4 weeks in and only 3 lbs lost?

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jackieomara
jackieomara Posts: 119 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm eating ~1500cal/day (all nutritious and healthy), exercising 5 times a week (cardio and weights)...could it be water retention or something from working out? I've been sore nearly every day. I feel like the fat should be melting off. I do feel a lot better and leaner but it's frustrating not seeing the numbers drop when my roommates have lost between 5 and 10 lbs and doing the same thing as me. I'm not going to give up, I just want to know if it will come eventually.

Also - feel free to add me, I love the motivation! :)
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  • jackieomara
    jackieomara Posts: 119 Member
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    Also my profile says 11 lbs lost because it's since I got the app a few years ago.
  • alisatterwhite
    alisatterwhite Posts: 2 Member
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    For me--if I want to lose 2 pounds a week I eat 1200 cal and work out four days a week. It really doesn't come off any faster than that.
  • kmarcol1
    kmarcol1 Posts: 1 Member
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    Hello, How much water are you drinking? Also, How is your carb/fat/protein ratio? Have you taken your measurements? Muscle weighs more than fat, so you may have lost fat and gained muscle, body fat percentage is more important than watching the scale.
  • jackieomara
    jackieomara Posts: 119 Member
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    kmarcol1 wrote: »
    Hello, How much water are you drinking? Also, How is your carb/fat/protein ratio? Have you taken your measurements? Muscle weighs more than fat, so you may have lost fat and gained muscle, body fat percentage is more important than watching the scale.

    Tons of water. I bring a huge water bottle to work every day and refill like, 5 times. I don't eat a lot of carbs but I upped my protein a lot.
  • KHaverstick
    KHaverstick Posts: 308 Member
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    Three lbs in four weeks sounds about right on. Depending on how much you have to lose, 0.5 - 1lb per week is generally a pretty reasonable expectation (possibly slightly more if you have a lot to lose).
  • randomtai
    randomtai Posts: 9,003 Member
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    It's not a race. Why do you want to lose so quickly?
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    What are your stats? And can you open your diary? Depending on how much you have to lose, you might be at a good place
  • jackieomara
    jackieomara Posts: 119 Member
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    malibu927 wrote: »
    What are your stats? And can you open your diary? Depending on how much you have to lose, you might be at a good place

    SW: 181
    CW: 178
    I'm trying to lose about 30 by summer but long term 40-50
  • dafad123
    dafad123 Posts: 23 Member
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    I have the same with the scale so i try not to weigh myself often.every two weeks or the first of the month.try this for one time and see if it helps.good luck
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
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    jackieomara wrote: »
    I'm eating ~1500cal/day (all nutritious and healthy), exercising 5 times a week (cardio and weights)...could it be water retention or something from working out? I've been sore nearly every day. I feel like the fat should be melting off. I do feel a lot better and leaner but it's frustrating not seeing the numbers drop when my roommates have lost between 5 and 10 lbs and doing the same thing as me. I'm not going to give up, I just want to know if it will come eventually.

    Also - feel free to add me, I love the motivation! :)

    You've lost 3 pounds in 4 weeks?

    vector-good-job-symbol-29548614.jpg

    Just keep eating at a reasonable calorie deficit and have patience. Also, stop paying attention to your roommates' weight loss and concentrate on your own. :)
  • jackieomara
    jackieomara Posts: 119 Member
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    dafad123 wrote: »
    I have the same with the scale so i try not to weigh myself often.every two weeks or the first of the month.try this for one time and see if it helps.good luck

    It's just so tempting! I will try to weigh myself less though. I'm sure that's helpful
  • jackieomara
    jackieomara Posts: 119 Member
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    bump :/
  • shadowofender
    shadowofender Posts: 786 Member
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    How tall are you? At 178 judging by your picture you aren't looking far from goal.

    Weight loss doesn't need to be fast. Inf act, it's often more sustainable if it's slower. 4lbs in 3 weeks is killer. I still have 80ish lbs to lose and I'm losing slower than that. But I'm also not miserable about calories because I'm going slower.
  • corgarian
    corgarian Posts: 366 Member
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    Take measurements. The scale is a lying *kitten*.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    edited January 2015
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    I'd be thrilled to lose 3 pounds in 4 weeks.

    Water intake doesn't impact weight loss.

    Don't compare your weight loss to anyone else's weight loss. We all start at a different place and lose at different rates. Men always seem to lose faster than women, mostly because they have more mass. If you're going to compare anything it should be a percentage of total weight loss and even that doesn't mean much.

    I wouldn't skip weighing at least weekly unless you really don't care if you're making progress.

    Are you weighing most of your food, especially the large portions and calorie dense items? 2 tablespoons of peanut butter isn't much and 4 ounces of chicken is smaller than you might think. You could be underestimating your calories. Are you eating only 1500 calories or those plus what you're burning in exercise? If you're adding in the exercise calories make sure you aren't overestimating them.
  • pplastics
    pplastics Posts: 135 Member
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    The friends who are losing that quickly (probably mostly water anyway) will eventually stall out. Might even see a slight uptick while their bodies adjust. Slow and steady is better for the long run. You will get there. Keep up the good work!
  • jackieomara
    jackieomara Posts: 119 Member
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    Thanks everyone!! You're all so helpful <3 I appreciate it!!
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
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    The problem isn't your rate of weight loss -- that's fine. The problem is that you are comparing yourself with your roommates.

    Everyone is different. They may have seen rapid drops in the early weeks due to water weight drop. They might be bigger than you or have more to lose. They might have other differences.

    0.5-1lb/week is about right for most women who aren't extremely obese to begin with. Anything faster is too fast for most of us.
  • joylevelup
    joylevelup Posts: 63 Member
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    At that rate, that's 39 pounds in a year! Not too shabby.

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