30KGs In 30 Weeks For My 30th Birthday?

hbb86 wrote: »

3bambi3 wrote: »

hbb86 wrote: »

3bambi3 wrote: »

hbb86 wrote: »

MFP recommend 1400 for me, but because I want to loose a large amount of weight, I'm consuming less than 1200 and exercising on top of that )

And therein lies the problem. You are netting less than 1000 calories a day, which isn't healthy or recommended.

You are clearly not looking for advice, just people who will validate your choices. Are you done logging for today? Because <700 calories per day is dangerous.

Have you got anything positive to say or are you just here to have a pop? Anything for you people to say "Aha! I;m right you're wrong, you're doing it wrong". Hows about, "Hey, maybe try adding some more calories to your diet so you don't burn out too quickly"? Not, "THATS DANGEROUS!"

I came here for support. As in "Good for you!! keep an eye on your sugars though " not "Well you're going to fail and when you do, I'll be pleased".

Here's some genuine questions: How will you feel in 30 weeks if you don't hit your goal? Or if you eat over your calorie allowance for some days during the 30 weeks?

Because your responses in this thread seem to indicate that your reaction to failure would be, in the gentlest word possible, bad. If even the *suggestion* that you may not reach your goal has you this up in arms, what's going to happen if you don't reach goal? Because eating only 700 calories per day for 30 weeks and exercising can lead to numerous health problems that will make it harder to accomplish any goals. Especially if those goals include keeping your hair and healthy organs.

I don't typically consume less than 700 calories and I'm not done logging for the day. I've been overweight my entire life. I've tried every diet under the sun. This time, I've done it completely differently. I am doing everything I can possibly think of and my doctor recommended coming on to a forum like MFP for encouragement which is what I did. I probably should have posted it in the motivation section, but I didn't.

If I don't reach my goal, I don't reach it. I've made next to no goals in my life in many different aspects so all I wanted to do was set one and work hard. That's it.

This is all good stuff. We all want you to succeed (really) but getting there in a healthy way is important, and realizing that the biggest loss in the shortest amount of time isn't always desirable is part of that.

hbb86 wrote: »

Hey everyone!

I have a goal in mind to loose 30KGs by my 30th birthday (September 19th which is roughly 32 weeks away).

Hey, we have birthdays one day apart, mine is 20th And it sounds pretty similar as well, I started with 120,5 kg and trying to lose 55 kg as over time goal. I'm not setting dates for my goals since to me that feels like setting extra stress and negative feeling towards weight loss if I don't feel good about it. For me that stress starts when calories are less than 1200 and most comfortable I feel when I'm setting the limit to 1500 daily. So far I've lost 5,4 kg since January 6 2016 by eating this 1500 calories and feel no hunger. So far it's been pretty effortless with this amount of calories. You can try with low calories but if you ever have problems with staying in your daily amount you could still eat up to 1200 at least. If 1500 calories makes my weight drop you can drop with 1200 for sure

Have you tried a reward system before? Give yourself something nice every few kilograms. I bought myself earrings after first 5 kg, next one is going to be flowers at 10 kg (I never got flowers before! Silly, isn't it ). I feel like this gives extra positiveness to weight loss, I'm not working to get those rewards (they don't feel like goals to work for) but they are just something small extra I've wanted to try or never got before and it makes me happy to get or do them

lynn_glenmont wrote: »

OP, sorry if I missed it, but I didn't see anywhere what your current stats are (primarily weight and height). I think people who are saying 1 kg/2.2 lbs a week is not sustainable all the way to your goal weight are assuming that 30 pounds gets you to a healthy weight, but I don't think you ever actually said that. If you're 300 lbs (roughly 135 kg), losing 30 kgs in 30 weeks should be completely doable and would not be a health concern. If you're 175 lbs (roughly 68 kg) and medium height for a woman, losing 30 kgs in 30 weeks is going to be incredibly difficult and not healthy.

When you say your doctor approved 1 kg/week loss, was it clear that that recommendation was intended for months and months, even after you've lost 15 or 20 kg?

