Hubby losing faster that I am :-(
JeanRosamundBostock
Posts: 4
Hi everyone, this is my first time posting, joined 13th October, and am finding myfitnesspal amazingly helpful.
I've lost 7lbs in 4 weeks, and felt pleased, but it seems to be slowing right down, only lost 1lb since last week.
My husband has also been dieting, with my help, as I use my calorie count for him, as we eat more or less the same food, and I allow a bit extra for him, as he started at 15st 4lbs and is 6ft, (I'm 5ft and started at 11st 7lbs ) The annoying thing is, although I am very pleased for him, he has lost 16lbs in the same period! :mad: I am so envious. What can I do to speed my weight loss up? I have gradually increased exercise over this time, and am always active. Any thoughts?
I've lost 7lbs in 4 weeks, and felt pleased, but it seems to be slowing right down, only lost 1lb since last week.
My husband has also been dieting, with my help, as I use my calorie count for him, as we eat more or less the same food, and I allow a bit extra for him, as he started at 15st 4lbs and is 6ft, (I'm 5ft and started at 11st 7lbs ) The annoying thing is, although I am very pleased for him, he has lost 16lbs in the same period! :mad: I am so envious. What can I do to speed my weight loss up? I have gradually increased exercise over this time, and am always active. Any thoughts?
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Replies
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My best advice? Don't compare your weight loss to anyone! We all have different bodies- male or female, more or less body fat, different metabolisms, different physical capabilities. For example, my husband is an extremely fit man. Due to his job, he HAS to be physically fit to the point of excellence. I, on the other hand, am one of the least fit people I know, for being in a "healthy" weight range. If we both wanted to lose 10lbs, it would probably take him half the time it would take me, simply because he has the physical capability to work out WAY more, and still eat WAY more than me in the process.
7 lbs in 4 weeks is AMAZING. 1lb per week is amazing. Slow weight loss tends to be the weight loss that is best maintained, from my understanding. I would advise you not to worry about speeding your weight loss up... you are already losing at a great pace. Focus on what you are doing for YOU, and celebrate your accomplishments, without comparing them to anyone else. Your accomplishments are AWESOME, and you should feel very proud of yourself!0 -
The fact is, men typically lose weight a lot faster than women. But as the previous poster said, don't compare weight loss to others. Just focus on your own progress.0
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Thank you so much for your encouragement, I shall take your advice and soldier on :happy:0
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Stop comparing yourself to your husband! Men generally lose faster than women, it's just how it is. They tend to have more muscle mass than us (and therefore burn more calories at rest), different hormones (they tend to have higher metabolisms and we tend to retain water during our monthly cycle), etc, etc etc.
Just be happy for him and be happy that you're losing at a nice healthy pace for you! Congrats on a great start!0 -
1. Men lose faster than women (in general, not always.)
2. He weighs much more than you, which means he will be able to lose more safely.
3. If you are eating the same calorie count, he will lose much faster as 99% of the time men will have a much faster metabolism than women, meaning he has a much larger calorie deficit.
4. You shouldn't think about speeding up your weight loss, you should most likely plan to slow his weight loss down, as losing more than 1-2 pounds a week is not sustainable, and will usually lead to gaining the weight back after resuming normal eating.0 -
My husband dropped 100 lbs in just under 5 months. FIVE MONTHS! Men usually lose faster than women. I very lovingly encourage him and tell him he sucks. He's been maintaining since June, and I'm still struggling to lose that last 25 lbs.0
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Don't compare your weight loss to his. Guys lose weight faster! Keep pushing and the weight will come off, don't give up!!!0
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There's a scientific reason for this- men's fat cells are shaped in such a way that makes losing fat easier for them. Men's cells are diamond shaped and ours are square. The square shape doesn't lend itself to shrinking in the way the diamond shape does. Men's muscle mass also plays a role. Muscle allows for a quicker calorie burn, so if you want to start losing quickly start working on building muscle mass!0
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Start lifting weights and stop comparing yourself to your hubby. Your hubby has more testosterone than you and also naturally more muscle mass than you bc of this. You can change your body -- not necessarily the scale -- tremendously by lifting weights. Pick a pair of pants or a skirt that's tight and use it as your gauge. Good luck & don't give up!
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I've lost 7lbs in 4 weeks, and felt pleased.
Focus on this. That's huge. Keep yourself motivated for the long-term and stay committed and consistent. Just imagine where you will be after 4 months? after 1 year?
