Losing weight faster than estimated

mkitts2011

Hello everyone, I'm new to MFP and I've been losing weight much faster than the system calculates. I have been eating my calories. Is this normal in the beginning for someone very heavy (370lbs) to drop weight extremely fast? I lost 2.8lbs overnight.

MrsLong1980

Daily weigh in's don't really show accurate weight loss due to regular daily fluctuations, which can be up to a few pounds sometimes!! There are many many variables that affect weight on a daily basis. This is why it is suggested you go for weekly or bi-weekly weigh in's rather than daily.

garysgirl719

Yes, when you are excessively overweight you will drop weight fast in the beginning. IT's your body's adjustment to the changes you are making. Also, if you have implemented the daily water, soem of that is the water your body is no longer retaining.

margojr4

The estimated weekly loss is 1% body weight. So yes, you can lose up to 4lbs per week when having a calorie deficit.

Another reason why it gets harder to lose when you're closer to your goal.

Good job on the loss, keep with it and enjoy your new lifestyle! :flowerforyou:

mkitts2011

I've read that as well but, I am a procrastinator by nature so daily weigh-ins help keep me on track.

mkitts2011

Thanks, that's great to know. I am enjoying it, I can't wait until I start to feel my clothes loosen up! Looking forward to getting to know you all.

cramernh

Hello everyone, I'm new to MFP and I've been losing weight much faster than the system calculates. I have been eating my calories. Is this normal in the beginning for someone very heavy (370lbs) to drop weight extremely fast? I lost 2.8lbs overnight.

Why are you weighing yourself after day one? That is just unrealistic.....

Once per week is when you really should consider... or a month..... or even better.... after about a couple of weeks, take some body measurements... but overnight? Thats not realistic at all...

EDIT: ACK! This didnt stick: I meant to include - if you continue to weigh yourself like this, you are just gonna drive yourself crazy and into a stressful mental level... dont cause yourself this stress - that will jeopardize your efforts!

fuzzimama

Daily weigh in always gets slated, but there are studies which show it can be a useful motivator for some people (google 'daily weigh in' and you'll find some articles). I prefer daily weigh in myself, but need to be realistic about the fluctuations that occur. Other people don't like it (and it may be especially unsuitable for some, such as those clinically depressed or with eating disorders). Obviously choosing what suits you best is ideal.

One article I saw from the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology described daily weighing as being "like checking the thermometer in your house to see what the temperature is. It helps you know how to make adjustments."

So back on track to your original question, yes seems very normal to me to lose weight more rapidly than expected at the start. I did the same, and started at only 75kg, but now that I am 6kg down (and half way to goal) the loss has come back in line with the expected roughly 1lb per week.

mkitts2011

Thanks for the advice but I am still going to weigh in daily. I have lost weight before and even through periods of no loss it helped keep me on track.

cramernh

Daily weigh in always gets slated, but there are studies which show it can be a useful motivator for some people (google 'daily weigh in' and you'll find some articles). I prefer daily weigh in myself, but need to be realistic about the fluctuations that occur. Other people don't like it (and it may be especially unsuitable for some, such as those clinically depressed or with eating disorders). Obviously choosing what suits you best is ideal.

One article I saw from the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology described daily weighing as being "like checking the thermometer in your house to see what the temperature is. It helps you know how to make adjustments."

So back on track to your original question, yes seems very normal to me to lose weight more rapidly than expected at the start. I did the same, and started at only 75kg, but now that I am 6kg down (and half way to goal) the loss has come back in line with the expected roughly 1lb per week.

It is proof enough because the OP had to post a thread after only one day.... and every day will be different and can never be an accurate weigh to measure....

msShari1

I call it "broccoli shock" when I begin a diet and a ton of weight comes off right away. Our bodies are loving the good food we are putting in! It certainly is a great motivator to keep up the hard work!

Lozze

Thanks for the advice but I am still going to weigh in daily. I have lost weight before and even through periods of no loss it helped keep me on track.

Yes but did it work long term?

If you can weigh in daily and not let the results affect you then yes it's fine. But if putting on or not losing or just being confused every day by the scale is affecting you in any way then I would avoid it. It would upset me so I weigh in weekly, don't even own a scale.

2Bgoddess

I weigh myself every damned time I am in my washroom. Why? I dunno.
My weight seems to come off in chunks. For days at a time it stays the same. Then wham, a chunk. On average over a period of time it is about 3 pounds a week. I am sure that will slow down.

Kimmer2011

I've been a mostly daily weigh-in person (since last spring). I expect it to go up sometimes, but looking at the overall trend has helped me. After Christmas, I decided to not weigh in for a full week and it was really hard. Eventually, I want to be able to weigh in less often and just keep doing what I know is right. But I know how tempting it can be, and don't necessarily think it's terrible.

servilia

Nothing wrong with weighing yourself every day. I do it too and I'm not in the nuthouse yet! lol

meg0013

thats normal. when i first started at 250 lbs a year ago, i lost 8 lbs in the first week. a lot of it will be water weight and it will significantly slow down after the first week - but don't let that discourage you. you can probably still lose about 3-4 lbs a week until you get within 50 lbs of your goal weight.

and about weighing in every day - totally okay, if you only let it motivate you and not discourage you. i've weighed myself nearly every day for the last year and it's helped keep me on track to lose 85 lbs this year.