OP said starting weight was 126kg, as I noted it is slightly under 1% bodyweight per week. Basically, she's large enough to do it, but it'll take spot on nutrition (you can't eat a days worth of chocolate and skip the healthy food), and will take 30 straight weeks of solid dedication. I couldn't do 30 weeks, as I said I had to take 3 breaks. The 1st break I was desperate to eat food (I took a 2lb/week weight loss 2 weeks longer than I should have), and the 2nd and 3rd were on business travel and much appreciated.

However, I'm pretty sure the OP is not spot on the nutrition. MFP gave her a goal of 1400, which oddly enough was the same value I calculated with some estimated height and age. Eating less will probably lead to crashing a burning if things aren't corrected.

But whatever, we are all just here to be Debbie downers and not help encourage people. I honestly couldn't read the whole thread... I thought it was going ok after the first couple posts, but it went downhill fast.

bspringer544 wrote: »

I haven't read most of the posts because they seem quite nasty but I thought I'd add my two cents anyway.

@hbb86, my mum used to suffer from anorexia. She had a habit of eating less than 1200 calories a day and it caused a lot of permanent damage to her digestive tract, including severe IBS and certain food intolerances (her stomach got upset very easily). While I absolutely support your wanting to lose as much as possible, I would suggest you stay within the range of what is healthy. You should eat at minimum 1200 calories a day netted (meaning if you exercise on top of that, make sure you're eating back the calories you burn). It won't be worth it if you meet your goal at the expense of a healthy and happy future.

You're saying the same thing the "nasty" posters are saying What makes them nasty and not you?

hbb86 wrote: »

3bambi3 wrote: »

hbb86 wrote: »

3bambi3 wrote: »

hbb86 wrote: »

3bambi3 wrote: »

hbb86 wrote: »

MFP recommend 1400 for me, but because I want to loose a large amount of weight, I'm consuming less than 1200 and exercising on top of that )

And therein lies the problem. You are netting less than 1000 calories a day, which isn't healthy or recommended.

You are clearly not looking for advice, just people who will validate your choices. Are you done logging for today? Because <700 calories per day is dangerous.

Have you got anything positive to say or are you just here to have a pop? Anything for you people to say "Aha! I;m right you're wrong, you're doing it wrong". Hows about, "Hey, maybe try adding some more calories to your diet so you don't burn out too quickly"? Not, "THATS DANGEROUS!"

I came here for support. As in "Good for you!! keep an eye on your sugars though " not "Well you're going to fail and when you do, I'll be pleased".

Here's some genuine questions: How will you feel in 30 weeks if you don't hit your goal? Or if you eat over your calorie allowance for some days during the 30 weeks?

Because your responses in this thread seem to indicate that your reaction to failure would be, in the gentlest word possible, bad. If even the *suggestion* that you may not reach your goal has you this up in arms, what's going to happen if you don't reach goal? Because eating only 700 calories per day for 30 weeks and exercising can lead to numerous health problems that will make it harder to accomplish any goals. Especially if those goals include keeping your hair and healthy organs.

I don't typically consume less than 700 calories and I'm not done logging for the day. I've been overweight my entire life. I've tried every diet under the sun. This time, I've done it completely differently. I am doing everything I can possibly think of and my doctor recommended coming on to a forum like MFP for encouragement which is what I did. I probably should have posted it in the motivation section, but I didn't.

If I don't reach my goal, I don't reach it. I've made next to no goals in my life in many different aspects so all I wanted to do was set one and work hard. That's it.

This is all good stuff. We all want you to succeed (really) but getting there in a healthy way is important, and realizing that the biggest loss in the shortest amount of time isn't always desirable is part of that.

Thank you! I know the way I reacted was probably too heated, but I'm desperate to do well. I've let myself down my entire life and because of that it's held me back in so many different ways that I'm actually even ashamed to talk about. I expected everyone to just say "woooo! go you! Don't forget to exercise on a Saturday too" or similar to that effect. I didn't expect to be criticised and that instantly put my back up - again, probably wrongly on my part - but I've spend my whole life being criticised either by others or by myself and I just want that to stop. I want to make healthy changes to my life. I won't always get it right, and I'm definitely going to make mistakes but as long as I'm trying, I'm not failing.

