Dropping a lot of weight in a healthy amount of time
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DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »pebble4321 wrote: »You can definitely lose weight in three months, but setting such a high goal sounds as though it is leading you to extreme and unhealthy behaviours that are likely to fail.
Eating only 800 cals a day means it is going to be very hard to get enough nutrition to stay healthy, especially when you are using lots of energy looking after kids and exercising too,
My suggestion is that you set up MFP to lose 1 pound a week, eat a good variety of healthy food up to the calorie goal that MFP suggests, exercise regularly but not to excess.
Then you stand a good chance of getting to December feeling full of life and energy and looking great.
But hey, it's your life - of course you can choose to eat and exercise at an unhealthy and unsustainable level (based on your description above), but I just don't understand why you want to set yourself up to fail.
Thank you. I might do that. I'm going to continue to eat how I am and exercise the way I am until I don't feel good, or feel like I am not myself anymore. So far, I feel happy, energized, and sleep well every night. It's been a while since I slept the way I have this week. I usually have a hard time waking up, and this week, I'm up early and feeling great!
I don't want to set myself up to fail, and that's why I'm here. I haven't done this alone before, so I'm going off what I learned a few years ago from the trainer I had, and I lost the weight back then.
But this is what I don't understand. You come here asking if what you are doing is healthy. Everyone tells you it isn't, but you just insist that you will be fine and then state you're going to continue with what you're doing, lol.
ETA:: I know that sounded kind of rude and I apologize. I just like to see people succeed with their goals and I just don't think you'll be happy with your results if your expectations are off.2 -
DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »You said you were hoping to lose 10-25 lbs a month...at the higher end, that's almost a pound a day! That's a ridiculous goal. I'm nearly the exact same weight as you (I weighed in at 186 this morning, actually) and my end goal is 127, so I'm 59 lbs away, and I'm aiming to lose it by May! You can try to do it, but my worry is you will work REALLY hard and get discouraged when you realize you aren't losing as fast as you thought you would and give up. Or you'll somehow pull it off, but only by unsustainable methods that once you reach your goal, you will put it all back on in a short amount of time. My advice to you is to work on losing 50 lbs, but give yourself a much longer time frame. Sure, you won't be your goal weight, but you'll be less than you are now. My cousin is getting married in October. Would I like to be my goal weight? Of course. But it's not possible. But I will certainly be below my starting weight, which was 217, and that feels really great!!
OH no... I'm thinking 10-25 pounds for this month only. And then in November, I'll look at where I am and then look at how much i'm still dropping, and see what I can do to still reach my goal.
Working hard and getting discouraged is not really a hard thing for me. I own a small business where we do sales all the time, if I don't hit the goals I set there, I keep working, and work harder to get the next goal. I feel like it pushes me to do better.
I don't think I'm worried about putting it back on, I am considering measuring my meals for the rest of my life. I think you're right, giving myself more time might be the best choice. But I want to hit that 139 mark. I don't think I'm going to give up.
217 to 186.. 30 pounds??? How long did that take you? That's really cool you were able to drop that much. I can't wait until I can say I dropped 30!
You cannot compare yourself to someone else and their weight loss. The more someone has to lose, the fast the rate tends to be at first. Someone who is morbidly obese may lose more weight to start, but that will slow down as they get closer to a healthy weight. With you only having 50 lbs to lose, you will not lose as fast and that person.
Ya, I just see that I'm closer to 200 than 100... so I feel like it's a lot.0 -
DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »Why did you title this "Dropping a lot of weight in a healthy amount of time" if you don't plan on doing it in what is actually a healthy manner?
Because I'm looking to drop the weight the healthiest way in a healthy amount of time. I have a goal, and I'm just not sure how to accomplish it. I thought I was doing the right things, and apparently I'm not.
I can assure you that the way you are trying to lose is not healthy and not sustainable for the long run. 800-1000 calories is not enough for a woman to eat even without exercise. Then you are adding exercise to that mix? Would you run your car on an empty tank of gas? You have to fuel your workouts. You should be netting at least 1200 calories.
I would definitely listen to the advice of everyone here. What you want in a goal and what is healthy to obtain are two separate things. With only 50 lbs to lose, set your goal to 1 lb per week. Trying to lose any faster just makes the chances of you gaining the weight all back that much more.
I am morbidly obese. My starting weight was 258 and I am down to 230-231 as of today. My goal for the end of the year is 30 lbs, but that is a loose goal. If I am only down 20, no biggie. You have to have the attitude that any weight loss it good.