Kaison02

lindalou0703

I weigh everyday and I find it helpful, and as someone pointed out it can fluctuate. It has kept me on track

SkinnyGirlFatBody

Yes at the beginning of your weight loss journey you will lose weight faster.

And if you want to weigh yourself everyday, go for it! I weigh in every day even though I know it can be a little inaccurate but I find it really helps me realize where I am in my journey to skinniness and it helps me make the tough decisions (like not buying that bag of chips) because I know I would be disappointed the next day if my weight jumped up. So do what ever is going to make weight loss easy for you!

loseramy68

I weigh myself every damned time I am in my washroom. Why? I dunno.

That is hilarious because I do the SAME THING! I only record it once a week, but the batteries in my scale don't last long due to extreme usage.

jwaters1006

After my initial weight check I didn't weigh myself for the 1st month, went soley on inches lost and how my clothes felt. Now I weight every morning and do inches once a month, sometimes once every other week. My weight came off really quick at first, then I kind of hit a plateau, then the Holidays hit and I avoided the scale, Tuesday I got on and saw a 6 pound weight gain Today I'm down 7 pounds from Tuesday. Most of my weight loss this week has got to be water weight but I put a lot of exercise in too. I don't obsess over the # on the scale just use it as a reference and sometimes a reality check of consequences.

grantsmom08

Weighing regularly, like every morning, shouldn't drive you crazy. I actually read in an article in can help keep you in check. If it jumps up, then you can snap back into the right way of doing things. If you put it off to do weekly, you won't catch a gain as quickly and once a month is crazy. I still only post weigh ins once a week. And I have cut back to try and do every couple of days...but there is nothing wrong with doing it daily just to check in. Several times a day is when it is out of control

mkitts2011

I call it "broccoli shock" when I begin a diet and a ton of weight comes off right away. Our bodies are loving the good food we are putting in! It certainly is a great motivator to keep up the hard work!

Haha, broccoli shock. I like that.

Boulder_ME

One of the habits of the folks in the National Weight Control Registry (people who have lost > 30 lbs and maintained that loss for > 1 year) is daily weight ins (according to http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/01/magazine/tara-parker-pope-fat-trap.html?ref=general&src=me&pagewanted=all according to the registry itself 75% of members weigh themselves at least once a week. (http://www.nwcr.ws/Research/default.htm)

I know I like to weigh daily--understanding that I fluctuate up to 2 lbs or so just with "normal" changes. I'll only "weigh-in" once a week, but daily monitoring helps prevent (demoralizing) surprises.

chevy88grl

I've read that as well but, I am a procrastinator by nature so daily weigh-ins help keep me on track.

I weigh in every single day. I've learned a lot about my body by doing this. Things that may freak other people out? Well, they don't bother me because I've learned about my body by weighing everyday. I know what foods make me retain water, I know how medications affect me, I know what my normal "range" is, I know how much water I need, etc. There are a lot of benefits (IMO) to weighing in daily. Now, if you are going to get overly obsessive about it? Don't. But, I think if more people weighed in daily they would learn more about their body and wouldn't freak out over a pound gained or whatever. They would know their normal range, would know how things affect the number on the scale and would calm down.

DottieNewton

I weigh every day because it keeps me on track. When I avoid the scales I don't eat right. Out of sight out of mind. and yes I do have some crazy fluctuations some days--I only post my weekly official weigh-in.

Good job on a fast start. just don't get discouraged when it slows down.

MaximalLife

Hello everyone, I'm new to MFP and I've been losing weight much faster than the system calculates. I have been eating my calories. Is this normal in the beginning for someone very heavy (370lbs) to drop weight extremely fast? I lost 2.8lbs overnight.

It's quite normal, so enjoy but don't get down in the mouth when the weight loss settles into a pattern of 1lb per week.

DeniseAS

I hear the heavier a person is, the quicker you lose it. It's harder for someone to lose that only has 20 lbs. or less to take off. It will be fast at first, but eventually will slow down.

MummyHungry

It's perfectly normal for the weight to come off quick for the first week or two, then settle down to 1 or 2 lbs a week. Enjoy the head start with realistic expectations, and you won't be discouraged when it slows to normal. Daily weigh-ins are only a problem if you get disappointed easily. I weigh every morning, and occasionally the number is higher than the day before, but I always know the downward trend will win out. ^_^

Di3012

Hello everyone, I'm new to MFP and I've been losing weight much faster than the system calculates. I have been eating my calories. Is this normal in the beginning for someone very heavy (370lbs) to drop weight extremely fast? I lost 2.8lbs overnight.

The more overweight you are, the more weight can drop off quickly in the beginning.

That's why on TV programs such as The Biggest Loser, they tend to shed many pounds each week. Hell, some of the contestants have been known to shift 14lbs in one week!

As your weight lowers your weight loss will most likely slow down and find its level.

Di3012

double posted for some reason.