I ended up walking at 2.7 for 1.10 miles. When i was done i thought i was going to die, however i feel fine today. I really need to work on not eating so late, i guess. I dont understand why even though i have changed my diet drastically i am not losing weight. I thought the first few pounds were water weight and just kind of flew off. Maybe i am eating something wrong? I dont know. I cant figure it out at this point, i am just hoping it gets better. Maybe someone can look at my food for the day and tell me if there is something i am doing wrong? B: nothing L:fat free cottage cheese with a squirt of fat free italian dressing and 4 small tomatoes, and a dannon light and fit fat free yogurt, and a hand full of mini marshmellows Water: 4+ cups and Dinner: TBD I am not to sure if i should be counting fat or calories, or doing a certain diet? All i know is i need to loose 100 lbs and in 5 days i have only lost 3.5

Alicia, I don't claim to be an expert at losing weight, in fact you weigh less than I do! But I know for sure that you have to maintain a minimum caloric amount because otherwise your body will think you are in starvation mode and refuse to burn fat. Also breakfast is very important. Don't ignore breakfast. Make sure you eat something even if it is a breakfast bar. You won't be able to keep up eating so little and eventually will binge and feel worse. Keep up with your exercise even if it is a little bit every day, you'll get better faster than you would think.

You lost 3.5 lbs in five days? Do I have that correct? If that is the case you are doing really well!! How wonderful that is! Making me feel all jealous and junk No worries, you are doing fabulous. How many calories a day are you consuming? By just seeing your lunch and breakfast I am assuming it is not much. Let me know if I am misunderstanding.

I'm not a pro, and I I am sure someone will respond that knows more than me... but I think you aren't eating enough. You need to eat at least 1200 calories a day, or else your body will go into starvation mode and hold on to everything it gets. (So I have read anyway). Also you shouldn't skip breakfast.

3.5 lbs in 5 days is good. I don't try to, or expect to lose more than 2 lbs a week. In order to lose a pound you need to burn 3500 calories (Someone please correct me if I am wrong...)

Anyway... It sounds like you are doing really well and you are really motivated. I coun't my calories and it worked really well for me. I had lost over 30 lbs before I stopped in October. I was 240 in June.

I have to agree though that breakfast should not be skipped (I'm guilty of doing it too ) It is true that if you skimp to much on calories your body will go into starvation mode. If you stop losing all together you will know that is the case. You have to be careful on the calorie front. If you deprive your body of to much nourishment then you will start losing all important muscle. There is such a fine line in finding balance.

In most cases people do lose more weight in the beginning of their journey. It will probably not last the endurance of your weight loss. 1-2 pounds a week is a nice healthy loss and very much something to be proud of.

Wow 3.5 pounds in 5 days is awesome. You have to remember that it is normal to lose 1-2 pounds a week. Some people lose more, some lose less. A lot of us here use www.fitday.com to track what we eat. Others like dietpower (you have to pay for it). I think that may be a good place for you to start out is seeing exactly how much you are taking in.

Thank you everyone for the information! Unfortunately my skipping breakfast is the product of not having time in the morning. I do eat dinner as well. Last night for example i did eat a piece of salsa chicken along with a salad but it was almost 11:00pm. Much of my eating habits, whether good or bad are related to time and the lack there of. I am trying to eat and do this diet the right way this time, no starving, no binging and i truly appreciate everyones input it helps me to determine the areas that i need to work on and where i am succeeding!

Great advice all around ladies. I agree on both counts. I think maybe you should count calories for a week or 2 to make sure you are not going under 1200 and maybe something small (even a yogurt) for breakfast. It gets your metabolism going.

Also, 3.5 is a great loss for even 2 or 3 weeks. After 5 days, it's awesome. Don't forget this is a long-distance race, not a sprint. You need to make changes you will be able to keep up with. Maybe stay off the scale for a week and focus on how you feel.

tattooed.... so far you're doing great. and we ALL understand that lack of time thing. and out of simple self-preservation, we've all developed ways to make sure that we eat reasonable food on a reasonable schedule. it's part of taking care of ourselves.

nobody EVER said this was easy...

sooo, having said that, it sounds like you might want to consider strategies to make sure you do this. like toasting an english muffin with some protein and tucking a piece of fruit inside your purse as you run around and run out the door. packing food into single servings that you can carry in an insulated bag. stashing easy-to-open cans or bags of tuna and chicken at work and at home. making sure you have raw veggies right there for you.

whatever it takes... and remember - this is a journey, not a race. so your 3.5 pounds is A FABULOUS LOSS... enjoy it. and keep going on improving your habits and taking care of yourself...

