'Smaller' girls and rate of weight loss/calories eaten
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ILiftHeavyAcrylics wrote: »I'm about your size. 5'4" 125 lbs.
2 lbs per week is not an appropriate weight loss goal at your current height/weight. I'd aim for half a pound per week. The leaner you get the greater the risk of muscle loss from dieting, so personally I think it's better to make sure you're not losing too much. I think 1.5 lbs per week is even a bit too much.
You say you're worried about how you'll look this summer so I'll tell you a bit of a cautionary tale-- I ate at a reasonable deficit but didn't do anything else to preserve muscle. When I got to my goal weight I still felt terrible and unhappy because I had sacrificed too much muscle just to get to that "perfect number." You're not going to have your weight stamped across your forehead-- it'd be better imo to look healthy and fit at 135 lbs than it would be to look flabby at 115.
Yes! I'm 5'2" and while I would love to lose at 2 lbs/week, getting to my goal in less than 3 months, I know that just isn't feasible at my height and weight. I find that losing more than 1 lb./week is very difficult and not realistic while also living life. When I'm within my healthy weight range, I tend to average 1/2 lb/week weight loss. Kudos to you for losing 1.5/week, but don't be discouraged if that slows down as you approach your goal. Instead of focusing on your disappointment at not meeting an unrealistic goal, focus on the progress that you are making and adjust your expectations.
I really like a free app called Libra. You can track your daily weight and it shows a trend line (so daily ups and downs are accounted for and are less frustrating) and it also shows the date that you're trending to hit your goal. It's very motivating and encouraging! Good luck!0 -
You can't expect to see a change daily, especially not when you're a healthy BMI now. I recommend you log your daily weights in Trendweight or a similar app. Weight loss is a jagged-lined journey, whether you do it fast or slow. You need to be aware of your overall trend, not daily blips.... it still feels very slow and I'd like to lose more as there seem to be too many days where I've looked at the scale and seen no change.
The more drastic the lifestyle change, the more slow the weight loss feels. Your losses are actually fast right now. 1.5 lbs/week in healthy BMI is rare. You might need to re-assess your expectations.
I know how you feel, though. I think we forget that past weight loss wasn't as simple and quick as we remember it years later. Or we forget the lengths we went to then to achieve fast losses.
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Thanks Leslie, I'll see how it goes I think. I'm hoping I'll start seeing a change in my body after a couple more weeks due to the workouts and if the weight loss continues maybe I'll start to feel better. Also, I think of my weight in stones being from the UK and being over the 10 stone mark is depressing, so maybe when I see the scale showing my weight in the 9s again I'll be more encouraged to accept a slower weight loss. Clothes will also be a good marker as I've only got 2 pairs of jeans I can fit into right now. One pair came from a charity shop because I was fed up wearing just the other pair and didn't want to buy new as I was hoping to lose weight.
I'll check out the App you suggested, is it on Android or IOS?0 -
ILiftHeavyAcrylics wrote: »I'm about your size. 5'4" 125 lbs.
2 lbs per week is not an appropriate weight loss goal at your current height/weight. I'd aim for half a pound per week. The leaner you get the greater the risk of muscle loss from dieting, so personally I think it's better to make sure you're not losing too much. I think 1.5 lbs per week is even a bit too much.
You say you're worried about how you'll look this summer so I'll tell you a bit of a cautionary tale-- I ate at a reasonable deficit but didn't do anything else to preserve muscle. When I got to my goal weight I still felt terrible and unhappy because I had sacrificed too much muscle just to get to that "perfect number." You're not going to have your weight stamped across your forehead-- it'd be better imo to look healthy and fit at 135 lbs than it would be to look flabby at 115.
Listen to this woman.
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I'm sorry, but I just do not understand why at 40 years of age and your past history of dieting, you cannot accept losing weight at a slower, healthier rate? You mentioned a few times how you are not going to be happy if you don't do it by a certain deadline. You have convinced yourself of this and as such, you can expect those results. Perhaps you need to address the underlying issues that cause you to have such negative self-talk that leads to self-fulfilling prophecies.
It seems to me that you view healthy living as a painful, punishing process rather than the opportunity to see all the wonderful things your body can give you when you take the right approach...0 -
I'm 5'5.5" and as of my last weigh in I'm down to 133.6 and I lose on average about 1-2lbs a week. Some less, some more and I would eat an average of 1350-1500 most days. I don't normally eat back exercise calories though.
