How would I lose 50-60 pounds in 3 1/2 months

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deontedrakee
deontedrakee Posts: 1 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok so I made a bet with my friends that I have to be in shape by December bc of the years I’ve put this off, if I don’t do it i have to shave my head. What’s the best way to do this I’m 266 rn
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  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 8,987 Member
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    Seems a silly bet to me.
  • DFW_Tom
    DFW_Tom Posts: 218 Member
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    paperpudding wrote: »
    Seems a silly bet to me.

    Seems stupid to me.
  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,400 Member
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    Yep---what they all said. That was NOT a bet you should have made. You'll harm your health trying to win. So...you won't win, even if you could. If you have a care for your body and health, do what PAV suggested. That's the smart route, and yes follow the Retroguy's advice when you shave. Sorry.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,389 Member
    edited September 2023
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    Sorry, I don't think this will happen within this timeframe. What you've done is like betting you'll grow wings and fly over the Atlantic in 3 months without checking first whether this is possible to start with.

    You're obese, thus some substantial weightloss should be possible in 14 weeks, but don't expect much more than 3lbs per week, probably closer to 2 per week.
  • tomcustombuilder
    tomcustombuilder Posts: 1,610 Member
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    You obviously have no Fatloss knowledge so probably best to choose another game to bet on.
  • herringboxes
    herringboxes Posts: 259 Member
    edited September 2023
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    You don’t have to be an expert to post here.

    OP, you can do it - just take a reasonable amount of time to do so.

    By the New Year, you can have made a terrific amount of progress.

    Set up your goals in MFP, get started, and let us know how it’s going!

    If you are down 20 pounds by New Year, perhaps you could just get a modest haircut to celebrate.
  • Lildarlinz
    Lildarlinz Posts: 276 Member
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    Snippedy snip ✂️ I’m hoping your a male as shaved heads done look too bad on a male
    If your female you could always buy a wig!

    Not a very safe bet…unless you go on a liquid diet and exercise for about 10 hours a day

    It’s much safer to calorie count and lose it gradually :) x

    Maybe ask you friends if you can set more of a realistic goal :) or maybe just compensate you that you are actually trying :)

    Good luck whatever u do xx
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,897 Member
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    There's no safe way for someone your size to lose 3.6 pounds per week for 14 weeks.

    You should be aiming for no more than 1% of your weight:

    9kjwnia17qv9.jpg

    But if you ignore us all and proceed anyway, you might lose your hair just the same, as hair loss can happen with rapid weight 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
  • ddsb1111
    ddsb1111 Posts: 736 Member
    edited September 2023
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    Welp, you certainly like a challenge haha!

    I’ll tell you my experience. I started a 1 month challenge with my friend and my husband on July 1st, just to get more focused and motivated. She bailed after a week or so but my husband and I stuck with it. Tbh, I’m still shocked how dialed in we were and we ended up extending it to 3 months, ending Sept 30th.

    I’ve never been so strict with my diet in my life! There was no way I could have reduced calories more than I did and managed to be healthy and continue to the end of the challenge. I lost a total of 19.2lbs, 5 of that being water weight the first week, I’m sure. We finished the challenge 13 days early because we both reached our goal weight.

    That being said, with zero distractions, nearly a perfect diet, 100% focus, and a teammate hyper motivating me, there’s NO WAY we could lose 50-60 lbs! Even if you lost a maximum of 2lbs a week that would be 28lbs. And that would be HARD!

    Do I think you should give it a shot? Sure! You’ll feel better losing a little weight even if it’s not your goal. But do I think you’re shaving your head? Absolutely.

    Wishing you good luck and hope, if you give it a shot, you keep us posted how you do!


  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,102 Member
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    %0-60 pounds in 3.5 months, so like 3-4 pounds a week?

    I'll tell you how.

    You just have to eat 1500-2000 calories less than you burn, every single day for 3.5 months, on average.

    I see by your profile that you're male, and you mention 266 pounds, but I don't know how tall or old. I'm going to guess at average height, say 5'10" and age 30. With those assumptions, not considering exercise, just a normal humdrum life, we'd expect you to burn something in the vicinity of 2800 calories a day.

    Still without considering exercise, that means you get to eat something like 800-1300 calories per day during this 3.5 months.

    800 is maybe the equivalent of 2.3 peanut butter sandwiches, or 1.3 Big Macs. For 1300, let's say almost 4 peanut butter sandwiches, or 2.2 Big Macs. It doesn't have to be those specific foods, but that many calories worth of food.

