Is it possible to lose 20 pounds by christmas?

petitepeanutbutter
petitepeanutbutter Posts: 9 Member
edited November 8 in Introduce Yourself
Hello! I'm back on the weight loss train yet again after gaining 40+ pounds in a year due to mental health concerns...anyway, I am very determined to change my life around this holiday season. I did it once, I can do it again (and so can you!) However, I don't want to set my goals too high...I was hoping to get some friendly feedback on my plan..which I began yesterday (11/17) at an embarrassing 150 llbs (5'1 19 y/o Female) However, to be honest, a big reason why my weight was so high was due to water retention as a result of a weekend of emotional binging. Before the binging, I was 140 llbs. So I reckon the first few pounds will melt pretty quickly since a majority of it is water and salt.

Anyway, to the meat of my plan (pun intended): I will be consuming ~1,300 calories a day of balanced, nourishing foods. I am on a meal plan given to me by my dietician (I'm recovering from BED and Bulimia) so I am confident I will be eating a wide diversity of foods and nutrients. As for exercise, I have been using our elliptical trainer in the morning and at night. Soon, I plan on going to our local YMCA and reestablishing my membership. I plan to use the treadmill and some weights there.

To wrap up, I am wondering if given the above information it could be feasible to aim for losing around 20 pounds by Christmas (given that I do not engage in ED behaviors.) I have made a promise to myself not to step on the scale until then, but do you think it's wishful thinking to want to see 128-130 llbs on the screen when I do? Given that I'm young, coming out of binge phases, ext.

Thanks for reading my wall of text! Happy Holidays!

EDIT: Sorry for posting this in the wrong thread... :\

Replies

  • VeryKatie
    VeryKatie Posts: 5,961 Member
    You'll probably want to eat back 50 - 75% of your exercise calories. I'd be worried if you're burning a lot but not eating more (minimum net 1200). Why don't you set a goal of 10 lbs instead and let yourself be pleasantly surprised if you happen to get 15 or 20? That would be a good Christmas gift to yourself, no?
  • petitepeanutbutter
    petitepeanutbutter Posts: 9 Member
    Thank you, Katie. I might just do that :) You have a really good point...setting my goals too high can just lead me back down an unhealthy path I'm not too keen on revisiting.
  • hortensehildegarde
    hortensehildegarde Posts: 592 Member
    So you are really talking more like 10lbs right? (after you drop the water weight?)
  • AJ_G
    AJ_G Posts: 4,158 Member
    Anything is possible. Is it a good idea? Not at all.
  • petitepeanutbutter
    petitepeanutbutter Posts: 9 Member
    hortensehildegarde wrote: »
    So you are really talking more like 10lbs right? (after you drop the water weight?)

    Yes, I suppose you're right...which seems much more manageable...
  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
    Given that you do not (plan on) engage in ED behaviors...no, it is not.

    Christmas is 5 weeks away. Even at a consistent 2lbs/wk, you would only lose 10 pounds.

    Even if you have a great first week and lose, say 8 pounds of water weight, you would still only expect to lose about 16 between now and Christmas.

    Even Biggest Loser contestants, who are twice your size and exercising for hours at a time, do not always consistently lose 4+ lbs every week.
  • mkdm291
    mkdm291 Posts: 139 Member
    Congratulations on your admirable goal of getting healthy again as is the goal for all on this forum. However, I would be fearful of placing an aggressive weight loss goal with an additional aggressive timeline given your history with an eating disorder. This sounds like a recipe for returning to unhealthy behaviors.
    According to your post, you are using the "elliptical trainer in the morning and at night". For how long? Be sure you're not over training and are eating back some of those calories.
    As far as weight loss, Christmas is one month away. A healthy goal would be 2 pounds a week. My advice would be to keep it there.
    Best of luck!
  • PrizePopple
    PrizePopple Posts: 3,133 Member
    No.

    If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
    If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
    If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
    If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
    If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal

    It's less than 6 weeks until Christmas. With only 20 pounds to lose you shouldn't aim for more than a 3-6 pound loss. Could you lose more? Perhaps, but it's not going to be done in a healthy sustainable manner. The chances of putting it back on as soon as you start eating properly would be pretty good too. Might as well do it the proper way now and not end up back here in a few months with the same weight to re-lose.
  • petitepeanutbutter
    petitepeanutbutter Posts: 9 Member
    I wish losing weight was as easy as gaining, sigh. But thank you all for being the voice of reason! I tend to get overly excited when I initially make a plan haha...but yes hopefully in a few months I'll have some progress to write about!

    Thanks again for the kind replies!
  • KendraMartin85
    KendraMartin85 Posts: 33
    Love that you are taking the advice and being flexible with your goal. I really like the idea of beginning with a smaller goal and if you surpass that, then you'll be even happier with yourself instead of not reaching your goal and being upset.
  • LeonCX
    LeonCX Posts: 862 Member
    edited November 2014
    Your plan sounds great. :) but your expectations...unrealistic. What's the rush? Why not make the first day of Spring your goal?
  • MscGray
    MscGray Posts: 304 Member
    Yes its "possible" but probably not the healthiest of ideas, especially since you are recovering from ED....Its great that you are ready to recommit to weight loss, and I understand the desire to have awesome and quick results, but I would recommend lowering your expectations, and to set a more reasonable goal and/or time frame. Know for someone your size to lose what your looking to shed it would probably be advisable to aim for .5-1 lb per week...so just bear that in mind and continue to eat as outlined and you will get the results you want (maybe just not as soon as you want them) :wink:
  • petitepeanutbutter
    petitepeanutbutter Posts: 9 Member
    Thank you, thank you, thank you. I think my new goal is to just step on the scale and see a smaller number. Why complicate it? :p
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