It is a marathon, not a sprint. 52 lbs in 120 days
Options
deimosphoebos
Posts: 117 Member
General Stats : 33 y.o. male (almost 34), 181cm (5’11” and a bit)
Start Data (27 Nov 17) : 250 lbs, 47.5’’ waist, 43’’ hips, 35% body fat
Current Data (23 Mar 18): 198.4 lbs, 38.5” waist, 39’’ hips, 22% body fat
Goal Data (By 27 Nov 18): 169lbs ish, ?? waist, ?? hips, 10% body fat
120 days of logging is what has allowed me to lose over 50 lbs and drop to a weight that I have not been since high school. You guys are the best and I am here to help anyone who needs some advice on how to replicate what I have done. MyFitnessPal works. The community, the app, the forums and the support have been incredible. This journey is achievable, and you all can do it. For those of you who are having trouble, feel free to add me as a friend or look through my public diary to see what I am eating.
Remember, it is a marathon, not a sprint. Take it one meal, one physical training session, one craving, one day at a time. You can all do it and reach your goals, you are the unstoppable force that will move mountains.
Start Data (27 Nov 17) : 250 lbs, 47.5’’ waist, 43’’ hips, 35% body fat
Current Data (23 Mar 18): 198.4 lbs, 38.5” waist, 39’’ hips, 22% body fat
Goal Data (By 27 Nov 18): 169lbs ish, ?? waist, ?? hips, 10% body fat
120 days of logging is what has allowed me to lose over 50 lbs and drop to a weight that I have not been since high school. You guys are the best and I am here to help anyone who needs some advice on how to replicate what I have done. MyFitnessPal works. The community, the app, the forums and the support have been incredible. This journey is achievable, and you all can do it. For those of you who are having trouble, feel free to add me as a friend or look through my public diary to see what I am eating.
Remember, it is a marathon, not a sprint. Take it one meal, one physical training session, one craving, one day at a time. You can all do it and reach your goals, you are the unstoppable force that will move mountains.
12
Replies
-
Congratulations , and thanks for sharing . I need to remember this as i get discouraged easily when i have a bad weight loss week .1
-
Congratulations , and thanks for sharing . I need to remember this as i get discouraged easily when i have a bad weight loss week .
I weigh myself every day (not everyone recommends this). This allows me to see the regular fluctuations up and down. On average though, the loss has been ~ 2lbs per week.1 -
Good job!
I'd reassess your goal though, it's going to be extremely hard to maintain 1 lb a week loss to reach your goal weight without losing too much muscle mass.4 -
So while I recognize that there is some water weight, how many calories are you eating? Because that is averaging about to be about 16lbs a month (grant it, the first 10 or so lbs was water weight). Also, I am not sure how you measured body fat, but your current plan shows a loss of 8 lbs of lean body mass (of which can be water).
LBM= 250*(1-.35)=162.5
LBS= 198.4*(1-.22)=154.7
Are you incorporating weight training? How much protein are you consuming?0 -
My calorie intake initially was 2000 cals from nov-dec, then 1770 from dec-jan, 1500 for 2 weeks in jan, and has been 2300-2400 on avg from feb to now.
I've averaged between 2-3lbs a week ish since my start.
The body fat measurements were with a caliper.
Initially workouts were really slow but have gradually increased to my present training plan.
I do 3 sessions of StrongLifts 5x5 per week, followed by a HIIT session or a relaxation cardio session after the lifts. On my off days, I try to walk, swim or be active for at least 60 minutes.
My protein goal is ~180g / day, but I am not always hitting it.0 -
deimosphoebos wrote: »Congratulations , and thanks for sharing . I need to remember this as i get discouraged easily when i have a bad weight loss week .
I weigh myself every day (not everyone recommends this). This allows me to see the regular fluctuations up and down. On average though, the loss has been ~ 2lbs per week.
You are pretty much bang on 3lbs a week though, that sounds more like a sprint than a marathon.10 -
deimosphoebos wrote: »Congratulations , and thanks for sharing . I need to remember this as i get discouraged easily when i have a bad weight loss week .
I weigh myself every day (not everyone recommends this). This allows me to see the regular fluctuations up and down. On average though, the loss has been ~ 2lbs per week.
You are pretty much bang on 3lbs a week though, that sounds more like a sprint than a marathon.