Edited to add: my calorie goal is set at 1440 to lose .5 lb a week. My setting is lightly active due to being a stay at home mom of 5 kids under 7.0 -
ILiftHeavyAcrylics wrote: »I'm about your size. 5'4" 125 lbs.
2 lbs per week is not an appropriate weight loss goal at your current height/weight. I'd aim for half a pound per week. The leaner you get the greater the risk of muscle loss from dieting, so personally I think it's better to make sure you're not losing too much. I think 1.5 lbs per week is even a bit too much.
You say you're worried about how you'll look this summer so I'll tell you a bit of a cautionary tale-- I ate at a reasonable deficit but didn't do anything else to preserve muscle. When I got to my goal weight I still felt terrible and unhappy because I had sacrificed too much muscle just to get to that "perfect number." You're not going to have your weight stamped across your forehead-- it'd be better imo to look healthy and fit at 135 lbs than it would be to look flabby at 115.
I agree with this.
I'm currently 5'3 and 127, planning on 115-20 as a goal. I had a body fat test (DXA) in late September and another one today. During the period in-between I've lost a good amount of weight (average 1.3 lbs/week, despite a stall in December, go figure), and lowered my body fat by 5 percentage points, which I'm happy about. But I've lost lean mass, which I did not have to spare, despite the fact that I've been weight training and doing lots of cardio (not that that necessarily helps) and eating on average 1600 calories. My lesson from this is that I'm going to accept a slower rate of loss.0 -
Sorry VeryKatie but I don't agree, and your comment isn't helpful. I am not losing weight quickly or unsafely.
Hope, you're eating pretty much the same amount of calories as I am at the moment, but minus the fast days which I'm not adding in right now. Are you also working out? If not, maybe that's why it's taking you a long time to reach your goal especially as you're got less to lose than me.
I usually have 2 protein drinks per day, one is a meal replacement I have for breakfast and the other is for dinner, though some days I replace it with a soup as I don't always want a cold drink at night. I have been aiming for 80-100g of protein per day though, and carbs below 100g.
Do you eat back your exercise calories? I thought not, that's why I was worried. Most diets are usually doctor supervised if the NET calories are less than 900ish, which is what I kind of mentally calculated yours would average out to with 5:2, not eating back exercise, and 1100 on feast days. I might have misinterpreted. This is so they can monitor muscle and bone loss (which at low calories is a high risk) as well as the damage it could cause to your organs including your heart. High protein won't save you on anything there, other than a bit of muscle perhaps (though unlikely since you're eating below your BMR and your body won't be able to use it to heal your muscles if it's using it just to keep you alive). It can actually make your body secrete calcium and make bone loss worse.0 -
Please ignore my previous comments. I should have looked at your profile first only to have recalled that you have been given copious amounts of advice and attention on these forums - almost all of which you ignore and debate.
ALL of this information has been given to you on numerous occassions. I recommend you take your issues to a therapist.
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madrose0715 wrote: »Please ignore my previous comments. I should have looked at your profile first only to have recalled that you have been given copious amounts of advice and attention on these forums - almost all of which you ignore and debate.
ALL of this information has been given to you on numerous occassions. I recommend you take your issues to a therapist.
Oh. I thought the name looked familiar. Different avatar, though.0 -
VeryKatie no I don't eat back exercise calories, and for now I've decided against doing the fast diet. Maybe I'll do it when I am ready to maintain, and I'll up my feast day calories a little so I am able to eat a reasonable amount at maintenance on the other days but that's a long way off.
I know what you're saying and I know I'm not netting a lot now, but I am doing things in a fairly healthy way. The workout program I'm following tells users to follow a 1200 calorie low carb diet while doing the level of training I'm doing so I'm not far off.0 -
At the beginning of this thread, I asked that if you had nothing nice to say then say nothing at all. Most people on here have been very helpful and I have taken on board everything that they have said. For the two people who have been judgemental and abusive take your comments elsewhere.
Not that it's any of your business but when I was first on here I tried to take on board lots of 'advice' which didn't fit me as a person such as 'eating more to weigh less' (waste of time) and various other methods which didn't work FOR ME (as we are ALL DIFFERENT). I was able to lose around 14 lbs in the end, or just under I don't remember exactly, but then my dog died and I had a fairly serious accident so soon found myself back to square one. I gained weight due to inactivity and the fact I stopped logging and added back in those 'treat' foods. Last year I tried to come back on here again but found it hard and then had an operation mid-year followed by several short holidays which again messed up my eating and workouts. Towards the end of last year I had 2 months of being ill with flu and colds so found it hard to train then, so it was a difficult time overall.
