How long did it take to lose the first 15?

I'm 5'6" and started at 218 at the beginning of June. I'm only now hitting the 15 lb mark. I'm netting about 1600 cals/day and exercising 6 days a week.

I am still working on the first 15 myself. I think the biggest part of my journey has been my research. I am happy to say that after gaining even a slight knowledge of what I refer to as "the balance," I am starting to lose something even better than weight... I am losing inches. Now that I log my foods, even if I have a "bad" day, I know where I went wrong and it helps me make smarter decisions for tomorrow. This at the very least has helped me staying on track and not give up over one day of binging, which I would've done before. There is that whole saying ending in it 'takes family and friends 12 weeks to notice...' or whatever, well I received my first compliment on the way my weight is being carried yesterday and that feels so good.

@iublondie25 In my humble opinion, it kind of sounds like you are not fueling your body enough. I am only saying so based on your stats and my VERY basic knowledge of TDEE. I am sure you are making great eating choice and log everything because you sound like you are on a mission, but (and I hate to throw it out there) starvation mode is real and I think you may want to consider research. As mentioned above and in my opinion, weight loss is finding a balance between fuel input and output. As your body changes, the balance will too. Currently, I am about 240 and 5'6" and am eating about 1590 cal (about a 700 cal deficit) each day plus working out 3X a week. Even with that, I am still experiencing slow but gradual weight loss and even better, losing inches. I just know that it really helped me to look into and thought it would do you some good too.

I am 38, 5'7" 198 pounds. I am a fat mom to five working on becoming a fit mom to five. I definitely have an athletic build. I am working out at least 5 times a week....spinning, boot camp, power (lifting) class, kick class, etc......I count my calories and am making better food choices.....I do not cheat. Even if it is chocolate I log it.....I stay around 1,200 calories per day.

I started July 5th........Now on August 13th I hover between a 5-7 pounds loss.


While I AM NOT GOING TO STOP!!!!!!! I would like to hear about other people's experience on when they loss their first 15. It is my first goal. I do realize that the 50 pounds I want to lose won't come off overnight...I would like to see the scale move.

Please share your story with me....

Hi there,

I started at 181 in Jan... I was at 198 two years ago after my 3rd baby but over the coars of a year I got down to 181... then I started Mfp. I too did the 1200 cals a day if that for about 3 months 2 of those months I started working out 5-6 times a week TONS of cardio probably 7-10 of cardio... Anyhow I lost about 15 lbs in those three months then came to a hault... I am now on month 9 but have done a ton of research and realized I need to eat WAY more than I had been.

1. While losing weight you don't have to starve...
2. U need to use weights!!! Lift Heavy!
3. Fuel your body... I am now in the stage of restoring my damaged metabolism... I am floating around 160, but I have like you an athletic build and at 5'3 no one ever believes me that I weigh as much as I do. I am okay with this, I focus more on how my clothes are shrinking along with my monthly pics! That shows me way more than the scale. I can't lie I still Hate getting weighed. My UGW is 145ish... I think I would look awesome here and be able to complete more of my fitness goals at this weight.
4. Eat more protein... I shoot for 140g of protein daily... I don't always hit it, but I think this will help muscle recovery faster.
5. of course drink your water! I drink at least 3 liters a day... I eat my cals not drink them )

Check out this link http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
plug in your numbers and slowly work up to eating that much daily... You are under eating so much I think your body is like I am not going to starve so its holding on to everything... Keep going and keep researching!!!

We want a lifestyle change not just to lose the weight!!!

Between week 6 and 7.

Here's sort of a breakdown for my loss that I've been keeping track:

week 1 June 10-17 6.6lbs lost
Week 3 June 24-30 2.6lbs lost
week 4 July 1-7 1.2lbs lost
week 5 July 8-14 1.4 lbs lost
week 6 July 15-21 1.2 lbs lost
week 7 July 22-28 2.2 lbs lost
week 8 July 29-Aug 4 1.6 lbs lost
week 9 Aug 5-11 1.6 lbs lost

90-95 days. I've been averaging 1650+, I lift heavy 3 days a week and dink about with cardio 2-3 days. I'm 5' 3" and 149 right now.

70 days I think give or take. I started 189 and now 171ish.

Four months with a lot of trial and error. I eat about 2000 calories a day. Exercise 3-4 times a week.

a few months

Don't get too discouraged! Muscle weighs more than fat and if you are doing strength training as well, the scale won't be able to tell you the fat loss without telling you the muscle gained. Do body measurements. Or go to your gym and get a body fat percentage test done. You're doing a great job it sounds like! Keep at it and just keep trying on that pair of jeans you've been wanting to fit into! I'm so done with the scale. My measurements are decreasing monthly but my weight lingers around the same. Just keep doing strength training with your cardio so the muscle will help you burn that fat. You'll reach your goals!

Still working on the first 15! Started towards the end July though, so I don't see it happening this month.