3 - 4lbs lost in 4 days?

NatashaB8
NatashaB8 Posts: 202
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all.

I restarted MFP for good on Sunday. I started at 12 stone 6lbs and this morning I weighed myself and I was 12 stone 2lbs.
I have been eating a lot less than usual but I genuinely do not have an appetite right now. I have also exercised 4 times this week with weights and swimming.

Is the first few pounds lost water weight? I know whenever I first started losing weight the first few pounds would drop the fastest but it hasn't dropped this much! My stomach is already looking a lot less bloated, the first time I have noticed this in a year.

I know eating 1200 cals or less for a 6ft woman is not enough however I am not hungry, but when I do stop losing weight or get hungry I WILL increase my calories. I just don't see the point in eating more for the sake of it!

Anyone else experienced this? Thanks in advance :)

Replies

  • NatashaB8
    NatashaB8 Posts: 202
    bump
  • Rachlmale
    Rachlmale Posts: 640 Member
    I lost 8 pounds in my first week. It won't all be fat just your body regulating itself :)
  • firelle
    firelle Posts: 118 Member
    I weigh myself almost every day (only input it on my weigh-in day, though); weight fluctuates across the week. Could be down now, but pop back up on Sunday. Just take it mentally and keep moving forward. Also yeah 1200 at 6ft and your regimen..... but, enough is on MFP about that much of a deficit.
  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
    Hi all.

    I restarted MFP for good on Sunday. I started at 12 stone 6lbs and this morning I weighed myself and I was 12 stone 2lbs.
    I have been eating a lot less than usual but I genuinely do not have an appetite right now. I have also exercised 4 times this week with weights and swimming.

    Is the first few pounds lost water weight? I know whenever I first started losing weight the first few pounds would drop the fastest but it hasn't dropped this much! My stomach is already looking a lot less bloated, the first time I have noticed this in a year.

    I know eating 1200 cals or less for a 6ft woman is not enough however I am not hungry, but when I do stop losing weight or get hungry I WILL increase my calories. I just don't see the point in eating more for the sake of it!

    Anyone else experienced this? Thanks in advance :)
    Very common not to be hungry when you are under-eating. Your body stops sending hunger signals to your brain. Why wait and risk messing up your metabolism, when you could prevent that from the beginning? You don't have much weight to lose, so losing a couple of pounds of fat a week is not a very realistic expectation. Having a large calorie deficit, especially if you are not doing any strength training, will encourage your body to use up your muscle stores as well as your fat. You will inevitably lose some muscle as you lose weight anyway, but you risk losing more than is necessary. Muscle burns calories even at rest, so losing that muscle means you burn fewer calories. It also means that you will have to get to a lower weight to achieve the size that you want.

    And yes, much of what you have lost initially will be water weight. Some will likely be fat, and some will be muscle.
  • AnnThereseRN
    AnnThereseRN Posts: 44 Member
    I started back this week too and similarly I lost about 3 pounds in a few days. My guess is it is water weight and my bosy adjusting and losing some bloat from high sodium before watching what I eat. Also, Thanksgiving was last week. Did you celebrate? There are lots of salty and fatty foods that your body was excited to get rid of. Being a woman, my weight fluxes from day to day because of hormone fluxes. As long as I see a downward trend and I see my body changing for the better, I'm satisfied.

    I know they say the numbers don't matter if you are working out and eating right, but it sure does feel good when the numbers go down.
  • NatashaB8
    NatashaB8 Posts: 202
    I weigh myself almost every day (only input it on my weigh-in day, though); weight fluctuates across the week. Could be down now, but pop back up on Sunday. Just take it mentally and keep moving forward. Also yeah 1200 at 6ft and your regimen..... but, enough is on MFP about that much of a deficit.

    This is true! I told myself I wouldn't weigh myself but I was curious haha.
    I am more focused on strength training at the moment so I will have to increase my calories soon.
    I think I will look into smoothies etc to add extra calories since I can't seem to eat them!
  • NatashaB8
    NatashaB8 Posts: 202
    Hi all.

    I restarted MFP for good on Sunday. I started at 12 stone 6lbs and this morning I weighed myself and I was 12 stone 2lbs.
    I have been eating a lot less than usual but I genuinely do not have an appetite right now. I have also exercised 4 times this week with weights and swimming.

    Is the first few pounds lost water weight? I know whenever I first started losing weight the first few pounds would drop the fastest but it hasn't dropped this much! My stomach is already looking a lot less bloated, the first time I have noticed this in a year.

    I know eating 1200 cals or less for a 6ft woman is not enough however I am not hungry, but when I do stop losing weight or get hungry I WILL increase my calories. I just don't see the point in eating more for the sake of it!

    Anyone else experienced this? Thanks in advance :)
    Very common not to be hungry when you are under-eating. Your body stops sending hunger signals to your brain. Why wait and risk messing up your metabolism, when you could prevent that from the beginning? You don't have much weight to lose, so losing a couple of pounds of fat a week is not a very realistic expectation. Having a large calorie deficit, especially if you are not doing any strength training, will encourage your body to use up your muscle stores as well as your fat. You will inevitably lose some muscle as you lose weight anyway, but you risk losing more than is necessary. Muscle burns calories even at rest, so losing that muscle means you burn fewer calories. It also means that you will have to get to a lower weight to achieve the size that you want.

    And yes, much of what you have lost initially will be water weight. Some will likely be fat, and some will be muscle.

