Losing 3 Pounds per Week?

RunForYourLife93

First a little Bio for reference:

Male
20
5'9"
Started out 208 pounds on 7/22/14
Average daily Caloric Intake: ~1800-2200

Per the scale I use, after three weeks of running/walking, watching what I eat, drinking a lot of water, etc., I weigh 199.2 pounds. Normally I would be elated at this news. However, it's only been three full weeks since I started and the scale says I've lost a total of 9 pounds (3 per week). I'm starting to doubt my scale. It just doesn't seem right or normal to be loosing so many pounds per week. Is my scale wrong or am I really dropping these pounds this quickly? Is it ok for my body to do this? And will this continue if I keep doing what I do? Or will I hit a plateau. Thanks for the help!

Edit: Add 3 lbs. to my ticker. I originally thought I was 205 but was actually 208.

Stella_Mayfair

I'm no expert. But i believe what happens is that your body is not use to this and is dropping water weight and other fat. My mom dropped weight so fast when she started (she is a big lady, that I love) after 25lbs has plateaued but won't workout or eat right ( found out she has breast cancer so I don't blame her atm.) I on the other lose weight too slow and plateaued (weight less) at 6lbs... So worry givess you stress, stress causes fat to stay. Try not to worry and eat right, workout and make sure you feel good. If you keep loosing too much too fast, see a dr.

BigT555

a good chunk of that is probably water weight loss. use now as your base point and see what your results yield in a months time keeping to your current intake

iggyboo93

Based on my experience, I generally lose a lot of weight at the beginning of a new diet/exercise program and then things slow down. It may be you are losing some initial water weight. Also, you are a 20 year old male with a higher metabolism and quick & positive response to exercise and eating at a deficit. Be happy with your success and use it for inspiration if you hit a plateau (stressing IF you hit a plateau )

Stella_Mayfair

also besides water weight the waste. Plus you can gain up to 5lbs in one day, due to water, food, waste, So weight same time of day when you do.

puddy29

wow I have the opposite affects I'm only dropping 3lbs a week I think that too little based on how much I cut my diet. I'm always under calorie goal, I work out twice a day everyday including weekends and eating very healthy. I'm so disappointed with 3lbs a week. I know some might think that great but not when you are 305lbs I'm a pretty big girl and everyone says you lose lots more when you are big It just doesn't seem to be workout that way for me. I am working really hard I don't eat red meat, pasta, rice, bread or sweets so I don't know what' going on with my body. I just started on 7/28/14 so the weight should really be falling off but it is not. Feeling very discouraged.

annpatalexa

I've been told through people at work- so I don't know how real this is- that its easier to lose bigger numbers in the the first month or two of a fitness program if you're starting from no program.

Keep an eye on it. If it stays at 3lbs for an extended period talk with your doctor about seeing a nutritionist who might be able to help gear a diet towards your goals at a healthy weight.

mullaneywt

Here's my 2c. Number one, what I was told was that as you start eating less and exercising more, your glycogen stores get depleted. Those normally require/use/hold on to/somethingoranothertechnical water, so thus it would be common for people who suddenly increase their activity level tend to see a huge initial loss, often like five lbs. Similarly, if you back off, you would see a quick gain back of a few pounds as that whole system kind of stabilizes again. I'm not a dietitian or nutritionist, but it does seem to be empirically true based on my own journey.

In terms of determining weight loss, I know a lot of people only weigh weekly in an effort to kind of filter out any day-to-day changes, and I think you probably need to look at your weight loss at a time period bigger than 3 weeks. With that said, because I'm nerdy, I tend to weigh in every day both into MFP and an excel spreadsheet, and I plot the slope of the line for my weight. This gives me a daily average loss (multiply by 7 or 30 or 90 for a week, month, or quarter) and filters out all that other kind of stuff.

You can do the same if you want on google docs. Just enter numbers in sequence in column a (1,2,3,4) for each day/week you weigh yourself, then put the weight in column B. Then somewhere off to the side, click in a cell and type =slope( and then highlight all the A values, then press the comma, then highlight the B values, then hit enter. The cell will look like =slope(B1:B6,A1:A6), and the result will be your loss per weigh in. If you weigh in daily, just take that number and multiply by 7.

