can some of you please tell me about how much you loose counting calories the first week? I know everyone is not the same and also that the slower the better but it would help me a great deal to know everyones first week progress, I was going to do low carb but Im sure I cant stick to that I love my carbs to muc, I can cut back but thats it. so please the more response the better, and thank you all in advance.....momof8

There are just too many variables to know.

Some people lose a lot, a combination of a lot of water weight (cutting calories generally results in cutting sodium) and some fat. Some people don't lose as much, usually because they're not carrying as much water weight to begin with.

Some people never get that big "jump" at the beginning with a big drop on the scale. Some people do.

The only way you'll know what YOUR body will do is to try it! Get on a good calorie counting plan for a week, stick to it, and see what happens!

And exercise!
I think I maybe lost a pound? I don't really track my weight that first week, I mostly concentrate on my calories and exercise and trust that the weight will come off.

I have done low carb. The thing is that if I am forbidden from eating certain foods it won't last. With Calorie counting you are not restricted from anything. So it can last a lifetime without feeling deprived. The weight loss might be a bit slower, but it will last.

i think i lost about 3 lbs the first week. like some posters above said, it was probably water weight. the second week i lost about 1.5 lbs. i have only been on my diet for about 3 weeks now (was on it jan-march and lost 17 lbs, now starting again!) but i am averaging about 2 lbs a week which is my goal. this is the only diet i have ever been able to stick to, bc like nigelswife said, nothing is restricted. you can have pretty much anything just in moderation. but as you know everyone is different, so try it for yourself and see!

There are a lot of factors that come into play to determine how much weight you will lose the first week. If you go from eating a high number of calories a day and many "bad" foods with lots of salt, etc. and go to a very low number of calories a day with mostly healthy foods, you can lose a good amount of weight the first week. A lot of it will be excess water weight that you are shedding from making your diet more healthy.

When I was 230 pounds and started "dieting" in a serious weight loss attempt about 7-8 years ago, I lost 6 pounds the first week and 4 pounds the second week for a total of 10 pounds in the first two weeks. The weight kept coming off at a rate of about 2 pounds a week thereafter. I ended up losing 60 pounds in about 8-9 months and then proceeded to put nearly all of it back on in the next few years. When I finally decided to try to lose the weight permanently starting in 2006, my weight loss the first two weeks was much less. I started at 220 pounds but I only lost 3 pounds the first week and 2 the second week. So I essentially lost half as much as the previous attempt. This past January I got back on track with losing weight after I maintained about 195 lbs for the past 18 months. Because my eating wasn't too bad during that time, my weight loss started off slow and has remained so. I think I lost 2 lbs the first week and then nothing the second week and then have lost about one pound a week since then.

So all of this means there is absolutely no way of knowing how much you will lose at the beginning of your weight loss efforts. Yes, it is much easier to stay motivated when you lose a lot to start off with, but the key is that no matter how much you lose each week, you stay with the plan and the weight WILL come off in time. Even at a pound a week, you can lose 50 pounds in the course of a year. Try not to make any drastic changes that you won't be able to live with permanently. Good luck!