    I did not know this! I did find it strange that I of all people was not hungry haha. I broke up with my other half last week so I initially lost my appetite through that and it must have carried on.
    I definitely don't want to lose muscle as I have just started strength training and want to have a lean athletic look!

    Thanks very much for your answer, I will definitely up my calories. :)
  • NatashaB8
    NatashaB8 Posts: 202
    I started back this week too and similarly I lost about 3 pounds in a few days. My guess is it is water weight and my bosy adjusting and losing some bloat from high sodium before watching what I eat. Also, Thanksgiving was last week. Did you celebrate? There are lots of salty and fatty foods that your body was excited to get rid of. Being a woman, my weight fluxes from day to day because of hormone fluxes. As long as I see a downward trend and I see my body changing for the better, I'm satisfied.

    I know they say the numbers don't matter if you are working out and eating right, but it sure does feel good when the numbers go down.

    I am from Scotland so I didn't celebrate Thanksgiving, although the posts about it on here made me hungry!
    Yep I am going to focus on how I look and inches lost rather than weight I think. Will save me buying more scales in the future after I throw these ones out the window!
  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
    Hi all.

    I restarted MFP for good on Sunday. I started at 12 stone 6lbs and this morning I weighed myself and I was 12 stone 2lbs.
    I have been eating a lot less than usual but I genuinely do not have an appetite right now. I have also exercised 4 times this week with weights and swimming.

    Is the first few pounds lost water weight? I know whenever I first started losing weight the first few pounds would drop the fastest but it hasn't dropped this much! My stomach is already looking a lot less bloated, the first time I have noticed this in a year.

    I know eating 1200 cals or less for a 6ft woman is not enough however I am not hungry, but when I do stop losing weight or get hungry I WILL increase my calories. I just don't see the point in eating more for the sake of it!

    Anyone else experienced this? Thanks in advance :)
    Very common not to be hungry when you are under-eating. Your body stops sending hunger signals to your brain. Why wait and risk messing up your metabolism, when you could prevent that from the beginning? You don't have much weight to lose, so losing a couple of pounds of fat a week is not a very realistic expectation. Having a large calorie deficit, especially if you are not doing any strength training, will encourage your body to use up your muscle stores as well as your fat. You will inevitably lose some muscle as you lose weight anyway, but you risk losing more than is necessary. Muscle burns calories even at rest, so losing that muscle means you burn fewer calories. It also means that you will have to get to a lower weight to achieve the size that you want.

    And yes, much of what you have lost initially will be water weight. Some will likely be fat, and some will be muscle.

    I did not know this! I did find it strange that I of all people was not hungry haha. I broke up with my other half last week so I initially lost my appetite through that and it must have carried on.
    I definitely don't want to lose muscle as I have just started strength training and want to have a lean athletic look!

    Thanks very much for your answer, I will definitely up my calories. :)
    If you want an athletic look, then definitely go for a very small calorie deficit. If you don't want to work out numbers yourself, just try setting MFP to lose 0.5 lb a week. It will be slow, but just be patient and t will be really worth it! Get lots of protein too. Lift as heavy as you can to get that lean look. You won't get huge - you won't gain any significant amount of muscle while you're still eating at a deficit, but will just look a lot better!

    The good (and bad) thing about upping your calories is that you will get your appetite back, so you shouldn't be struggling to get them in for too long! In the meantime, if you still can't stomach much, go for more calorie-dense foods like nuts, avocados, healthy oils (added to salad dressings, or to cooking), cheese, full-fat dairy, protein shakes etc.
  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
    Oh, and take progress photos too! :smile:
  • NatashaB8
    NatashaB8 Posts: 202
    Thanks very much!
    I will do just that. I don't mind how long it takes as this is a lifestyle change and I want to achieve that look!

    I am currently doing around 8 reps of the heaviest weights I can. In a few weeks my trainer says he will move me up to free weights but since I am just starting I am still on the machines. I can't wait to see my progress :)

    I will take pictures and hopefully be another success story haha.
  • abardowell
    abardowell Posts: 3
    I started back this week too and similarly I lost about 3 pounds in a few days. My guess is it is water weight and my bosy adjusting and losing some bloat from high sodium before watching what I eat. Also, Thanksgiving was last week. Did you celebrate? There are lots of salty and fatty foods that your body was excited to get rid of. Being a woman, my weight fluxes from day to day because of hormone fluxes. As long as I see a downward trend and I see my body changing for the better, I'm satisfied.

    I know they say the numbers don't matter if you are working out and eating right, but it sure does feel good when the numbers go down.

    Ann what if it is drastic as in my case, after the initial euphoria (started on the 18th) you start to worry a bit.
  • sarahrbraun
    sarahrbraun Posts: 2,261 Member
    Oh, and take progress photos too! :smile:


    this^^^ the photos can tell you if you are losing weight even if the scale doesn't. And if you are lifting, the scale might move slower, so pictures are important so you can see body changes.

    I have had issues with my weight off and on my whole adult life.

    8213431311_eecd2df7b1.jpg
    gray top pics by crochetmom2010, on Flickr

    the left side is back in 2009. I was about 195 pounds, and had started working out with a couple of friends. I lost like 10 pounds before the group dissolved. Over the next 3-4 years I ballooned up to 228 lbs. I have now lost 32 lbs, and the right picture was taken last week. Same shirt as 2009. The only difference is that this time I have been doing strength training. The pictures put it all in perspective for me!
  • abardowell
    abardowell Posts: 3
    bump

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