I really love what you said here. Thank you for the advice!0 -
I've lost the 31 lbs since May, so about 4 months. It's a pretty fast pace, but I'm not expecting it to continue. I am very prepared for my pace to slow the lower I go. I'm also not going to be upset if I can't lose 90 lbs in a year... I just set my end date to be May 10, my 31st birthday, as more my "evaluation point." I will be ecstatic if I have lost all the weight by then, but if not, I'll still be happy I lost as much as I did, and evaluate to see how I feel: do I want to keep eating at a deficit, or do I want to practice maintenance for awhile? Our bodies work in mysterious ways...I don't think we can always realistically predict that we want to lose x weight in y amount of time.0
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DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »You said you were hoping to lose 10-25 lbs a month...at the higher end, that's almost a pound a day! That's a ridiculous goal. I'm nearly the exact same weight as you (I weighed in at 186 this morning, actually) and my end goal is 127, so I'm 59 lbs away, and I'm aiming to lose it by May! You can try to do it, but my worry is you will work REALLY hard and get discouraged when you realize you aren't losing as fast as you thought you would and give up. Or you'll somehow pull it off, but only by unsustainable methods that once you reach your goal, you will put it all back on in a short amount of time. My advice to you is to work on losing 50 lbs, but give yourself a much longer time frame. Sure, you won't be your goal weight, but you'll be less than you are now. My cousin is getting married in October. Would I like to be my goal weight? Of course. But it's not possible. But I will certainly be below my starting weight, which was 217, and that feels really great!!
OH no... I'm thinking 10-25 pounds for this month only. And then in November, I'll look at where I am and then look at how much i'm still dropping, and see what I can do to still reach my goal.
Working hard and getting discouraged is not really a hard thing for me. I own a small business where we do sales all the time, if I don't hit the goals I set there, I keep working, and work harder to get the next goal. I feel like it pushes me to do better.
I don't think I'm worried about putting it back on, I am considering measuring my meals for the rest of my life. I think you're right, giving myself more time might be the best choice. But I want to hit that 139 mark. I don't think I'm going to give up.
217 to 186.. 30 pounds??? How long did that take you? That's really cool you were able to drop that much. I can't wait until I can say I dropped 30!
You cannot compare yourself to someone else and their weight loss. The more someone has to lose, the fast the rate tends to be at first. Someone who is morbidly obese may lose more weight to start, but that will slow down as they get closer to a healthy weight. With you only having 50 lbs to lose, you will not lose as fast and that person.
Ya, I just see that I'm closer to 200 than 100... so I feel like it's a lot.
I know it feels that way, but the rate of loss with only 50 lbs to lose, just will not be as fast as you want. You didn't put that 50 lbs on overnight. Give it time to come off. It is the best way to assure you'll succeed in the long run. I started with 120 lbs to lose so 50 lbs sounds like nothing to me. Even when I lose 50 lbs, I'll still have 70 lbs to get to my goal, lol.2 -
DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »Why did you title this "Dropping a lot of weight in a healthy amount of time" if you don't plan on doing it in what is actually a healthy manner?
Because I'm looking to drop the weight the healthiest way in a healthy amount of time. I have a goal, and I'm just not sure how to accomplish it. I thought I was doing the right things, and apparently I'm not.
You can't lose that much weight in that little time in a healthy manner. You just can't.
You'd be seriously undereating. That's going to set you up for failure or malnutrition / hair loss / muscle loss.
What Are the Risks of Rapid Weight Loss?
Rapid weight loss creates physical demands on the body. Possible serious risks include:- Gallstones, which occur in 12% to 25% of people losing large amounts of weight over several months
- Dehydration, which can be avoided by drinking plenty of fluids
- Malnutrition, usually from not eating enough protein for weeks at a time
- Electrolyte imbalances, which rarely can be life threatening
Other side effects of rapid weight loss include:- Headaches
- Irritability
- Fatigue
- Dizziness
- Constipation
- Menstrual irregularities
- Hair loss
- Muscle loss
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DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Why do you think it is just water? Most of the time, assuming you're at a reasonable deficit, you're losing a combination of water, fat, and muscle.
I think it's just water weight because I google more than anyone ever should. When I do anything in life, I love to learn all about it, examine why I do it, and then give it 300% focus. I'm at about 800-1200 calories a day, and burn anywhere from 200 - 600 calories a day.
so you are eating 800-1200 calories and burning 200-600 so netting about 600 maybe more depending on burn. yeah not good unless you are eating exercise calories back and netting 1200
Ya, but what is the downside to it? I can't find anything about how it'll hurt me by what I'm doing. Not eating them back, but I'm not hungry, and I'm still feeling good.
