Are you supposed to drop weight fast right off the bat?

DeannaWathen
DeannaWathen Posts: 1 Member
edited November 30 in Health and Weight Loss
I decided to change my dieting habits this past week after buying a scale (which my husband greatly regrets). I was at the time 295 lbs, which is the biggest I've ever been. In the past year I've gone from working full time to being a stay at home spouse, I quit smoking, and I have developed some pretty bad eating habits, so gaining weight was inevitable. I started by throwing out any junk food, switching my snacks to edamame, broccoli, and other vegetables, and sticking to a 1200-1600 calorie diet. I have a bad leg, so beside walking, I can't do much else except the occasional swimming. In the past week I have lost 10 lbs. Is that normal, or am I doing too much too soon? Will my weight continue to go down like this, or will it slow down soon?

Replies

  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
    You really can't judge much by the first week. The important thing is that you average about 1% of your bodyweight over time.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    edited March 2016
    Many people lose a lot of water weight in the initial week or two when the cut calories (I was not one of those fortunate people). If it keeps up at this rate after another two weeks, then reevaluate your goals.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,336 Member
    As stated, some people do, others do not, most of a big lose like that would be water weight.

    Question, are the 1200 to 1600 calories what Myfitnesspal gave you? 1200 in particular is the minimum for a woman, and generally if a person is set there by MFP they have set their goal too aggressively. Where you are in your journey, I would have expected your goal to be higher, and do realize, the calorie amount is a goal and has the calorie deficit built in. At 295 you have some wiggle room, but establishing good habits from the start is also important.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    malibu927 wrote: »
    Many people lose a lot of water weight in the initial week or two when the cut calories (I was not one of those fortunate people). If it keeps up at this rate after another two weeks, then reevaluate your goals.

    This.
  • starryphoenix
    starryphoenix Posts: 381 Member
    Definitely water weight.
  • trjjoy
    trjjoy Posts: 666 Member
    Yes. Yes, you should lose weight during the first week of eating at a deficit. It may, however, be masked by water retention. Give it a couple of weeks. Log carefully and accurately. And trust in the process.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    edited March 2016
    Perfectly normal to lose more in the first few weeks especially if you have a lot to lose.
  • dwaterfield
    dwaterfield Posts: 34 Member
    Everyone talks about that, and it certainly has happened for me when starting a new weight loss program. This is one explanation from this article:
    You may have heard that some diets result in a rapid loss of water weight. It’s true, and it can be part of the reason why the weight comes off so quickly after you switch to a new diet. When you cut calories, particularly calories from carbohydrates, your body begins to use up its supplies of glycogen, a carb that is stored with water. Losing that glycogen and the accompanying fluid can result in notable weight loss, since just 2 cups of water weighs 1 pound. After that initial “water weight” comes off, you’ll likely begin to lose at a slower rate.
  • poteatkd
    poteatkd Posts: 113 Member
    I lost 9.8 lbs of water weight my first week, but then it slowed down, but am losing at the rate I have set on MFP. =)
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    DeannaWathen wrote: »
    I decided to change my dieting habits this past week after buying a scale (which my husband greatly regrets). I was at the time 295 lbs, which is the biggest I've ever been. In the past year I've gone from working full time to being a stay at home spouse, I quit smoking, and I have developed some pretty bad eating habits, so gaining weight was inevitable. I started by throwing out any junk food, switching my snacks to edamame, broccoli, and other vegetables, and sticking to a 1200-1600 calorie diet. I have a bad leg, so beside walking, I can't do much else except the occasional swimming. In the past week I have lost 10 lbs. Is that normal, or am I doing too much too soon? Will my weight continue to go down like this, or will it slow down soon?

    How tall are you? When you put your stats into MFP and tell it you want to lose 2 pounds per week, how many calories does it give you? I'm betting a lot more than 1200. Sure, some people have an initial big drop (I didn't) but I am also concerned that you are undereating, even at 1600 calories, depending on how tall you are.

    I have bad knees and walking is a primary source of exercise for me. I built up from about 20 minutes to over an hour. @earlnabby lost over 100 pounds with walking and swimming as her primary exercise.
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