There has been some good advice from other people in a similar position to me, which is who I asked for help or advice from as they may have been through what I'm going through now with favourable results.0 -
By the way, the advice to 'go see a therapist' made me laugh, that's always the American answer to everything. Some of us like to find our own path and figure things out for themselves with a little help from like-minded people, which is what I was trying to do.
I don't need to see a therapist because I don't have a problem, I'm simply unlucky enough to have the kind of body which gains weight easily unless I workout a lot and watch my calorie intake/eat the right foods. It's not rocket science but it certainly helps to have the motivation of others going through a similar thing which is why I posted this thread.0 -
@JAT74 you may or may not find this helpful. But when I started out, I was a little smaller than you. Please listen to these folks when they tell you, losing two pounds a week isn't really appropriate and it's not realistic, for someone your size. I am 5'4 and started out around 138-140. Even when I ate 1200 calories, I STILL did not lose 2lbs a week.
Make it easier on yourself and eat a little more. Especially since you're working out. You don't need to be in any rush. The slower the better- you don't have much to go, so i'm sure you already look fine. If you rush it you'll just end up overly frustrated. If it comes off slow, you're more likely to keep it off. After I realized this weight was coming off when it damn sure felt like it, I relaxed, ate a little more, and let it do its own thing. And I've kept it off for about a year so far.
Slow down
ETA: Don't stereotype us Americans. I most definitely don't think going to see a therapist is the answer to a lot of things.0 -
You don't know me or anything about me. I was brought up to love food and if that requires therapy then that's crazy in itself. Unfortunately over the years my body didn't love food as much as I did, and I ignored the fact I couldn't get away with eating what I wanted (even if that was within 'normal' calorie levels for most). So I put on weight which I have found hard to lose.
I've seen plenty of shows from the US and now sadly the UK too with people with REAL weight problems and those people unfortunately do need to see therapists but in my case it's just a case of eating less to weigh less, working out consistently and when I am at my goal hopefully finding a way to stay there.
In my case it may mean I have to net what is known as an 'unhealthily' low number of calories but I am not alone by any means, plenty of people eat 1000-1200 calories and workout, nobody tells them their wrong because they don't expose themselves to abuse and they are healthy medically.
Sorry but I'd rather be medically healthy, thin, fit and eat less than eat more and spend years looking at a 0.5 lbs weight loss every month because there is no motivation to continue to reach a goal (at least for me if it's that slow).0 -
I have a very small frame so my goal is 1200 per day /inactive. I feel like I do sometimes really under eat to loose the weight but I think we all have to do what we have to do. My thyroid has an attitude and I find if I make a really big change my body finally gets going again. No judgement but support. I've had breakfast , lunch 699 so far eating slowly a fruit drink all day of fresh fruits, yogurt so I'm not starving but making sure I'm not tempted. I make my own smoothies so I know they are fresh. I'm almost 5'4". I like to be thin, thin not with any belly rolls. You know what you need to do and how your chemistry is..0
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This and this. Good lord hes pretty lmaoQuality over quantity. If a slower weight loss will give me more quality result, this is the path I would choose, which I did. When I was losing weight, my goal was to get lean, to get a nice physique with some abs. Because I wanted abs, I had to concentrate on losing fat and not weight. I didn't want to be a smaller version of what I already was. Like you, I didn't have much to lose but lost more than I thought I would have to get abs. The rate of my progress was only 1lb/week, which to some may seam slow but I much rather have quality results rather than to lose weight as fast as I can and not be happy with my physique.
^^^ Uh, what he said. Did you see his profile picture??? I would listen to him. You would be surprised at how much truly "lean" people weigh while looking markedly smaller than skinny fat people of the same weight. I lift weights and people 50lbs lighter than me wear the same pants size. That's crazy.
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Thank you killerqueen. I don't want to stereotype anyone but I felt like I was being abused by those posters to be honest and was a little angry with their responses. It does seem very 'American' to me, though as you say I'm sure most people don't run to a therapist for everything!
