Is it normal to lose weight the first week you start ?

crb426 · January 2022

Other

The problem with this question is that it's dependent on a lot of factors. Weight fluctuates so easily due to increased exercise, salt increase, hormones, waste in body, etc. These things may mask weight loss.

If you do it correctly, meaning weighing your food with food scales, and using the appropriate data entries, then yes, you should lose weight (even if the scale doesn't show it). Sometimes it's a pretty good amount that first week and your body gets rid of water weight. Then the next week may be nothing, or an increase. Or maybe nothing that first week, and a lot the second week. Maybe it's nothing for weeks and then a lot all at once.

Weight is never a smooth downward trend. More like a crazy rollercoaster.

ReenieHJ · January 2022

Yes

It feels very normal for me because every time I've ever tried a new diet and came off a bingefest, my prior calorie intake had been abysmally high.

So I lose 1-3# the first week. Then it settles down to .5-1# a week after that. If I had more to lose, such as 50, I'd lose probably 5 the 1st week. Those numbers are all based on my previous experiences of being a yo-yo dieter all my life.

AnnPT77 · January 2022

Other

Yes, it's normal to lose weight the first week . . . and it's also normal not to lose weight the first week, depending on the person and the circumstances. Why? Because there's a range of normal, not just one single thing that's normal for every single person in every single case.

The commonality is this: You need multiple weeks of experience with a new regimen to know whether it's working for you, and how well. Generally, I'd say 4-6 weeks is good; but for adult women who haven't reached menopause yet, it's a good idea to look at whole menstrual cycles, i.e., compare body weight at the same relative point in two or more different cycles.

Even then, water weight fluctuations or something can make the answer a bit unrepresentative, but it'll give you a better idea of progress.

One week is just not enough data to know the effect.

This is a good read, will give some background on why I'm saying what I'm saying:

https://physiqonomics.com/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-weight-and-fluctuations

midlomel1971 · January 2022

Yes

I think it's common. I lost 6 pounds the first week! I'm sure it was a lot of water weight, but I was still kind of alarmed. I have my calorie deficit to lose 1 pound a week and I've been very strict about it. The second week I lost a whopping 1/2 pound...haha. At least that's more in line with what I expected. Slow and easy wins the race.

ReenieHJ · January 2022

Yes

midlomel1971 wrote: »

I think it's common. I lost 6 pounds the first week! I'm sure it was a lot of water weight, but I was still kind of alarmed. I have my calorie deficit to lose 1 pound a week and I've been very strict about it. The second week I lost a whopping 1/2 pound...haha. At least that's more in line with what I expected. Slow and easy wins the race.

Many years ago I was on WW. I weighed 200#, lost 10# that 1st week and went YEAH!! Then 1# every week after that for the first month. I gave up because back when I was 20, slow and easy never entered my brain.

cwolfman13 · January 2022

Other

I voted other...it is both common to lose weight the first week, but it is also common to not. I lost weight in a very linear fashion for the first 4-5 weeks my first time around, but I was only using diet and easy walks were my only exercise.

Once I started engaging in more strenuous exercise and weight lifting, there were far more fluctuations due to water being retained to aid in repair of broken down tissue. It is highly probable that with starting a diet, along with a massive jump in exercise, that one would not immediately see weight loss due to the amount of inflammation and water retention and stress on the body.

Is it normal to lose weight the first week you start ?

Is it normal to lose weight the first week you start ? 22 votes

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