If anyone wants more info on that statistical side, I can make a presentation that is more clear.

Kalikel

Some weeks you lose two pounds. Some weeks more, some weeks less.

Watch the trends and don't get too caught up by extra gains and losses.

KCMission

wow I have the opposite affects I'm only dropping 3lbs a week I think that too little based on how much I cut my diet. I'm always under calorie goal, I work out twice a day everyday including weekends and eating very healthy. I'm so disappointed with 3lbs a week. I know some might think that great but not when you are 305lbs I'm a pretty big girl and everyone says you lose lots more when you are big It just doesn't seem to be workout that way for me. I am working really hard I don't eat red meat, pasta, rice, bread or sweets so I don't know what' going on with my body. I just started on 7/28/14 so the weight should really be falling off but it is not. Feeling very discouraged.

Don't be disappointed - you are doing amazing, and keep in mind that if you didn't exercise prior to this journey, you are also building muscle! This could be part of what you see as lack of actual weight loss. As long as you are continuing to lose, you are doing it right, so keep going!! As you build muscle, your metabolism will rise and you will start to lose faster - be patient and don't stop!!!

mullaneywt

wow I have the opposite affects I'm only dropping 3lbs a week I think that too little based on how much I cut my diet. I'm always under calorie goal, I work out twice a day everyday including weekends and eating very healthy. I'm so disappointed with 3lbs a week. I know some might think that great but not when you are 305lbs I'm a pretty big girl and everyone says you lose lots more when you are big It just doesn't seem to be workout that way for me. I am working really hard I don't eat red meat, pasta, rice, bread or sweets so I don't know what' going on with my body. I just started on 7/28/14 so the weight should really be falling off but it is not. Feeling very discouraged.

Most people don't recommend more than 2 lbs per week, even if you're looking to lose a lot. People who tend to drop it super quickly seem to often have either more regain, or other medical issues. I think 3 lbs is probably fine, you didn't gain it in a month, so don't expect to lose it in a month.

mom2_4gr8kids

I have been eaing healthier for 7 weeks and I have lost almost 25 lbs, so that averages over 3 lbs a week. I was worried for awhile, too. I'm not often truly hungry, I have plenty of energy, and I feel better than I have in a long time. This is my body saying this is okay, and I'll continue doing things this way until it tells me there is a problem. I am eating 1800 calories a day and occasionally eat some exercise calories back, if I'm hungry enough to need it.

I figure things will slow down eventually. I'm thrilled my body is responding this way! Enjoy it while it's happening, you are obviously doing a great job!

BramageOMG

35 lbs in 8 weeks... what does that equal? 4.5 per week ish....

simplydelish2

As your diary is not open, is that 1800 calorie count gross or net. If it's gross...you may need to eat back part of your exercise calories. If it's net - I agree with some of the others that at first you could be losing water weight - plus the first few pounds come off more quickly it seems.

Remember health is your goal - give it a couple of more weeks and if you are still losing fast, up your calories a bit.

ntnunk

FWIW, though I'm 44 and not 20, I started off 5 weeks ago almost exactly the same otherwise: 5'9" and 209 lbs. I'm an avid cyclist, and I've been drinking a gallon or more of water per day for years so I just started tracking religiously, reduced calories to 1800 per day, went from 3 meals to 5, and "cleaned up" my diet, i.e. no cheeseburgers, pizza, beer, etc. During the first 2 weeks I dropped from 209 to 203. In the 3 weeks since I've dropped from 203 to 197. So far, you're paralleling me almost exactly.

One tip, as mentioned by others, is not to get too hung up on daily weight. Worry about the trends. My cycling coach suggests I weigh myself daily but average my weight weekly and not worry too much about the daily weight.

Good job, keep it going!

meganeileenmc

agreed, you're body is just adjusting to these new changse

johannaqv89

Usually when I first start, I lose more. Sometimes 3-4 lbs. When I've already been at it for a couple months, I tend to slow down to 1-2 lbs a week. Maybe its because I'm super dedicated the first months then get more flexible with my eating when I'm comfortable and know it won't get out of hand. So....based on experience, listen to your body. If youre feeling hungry or too tired, eat more. If you're feeling good, then you'll be fine:)
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