1/2 lb per week?

saralthrash
saralthrash Posts: 105 Member
in Motivation and Support
I originally set my goal for 2lbs per week. Huge mistake! I was starving!!! Then I changed to 1 1/2 then to 1. I have been so hungry that I blow it. So I changed my goal to 1/2 lb per week and overall I've consumed less than with my lower calorie goals. When j get used to eating that amount I will decrease my calorie goal. My question is, is there anyone else with a goal set at 1/2lb per week with a large amount to lose? How is it working out for you?

Replies

  • TamzFit777
    TamzFit777 Posts: 110 Member
    I set mine to 1/2lb a week because I too was starving! But I don't have a lot to lose. I find that being less stressed about starving, and not being hungry at night causing me to fail helps a lot. And then when I work out I earn more food! lol
  • cmristine
    cmristine Posts: 15 Member
    Same here. My goal is set at 2 lbs a week and I have been waking up at 3am Starving. Now that I read these posts, I am going to change to 1 lb a week and see if that helps. If not, 1/2 lb it is!
  • saralthrash
    saralthrash Posts: 105 Member
    I just did a little math. At this rate it would take me 2.5 years to reach my goal. At first I was a little bummed out but I could be at my goal in 2.5 years or I could be the same or bigger. I'll take the slow path for now.
  • saralthrash
    saralthrash Posts: 105 Member
    @cmristine give it a shot!
    Your speed does not matter. Forward is forward.
  • freelancejouster
    freelancejouster Posts: 478 Member
    The thing with setting your calories at 1/2 lb a week is that it's easier to stick with because you're not starving yourself, and if you're like most people and shooting for beneath your calorie goal, you can safely do that and you'll lose a bit faster than 1/2 a week if you're truthful/accurate about the calories you log.
  • saralthrash
    saralthrash Posts: 105 Member
    @freelancejouster I agree. I feel like this is a much better goal for me. It will take much longer but I will have more success in the long run I think. Plus when my body adapts to the 1/2lb goal I can always adjust my calories to aim lower to increase my losses. :smiley:
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,486 Member
    Lowering your calorie intake gradually is much easier on you both mentally and physically.

    Once you are accustomed to the 250 cal (.5lbs) deficit, drop it by 50-100 cals then again etc until you are eating at a goal that you are comfortable with.

    Even when you have quite a bit to lose 2 lbs a week can be hard.

    Good for you for realising 2 lbs wouldn't work, but instead if giving up, finding what will work.

    Cheers, h.
  • saralthrash
    saralthrash Posts: 105 Member
    middlehaitch wrote: »
    Lowering your calorie intake gradually is much easier on you both mentally and physically.

    Once you are accustomed to the 250 cal (.5lbs) deficit, drop it by 50-100 cals then again etc until you are eating at a goal that you are comfortable with.

    Even when you have quite a bit to lose 2 lbs a week can be hard.

    Good for you for realising 2 lbs wouldn't work, but instead if giving up, finding what will work.

    Cheers, h.

    Great idea
  • CollieFit
    CollieFit Posts: 1,683 Member
    Do you exercise? All you need is a calorie deficit to lose weight. Exercising will increase that deficit.
  • saralthrash
    saralthrash Posts: 105 Member
    CollieFit wrote: »
    Do you exercise? All you need is a calorie deficit to lose weight. Exercising will increase that deficit.
    Lol yes

  • treehopper1987
    treehopper1987 Posts: 505 Member
    Not criticizing your goal so don't mistake this for that at all. I was wondering if you were getting enough protein and fiber. I find that having a lot of those tend to make me feel full. The key with protein is moderation, and source. For example, shrimp is high in protein and low in fat, whereas beef is moderately high in protein but high fat. Protein can also be found in nuts, which also need to watch the amount you consume because of fat content. Fiber in sources such as vegetables tend to be low calorie, so you can eat a lot of it if you feel hungry.
  • T0M_K
    T0M_K Posts: 7,526 Member
    saralthrash wrote: »
    I originally set my goal for 2lbs per week. Huge mistake! I was starving!!! Then I changed to 1 1/2 then to 1. I have been so hungry that I blow it. So I changed my goal to 1/2 lb per week and overall I've consumed less than with my lower calorie goals. When j get used to eating that amount I will decrease my calorie goal. My question is, is there anyone else with a goal set at 1/2lb per week with a large amount to lose? How is it working out for you?

