How heavily do you rely on "you will ___ in 5 weeks!"?

BobbieLee1959

i think it's a pretty great motivator. i have a long ways to go yet (50 pounds) so it's nice to see where my hard work will take me.

meant to quote this reply!

PunkyRachel

I ignore it, completely a joke.

Josie_lifting_cats

It's prediction has been total crap for me, and I've done everything from 1,200 cals to 1,500 cals and everything in between. So I don't care about it at all. Nothing can predict me perfectly.

determinedhealthy

i think it's a pretty great motivator. i have a long ways to go yet (50 pounds) so it's nice to see where my hard work will take me.

I agree with this Although I don't fully appreciate the number, it definitely makes me want to do as best I can all the time!

I concur.

privatetime

As when I asked this question, I admit I'm a little surprised that so many people are happy with their 5-week projections, and find motivation in them.

My projections usually indicate it would take 5 weeks to lose 2 or 3 lbs. Given how much effort I'm putting into my weight loss, if it was going to take a year to lose 20lbs, I don't think I could last. (I have a very "tight" diet and I exercise for 90-120 minutes/day, pretty much every day. And I hate exercising just for the sake of exercising. Yet I find my fat too embarrassing to do many activities I might otherwise enjoy, to stay active.)

I AM losing weight at a steady pace, and have been for a couple of months. (10lbs/month) so, take that MFP projections! ;-) Barring a plateau, I'm on-schedule to lose that 20lbs in the next 2 months or so. Even if it takes 4 months, that'll be fine. But MFP usually tells me it will take a year, or more, in some cases. That's why the 5-week projection is so demoralzng for me. I am, and have been, losing far more weight than MFP projects.

Are people getting projections of more than 2 or 3 lbs lost in 5 weeks??? (Well...okay...many people are on a maintenance, weight gain, or just 0.5-1 lb/week schedule, so...)

Saffyra

Do I rely on it? No.

Is it interesting? Yes.

Has it been right? Yes.

Has it been wrong? Yes.

I keep track of it because I like data. And I like seeing the number go down to new lower numbers.

DataBased

I keep track of it because I like data. And I like seeing the number go down to new lower numbers.

First off, thanks to the OP for a truly interesting question!

Secondly, Saffyra, thank you for the above. I love data, also, and I can't believe I haven't been tracking the projections.

Will do from now on - not to "rely" on it so much as to see how often it's at least close to accurate. I believe I'll record it once a week on Sundays, when we weigh in here, rather than daily. Fun stuff!

:happy:

yoovie

I think of it as a sexy wet dream... most unlikely that it will happen, but seriously fun to fantasize about later when work sucks...

NikkieLite

I don't rely on it at all but it's certainly nice to see that lower number. It's currently showing me my first goal weight and that feels good to see in some context, even if I don't rely on it to tell me the real time frame.

MommaToFour

Frankly, I would like to smack the living crap out of it!

akgrown4

I think you need to take a lot of factors into account when you look at that number. First of all, it is a guesstimate based upon what you are doing today and if you can continue to do that EVERYDAY for the next five weeks, second of all, I don't believe it takes into account how long people have been dieting, so those people who have just started working out/dieting, you may actually lose more in that first week or two. I, myself, actually do use it as a motivator. I love seeing how low my weight goes and watch for when it actually ends up below my goals before I do, lol.

Scatterdragon

It is never right for me LOL

AmoreCouture

I look at it, because it's fun but 5 weeks from then, I never even remember, so I don't really go by it. lol
I think I would like it better if it went in 4 week increments, though.

jackpotclown

I never hit "complete this entry" so not at all

MrDude_1

Just for a visual of how it works..

its going to assume everyday is like today..

If you were to take a line graph of your weight... and hold a ruler up to today..

how much you "gained" today is how far the ruler is angled upward.
how much you "lost" today is how far the ruler is angled downward.
either way, the end of the ruler, 5weeks away, is the number it says...

thats also why you can hit it, then add 50cals, and hit it again and see a big change.

Browny43

I wrote it down on a calendar a while ago and when that day came i was 2 lbs away from it, so for me its a great motivator, I recently wrote it down again so I'm looking forward to March 27. I have it logged in my phone calendar.

tgianino

I don't rely on it at all, it changes everyday, by how many calories you've taken in.

joeandkara01

I actually put a reminder in my phone one day. when my day to check comes I will follow up.

joeandkara01

It's good for when you are trying to maintain a weight and you are trying to get a balance on how many calories you need to be consistent. They are correct it changes with your caloric intake and your weight. When you reach the weight you are comfortable with that is when you should start watching the number.

ryno0618

Last year when I was in the process of dropping the 50lbs i paid attention to the 5 weeks number and jotted it down. Over 4 months time it was fairly spot on accurate. Obviously on cheat days or spike days it was off, because it is just a daily tally, but over the several months it was pretty accurate. i ate fairly consistently and lost fairly consistently.

its simply a motivating factor based on today's choices. If nothing else its a fun benchmark

LittleMissNerdy

I really don't pay attention to it seeing how every day is different as far as calories, exercise and what not.

Kelekat

According to that little notation, I should be about 12 pounds down from where I started.

I'm not.

So, the short answer is: Not at all.

foremant86

Not at all, half the time I don't even remember what it says.

Linbo93

I look at it every time, but not because I believe it is gospel truth, but because it's nice to see that number get a little bit lower every week. Helps keep my short term goals in check and keeps me motivated so I can see that number soon!

Faye_Anderson

I log it with my food diary for reference, today I am 3lb lighter than than the 5 week ago estimate, and that was a day when I got shouted at for eating too little (a rare occurrence) so I must be doing something right :happy:

darylinny

I don't take it to heart. I look at it and think that if I do keep up a good day like it says, then I could be coming up to that weight.

Me too.

Chagama

Since it starts with "If every day were like today..." and no two days are the same, I don't see it as a worthwhile prediction. Just an indication on how things went today.

footballmom12

i think it's a pretty great motivator. i have a long ways to go yet (50 pounds) so it's nice to see where my hard work will take me.

I agree with this Although I don't fully appreciate the number, it definitely makes me want to do as best I can all the time!

I totally agree!!! It is complete MOTIVATION!! I don't write it down but I do consider it daily after all my meals are entered.

AbiNichole

I love it!!! I write it down every night after I finish logging.

I have a white board in my room right beside my mirror where I write the following:

Weekly Goal Weight: 175 lbs.
5 Week Goal Weight: 165 lbs.

Monday: 166.6
Tuesday 168
Wednesday 164
Thursday 165
And so on...

I find that when I write out my 5 week goal each day it helps me track if I'm doing enough during the week. And for me- it's been 100% accurate.:flowerforyou:

MrDude_1

I just realized something.
If you have your goal set at 1200... if you're 1199 cals... it gives you the "starvation mode" message... but if you're 1200 or over, it just gives you your weight.

you never see that happy non-starvation under-calorie-goal message.