I suppose I know how self-conscious I feel as I am and in winter it doesn't bother me so much, but in summer I notice it more. It's mainly down to body fat though, because I look at photos where my legs or arms are showing and they do look very big compared to the rest of me. Also having a wardrobe of smaller clothes which don't fit can get you down, but hopefully it won't be long before I can fit into them again.-1 -
I am 5'2" and small framed, 41 years old. I lost 50lbs in a year. MFP and Skinny Rules/Bob Harper. Slow by your standards but the first 30lbs came off in about 4 months. The last 20lbs took another 8! I exercised daily for an hour, and ate 1200, 1200, 1450, 1200, 1200, 1200 and 1700 (one splurge meal a week). It took longer than I ever dreamed, but I've kept it off now for going on two years. I did weights as well as running and other cardio.
I now don't eat much differently than I did when I was losing I just eat my exercise calories and do occasionally eat refined carbs at dinner.
Currently looking to trim up 3 (mostly hitting the weights hard and trying to lose 3-5lbs of fat and gain a couple pounds of muscle this year.
Good luck. Only advice is that if you plan to stick to it for a year no matter what, never give up even for an evening (you know, 'start over tomorrow with a clean slate', because your bum knows you ate the cookie), you will succeed.0 -
It sucks, but until you understand that the healthy ways to lose weight is not the fastest then you probably won't be able to sustain through the weight loss process or maintain once you reach your goal.
I thought I'd be done losing weight in 3 months. Then I realized it'd probably be closer to a year if I was going to do it without cutting to extremes that I wouldn't be able to keep up with in the long run. Once I accepted that it's not going to happen overnight I have had a lot more success, physically and mentally.0 -
Thank you killerqueen. I don't want to stereotype anyone but I felt like I was being abused by those posters to be honest and was a little angry with their responses. It does seem very 'American' to me, though as you say I'm sure most people don't run to a therapist for everything!
I suppose I know how self-conscious I feel as I am and in winter it doesn't bother me so much, but in summer I notice it more. It's mainly down to body fat though, because I look at photos where my legs or arms are showing and they do look very big compared to the rest of me. Also having a wardrobe of smaller clothes which don't fit can get you down, but hopefully it won't be long before I can fit into them again.
Been there and done that. But I think they just want you to know that if you rush, you're more likely to gain it back quickly and risk becoming unhealthy.
I started out super hardcore, like most people here- doing the 1200 calorie thing. It worked for a while, but after some time I just couldn't do it anymore. The weight wasn't coming off any faster and I was hungry all the time. Folks here are just trying to save you the trouble. The less you have to lose, the slower it's going to come off- period. It took me nearly 8 months to lose 20lbs. It is what it is. You can't force your body to do anything or you're going to risk either getting sick, or gaining a ton of weight back + more.
Don't give yourself a time limit on when you want the weight to be off by. You'll just become obsessive and frustrated. At 144lbs you already look fine, by the summertime I'm sure you'll be less than that and you'll look fine then too. Just do yourself a favor and don't overdo it so that you don't end up BACK here trying to lose it all over again:)0 -
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/unlikelyathlete/view/short-girls-and-total-daily-weekly-calorie-deficits-687902
I hear you......but it just is what it is. To be healthy, we may just not lose as fast as we'd like. But, we'll still lose.0 -
@JAT74 I will chime in and we don't know each other but I am 46 and 5'4". I am already where you want to be weight wise. I wanted to lose another 7 or 8 pounds to 110 but because of my age and hormones blah blah blah .. My body is telling me that it may take me to 115 and that I should stop there for real.
I am setup in my diary for 1.3 / week as I could not go any lower.. I am medically healthy, healthy BMI, I am little too "fat" for my older clothes that was wearing about 6 months ago.
I do IF but I do a schedule daily of 17:7 or 18:6. I can't do the 5:2 and work out. Not enough calories/energy and that would kill me. I know because there was a day when I did not eat but 500 and went to work out and about fell in the floor.
The IF I am doing keeps me on a eating schedule and that helps me control my calories. I am not loosing 1.3 a week and I eat around 1000 a day. Sometime a little less or a little more. By BMR is 1300 and TDEE around 1500 as I work at a computer all day and put me at sedentary. One work out days maybe around 1700.. I don't burn a great deal of calories to lose weight, just to keep my heart and lungs healthy.
With that said.. I am really petite (I have a small frame) and can go down a few more pounds and be fine.
You have to find what works for you and you are not going to hear from me what is healthy and what is not. I know if I am doing something wrong I don't need to hear it from the critics as I know no two bodies are the same. I have been in mine for 46 years.
