Doctor says 1200, trainer says 3800, what do you say??

Safe wise 2 pounds, but you said your trainer said to average 5 pounds. If the person is actually your trainer then you should do what they say. If you are going to pay a trainer you should follow their program. That or tell your trainer what your doctor said and tell them to adjust their plans for you to fit the weight loss goal your doctor said to aim for.

If your doc said 1200, then his would be the more aggressive weight loss plan. Are your numbers reversed?

I would follow the doctor's advice and not the trainer's. I would ask the doctor, how s/he got to those numbers (how many calories to eat per day and how much weight to lose per week. Perhaps your doctor can refer you to a nutritionist.

1200 seems like an awfully drastic cut, even though at your weight you probably have sufficient fat stores to fuel that deficit. Is your doctor going to be monitoring you to make sure you're getting adequate nutrition and your health doesn't suffer?

I would think at 335 to 350 lbs, 3800 calories is roughly in the neighborhood of what your body burns in a day from normal activity (not including intentional exercise) -- although without more info, including your non-exercise activity level, that's obviously a very rough estimate. I would think that your results could be discouragingly slow if you consume 3800 calories a day.

Also, the little bit of data you have -- losing 15 lbs in two weeks at 1300 calories a day suggests a TDEE of about 3800, if we assume water weight accounts for 5 lbs of the loss, which from anecdotal accounts seems pretty typical, but I don't know if water weight loss tends to be higher for those starting at higher weights. If it is, that would mean a lower TDEE -- 250 calories lower for each additional pound of water included in the weight loss, because we're looking at a 2-week period, i.e., 3500 calories to lose a pound, divided by 14 days.

I'd pick a number in the mid to upper 2000s, track calories in (get a food scale) carefully, and see what happens over a period of several weeks to a month. Adjust based on your results.

tippettbrian78 wrote: »

What's a safe weight loss goal to set? Trainer says I should average 5lbs a week, doc says 2. Which is actually "safe"?

At 350 lbs, you can do just fine on deficits that would cause real problems for someone leaner. If you think you can handle losing weight faster, talk it over with your doc, since (s)he is responsible for your overall care and has the most complete picture.

What is your dr's reason? If for example he/she has concerns about your health that need your weight to drop fast, then this is different than just giving you a random number. But this is something to discuss with the dr, not the trainer.

Who has you at the 1300 calorie diet? That seems kind of extreme. I'm sure you can do it, but can you do it in a healthy manner? I was able to lose on around 1,200 calories a day, but I am a very short woman (5'2"). I managed to meet my basic nutritional needs on that. Depending on your height, you may or may not.

I'm not going to advise you to do what your trainer said just because you're paying him or her. It really depends on the education of the trainer whether their advice is good. Some trainers are really educated, some (like a friend I had after college) just learned on the job and recommend the same stuff to everyone. I do like the idea that teagirl had, of telling your trainer what your doctor advises and that you're not comfortable totally disregarding that advice.

All that being said, you can choose to lose quickly or slowly, as long as you take steps to insure that you're eating properly. For me, two pounds a week was the fastest I felt comfortable with, but I only had 35 pounds to lose. Since you are both a man and are heavier than I was, you probably have a much higher metabolism.

Just as an example, a 280 lb. person requires more energy to function than his or her 160 lb. counterpart. If you've never worked out before and now you suddenly are, you'll burn more calories walking 5 miles on the treadmill than I would. My husband is 6'4" and was close to 100# overweight when he joined MFP. He lost 4# his first week, just by cutting his calories down to the MFP recommendations for losing 2# a week. So, two pounds a week might not be completely realistic for you in the beginning. Just try not to get too disappointed when it starts slowing down. The harder it gets to lose weight, the closer to your weight goal you are. (So, the more exercise you've got to do, or the more calories you've got to cut.)

In my mind, the most important thing for you as you're learning to change your habits is to keep track of your nutrients. You're going to feel happier and better satisfied if you're eating properly than if you're eating a lot of empty calories. Who knows? Once you meet your nutritional needs, you may still have 300 or 400 calories to waste. It happens to my husband a few nights a week. Just be careful about cutting your calories too much in the beginning. You can figure out your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) at this site (iifym.com/bmr-calculator/). They also have a TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) calculator (iifym.com/tdee-calculator/). Maybe you can average the two numbers and see if you're comfortable eating at that level and aren't feeling lightheaded or showing any other symptoms of not meeting your nutritional needs.

I'm sorry for the novel! I hope that you don't fall asleep while reading it! I just know how hard it is, and I want to see you succeed.

If you keep losing weight like crazy won't you have super loose skin? 2 lbs a week sounds reasonable to me, but you're probably going to lose more with your weight.

tippettbrian78 wrote: »

FrostAyy wrote: »

If you keep losing weight like crazy won't you have super loose skin? 2 lbs a week sounds reasonable to me, but you're probably going to lose more with your weight.

I don't know, I've actually never thought about that issue.

You may end up with loose skin regardless of your weight loss speed. Don't think too much about it, you're either lucky or unlucky in this this regard and not much can be done about it. Focus on getting healthier first and foremost.

tippettbrian78 wrote: »

What's a safe weight loss goal to set? Trainer says I should average 5lbs a week, doc says 2. Which is actually "safe"?

So your dr suggests 2lbs but gives you a bigger deficit?

I'm thinking we're not getting the whole story.

girlviernes wrote: »

1200 is super low for you. It counts as a very low calorie diet (VLCD). Does your doctor have experience implementing these types of diets? Sadly, many doctors really don't know much about weight loss so it is a good idea to ask many questions. If you decide to do a VLCD make sure you have appropriate medical care. That means working with a doctor or dietitian (not nutritionist) with experience with this type of diet. Alternatively, you could try a less aggressive approach, such as the amount MFP recommends.

I would also add that the most trainers are even more clueless about nutrition. f you're doctor is recommending such an aggressive approach i'd ask hi to refer you to a dietician,

tippettbrian78 wrote: »

Thanks for the advice everyone. I scheduled an appointment with the company nutritionist on Monday. I'm 6'4" and MFP recommends 2680 a day. Maybe MFP is smarter than either of them!

I don't see how you can make it on 1200 being that tall and overweight. I'm 6' female and my suggested calories is close to 2000 and I'm losing just fine. I would crash hard, pass out, have no energy, etc. on 1200 daily.