How long before losing weight when you begin a workout plan

SolidGoaled

If you find yourself 4 weeks into a workout plan (plus moderate calorie reduction) and see no loss, but feel smaller, what does that mean? It means you've increased muscle mass and lost fat in exchange, making you smaller, but the same weight (the bricks and feathers comparison comes to mind)

But, WHEN does the scale finally begin to show a loss, and at what rate? If you start out as a 250 lb blob, OBVIOUSLY, most people don't want to become 250 lbs of muscle - they would like to lose that big belly, big thighs, big blubbery flab on the arms (sorry to be so graphic) but I am trying to get my head around this - if your doctor recommends that your healthy weight range is between 140-165... then, 165 would be a solid, more muscular person perhaps - so you need to lose 80ish lbs somewhere - so when does this loss finally occur if you continue to exchange muscle for fat? (Hope this question makes sense)