Probably makes no sense lol Thank you for your comment, honesty and encouragement xx

You read people's posts with the tone you hear in your head. That's on you, not on them. If you let comments as neutral as these be a discouragement, then you're in trouble when you hit the larger stumbling blocks that almost inevitably appear along anyone's weight loss journey.

You might find that changing has to come from within. A change in attitude from all or nothing... do or die... good vs bad... to a more moderate attitude that while stumbling blocks might slow you down at times, that you will persevere, and that even if you don't make a self-imposed deadline, you will celebrate every pound lost as a victory. (Note, I said 'even if'. If you read 'you won't', that's not on me)

I'm glad you've calmed down and digested the posts a bit better now. The advice you're getting isn't because people want to point and laugh when you fail, it's the complete opposite. They want to set you up for success and equip you with the knowledge and learned experience they already have to make that a reality for you.

It's of no consequence to any of our lives how, why and when you lose the weight but because we get it, we've all been there, we're here passing on our extensive collective knowledge to others in the hope they can reach their goals and maintain them whilst remaining fit, healthy and not deprived.

There is nothing, not a single thing, mean about that endeavour.

krithsai wrote: »

bspringer544 wrote: »

I haven't read most of the posts because they seem quite nasty but I thought I'd add my two cents anyway.

@hbb86, my mum used to suffer from anorexia. She had a habit of eating less than 1200 calories a day and it caused a lot of permanent damage to her digestive tract, including severe IBS and certain food intolerances (her stomach got upset very easily). While I absolutely support your wanting to lose as much as possible, I would suggest you stay within the range of what is healthy. You should eat at minimum 1200 calories a day netted (meaning if you exercise on top of that, make sure you're eating back the calories you burn). It won't be worth it if you meet your goal at the expense of a healthy and happy future.

You're saying the same thing the "nasty" posters are saying What makes them nasty and not you?

I don't find the advice or opinions to be nasty, just the off topic back and forth quibble about who is and is not being nice/supportive/offensive/blah/blah. It's very tedious when people bicker pointlessly over differing perceptions. I equate it to two colourblind people arguing about whether or not a shirt is green or red lol it's not the people or the argument but the premise itself that I find intolerable.

I apologize for coming off as a hypocrite in that post. I only meant to imply that I was writing the post without any knowledge as to whether or not I was repeating what might have already been said.

And I sincerely hope you do reach the goal you've set for yourself, I'm sorry if my post earlier came across as cold but it wasn't meant to. I certainly never wish failure or unpleasantness on anyone.

Sustainability.

It sounds like you're taking advice about the specific nature of your goal as people saying that it's impossible for you to lose 30 kg, which I don't think anyone here has said or meant. What we're trying to prepare you for is the fact that your specific time frame is aggressive (it really is- while it's possible to lose 2 lbs a week, your goal is actually higher than that, and it's over quite a long period) and that aggressive weight loss goals are less likely to be achieved in general and when they are achieved, are less likely to be maintained.

Even if you don't find the restricted caloric intake and increased activity needed to achieve that rate of loss rght now challenging, and you see big drops in the first few weeks (which is common), the demands of maintaining that rate of loss will go up as your body shrinks- as your birthday approaches, you'll need to eat even less or burn more or both to achieve the same deficit as your smaller body uses less basal calories, and from the very low calorie intake you're starting at, that would be very difficult for most people, and unhealthy for anyone.

Losing 30 kg and changing the way you eat and exercise in a sustainable way that keeps you fit the rest of your life is absolutely an achievable goal, but there are paths to reaching it that have been shown to be more effective than others, and restricting your net calories to below 1200 for 9 months is not one of them. If your doctor really did give you that advice- if you told her that you intend to eat less 1200 calories or less a day and exercise for the next nine months, and she said that was spot on, she gave you terrible advice. That's less than you need just to sustain body functions, and eating that little forces your body to break down not just fat but also the lean tissue that you need for strength and metabolism. It puts you at risk for serious health problems, especially if you maintain that low intake for a long time.

