOU think I should be on with 20lbs to lose?
--Can I push my deficit higher than 1000kcal or would that cause more harm than good?
--Any tips on becoming more patient?

Thanks for reading, all help is really appreciated!

jillianbeeee

bump. Down to my last 15 and getting impatient as well. Plus its getting harder to lose!

stumblinthrulife

It's not what you want to hear, but I suggest actually slowing your loss at this point. With only 20 pounds to go, muscle loss will become more likely at a 1,000 deficit.

Slow and steady wins the race, and will leave you in much better shape for your bulk.

JesterMFP

My main advice would be: learn to be patient.

With only 20lbs to lose, 2lbs a weeks is not a realistic/sensible rate of loss, and you will risk losing lean mass. It seems like that would be counterproductive to your goals.