Will it be possible to reach my goal by the end of the semester?

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hildaodias
hildaodias Posts: 5 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi, I'm a 19 year old sophomore and I'm trying to burn off the weight I gained my freshmen year (about 15 lbs). This year I made a commitment of dieting and exercising in efforts of losing 30 pounds by May. I am trying the military diet, maintaining ≤1,200 calories, keeping below 40 g of fat, 30 grams of sugar, and eating plenty of protein and drinking plenty of water daily. I do zumba fitness, jog, and squats about 4-5x a week. Will all of this help me reach my goal of -30 lbs by May? If not, any tips? Thanks!

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  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    edited February 2017
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    The "military diet" is a joke. Eating below 1200 calories (for women; 1500 for men) isn't even allowed to promote in here.

    A deadline for weightloss is not a good idea. You can't control your weight directly. But you can control your behavior, and eating, drinking and moving in a way that creates a consistent calorie deficit, will make you lose weight.

    Set up MFP with your stats, enter the closest equivalent to 1% of your current body weight as your desired weekly weight loss goal, and aim to hit the calorie goal it spits out, every day.

    Eat whatever you like, but aim to have a balanced diet (what this is, is a bit individual and up to preference, but if you are tracking macros, track protein, fat and carbs. You can set fat and protein to 70-100 grams each as a start, and see how that goes). It's no problem if you go over on fat/protein, as long as you don't exceed your calorie goal. It's not even any problem to exceed your calorie goal, as long as you don't do it consistently.

    Exercise if you like, but not to exhaustion.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    If you are obese you might be able to reach that goal but it's not a definite. If you're simply overweight or already at a healthy weight, it is not possible outside of extremely unhealthy behaviors.
  • isabellapanzica9387
    isabellapanzica9387 Posts: 68 Member
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    First semester in college I lost around 34lbs so it is possible.

    I ate 1200cals a day every day (lose 2 pounds a week) with no cheat days ever. I was always strict with portions, went to the gym 1-3 times a week and walked around 2.5miles a day. Though when it came to calories I ate anything I wanted in my limit. Its tough but you can do it.

    The first few weeks the weight falls off (lost 8 pounds in 2 weeks) then it is a challenge to try and lose 2lbs a week. Some weeks you wont reach that goal and it ok.

    Though remember you are walking on a fine line. It is very easy to over or under estimate the calories you eat and eating less then 1000 calories is extremely unhealthy.
  • terbusha
    terbusha Posts: 1,483 Member
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    This depends on a lot of factors, such as your consistency in sticking to your goals, the intensity of your workouts, and your metabolism. I would suggest that you simply focus on working hard and being consistent in your efforts. As long as you do that, let the results be what they are. You'll make progress, but don't be frustrated if you miss your goal by a bit. Just keep on cranking away.

    Also, I would not recommend that you eat less than 1200 cal/day. It's not good for long-term success at this journey. What I do and what I recommend to people is to eat at a calorie level that allows you to make good progress towards your goal. If you are trying to lose weight, eat so you drop 1-2 lbs/week. This assumes an average calorie burn from you getting in all of your workouts. This will be different for everyone, so you'll have to do some trial and error to figure it out. I'd start ~1400 cal/day. Hit this goal, along with your macros and getting in your workouts, for 2 weeks. If you lose 1-2 lbs/week, you're good to go. If you lose too much, increase your intake and repeat. If you don't lose enough, reduce your intake a bit and repeat. After a few cycles, you'll figure out what works for you in your situation.
  • ticiaelizabeth
    ticiaelizabeth Posts: 139 Member
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    If you are as active as you say you are that few calories is going to be nothing but detrimental to your health. I would be eating at least 1600 calories a day, or if you really feel it necessary to keep it to 1200, do so, but eat back ALL of your exercise calories.
  • CattOfTheGarage
    CattOfTheGarage Posts: 2,750 Member
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    Seems a bit quick. What's the emergency? Weight loss is easier and more sustainable if you do it slowly.
  • hildaodias
    hildaodias Posts: 5 Member
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    Thank you everyone for your comments and advice. I am new to this app and I appreciate the different advice; it means a lot. Honestly, I am in no rush. I wanted to know if it is realistic to lose 30 lbs by the end of the semester. During my four day break from the military diet, I continue to eat healthful (or healthy?) food while exercising every single day. I used to work out 3-4 days a week but now I go for a walk or jog everyday. Some days I even do zumba, which is super fun. I'm very committed to losing weight because I just noticed that this morning, one of my jeans I grew out of feels a little loose on me... Progress! I am truly blessed and eager to drop the freshmen 15. Thanks once again to everyone! I will take all of your advice into consideration.

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