And just note.. I do not lose the 1.3 a week it is around .5 or .6 maybe. I am down to the last few pounds so everyone knows how hard that is to do.. and my goal is by March..
Best of luck to you in goals.0 -
unlikelyathlete wrote: »http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/unlikelyathlete/view/short-girls-and-total-daily-weekly-calorie-deficits-687902
I hear you......but it just is what it is. To be healthy, we may just not lose as fast as we'd like. But, we'll still lose.
This is very relatable. At 4 foot 10, it took me a minute to step back and realize that losing 2lbs a week wasn't a possibility that would make me happy or make me healthier anyways. Slow and steady. I think of my weight loss as the tortoise and the hare story. It helps a bit haha, maybe by beginning to realize that it won't happen fast it could make it a more enjoyable process for you to learn new things about being healthy 0 -
aSaltandBattery wrote: »unlikelyathlete wrote: »http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/unlikelyathlete/view/short-girls-and-total-daily-weekly-calorie-deficits-687902
I hear you......but it just is what it is. To be healthy, we may just not lose as fast as we'd like. But, we'll still lose.
This is very relatable. At 4 foot 10, it took me a minute to step back and realize that losing 2lbs a week wasn't a possibility that would make me happy or make me healthier anyways. Slow and steady. I think of my weight loss as the tortoise and the hare story. It helps a bit haha, maybe by beginning to realize that it won't happen fast it could make it a more enjoyable process for you to learn new things about being healthy
It definitely helped me just to own where I was, either way- if I really felt like pushing super-hard, I knew what I was going to have to do, consistently, to lose that quickly. If I wanted a little wiggle room and perhaps a day off of exercise every week, I just had to accept that my loss would be less.0 -
There is such a thing as over training too. Can you take one week off or a couple of days off to let your body heal up? Eat at maintenance those days, then pick back up again.
See if your body can reset itself. You've been doing this for a while now. Whenever I get sick for a week or two and get back to the weights, I find that my performance goes up a little. Don't take off a month, but just a little time might help you refocus and let your body heal.0 -
ILiftHeavyAcrylics wrote: »I'm about your size. 5'4" 125 lbs.
2 lbs per week is not an appropriate weight loss goal at your current height/weight. I'd aim for half a pound per week. The leaner you get the greater the risk of muscle loss from dieting, so personally I think it's better to make sure you're not losing too much. I think 1.5 lbs per week is even a bit too much.
You say you're worried about how you'll look this summer so I'll tell you a bit of a cautionary tale-- I ate at a reasonable deficit but didn't do anything else to preserve muscle. When I got to my goal weight I still felt terrible and unhappy because I had sacrificed too much muscle just to get to that "perfect number." You're not going to have your weight stamped across your forehead-- it'd be better imo to look healthy and fit at 135 lbs than it would be to look flabby at 115.
Listen to all of this.. If you already have body composition (low muscle mass, high fat mass) then aggressive weight loss will make it a lot worse. You are a normal weight, and it would very difficult ti give your body adequate nutrients and protein in order to sustain your muscle mass. Add the fact that JM is really a cardio program and not a weight training program, it's not going to add too much benefit in preserving muscle mass.
And it seems like your diet history has all been the same, aggressive weight loss which also includes muscle loss, which is why at 117, you didn't have low body fat. So knowing that, what do you thing will change this time? Why not try a different tactic, where you go slower, and then pick up an exercise program that focuses on progressive overload lifting?
I can tell you, it's not weight that makes you look good naked, it's all about having a low body fat % and a good amount of muscle. Heck, there are several women who have gained weight and get leaner and tighter bodies.. why, because muscle is more compact that fat. And when you lose muscle, it means you are maintaining fat.
So realistically, if your goal is fat loss (aka low body fat), then you want to do everything you can to sustain your muscle so the majority of your loss is pure fat.
http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/
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I'm 5 feet tall and will be 40 next month. I try to get as close to 1200 as possible without counting exercise. My exercise doesn't pull big numbers. I decided this time around, I would focus more on health and feeling good instead of the "magic" number. And nope, not losing alot each week.
The last go around when my calories were lower and I lost weight quickly, my hair started falling out big time. I want to be healthy. Being thin does no one any good when they lose their hair, black out or develop an eating disorder to a point that you can't recover. (Not to say that you have one by no means).
Maybe my comment isn't helpful because I'm not encouraging you to eat low calories. It's just meant to tell you to be careful.
Take care.0
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