40 pounds in 6 months?

starzie0928
starzie0928 Posts: 5 Member
edited November 8 in Introduce Yourself
How attainable is 40 pounds in 6 months if i really stick to my guns on drinking water and changing my diet and working out 5 days a week?

Me and my friend are going in together on a gym membership (i have never been to a gym) and I honestly will be happy if I lost half of that because then I know that I can keep going. It's just getting started and staying on track.

What do you all do to keep on track?

Replies

  • AJ_G
    AJ_G Posts: 4,158 Member
    That's about 1.6 pounds per week of weight loss. It's probably towards the upper end in terms of speed of what you want to be losing, but it's definitely attainable. It's going to come down to your daily calorie deficit.
  • starzie0928
    starzie0928 Posts: 5 Member
    i mean.. if i lost 30 in 6 months i'd be happy.. honestly toning up would make me happy too... but i would love to be 150 that would make me happier and i'd feel so much better about myself and know that i could do more if i wanted.
  • normusmc
    normusmc Posts: 6 Member
    Anything is possible, self-control and DISCIPLINE. Use all tools available to you, my fitness pal, workout apps, etc..just don't overwhelm yourself by trying to do too much in the beginning. Baby steps. Don't beat yourself up when you "miss a workout, over-indulge, etc," but to brush this back-track "error", get up and keep on going...."
    Let it hurt-USMC
  • mrsbunbunbun
    mrsbunbunbun Posts: 49 Member
    That's pretty much how quickly it's been coming off for me, but I haven't been obsessed with the speed - only the eventual destination, and even then, I'm open to seeing how I feel. Especially now with about 10-12 lbs to go, I have no timeline, and I'm good with that. It's really taking it a day at a time, a week at a time, and if you have a bad day, try not to let it ruin the whole week. Each week, I try to do SOMETHING better than I did the week before, whether it's consistency or intensity of my exercise or tweaking my eating one way or another for the better... Before you know it, the weeks have just added up, and the pounds lost, too. But it's a journey. It's fine to have a goal weight, but 6 months is sort of an arbitrary timeframe. I would say, "Let's see how much we can lose in 6 months," but not to set yourselves up for disappointment or beating yourself up if you don't hit X number by Y date. o:)
  • AJ_G
    AJ_G Posts: 4,158 Member
    Yea you can easily lose 30lbs in 6 months if you stay on point
  • starzie0928
    starzie0928 Posts: 5 Member
    yeah i'm not trying to set myself up for failure. I am sure that just feeling better and stronger will be all I need to keep going. I know I didn't get like this overnight so it will take longer than overnight to fix it. And it really is a lifestyle change and replacing allot of the bad habits that I have developed over the years.
  • starzie0928
    starzie0928 Posts: 5 Member
    Thank you all. This is helping allot.
  • Jesslane93
    Jesslane93 Posts: 190 Member
    I lost 40 lbs in 7 1/2 months. I worked out 5 days a week for between 30min and 1 hr. And stuck to around 1600 cal a day.
  • Sophiareed218
    Sophiareed218 Posts: 145 Member
    It's possible. But that might be an ambitious goal for your current weight. Here's my advice. Get a food scale if you don't have one already. Weigh everything. Log accurately. I am doing 1200 calories, but that may not be appropriate for your needs. I have lost 23 pounds in about 2 1/2 months. So 40 in six months could be done. Good luck!
  • BiancaMarie819
    BiancaMarie819 Posts: 67 Member
    I think it's totally possible if you do stick to your guns! I lost around 30+ in 3 months with minimum cheats and the gym almost everyday, I did become gym/diet obsessed though, put my health over friendships, but then gained half of it back when I returned to college ways. Now I'm at it again and this time in 3 months I've lost 18lbs but I "party" and go out to eat with friends more often. I guess this is kind of redundant but it truly depends on you, do you want to go hard for 6months and lose all the weight? Or take it easy and when you get there you get there. It's about finding a balance, but you can totally do it, good luck!

