First week weight loss

Hey guys. So I started using MFP on Monday, and so far it has been great, I just have one question.

I'm a pretty big guy, and since Monday I have dropped 8 pounds. I've been going to the gym every day, and am always bout 600-700 calories under my goal (which is like 2900 with my exercise) but I am always full. I was just wondering if it was normal for the first week's loss to be this outstanding?

Thanks!

Replies

  • 4legsRbetterthan2
    4legsRbetterthan2 Posts: 19,590 MFP Moderator
    Did you weight yourself on the same scale at the same time of day (most people do it first thing in the morning to help eliminate variables) if not it might just be a fluke; most people also see some swings in their weight day to day, thats just normal. If you are confident the weights are accurate then yes; sometimes people have big drops their first week. Give it time and if it is still worrisome in another couple weeks look into it again.
  • Hi usually first week is the easiest for me to because your body start doing thinks that you don't usually do and burn more calories and fat. Don't put in your mind that you will always drop that much pounds every week because I was thinking like that in the past and did't take me anywhere, I lost motivation, was more angry and all my pounds come back and I start again but now with MFP and I will do this time.
  • adepko
    adepko Posts: 57 Member
    It often seems that the larger the person, the faster the weight comes off. For example, when my dad began his journey (and if you have ever watched The Biggest Loser), they drop big numbers right away because they have so much weight to lose. Once your weight starts to drop to the area much closer to your target, weight starts to come off slower.

    A very unscientific and inferential answer, but my thoughts. :)
  • Yeah, I weigh myself in the morning on the same scale. I sure wish it would be like this every day. :P Thanks guys.
  • grimendale
    grimendale Posts: 2,153 Member
    The first week is always large. When you start to eat at a deficit, you burn through your glycogen stores. Glycogen is bonded to water, so you shed a lot of water, which is quite dense. It is not uncommon to see losses of 5 to 10 lbs the first week due to water weight loss. Understand that most of this is not fat loss and will come back when you start eating at maintenance again (and you glycogen stores get replinished). Understand that it is going to be much slower from here on in, and that it will not be linear. Some weeks you will lose and some you won't. That's normal. Unless you've stalled for at least a month, just be patient. If you do plateau, there are lots of threads here about how to break them. Good luck.
  • mdepko
    mdepko Posts: 283 Member
    I lost 14 lbs my first week and did nothing different except the amount of food I ate. Don't sweat it, and don't expect it to happen again. Being large, you'll lose weight pretty quickly at first, but IT WILL SLOW DOWN! Stick with your program and worry about progress happening, not how large the progress is.
  • Lizzy622
    Lizzy622 Posts: 3,705 Member
    Just don't get discouraged is you don't see the same kind of drop in the future.