Weight loss

jkeskem9079
jkeskem9079 Posts: 1 Member
in Introduce Yourself
I am new to weight loss the right way and am feeling a little discouraged today. I weigh in weekly and the first week I lost a pound and a half, but somehow I have gained a pound since last week and am right back to the beginning! I have been going on a 2 1/2 mile walk 5 days a week with my two boys in a stroller (about 80 pounds worth of pushing) and do 3 days of light strength training and 2 days of cardio a week. My goal in app is set for a loss rate of 2 pounds per week and I am almost always in my goal. Very rarely have I gone over my goal and when I do it’s never been more than 100 calories over. Am I doing something wrong or is it just my body trying to figure out what is going on now that I’ve become active and managing my calories?!

Answers

  • lisamsanford1229
    lisamsanford1229 Posts: 20 Member
    Listen to me.. during the weight loss Journey your week your weight is going to fluctuate from day to day. Don't be discouraged. I'm a petite woman who has lost 47 pounds in 4 1/2 months on my own.
    I was a runner/ dancer in shape my whole life until I got married and started my new career. In my blissful happiness I gained 62 pounds and was miserable. I decided to take my control back and my life. I have 18 more pounds to go. I do a balanced diet with a 1200 calorie a day deficit.
    Since I'm thinner now and I lost 47 lb my weight loss has slowed down to about 3 lb a week. It's OK! I keep going. If you do anywhere from 1200 to 1300 calories a day and you keep moving you will lose that weight. Make sure your diet is balanced though. Being healthy is the priority.
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,846 Member
    If the exercise is new, you're more than likely retaining water for muscle repair, which masks fat loss on the scale.

    Fluctuations and stalls are normal, you should look at the long-term trend of your weight - 1 to 2 menstrual cycles - to determine if you're making progress.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,266 Member
    May I suggest that you take a look at this thread, especially the article linked in the first post?

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10683010/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-fluctuations/p1

    It's completely normal for body weight to bounce up and down by several pounds from one day to the next, or even one week to the next. Mostly, that's about shifts in water weight and variations in digestive tract contents on the way to the exit. It takes 4-6 weeks on a reasonably consistent routine to see the true effect on fat loss. (Women who have menstrual cycles should compare body weight at the same relative point in at least 2 different monthly cycles, because hormonal water weight can be that weird.)

    Even if losing very fast, like 2 pounds a week, fat loss would be only be around 4.5 ounces per day. Water and waste shifts can be 2-5 pounds or more within a day or from one day to the next. That means water/waste fluctuations can mask fat loss on the scale for a surprisingly long time, sometimes. That's especially true when starting a new eating/activity routine, since changes in those things affect water retention and waste especially much.

    If you're well over 200 pounds to start, it can be fine to aim for 2 pounds a week of fat loss. Short of that weight, I'd hesitate. If we cut calories too hard, it can be counterproductive. Not only does it make it tough to stick with those low calories (appetite fights back), but under-fueling can increase stress-related water retention, and cause fatigue (possibly subtle) that bleeds activity out of our daily lives so we burn fewer calories than expected. Too-fast loss also increases health risks (for weakness, impaired immune system, hair loss, muscle depletion, gallbladder problems, etc.).

    Are bad things guaranteed to happen? No. But fast loss increases risks.

    TL;DR: It's too early, in the first two weeks, to know the results for fat loss. Fat loss is what we really care about, right? Hang in there. You're doing fine.

    Best wishes!

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