HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE TO LOSE 40 LBS?

karenj1963
karenj1963 Posts: 2
in Health and Weight Loss
i am a woman, age 51 and currently weigh 170 lbs, i am 5 ft 5" tall and mfp say i should eat 1200 cals a day plus exercise, i walk between 5-8 miles a day on my treadmill, throughout the day, ie an hour in the morning, then lunchtime, then afternoon.

i suffer from arthritis in hips, hand, shoulders, so i have been told not to do strenuous exercise and only to walk on treadmill, not to run at all.

should i aim to lose 1 lb a week, then at xmas time i should be slim?

Replies

  • gypsy_spirit
    gypsy_spirit Posts: 2,107 Member
    In order to lose weight you have to be in a calorie deficit.

    In order to know if you're in a calorie deficit, you have to weigh/measure/log your food.

    Exercise is important to health, but not necessary to lose weight. (walking is great & it's what you can do)

    Eat foods you like, make healthy choices along the way, learn portion control/moderation


    As far as timing, you can set your calories to lose one pound a week and you will probably get close to that. Weight loss is never linear. But the downward trend should be close. Just make sure you are eating at a healthy deficit from your TDEE and being as precise (weigh with a scale) as possible in logging all your food.
  • bradXdale
    bradXdale Posts: 399
    Slow and steady wins the race.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    It took me just under a year to lose 40lbs...aiming for 1lb a week...which is a reasonable goal.

    If MFP has you at 1200 calories a day I suspect you have your weekly weight loss goal higher than 1lb a week...
  • KolindL
    KolindL Posts: 2
    Hi,

    You can loose up to 2 lbs of fat a week - if you try to loose faster you should seek medical advice as you may be loosing other things (such as muscle mass, tissue, water etc.).

    It sounds like 1lbs is a good aim ... some weeks you will find that you may loose a little more, other weeks not as much.
    Things like hormones, water retention etc. can all interfere with the weight loss.

    Hope this helps. :-)

    Slower is definitely a better way, it allows the body to keep up with the loss, but also giving you time to mentally adjust with the loss and allow the new habits to settle.

    Lotte
    (Former WW leader)
  • ell_v131
    ell_v131 Posts: 349 Member
    If you set for 1lb/week, you should be at healthy weight by christmas provided that you weigh all your food and track it accurately, and eat back your exercise calories, i'd recomend 50-80% depending on what works for you.

    Good luck!

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