Research indicates that our bodies are able to metabolize just a bit over 30 calories per pound of body fat per day, tops. If we create a crazy-high calorie deficit and try to lose more, one of a couple of things (or both) can happen (besides the hair loss, etc., mentioned above).
One is that our bodies will find another way to get energy to keep running, when it can't squeeze out more from our fat stores. In other words, we'll start burning lean body mass, like muscles (heart's a muscle, too).
The other is "adaptive thermogenesis". This means that our bodies will slow down functions that are not vital for keeping us alive. This may mean that we simply move less in our non-exercise moments, but it may also be a slowdown in desirable body processes that are not strictly mandatory (digestion, etc.). You may or may not perceive this as fatigue, etc.
The long run result of adaptive thermogenesis is that we require fewer calories just to be alive, and research suggests that this effect can persist long after the calorie deficit is over.
You may've read the (kind of poorly thought out) articles a while back about how some of the "Biggest Loser" contestants, in order to maintain their weight loss, now need to eat hundreds fewer calories each day than people of the same weight who never went through extreme weight loss.
You may be able to achieve that "half a pound a day" kind of calorie deficit in the short run . . . or maybe your body will turn out not to be one that actually can burn as many as 30ish calories from fat, per pound of fat, daily. Most of us who want to stay healthy & strong decide not to take that kind of risk. Staying healthy (avoiding effects like those described above) is why many advocate rules of thumb like "no more loss than 1% of body weight per week".
Please give your kids a model of healthy, sustainable eating & exercise, not a model of "adopt risky habits to look good in photos". If you keep working out, and lose weight at a reasonable pace, you'll look wonderful by mid-December: Healthy, slimmer, stronger, with a glowing complexion & visible energy. The photos will show it.7 -
You will get sick, I swear to god. Then you will fall off the wagon, and you will hate yourself, and likely not have lost any weight by your baby's birthday. You will do MUCH better to lose 25 lbs, feel awesome (I know you say that you feel awesome now, but I've done the very low calorie thing, and it WILL.NOT.LAST) than to attempt to lose that much.
Further, your skin will look terrible. It won't have time to tighten up, and with that much malnutrition you will not look happy, radiant and peaceful for those photos. You will look sallow, you could end up with breakouts/other skin issues, and you will be freaking exhausted.
You can (and will!) lose 50 lbs. By the photos of his second birthday, you will be a tight little ball of awesome fitness stuff. But this birthday, be satisfied with losing some and being present and happy and buy a new outfit that looks fantastic on you! But don't do this. Please don't do this.8 -
DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »Lala land indeed. I mean it really depends. Do you want to look good on December 17 but you are ok if you gain a lot of weight back by January 1? does it HAVE to be 50 pounds?
Are there people who lose weight quickly and keep it off? sure. And there are people who win olympic medals and who discover new planets, but I wouldn't give all people advice with the expectation that they fit into one of those categories.
Why don't you just try to lose as much weight as you can while feeling good and nourishing your body before December 17th, (maybe it will be 50 pounds, maybe it will be 5, either way its progress!) ...and then just...see what happens.
Oh no haha. I can understand that statement. No, I plan to keep the weight off and simply continue to work out and eat healthy. It's my last baby's first birthday. I really want to feel and look good on that day. We are also going to Texas that week or the next week.
The reason for the 50 pounds is that it will be put me right in the middle of the "normal" BMI numbers. I am currently considered obese. When I am 179, I'll be overweight according to BMI.
Okay, so you are in a very very similar situation to me. My baby boy will turn one in late October. A month ago, I weighed 190. I now weigh 180. What I think you should do is aim to lose 2 pounds/week. That should get you to the top of the healthy BMI range by your son's first birthday, and is a much more realistic goal. You can aim to lose 50 pounds in total, but over a longer period of time. You will still look and feel much better having lost 30 pounds by the photos, right?
What I did was set myself to Lightly Active and have MFP calculate my calories for a 1 pound/week deficit. I work out, but don't eat back all of the calories. I walk a *lot*. I chase my two kids. I weigh everything I eat, and log all food and all drinks with calories (i.e. my milk). Are you breastfeeding? If so, that alone "burns" calories.0 -
Are you going to take a picture with yourself, your baby and the scale? Of course you're not. Focus on losing what you can in a healthy manner. Nobody will know or see the number on the scale, but if you're exhausted because you're malnourished and have run yourself into the ground just to hit some arbitrary number on the scale, that will show in the pictures.7
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If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal4 -
Think of it this way. If you lose 1 to 2 pounds a week, by December you'll look better and feel better regardless.2
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Chilli7777 wrote: »Think of it this way. If you lose 1 to 2 pounds a week, by December you'll look better and feel better regardless.