I'm not a doctor but I am an healthcare professional and I've seen doctors give plenty of sketchy advice on areas that were outside their specialty, so it's possible that this really happened, but to be on a VLCD you should have actual close monitoring by a doctor who specializes in it. A primary care doctor who just tells you weight loss at any cost and rate is good is not doing you any favors.

Nobody is saying you are doomed to failure at the goal of losing 30 kg. We are saying that the specific plan you've laid out for yourself in this post is not the most likely path to permanent success, and that you might be more likely to find yourself happy, healthy, and maintaining the goal weight of your dreams if you took a more long-term approach to this journey, with a smaller daily calorie deficit that helps you maintain lean muscle as you lose and not burn out with hunger or malnutrition, and process-oriented goals that teach you the habits you need to maintain weight loss permanently, rather than a big round number goal for your birthday.

Goals that are challenging but attainable and close in time have a much higher rate of success than big aggressive ones that are distant in time, and as you reach them, you keep adding new goals as your confidence and success snowball. It's a good idea to HAVE big aggressive goals, like "lose 30 kg" but it's best to focus on short term ones like "Hit my calorie target every day this week," "Increase my daily activity by 10% each week" etc. This is how you go from setting the big goal to actually getting there- small but consistent changes, not huge sweeping ones that aren't sustainable, and not by making your big goal so aggressive that you're at high risk for falling short even with hard work- that's very demotivating.

It's the difference between saying "I'm going to be the valedictorian of my college" and saying "I'm going to study for two hours every night." One is so big and distant that it's hard to act on, and also has elements out of your control- the other is process-oriented, up to you, and actually gets you closer to achieving the first goal anyway. Dream big, but plan small and specific and sustainable.

Less than 1200 calories a day is not sustainable- even if you're in the minority of people who don't feel miserable on that little food, it's terrible for you to consume that little and your body will face negative changes that risk your long-term health. In the above example, it's akin to saying "I'm going to be valedictorian of my college by pulling an all-nighter every night." You're probably not going to manage that very long because that's horribly physically taxing, and if somehow you do, your grades will probably suffer and you'll give up on the big dream.

Modifying your goal might not mean you find yourself down 30 kg on your 30th birthday, but doesn't "Down 15 kg on my 30th birthday, and feeling physically great and mentally confident that I can stick to this way of living to lose the next 15 kg, and also for the rest of my life" sound good? Heck, you can chance it in to pounds and you've nearly got the same nice round effect- "Down 33 lbs on my 30th birthday!"

I'm not saying this because I want you to fail- I'm saying it precisely because I want you to succeed at achieving sustained weight loss.

To the OP:

I have a major question: what happens if your birthday arrives and you have NOT lost 30 kg? What if you have only lost half of that? Will you keep pushing to continue to lose, or will you be discouraged? If you do lose the 30kg, what are your plans to maintain that loss, or do you want to lose more after that?

I think goals are fun and can be motivating--but don't rely so heavily on your goal that if you don't meet it it derails you. I set goals that don't have a 'by this date' on it. I have a 'lose the most weight ever at one time' goal; 'run my first 5k goal'. Only because I know that if I set a date on something and I don't meet it, my motivation and mentality will be screwy. Also my stress level increases with time stamps. This is my goal: hit 165. Nope, no date attached to it. Just...lose almost 90 pounds and reach 165. And this go around it is less stressful and I can celebrate the losses big or small--not freak out because I only lost .5 pounds when I should have lost 2 and now I'm never going to hit my goal, I'm a failure, this sucks, Ben & Jerry come to me...bam.