Pretty exciting, isn't it?0 -
You just have to take it slow and be patient. I was on MFP for about 90 days, then my hubby decided he wanted to loose weight from seeing my weight loss. I was loosing about 2 pounds a week as I was heavy. So I got him hooked up with MFP and he started loosing like crazy! Sometimes, 7 pounds a week. And he was only like 190 so not that big. I was so jealous of his weight loss, but his job is very strenuous so he could eat alot more than me and still loose. We went on for about a month, him loosing every week. Finally, he reached his goal weight and below and started maintaining. It took him a while to find maintaining because he keep loosing with his job. I always told him I would pass him up. We kind of used it as a competition, but always keeping it nice. lol He is 147 and I am 138 right now. And I plan on getting to 130 so just a little further. Men loose faster, and can burn fat at a faster rate. That's all there is to it. You will get there, it just takes patience. Just keep on keeping on and those small successes will add up.0
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I know it's difficult when your husband loses faster than you. My husband lost 20 lbs in 3 weeks while it took me almost 5 months to lose the same amount. :frown: But, as a 5ft2 woman, I will never lose weight quickly if I plan to keep it off. The good news is we are both keeping the weight off and continuing to get closer to our healthy weight. I'm still getting used to the idea that losing 1/2 to 1 lb a week is good enough and, if I have a week where the scale doesn't move, that's OK too. You have made great progress so far. :flowerforyou: Keep at it and you will succeed.0
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What everyone else said, plus he is a foot taller. Tall people burn more calories than short people because it takes more calories to maintain a larger mass of body parts.0
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There's a scientific reason for this- men's fat cells are shaped in such a way that makes losing fat easier for them. Men's cells are diamond shaped and ours are square. The square shape doesn't lend itself to shrinking in the way the diamond shape does. Men's muscle mass also plays a role. Muscle allows for a quicker calorie burn, so if you want to start losing quickly start working on building muscle mass!
I have never heard this theory before. I always understood fat cells to be literally identical between the genders.0 -
I think it's a guy thing
. I wouldn't be envious, but I understand, my hubby can lose weight by just cutting sugar out of his coffee. Me, not so much. I'm just glad he's healthy and he's lost weight on what I cook. So I know I'm doing something right :laugh: 0 -
forget about it. eat well. live your life. true story.0
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Why are you comparing your weight loss to him?? Everyone is on their own weightloss journey, and everyone interacts with diet and exercise differently. I really wouldn't worry about it.0
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my cells are J shaped...i am uniqueThere's a scientific reason for this- men's fat cells are shaped in such a way that makes losing fat easier for them. Men's cells are diamond shaped and ours are square. The square shape doesn't lend itself to shrinking in the way the diamond shape does. Men's muscle mass also plays a role. Muscle allows for a quicker calorie burn, so if you want to start losing quickly start working on building muscle mass!
I have never heard this theory before. I always understood fat cells to be literally identical between the genders.0 -
There's a scientific reason for this- men's fat cells are shaped in such a way that makes losing fat easier for them. Men's cells are diamond shaped and ours are square. The square shape doesn't lend itself to shrinking in the way the diamond shape does. Men's muscle mass also plays a role. Muscle allows for a quicker calorie burn, so if you want to start losing quickly start working on building muscle mass!
Mine are actually all heart shaped. FLUSH BABY.0 -
You may want to feed him even more, 4lbs/week is really fast, much too fast actually, unless there was a big water weight loss in the first week or 2. Loosing too fast will end up having a larger % of the loss coming from lean muscle instead of fat.
If the amount you are looking at losing on your ticker is accurate, you should only have a weekly weight loss goal of 1lb/week, as too large of a deficit will lead to a larger % loss of lean muscle. I suggest you set your goal to lose 1lb/week, and be happy with your loss of almost 2lbs/week up until now.0 -
It's a fact of life that men lose weight faster than women because they have more muscle on their bodies. A pound a week is within the healthy weight loss range. Your expectations are way off. If you aren't heavy lifting, you could add that to preserve lean body mass and lose more fat. A low carb diet has amazing results and if done correctly can be a life long change. There are more than 23 low carb diets around so don't just think Atkins, although that is what I do. No matter what else you do, NEVER compare your weight loss with someone else.0
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There's a scientific reason for this- men's fat cells are shaped in such a way that makes losing fat easier for them. Men's cells are diamond shaped and ours are square. The square shape doesn't lend itself to shrinking in the way the diamond shape does. Men's muscle mass also plays a role. Muscle allows for a quicker calorie burn, so if you want to start losing quickly start working on building muscle mass!
I have never heard this theory before. I always understood fat cells to be literally identical between the genders.
Look it up. Science.0 -
In the same boat, not only did my husband lose his quickly but didn't have as much to lose so already looks fantastic. It's a bit disheartening, but I use it as motivation and also remind myself how lucky I am to have a spouse that's working to get better as well. There are many who post on here who unfortunately have spouses/significant others who are not interested in improving and to me I'd rather be jealous and motivated by it than struggling to improve while my partner continues to slack and potentially bring me down. Plus, he looks fantastic : P
As everyone else has said, men lose waaaaayyyyyy faster. I lol'd at the creamer joke because my husband did the same thing once "oh, I'll just stop putting mayonnaise on my sandwich at work." poof, 10 lbs gone somehow. As far as rate, you have to keep in mind that it's up and down all the time. I have lost an average of 1.5 lbs/week over 15 weeks and that includes 3 weeks with gains.0 -
I find it so sweet that you are doing this as a couple. Hang in there and remain positive about your own success. True story: When I got married almost 20 years ago, one piece of advice that my grandmother gave me was to avoid gaining weight with my husband. According to my grandmother, if we both gained weight, it would be so much easier for him to lose the weight once we decided to do so. I wonder if it is the extra muscle that men tend to have...0
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There's a scientific reason for this- men's fat cells are shaped in such a way that makes losing fat easier for them. Men's cells are diamond shaped and ours are square. The square shape doesn't lend itself to shrinking in the way the diamond shape does. Men's muscle mass also plays a role. Muscle allows for a quicker calorie burn, so if you want to start losing quickly start working on building muscle mass!