I think my biggest issue is I have people in my life that I don't particularly like, that are telling me that I am never going to lose weight, and I'm just all talk.0 -
DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »Chilli7777 wrote: »Think of it this way. If you lose 1 to 2 pounds a week, by December you'll look better and feel better regardless.
I think my biggest issue is I have people in my life that I don't particularly like, that are telling me that I am never going to lose weight, and I'm just all talk.
But you can lose the weight, and we're truly, sincerely trying to help you do it. You'll show them!
The question is, what do want to show them: If you reach thinness, but look drawn, tired, sallow, you'll give them an excuse to say "see, it's unhealthy to lose weight". It may take a little longer, but if you do it in a truly healthy way, your total appearance and energy level (not to mention confidence) will reflect that. Wouldn't that be a better "prove it" moment, with less for others to pick at to bring you down?
Lots of us posting on this thread are doing so because we've been there. I had too aggressive a goal, fortunately only for a short time, because I realized it when I suddenly hit a brick wall in terms of fatigue and feeling as if I was getting weaker. I upped my calorie goal, started feeling good again, and did reach my goal weight. I've been in weight maintenance mode for around 6 months now.
I'm down more than 60 pounds (SW 183, GW/CW 120), and I started out just over the line into obese just like you say you are. But it took around 10-11 months, not 3.5 months. Totally worth doing it more slowly, IMO.3 -
I should add that I "get" the photo thing. I'm having a hard time with the fact that I know I need to take pictures with my kids because at some point they're going to want them so they can remember childhood with mum. Heck, my two year old already wants them. Even though I don't look ideal at the moment. Sitting baby on your lap allows you to cover a whole lot of things you don't necessarily want in the photo. Looking happy and healthy covers a whole lot of other flaws. Figure out the angles you like and make sure you use them.0
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My late Mum was on the plump / larger side. Not once have I looked at a photo and thought about her size. I see her face, her love, her smile. I wish you all the best with your personal goal of getting to look as great as you can for your babe 1st birthday - but don't be hard on yourself - be the fantastic mother I'm sure you are9
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DennysWifeMrsMattox wrote: »4 pounds since what date? Has it just been a 1 , 2, or three 3 days or is this after a whole week plus?
Depending on when you started, you can reasonably assume that if you have been 100% in a calorie deficit, it could possibly be both or and if the deficit is a little more than 2 pounds it could be a wee bit of muscle too. The larger the deficit it will be all three at some point in your weight loss unless you are doing all that you can do for muscle sparing during weight loss.
Ok, I started working out on Monday and the last time I had soda was Sunday night. I started eating 800-1200 calories on Tuesday, and the 4 pounds is since Monday Morning of this week. So 4-5 days.
I'm lifting weights, won't that help me keep my muscle?
First this 4 -5 days is mainly water weight loss, no fat loss I am afraid to say.
Next, at your currently described weight loss method (3.5/week) your deficit is way too steep for muscle sparing. You also need to be consuming the right amount protein as well (this is very important).. You need a lot smaller deficit, ample protein and a structured strength training regime.
I hope you received the comments and advise positively and hope you change your mind on this unnecessary approach and moreover damaging and unhealthy weight loss.
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As others have pointed out, this rate of loss is not a realistic or sustainable goal. Eating 800-1200 cals/day and exercising one or more times a day is also not healthy. You may feel good now with under a week in, but how can you possibly find the energy to support being an active mother to multiple kids on such low calories? Hint - you can't.
You said this is your last first baby. I bet like every other parent who knows this is their last baby, you think all the time... "I wish I could slow this down. He/she isn't going to be a baby much longer. This is the last time I will nurse him, last time I will rock her, etc". Every other aspect of life we lament how fast the time goes, except for weight loss.... So don't be in a hurry for that either. Dec 17 is going to come and go and not a single person, not even you, is going to be looking at you or thinking of what you weigh. Everyone is going to be focused on messy cake pics of you child. The weight will come off eventually and is more likely to stay off if you lose it with a moderate deficit...
Good luck.5 -
These people that judge you if they are like that now I hate to say it but they most likely won't change when you do succeed they will just find some other reason to be judgmental. Do this for YOU, so you feel good in your skin, so you feel healthy and happy. That is all that really matters. Do this in a healthy smart way and enjoy feeling healthy and being there with your little one. Those moments will last a lot longer in your memory then the million hours working out trying to lose weight really fast
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