Losing weight is a journey, not a race. Losing weight also requires various kinds of support (here is the rant). If you want cheerleaders, that could hurt you more than help you. Sometimes you will need the kind of support that looks you dead in the eye and tells you that what you are doing is not healthy, could be detrimental, etc. Cheerleaders can actually hurt you--if you back off working out or fall back on unhealthy habits--do you still want people going "Rah rah sis boom bah you rock this amazing oh my GOSH go you" or do you want someone to go "HEY! Remember that 30kg by your birthday goal? Do you really think that ice cream/pizza/hot dog/favorite guilty pleasure is helping you there?" Do you want people to tell you that this goal is fantastic or do you want people to cautiously support you while giving you a glimpse at some things you could face over the next months?

I have found that people on this page will tell the truth. Some will make it flowery and pretty covered in rainbow sprinkles delivered on a unicorn riding a rainbow, and others will tell it to you straight. You may not want to hear it, but trust me...these people have done this before, they have succeeded and they lost weight. They are sharing what they have learned from their experiences or seen others go through. Take all that is said to you, even if you don't want to hear it. Sometimes the things we don't want to hear are the things that can help us the most.

I wish you luck on your journey.

OP I'm glad you've taken some of the emotion and perceived negativity out of how you are interpreting the responses here. You've gotten great advice and I especially love the detail about goal setting (big vs small and in control vs out of your control).

There were two things I wanted to add to this.
First, a bit of an explanation about why people may be cautioning you as to whether or not losing 2 lbs/week is sustainable for extended periods of time. As most have pointed out, that's an appropriate goal for you right now based on your current stats and estimated maintenance level. You said that MFP had you at 1400 to lose 2 lbs/week? That means MFP estimates your mom exercise maintenance level, based on current height, weight, age, gender and activity level to be 2400 cals. To lose 2 lbs/week you need to create a 1000 cal/day deficit. As you lose the weight, your maintenance calories actually go down because you have less mass. So if you get to a weight that would have 2000 as your calories to maintain, in order to keep losing that 2 lbs/week you would have to only be consuming 1000 cals/day, which is too low, not safe, wouldn't be enjoyable, etc. that's why people say to lose 2 lbs a week for the duration of your 30 kg goal MAY not be achievable, certainly not in a healthy way. The recommendation is to readjust your calorie target for every 25 lbs you lose.

Secondly, you explained that the reason you were so defensive about people's responses about realistic goals and what if you don't succeed is because you've never succeeded in achieving a goal you've set. Don't you see, there in lies the problem? You are setting too lofty of goals and when you fail you get discouraged and give up. Follow the advice in this thread. Make small, sustainable changes. Set realistic goals. Celebrate small milestones. Look forward to your birthday but don't be disappointed if you don't achieve the ultimate stretch goal. No matter what, you're making changes to become a healthier you in both body and mind for your 30s...

Oh and I hope you will post how you did when your birthday rolls around, not so people can say I told you so but so they congratulate you on what you have accomplished. My son's birthday is Sep 19th as well so I won't forget you and will be waiting to hear how you did!

hbb86 wrote: »

I love how supportive this forum can be but it can also be so negative. It's not like I'm trying to loose 100lbs in 3 months here. It's 2.2lbs a week and still you get debbie downers telling you it's most likely unachievable.
Disappointing.

hbb86 wrote: »

Well I did see that. Every person said "it's a big defecit, hard to maintain" "I wouldn't be able to do it" It's all negative and in my opinion, disheartening.

weight Watchers do encourage 5/6lbs weight loss - I've had family and friends use it. Perhaps it's different with different teachers.

As for the timeline, that's why I made it for September and made the healthy and realistic goal of 2lbs per week. I do appreciate your time and advice, I'm not being ungrateful, I just have read so much negativity both here and on other MFP boards that is just not helpful.

Thank you.

You probably need the Motivation & Support boards if you don't want honest and constructive feedback on your plans. You asked a question, you were given fairly helpful answers.

kshama2001 wrote: »

I've lost 20 ish pounds in 6 weeks twice. Was it healthy? No. Do I recommend this to others? No.

So, while rapid weight loss is of course possible, being a good idea is a different story.

The "Debbie Downers" mostly just want to spare you from their mistakes.

This is 100% spot on.