I have never heard this theory before. I always understood fat cells to be literally identical between the genders.
Look it up. Science.
I tried but I couldn't prove your theory. The storage of adipocytes tends to vary between genders but the actual structure of individual adipocytes does not vary based on gender. If you have a source, I would love to read it, because this would be a very interesting fact considering how similar men and women are at the cellular level.0 -
There's a scientific reason for this- men's fat cells are shaped in such a way that makes losing fat easier for them. Men's cells are diamond shaped and ours are square. The square shape doesn't lend itself to shrinking in the way the diamond shape does. Men's muscle mass also plays a role. Muscle allows for a quicker calorie burn, so if you want to start losing quickly start working on building muscle mass!
I have never heard this theory before. I always understood fat cells to be literally identical between the genders.
Look it up. Science.
a diamond is just a square rotated 45 degrees. GEOMETRY!
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I'm going to call shenanigans on the fat cell shape. I have no medical knowledge at all, but still .... shenanigans 0
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maybe a link would be helpful instead of rudeness.There's a scientific reason for this- men's fat cells are shaped in such a way that makes losing fat easier for them. Men's cells are diamond shaped and ours are square. The square shape doesn't lend itself to shrinking in the way the diamond shape does. Men's muscle mass also plays a role. Muscle allows for a quicker calorie burn, so if you want to start losing quickly start working on building muscle mass!
I have never heard this theory before. I always understood fat cells to be literally identical between the genders.
Look it up. Science.0 -
^ thisThere's a scientific reason for this- men's fat cells are shaped in such a way that makes losing fat easier for them. Men's cells are diamond shaped and ours are square. The square shape doesn't lend itself to shrinking in the way the diamond shape does. Men's muscle mass also plays a role. Muscle allows for a quicker calorie burn, so if you want to start losing quickly start working on building muscle mass!
I have never heard this theory before. I always understood fat cells to be literally identical between the genders.
Look it up. Science.
I tried but I couldn't prove your theory. The storage of adipocytes tends to vary between genders but the actual structure of individual adipocytes does not vary based on gender. If you have a source, I would love to read it, because this would be a very interesting fact considering how similar men and women are at the cellular level.0 -
Agreed that you can't compare your weight loss to anyone else's, as we all have different body types and activity levels. And the close to 2 pounds a week that you are losing is a healthy loss. Your husband's loss is actually a little faster than is typically recommended, unless supervised by a doctor. You're just starting out, so as someone suggested, it could be partially contributed by water weight, but it would probably be a good idea for each of you to speak to your doctor about your goals.
It is often said that this isn't a race; it's a marathon. Those focused on losing weight quickly are often the ones that inevitably gain it back because they haven't made the proper changes to adjust their lifestyles or learned the essentials of nutrition. Also, our bodies typically adjust better to a slow loss over time.As a rule of thumb, the following weekly targets would give a balance between minimizing these negative side effects and seeing a reasonable weekly weight loss:
More than 75 lbs: 2 lbs/week
40-75 lbs: 1.5 lbs/week
10-40 lbs: 1 lb/week
Less than 10 lbs: 0.5 lb/week
You two are vastly different in size. A foot in height contributes a lot when it comes to energy needs. Your calorie deficit isn't appropriate for him. It would be best to calculate a reasonable deficit for each of your individual needs so that you are properly fueling your bodies and getting the right nutrition. What you're doing right now may be working, but if you are eating too much of a deficit, one of you may find that you start to become tired, cranky, weak, or more subject to binging as a result of hunger. Also, this will make it much easier as you transition back into a normal diet when you reach your goal and go back to maintenance. You won't be cutting your calories forever, right? You should learn what is sustainable for you long term. You may be depriving yourselves unnecessarily, though it sounds like you are absolutely on the right track. I highly recommend reading the following topics and calculating each of your TDEEs (explained in more detail within). It also wouldn't be a bad idea for him to make an account of his own so that he can learn the same as you in taking accountability for what he eats since you are on this road together.
Must reads for any beginner:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819925-the-basics-don-t-complicate-it?hl=the+basics+keep+it+simple
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/841305-corn-used-my-man-parts-as-a-speedbag
Additional reads to help you on your way:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/833026-important-posts-to-read
http://body-improvements.com/resources/eat/
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/flexible-versus-rigid-dieting.html
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/925464-fitting-it-in-giggity0
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