Am I expecting too much weight loss too quickly? Should I be more patient?

Question

I was around 155 lbs a few weeks ago and have gotten down to 145 lbs now. I am getting very impatient and want more weight loss faster... should I be satisfied with my results so far or do more to get it off quicker???

I have been doing the eliptical at least 30 min a day... and have stayed around 1200 calories a day. Should I try doing more? Like less calories and more exercise??? I already find myself weak from not eating as much.

Please dont talk to me about "starvation mode." You can go without eating 36 hours before that happens.

Answer 1

Low calories for a long time are not good for you. The weightloss will keep on slowing down. You need to keep on changing the amount of calories you take in. Please visit my blog and search for the 'No sweat fat burning method'.

As for the exercise. You can get alot more done in a lot less time. Look into full body and/or HIIT workouts.

Answer 2

Two pounds (or 1 kilogram) of weight loss a week is generally considered to be healthy weight loss. This is all you should expect to lose. There is no point in losing weight if you are not going to do it right. Otherwise you will just gain it back and then some.

It is strange that you say you are weak from not eating and then go on to say don't talk about starvation mode. You are weak because you are starving your body. Think about it. If you starve your body than it wrecks your metabolism affecting weight loss/gain for the rest of your life.

It is a common misconception that you need to eat less when trying to lose weight. In fact you should eat more because your body requires more energy to exercise. You just need to watch what you eat, there are certain foods that you could literally eat all day and still lose weight.

You should include strength training (weights) into your regime. We need muscle in order to burn fat. Muscle is a very active tissue, so burns fat even while resting. Every pound of muscle you have will burn 50 extra calories per day. Don't worry about bulking up, that won't happen, you only want to put a bit of lean muscle onto that frame.

Lastly throw away the scales, stop obsessing about numbers. Use a tape measure, your mirror and your feelings to gage weight loss

This following website gives you the tools you need to develop a healthy lifestyle and maintain it for a lifetime.

Good luck and all the best with your weight loss goals

Answer 3

10 lbs. in 3 weeks is fantastic.  In order to improve your chances of successful weight loss and keeping it off, shoot for a goal of 1 pound a week in weight loss.  Throw out the idea of 1200 calories, just eat the right foods and enough of them.  Don't ever eat to where you feel full, just satisfied.  Eating only 1200 calories and doing 30 min of cardio, you will eventually plateau, that might be where you're getting now.  Try increasing your protein intake and decrease your fat intake.  Drink skim milk rather than 2% or even 1%, eat fat free cheeses such as fat free cheddar, cottage cheese, mozzarella, etc.  Eat Egg whites rather than whole eggs, to reduce fat also.

For more ideas on food, check eBay for the Beachbody P90X Nutrition Guide.  It's the best guide I've found and it has recipes for all the meals and tells you exactly what to eat and how often to eat.  It's tailored to your body weight, and body fat %, as well as the activity level in P90X.  Most of their workouts burn 600 calories, so reduce the meals by 300 calories to meet your goals.  Best of luck!

Answer 4

I think 10lbs in 2 weeks is REALLY QUICK as it is! It would be unhealthy to lose weight any faster really. A good average is 2-3lbs per week. Don't get discouraged if the rate you're losing slows down, because it is common for the first 10lbs to come off easier and then it get harder to lose as you go, just keep it up. Sound like you're doing great.

And I have to clarify your "starvation mode" comment. I'm not sure what you mean by going 36 hrs w/o eating. "Starvation Mode" is typically when you're not eating enough calories to sustain your activy level. If you're not getting enough cal, your body will try to hold on to what ever it can. So, if you're not eating enough you could end up sabotaging your efforts. As long as you're losing weight then don't worry about it, BUT if/when you do plateau you really should consider eating more then 1200 cal, closer to 1500, since you are working out regularly.

Answer 5

i think you should be very proud of yourself! you are doing a great job not everybody has the discipline that you have. i guess you could do more but why hurt yourself just to lose a few pounds a bit quicker.

Answer 6

you need around 1450 calories per for your weight to lose... eating less does not mean you will lose fat... weight loss and fat loss are NOT the same thing.  if you want to do more cardio i say go for it, but eat right... you will only slow down your metabolism the way youre going and your body will start to store any calorie it can find as excess fat!