To echo and add:

Losing 3.5 pounds in 5 days is a LOT, but can be expected during the first week, especially when you are first starting. You are not going to lose x amount per day like clockwork, even if you eat precisely the same amount of calories and exercise exactly the same amount every day. Stay off the scale on a daily basis -- weighing once per week at MOST is more than enough to track your progress and prevent being disappointed because you think you're not losing fast enough. Even then, your weight can fluctuate wildly day to day or even week to week based on lots of factors that have nothing to do with the amount of fat in your body. Remember that the scale weighs EVERYTHING -- food and drink in your stomach, waste in your intestines and bladder, water in your tissues. All of these things change constantly. Take a look at http://www.primusweb.com/fitnesspart...ight/scale.htm for an excellent article on how to use the scale without driving yourself crazy.

Second, breakfast is CRUCIAL. If you don't have enough time, figure out how to eat something substantial and nutritious within 2 hours of waking up. One of the best ways to SLOW DOWN your metabolism is to go for an extended period without food. When you wake up in the morning you have already been fasting for 8 hours. The longer you go without food, the fewer calories you'll burn. Your body is an engine that has to be stoked to run hot. BREAK your FAST with some protein, some whole grain carb, some fat. Eat as little sugar as possible. There are a million ways to get in a decent breakfast on the go -- figure out what will work for you.

As for "what to count," the basic rule is calories calories calories, but you want to make sure you understand what you are eating and getting a good nutritional balance. You also want to make sure you eat ENOUGH calories -- eating to little compared to your activity burn level will cause your metabolism to crank down and that can cause a LOT of problems. Some people do better with lower-fat plans, some with lower-carb plans, as long as they take calories into account. HOWEVER, it's never good to eliminate an entire category of food. A little fat is necessary for health. So is a little complex carbohydrate. So far you've had zero fat and no grains or high-fiber fruit or vegetable. What you've eaten isn't BAD by any means, but it's not a well-rounded fuel base.

You don't have to follow a specific "plan" but you DO need to educate yourself on nutrition and eating the right kinds of food for general health purposes. I will recommend 2 web sites to you:

First, go to http://www.jimkaras.com/loss_math01.cfm and plug in your stats. This web site will tell you how many calories you need to eat to lose one pound per week. DON'T think that you should eat fewer calories to lose faster -- remember, you don't want starvation mode to kick in!

Second, visit www.fitday.com. You can set up an account to log in your food every day, along with all kinds of stats about your progress. Once you've logged in, you can click on the Guidelines link on the bottom of the left navigation bar and read all kinds of great, easy-to-read info on how to construct a healthy diet.

3.5 is a great amount for 5 days as everyone has said. Me being a guy I usually lose a little faster. I have had some weeks where I've lost 8 to 10 lbs but those are rare. Most generally it's 2 to 3 lbs and sometimes 1 to 0 lbs. If I take the amount of time I’ve been on this diet and divide the pounds by weeks I average about 2.5 a week. So don’t expect it to come off in big chunks. Your doing great. Slow and steady is the key. You have a 100 pounds to lose so expect it to take you at least a year if not longer.

You are not eating enough food. Your body is in starvation mode.

You need to eat breakfast. I don't care if you don't have time, grab a yogurt, a granola bar, an apple, all of the above, SOMETHING. You need to be eating a LOT more calories, but of the healthy things.

Also, throw your scale out. Stop concentrating on the numbers on the scale. How do your clothes fit? Have you measured yourself? Have you lost inches? If you decide to keep the scale then weigh in NO MORE THAN once a week. I know it's hard, but please don't let a piece of metal determine your self-worth. You are better than that!!!

If you eat like a king at breakfast, a knave (???) at lunch & a pauper at dinner, then your body will have time to burn off the calories it takes in.

Good luck & welcome to the fold.

Girl,you need to eat and make it the right food. I'm doing 800 tp 1000 a day and thats considered low. The most your body will let you to lose is 4lbs a week anyway. Remember the saying,It's not how fast you run,it's staying the course. Don't try to be the rabbit. You'll be doomed to fail. The ones who win are turtles. I eat flavored oatmeal in the morning and for lunch a sandwich with nonfat yogurt,for dinner a Budget Gourmet Entree with 1cup veg. If I stay on track I get a treat,like a Healthy Choice fudge bar,80 cals. I try to walk 30 min a day. This is how I've lost 60lbs.