Should I be worried?

RainRedfield
RainRedfield Posts: 597 Member
edited January 24 in Food and Nutrition
7.6 pounds gone in 8 days... Should I be worried?

Last Tuesday I switched from a diet of around 2000-2400 calories per day to about 1100-1200 per day.
My exercise has only marginally increased, but I am leading a fairly sedentary lifestyle right now.

Basically I switched from Market Sandwiches (and a bit of fast food) to eating VERY cleanly.

Noticing the rapid drop in weight brought me BACK TO MFP so I could better track my calories and weight.
I realize I'm barely eating enough, but still 7.6 pounds seems like a lot to lose in this time frame.

Thanks

Replies

  • JenMc14
    JenMc14 Posts: 2,389 Member
    A lot of that was probably water. 1100-1200 seems fairly low, especially if you're a guy. I wouldn't worry too much about a rapid weight loss unless you're doing a consistently VLCD without a doctor's supervision or notice a big weight drop when you've made no changes in your lifestyle.
  • cals83
    cals83 Posts: 131
    If you went from eating fast food to eating cleanly you are probably taking in a lot less sodium which would help flush out excess water/bloat.
  • majope
    majope Posts: 1,325 Member
    How do you define "clean"? If it involves either/both lower in sodium and lower in carbs, you lost a bunch of water. Actually, it would be hard to halve your calories without eating fewer carbs, so that was almost certainly part of it. Your calorie reduction looks like enough to have dropped 1.5-2 pounds of fat, so you can assume the rest was probably water.

    Incidentally, those are crazy low calories for a man--or indeed, for most women. Check here to see if you might need to up them: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/975025-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet
  • RainRedfield
    RainRedfield Posts: 597 Member
    @Majope -

    Nothing Fried,
    No dairy (that hasn't changed)
    Minimal Breads (and only whole grain),
    Low Carb (except the fresh fruit I have for breakfast)
    Low Sodium
    Added a lot of fresh fruits and veggies
    Only eating skinless chicken (rather than eating every greasy meat I can find)

    Drinking 8-12 glasses of water per day (water intake increased slightly)
  • thisismeraw
    thisismeraw Posts: 1,264 Member
    Why are you eating so little?

    The weight loss you saw is going to be a mixture of water and muscle with a small bit of fat mixed in. I would be worried about large losses when eating so little calories since the amount of muscle loss you experience will be much higher than with a proper deficit.

    No male should be eating that little... no woman should be only eating 1100-1200 calories in a day.
  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    1100-1200 calories a day isn't a lot for a grown man. That's a very low calorie diet (VLCD). If you continue to eat at such low levels, you are going to risk losing muscle along with fat. You may find that acceptable, but remember that it's muscle which shapes our bodies and will directly affect the end result. You may not be happy with your appearance when you get to your goal weight. And muscle is hard to rebuild.

    Just something worth thinking about. It's possible to eat "clean" and still get more calories.
  • RainRedfield
    RainRedfield Posts: 597 Member
    Thanks all. I will try to eat more. I just don't have a huge appetite for healthy food yet. My body is still trying to tell me it is craving JUNK. I keep telling it NO and am dead set that it will stop begging for it sooner or later.
  • PlayerHatinDogooder
    PlayerHatinDogooder Posts: 1,018 Member
    A lot of that was probably water. 1100-1200 seems fairly low, especially if you're a guy. I wouldn't worry too much about a rapid weight loss unless you're doing a consistently VLCD without a doctor's supervision or notice a big weight drop when you've made no changes in your lifestyle.

    This.

    I'd be more worried about your moustache.
  • Fozzi43
    Fozzi43 Posts: 2,984 Member
    You need to eat more..I'm five ft nothing and am on around 1450/1500 calories a day.
  • jzammetti
    jzammetti Posts: 1,956 Member
    1100-1200 calories a day isn't a lot for a grown man. That's a very low calorie diet (VLCD). If you continue to eat at such low levels, you are going to risk losing muscle along with fat. You may find that acceptable, but remember that it's muscle which shapes our bodies and will directly affect the end result. You may not be happy with your appearance when you get to your goal weight. And muscle is hard to rebuild.

    Just something worth thinking about. It's possible to eat "clean" and still get more calories.

    I agree with this - but do not have an opinion on eating clean since I do not do that. 1200 calories will eventually be a problem for you. Lean Body mass also drives our metabolism - so you will slow yours as you lose it.
  • Mainebikerchick
    Mainebikerchick Posts: 1,573 Member
    A lot of that was probably water. 1100-1200 seems fairly low, especially if you're a guy. I wouldn't worry too much about a rapid weight loss unless you're doing a consistently VLCD without a doctor's supervision or notice a big weight drop when you've made no changes in your lifestyle.

    This.

    I'd be more worried about your moustache.

    Is that what that was?? :tongue:
  • da_bears10089
    da_bears10089 Posts: 1,791 Member
    Just because you are on a diet, doesn't mean you have to go strictly to "healthy food". you can still eat whatever you want, just less of it.
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