    What really helps me is a plan. I have planned workouts with what I'm going to to do, I plan my food, I plan my days around workouts.
  • PeterSedesse
    PeterSedesse Posts: 124
    Just remember to not become discouraged if you are working out hard and not losing weight quickly enough. If you are new to the gym, it is not unusual to put on some good muscle weight. Losing ´weight´should be a secondary goal... losing fat should be the priority.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    starzie0928 wrote: »
    How attainable is 40 pounds in 6 months if i really stick to my guns on drinking water and changing my diet and working out 5 days a week?

    Me and my friend are going in together on a gym membership (i have never been to a gym) and I honestly will be happy if I lost half of that because then I know that I can keep going. It's just getting started and staying on track.

    What do you all do to keep on track?

    I did it - well 38lbs from June to November

    lost at 2lb a week to begin with, then 1lb a week, now 0.5lb a week

    Honestly, I've found it relatively easy - weigh all food on digital scale, log it, eat back 50% of exercise calories, or buy an HRM, walk more on days you aren't working out (I have a fitbit to track that activity)

    I workout with a trainer once a week, on my own once a week and go to a pilates class once a week, I walked the dog a lot during the summer too
  • Spencerport
    Spencerport Posts: 270 Member
    I accomplished losing 45 pounds in 6 months. I was 278 in the beginning of April, by the beginning of October I was down to 235. As others have said Discipline is key! I logged all the food I ate with MFP. I exercised daily by either walking or kayaking. I track my daily steps with a Fitbit.
  • stardust6060
    stardust6060 Posts: 5 Member
    You can do it! I've done it and I'm 60 and have a full time job. My Fitness Pal helped a LOT! But I had to get up off the couch! Get a pedometer to show you how good you are doing. Positive feed back helped me too. Set little mini goals, 10 more steps today or 1 lb this week. Log in every day and watch the food you eat. Make better choices in your food and the time you spend away from the couch. And it looks like you have a lot of help here! Stay strong!
  • LeonCX
    LeonCX Posts: 862 Member
    Sounds reasonable and not too far fetched. I'm rootin for ya. B)
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
    Yes but it takes focus and commitment, especially if you want to do it properly. Learn what it involves, prepare proerly and get the right mindset so you carry it through. Dont forget its 80% diet, so avoid the beginner mistakes which you see on the threads of people who have run into trouble.
  • jbb86
    jbb86 Posts: 39 Member
    Its reasonable, I have managed to lose 70 in 6 months with portion control and running 6 days a week.
  • djprice_69
    djprice_69 Posts: 115 Member
    One easy way to look at it is that one pound is 3500kcal. To lose one pound a week, cut out 3500kcal from your BMR every week, or roughly 500 calories shy of your BMR every day. Want to accelerate that weight loss? Work out to create even more of a deficit. Just be sure that you're going to properly nourish your body by eating properly. As others have stated already, it comes off quick & easy in the beginning but takes more effort over time.
  • ntw25
    ntw25 Posts: 149 Member
    Sounds fair, but as other have said, if you are working out you may be better off measuring rather than just weighing. I know that for me, while the weight is coming off, there are discouraging weeks, it is then that I look at the measuring tape and smile.

    Fitbit is great, it really encourages movement and above all, log everything that you eat. It becomes a habit quite quickly.

    There are loads of great people on here that can help and advise. Feel free to add me, I log every day and workout 3/4 times a week. I can always do with extra encouragement and motivation.

    Good luck and enjoy
  • jrline
    jrline Posts: 2,353 Member
    Very attainable stay positive, drink lots of water, and log everything. Good Luck

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  • peachyfuzzle
    peachyfuzzle Posts: 1,122 Member
    djprice_69 wrote: »
    One easy way to look at it is that one pound is 3500kcal. To lose one pound a week, cut out 3500kcal from your BMR every week, or roughly 500 calories shy of your BMR every day. Want to accelerate that weight loss? Work out to create even more of a deficit. Just be sure that you're going to properly nourish your body by eating properly. As others have stated already, it comes off quick & easy in the beginning but takes more effort over time.

    Don't cut it out from your BMR. Cut it out from your TDEE. TDEE = BMR + Daily Energy Expenditure. BMR by itself is your basal metabolic rate which is the number of calories your body needs just to stay alive. Eating under your BMR is unhealthy because at that point you're not even giving your body enough energy to sustain itself let alone any other activities you do per day.

    It is most definitely attainable. It just takes vigilance, and the proper attitude.
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