I know it is only 10 pounds, but....

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jenniferwoodweeg
jenniferwoodweeg Posts: 45 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am 41, 5'7 and weigh 144. I began a 1200 cal/day diet about 3.5 weeks ago. I have lost only 4 pounds!! I diligently record everything I eat, I do 30 min per day exercise video(I am NOT in shape) and the MFP says I should be losing about 2 pounds per week based on this. I do not compensate by adding extra calories either after I record excercise. My goal is 135. I realize this is a small amount of weight to lose. Maybe it is more difficult to lose because I have so little to lose? I don't know. Bright side is I feel awesome and the husband says I look better already. I am medium build and like I said, did not excercise before this and have office job. Maybe I should step it up a bit by adding weights to target that flabby underarm fat..So, goal is 135, and bikini ready body asap. I know..patience-UGH!:yawn:

Replies

  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
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    Four pounds is actually very good. It could be that it's harder to lose because of your size and age. You also might not be burning as many calories as you think. Check your logging, measure and weigh everything, try to increase your intensity (but nothing crazy if you're not in shape) and don't give up.

    Strength training is good, but the only way to lose the underarm fat is to the lose the fat, which is done by overall fat lose. Your results will depend on your genes.
  • jenniferwoodweeg
    jenniferwoodweeg Posts: 45 Member
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    Thank you-great advice! I know I may need to look at those body fat measurements since weight loss is just that.:blushing: :smile:
  • jenniferwoodweeg
    jenniferwoodweeg Posts: 45 Member
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    Oh, and you are so right about the food weighing as my friend does who competes in fitness competitions-will do! Also-will increase exercise.
  • nicheven
    nicheven Posts: 77 Member
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    I agree that 4 lbs is good, especially in 3.5 weeks :D remember, the closer we are to our goals, the longer it takes to lose, but a 1-2 lb loss a week is healthy. I have a lot farther to go than 10 lbs, and I lose about 1.4lbs a week. Its going to take me forever to get to my goal, but this time I'm doing it right and I refuse to fail.
  • elyelyse
    elyelyse Posts: 1,454 Member
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    at your height and starting weight, that is actually very fast. 2 pounds a week is not a reasonable/healthy goal for you. You are telling MFP your goal, and its giving you 1200 calories because that is considered THE lowest number of calories a day for a woman. You would be much better off setting it to .5 or 1 a week, and being patient. It's much healthier, and in the end you will look better because you will lose more fat (losing too fast results in losing more muscle than slower loss).
  • jenniferwoodweeg
    jenniferwoodweeg Posts: 45 Member
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    I really have a great deal of respect and can empathize w/ your goals. I used to weigh over 200 pounds and it took over 3 years to lose. I did not do this in a healthy way either, just lost due to a crazy, unstable lifestyle then. Thanks for taking the time answering for post! Great inspiration!
  • slimer_kim
    slimer_kim Posts: 5 Member
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    Hey!
    I am 143, and I am aiming for 135 too. Slow is expected... there are calculators online that can give you a predicted date of when you'll reach your goal. I don't expect to reach it until into August!! Losing weight takes forever when you don't have too much to go.. just keep at it - keep motivated.
  • oiseau17
    oiseau17 Posts: 142 Member
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    MFP will never give you a calorie goal under 1200, so at your height and weight I'm guessing it'll tell you 1200 cals even if you set your weight loss to 1.5 lbs/week or maybe even 1 lb/week. The less you weigh, the harder it is to squeeze a sizable deficit in there and still get the nutrition you need. You're already at a healthy weight, so just keep doing what you're doing and you'll get to where you want to be in good time :)
  • britneyy32
    britneyy32 Posts: 97 Member
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    I think that's really good progress for only 3.5 weeks! I've been trying to lose my last 10 lbs for months now, I've only lost probably about 3 lbs this whole year.. it's been so difficult for me to get these last 10 lbs off.
  • popsicklestar
    popsicklestar Posts: 166 Member
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    You're definitely losing weight slower because you are close to your goal. I have similar stats to you. I'm 5'7'' and am now trying to go from 142 to 135. I could do 2 pounds a week when I started losing weight, but since I've gotten closer to my goal, it comes off much slower. I guess we just have to be patient and diligent, and we'll get there. You're not doing anything wrong. The only other things you can do are to eat really clean and workout hard!
  • kara2
    kara2 Posts: 83 Member
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    For so many years I would get frustrated with women that only had ten lbs to lose since I need to lose a lot more than that. But since joining this site I have new respect for how hard ti must be to get that last pesky ten lbs off. I agree with what others have posted. When I take measurements it is amazing to see that I might not be moving on the scale but I have lost some inches. I also think taking pictures helps us to visually see the changes. Best of luck with these last ten lbs. I can't wait until I can say that too. keep it up.
  • angelpinkgal
    angelpinkgal Posts: 16 Member
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    Im also supposed to be loosing 2lbs a week but i only loose about 1. Its pretty normal :)
  • Puffingmuffin
    Puffingmuffin Posts: 76 Member
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    Hey, I'm exactly your height, however I think you should be more patient. I was 135 pounds at the start of January 2013 and it took me 5 months to lose 12 pounds. It's a long and painful process particularly if you are not overweight to begin with and don't exercise very intensely. I am trying to lose another 10 pounds, I'm going to speed it up by running 6 days a week (6km/day) and daily squats and lunges.

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