    It may be a challenge to keep up reasonable energy for that long on that very little amount of food, but hey - you're motivated, right? There was a bet?

    Yes, you could exercise to burn more calories, but that will also lead to more fatigue. Fatigue makes you burn fewer calories the rest of the day, plus you need to fuel exercise in order to perform, so I wouldn't hold out a lot of hope that that's the solution to the problem, either.

    As a guy weighing 266, you may need something around or even over 150 grams of protein daily to avoid losing muscle during extreme fat loss**, though that could be an overestimate if you're quite short. 300 grams of protein would be be 600 calories in itself, so you have maybe 200-700 calories to spend on other nutrients.

    Probably something like 100 grams of fat daily would be good, though again it could be a little less if you're short. That would be 900 calories worth of fat. Oops, we're already over the 1300 calories, and we haven't even gotten to veggies/fruits for fiber and micronutrients yet. Maybe you don't like veggies anyway, I don't know.

    ** Source: https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/

    Shucks, there goes your health! But, yeah, you wanna win this bet, not have to shave your head, so it's probably worth losing muscle, compromising your immune system, risking gall bladder problems, and other stuff like that.

    One piece of good news: Almost certainly your hair will thin along the way from too-low calories and undernutrition, so there'll be less to shave off!

    Seriously: This is not remotely a good idea. If you didn't put it in writing, say you were joking. If you did put it in writing, just plan to shave your head, like others said.

    Don't try the weight loss. Be sensible. If you want to lose, do it in a health-promoting way.
  • PeachHibiscus
    PeachHibiscus Posts: 164 Member
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    deontedrakee wrote: »
    Ok so I made a bet with my friends that I have to be in shape by December

    See, to me, to "be in shape" means healthy and physically fit, not just skinny. The beginning of December is 10 weeks away. Losing 60 pounds in 10 weeks is not healthy, as to do so, you'd have to go very low calorie, or strenuously exercise hours a day, or some combination of the two. Rapid weight loss can cause a lot of complications such as fatigue, malnutrition, hair loss, muscle loss, electrolyte imbalances (which affect organs like your heart and kidneys) and gallstones.

    But you could absolutely get into better shape by December. Like everyone else is saying, set up your profile here and keep in your calorie goals to lose at a sustainable rate. Regular physical activity lowers your risks for issues such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes so if you are already active, that's great and keep it up. If not, you may wish to start increasing your activity. It doesn't have to be strenuous or expensive. It can be as easy and cheap as going for a walk. If you have any health concerns, you can always get cleared by a doctor before starting a fitness program.

    Best wishes to you!
  • mikefm101
    mikefm101 Posts: 10 Member
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    Just start losing weight now.

    Keep it up through December.

    Then You will be lighter by 1/1/2024 and if these are truly decent friends rather than gloating they won an impossible bet they will congratulate you on what you had achieved and you can thank them for their prodding to get you started.

    Then keep it up in 2024 and you will feel awesome and proud.

    I lost 25 lbs Last year. 203 to 178. Took me 7 or 8 months. Just started again this week to lose another ten pounds this fall.

    Mike

    Mike
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,515 Member
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    You could win if you cut off one of your legs. Hope your head doesn't sunburn. You're going to get shaved.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
  • musicfan68
    musicfan68 Posts: 1,124 Member
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    300 grams of protein would be be 600 calories in itself,

    I think you got your math wrong. There are 4 calories per gram, so it would be 1200 calories worth of protein.

    Either way, this is a really dumb thing to do. Not worth it.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,102 Member
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    musicfan68 wrote: »
    300 grams of protein would be be 600 calories in itself,

    I think you got your math wrong. There are 4 calories per gram, so it would be 1200 calories worth of protein.

    Either way, this is a really dumb thing to do. Not worth it.

    Oops, yes. But the error was the 300. Earlier in that section, I mentioned 150g protein, and 600 calories is the right number for 150g. I'd earlier typed 300g in error, didn't fix it in that spot.

    Thanks for catching that! :flowerforyou:
  • schavezabril
    schavezabril Posts: 7 Member
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    Please surprise us! And let us know what worked! Im just seeing this and wanted to know how your progress has been. I see you posted this 9/19
  • MacLowCarbing
    MacLowCarbing Posts: 350 Member
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    Sorry but as people have pointed out, that isn't a realistic goal. 20 lbs is more realistic.

    I do hope you don't worry about winning/losing a bet and just decide to get healthier, even if it takes a little longer.

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