    less room for error if your logging isn't pretty solid. be diligent with that and you'll need to weigh as much as possible.. down below you said you exercise, i'd not eat those back just to be safe. Good Luck
  • saralthrash
    saralthrash Posts: 105 Member
    @treehopper1987 I eat a lot of veggies. Most of my protein comes from chicken and tuna. I don't buy nuts cause I love them so much I just want to snack on them all day lol I do love beef though so I do cook with it a couple of times a week. I had a very active job and I think that's why I was so hungry. I recently quit my job and decided to become a stay at home mom while going to school. I changed my activity level to sedentary and changed to 1lb per week. It's only been a couple of days but I notice that I am not hungry all day anymore. Thanks!!
  • treehopper1987
    treehopper1987 Posts: 505 Member
    Gotcha... I sometimes feel hungrier when stress builds up at work, or home... You sound like the future me, since I plan on taking the plunge to going back to school and take care of my son ;)
  • Mapalicious
    Mapalicious Posts: 412 Member
    It took me 4 years to reach my goal, and lose 125 lbs. I don't know if it's because of my genes, my young age at the time, or the SLOW rate, but I am very luckily to have minimal loose skin from all that weight loss too. I attribute it to a little bit of all of them.

    Now i'm in the 'normal' BMI range, but heading toward the middle of that range, rather than the high end of normal. I am set to lose 1/2 a lb a week because otherwise i just get too hungry, and it's not sustainable. I am a very hungry person.
  • _lyndseybrooke_
    _lyndseybrooke_ Posts: 2,561 Member
    I'm not sure what calorie goal MFP would give me if I put 1/2 pound a week as my goal because I manually changed my goals according to my TDEE. When I'm cutting, I average about 1850 calories per week (I eat more on weekends vs. weekdays just because I do), which typically results in a loss of 1/2 pound a week.

    I really don't understand why people feel like they NEED to lose 2 pounds per week. That kind of desperation is the reason most of these people fall off the wagon. They're eating so little that the entire process makes them miserable and they give up. My goal is to eat as much as I possibly can while still losing weight slowly and steadily. I did the 1200 calorie thing for a long time as a teenager, on and off, and it was awful.

    What's the rush? The weight will come off, so I say chill the hell out and stop making it even harder than it already is to lose weight.
  • kmsoucy457
    kmsoucy457 Posts: 237 Member
    Tomk652015 wrote: »
    less room for error if your logging isn't pretty solid. be diligent with that and you'll need to weigh as much as possible.. down below you said you exercise, i'd not eat those back just to be safe. Good Luck

    I have found the above to be true as well. I am set to lose 1/2lb per week as well. When I don't log I find that this slows to 1lb per month. I'm focusing on fitness at the moment, so the slow going doesn't bother me as much.
    Also if you are exercising you may lose inches faster than weight! track your waist and problem area(s) once or twice a month for some extra motivation :) My 1lb downer turned into an upper when I saw that hips and waist were smaller by an inch each.
  • kmsoucy457
    kmsoucy457 Posts: 237 Member
    _lyndseybrooke_ wrote: »
    My goal is to eat as much as I possibly can while still losing weight slowly and steadily.

    yaaaas
  • antennachick
    antennachick Posts: 464 Member
    saralthrash wrote: »
    I just did a little math. At this rate it would take me 2.5 years to reach my goal. At first I was a little bummed out but I could be at my goal in 2.5 years or I could be the same or bigger. I'll take the slow path for now.
    Slow and steady wins the race! Its a lifestyle change not a diet.
    If you workout you can eat more so maybe thats a option for you?
  • antennachick
    antennachick Posts: 464 Member
    saralthrash wrote: »
    @treehopper1987 I eat a lot of veggies. Most of my protein comes from chicken and tuna. I don't buy nuts cause I love them so much I just want to snack on them all day lol I do love beef though so I do cook with it a couple of times a week. I had a very active job and I think that's why I was so hungry. I recently quit my job and decided to become a stay at home mom while going to school. I changed my activity level to sedentary and changed to 1lb per week. It's only been a couple of days but I notice that I am not hungry all day anymore. Thanks!!
    I dont know what age your kids are but I am at the active label with 2 kids lol...I burn alot of calories keeping up with them and I also have a part time desk job

  • blues4miles
    blues4miles Posts: 1,481 Member
    I change mine up. I go by how much I'm losing as the real metric not what MFP thinks I'll be losing. I was doing pretty well, about 1 lb a week. Then my weight loss stalled, about 1 lb for 3 weeks. So I cut calories a little to see what would happen. But I won't rule out bumping back up again. It's all trial and error for me. As long as I'm sticking to whatever my plan is.

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