My thoughts exactly. I have lost only 17 lbs in the same amount of time as he has lost 52 lbs and I started at 199lbs being a 5'4" female...5 -
Based on your measurements, I'd estimate your goal waist size to be in the 31" - 32" range at 10% body fat, give or take.deimosphoebos wrote: »General Stats : 33 y.o. male (almost 34), 181cm (5’11” and a bit)
Goal Data (By 27 Nov 18): 169lbs ish, ?? waist, ?? hips, 10% body fat
Great work. Keep it up.
edit: Kudos for being smart about it by focusing on strength training instead of just doing cardio or playing with pink dumbbells.
My recommendation would have been to start that "day one" but better late than never.
That is the biggest "secret" of losing fat efficiently - and keeping it off.
Without strength training, up to 1/2 of the "weight" you lose could be muscle instead of fat.
Less muscle means your BMR will be lower and make it even easier to gain fat than before.
0 -
It has been about a month now, that I have been eating more. I mostly keep under my daily calorie goal, but do not beat myself up too much if I do not make it.0
-
OK. Yea, it seems more reasonable now. How has progress been with StrongLifts?0
-
-
etherealanwar wrote: »
You are pretty much bang on 3lbs a week though, that sounds more like a sprint than a marathon
....
My thoughts exactly. I have lost only 17 lbs in the same amount of time as he has lost 52 lbs and I started at 199lbs being a 5'4" female...
When you are very overweight or obese then it is simple to lose 2 or 3 pounds a week for a while (4 months is the start of the marathon) if you are doing things correctly.
Specifically, strength training and eating properly.
The rate of fat loss will slow more and more when you have less and less to lose.
Most people do NOT eat (or log) properly, they just think/claim they do.
As for training, what he is doing now is free.
It just takes more effort than most people are willing to put in:
https://www.stronglifts.com/5x5/4 -
In many respects we are twins. I started logging on November 28, 2017. I weighed 253.2. I am 6 feet tall. I have been trying to keep at or around 2,000 calories per day. My main exercise has been stair machines and rowers. I use them intensely, so they are not totally cardio. I add weight training but have to be careful with my 60 year old joints. I am at 225.4. So over the same time that you have lost 52, I have lost 28 pounds. My current goal is 217. Back in late 2010, I was at 317 so this would make 100 pounds. I would occasionally reach a plateau so I would stop logging.1
-
etherealanwar wrote: »
You are pretty much bang on 3lbs a week though, that sounds more like a sprint than a marathon
....
My thoughts exactly. I have lost only 17 lbs in the same amount of time as he has lost 52 lbs and I started at 199lbs being a 5'4" female...
When you are very overweight or obese then it is simple to lose 2 or 3 pounds a week for a while (4 months is the start of the marathon) if you are doing things correctly.
Specifically, strength training and eating properly.
The rate of fat loss will slow more and more when you have less and less to lose.
Most people do NOT eat (or log) properly, they just think/claim they do.
As for training, what he is doing now is free.
It just takes more effort than most people are willing to put in:
https://www.stronglifts.com/5x5/
Not suggesting anything different........but there is nothing in OP's story that shows he is maintaining/can continue a marathon pace1 -
Best for continuing to eat healthy and exercising
0 -
etherealanwar wrote: »
You are pretty much bang on 3lbs a week though, that sounds more like a sprint than a marathon
....
My thoughts exactly. I have lost only 17 lbs in the same amount of time as he has lost 52 lbs and I started at 199lbs being a 5'4" female...
When you are very overweight or obese then it is simple to lose 2 or 3 pounds a week for a while (4 months is the start of the marathon) if you are doing things correctly.
Specifically, strength training and eating properly.
The rate of fat loss will slow more and more when you have less and less to lose.
Most people do NOT eat (or log) properly, they just think/claim they do.
As for training, what he is doing now is free.
It just takes more effort than most people are willing to put in:
https://www.stronglifts.com/5x5/
Not suggesting anything different........but there is nothing in OP's story that shows he is maintaining/can continue a marathon pace
Well he's lost the easy weight at an easy pace, he knows this, and he's buckling down to lose the final 28 lbs at a much more leisurely pace.
He may have started a bit fast, but 52 lbs in about 6 months for a 250 lb person isn't all that fast.
He's probably not going to hit that 10% BF number, but he'll be close enough to decide if he still wants to hit it. Especially if he sticks with stronglifts for the next 6 months.6
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 391.6K Introduce Yourself
- 43.5K Getting Started
- 259.7K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.6K Food and Nutrition
- 47.3K Recipes
- 232.3K Fitness and Exercise
- 393 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.7K Motivation and Support
- 7.8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.3K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 934 Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.3K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions