In 5 weeks you'll lose 10lbs... why is it not working?

Annie42019 · February 2021

I started at 212 pounds as a 58 year old 5 ft 5 in woman. I fully admitted I was sedentary and set 1200 calories which I stuck to religiously. I lost almost exactly 2 pounds per week until the very week I hit “ normal” BMI. Then my loss immediately went to 1pound per week and then .5. Now if I started at say 150 and wanted to lose 15 pounds ( getting to what is my current weight) that would mean I would feel that 2 pounds per week was impossible. If you have less to lose 2 pounds a week is just unrealistic. And even at higher rates it takes discipline and quite a bit of physiological luck.

tinkerbellang83 · February 2021

Annie42019 wrote: »

I started at 212 pounds as a 58 year old 5 ft 5 in woman. I fully admitted I was sedentary and set 1200 calories which I stuck to religiously. I lost almost exactly 2 pounds per week until the very week I hit “ normal” BMI. Then my loss immediately went to 1pound per week and then .5. Now if I started at say 150 and wanted to lose 15 pounds ( getting to what is my current weight) that would mean I would feel that 2 pounds per week was impossible. If you have less to lose 2 pounds a week is just unrealistic. And even at higher rates it takes discipline and quite a bit of physiological luck.

This is why MFP cuts off at 1200 cals as the lowest you can go, if you were to choose 2lbs per week at the stats you mentioned (i.e. 5 foot 5/150lbs/ 58yr old woman/sedentary) you'd still get 1200 even though that's not the 1000 calorie deficit required for 2lbs per week. Maintenance would be around 1575 at those stats so 1200 cals would be a rate of just over 0.5lbs per week.

Coffeelover1264 · February 2021

I just think it's easier to wear my Fitbit and go for a certain minimum daily calorie burn. I have MFP set at a custom calorie level which will allow me to lose about 5 pounds per month, or just a bit over a pound a week. I've got a lot to lose so at this point, it seems to be working well.

Jenpec98 · April 2021

MireyGal76 wrote: »

taken from my blog (http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/MireyGal76/view/in-5-weeks-you-ll-lose-10lbs-why-s-it-not-working-668182) - reposting in the threads (based on feedback received )

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When someone signs up for MFP, they are gung ho about losing weight, and want to shed those pounds FAST!

They look at the calculator, enter their stats and are asked...

What is your lifestyle like... Sedentary? Lightly active?
This is such a subjective question!

Some people are fooling themselves... and think they're very active, when in reality, they work at a desk job, and go home and watch tv for most of the night. But... Sedentary seems bad... And they're not that bad... So they set themselves as very active - fooling themselves into thinking they're able to consume more calories.

Some other people are underestimating themselves, and think they're sedentary, when in reality, they walk to/from work, at lunch, around the office, then get home and chase kids and pets, not sitting down until they fall into bed at the end of the night exhausted. They're burning way more calories than they realize, but they hate themselves, so they pick sedentary. Determined to punish themselves into fitness.

The daily calories expended by the first and the second are dramatically different! And what they pick, can cause pretty significant results....

And then you have...
How many pounds do you want to lose per week?
How many pounds do I want to lose?
I WANNA LOSE EM ALL!!!
How many pounds CAN I LOSE? I can lose up to 2 pounds per week?

This is where the inevitable road to dissatisfaction and potential rage quit begins.

Stick with me...

According to a random website* (hehe) the average height and weight of a woman in america is 5'4" and 168 pounds. (I KNOW - GENERALIZE MUCH?)

According to another random website** (hehe), if they're sedentary, their daily calorie expenditure is 1838.

If that woman joined MFP and decided to lose 2lb a week... She'd be told to eat 1200 cals a day. If she religiously followed that plan, she wouldn't lose 2lb a week. If she's lucky, she'd barely scratch 1 pound a week.

Why?

Minimum calorie expenditure is 1200 cals a day. It's not safe for your to go below this value.

If your goal causes you to dip below that daily rate, then MFP lets you set it, but will reset your min calories to 1200.

There is no way that the average woman can lose at that rate, given the above calculations.

In fact... in order to possibly lose 2lb per week, you'd need to be burning (at maintenance) 2200 cals per day.

My settings currently have me at 2000 cals per day. I am 6'1" and 168 pounds.
I have many tiny friends who won't reach that calorie burn in a day.

Unless you are quite overweight...
TO EXPECT YOURSELF TO BE ABLE TO BURN 2 LBS A WEEK IS CRAZY
It is frustrating.

It is unsustainable.

And it is damaging to your goals.

Calorie counting is a simple concept, but it's fraught with variables...
- are you properly estimating your activity levels?
- are you properly estimating your exercise burns?
- are you correctly weighing, measuring, and logging your food?

If you find that you aren't making progress... start to look at those variables...
If you over estimate your activity levels, overestimate your burns, and under estimate your food... you won't succeed in your goals. All you will do is succeed at frustrating yourself.

What I recommend?
Unless you are obese (and have the help of a doctor), I strongly recommend focusing on the following:
- 0.5 lb to 1lb a week MAXIMUM loss.
- learn to weigh and measure your food. EVERYTHING.
(I suffer slow calorie drain by snacking. I KILL MY CALORIES BY SNACKS... 100 cals here, 200 cals there.. until I have nothing left for supper and then give up and go over )
- If you don't know how active you are... then go sedentary and log all exercise. LOG IT ALL. (But be honest with yourself in terms of burns... sitting on the couch folding laundry - not the same kind of housework as scrubbing floors)

And be patient with yourself. Give it time and adjust. Adjust.
A D J U S T.

You didn't gain the weight in a week, you won't lose it in as much.

Take your time.

You can do this!

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By all means, I welcome correction by those who know more than me...

* http://www.livestrong.com/article/357769-weight-height-for-the-average-american-woman/
** http://www.shapesense.com/fitness-exercise/calculators/daily-caloric-expenditure-calculator.aspx