Wow that is scary. Yeah I have heard some scary stories about adderall and some girl who went from 115 pounds to 80 pounds in one month. But can I ask, how did it make you miserable? I know many people are against ritalin and everything but I never knew why they were so against it. What does it make you feel like? I am afraid for my cousin if it is as bad as you say

I agree, slow and steady wins the race. My brother lost a lot of weight really fast (not that fast, though) and wound up in the hospital, with gallstones (I read that fast weight loss can do that). That was many years ago, and he didn't keep the weight off...he is still struggling with his weight to this day.

I don't see how 50 pounds in two months is possible either, and I don't mean to sound insulting, but I really don't. The only people I know of who lose that much weight in such a short period of time are the contestants on "The Biggest Loser" which can be entertaining but is far removed from reality. I once lost 17 pounds in two weeks myself, but that was when I had salmonella poisoning and couldn't eat -- at all -- and spent every hour on the hour in the bathroom!

to be starving and not able to eat totally sucks. i wanted to eat because i was sooo hungry...but I could not. then of course if you go for very long like that you are going to miss out on the nutrition you need. it also gave me headaches, made me feel very weird when i was "coming down" and gave me just a general feeling of being unwell. It also made me MEAN. i was so bad i couldn't even stand myself. it wasnt worth it at all so i quit taking it. my cousin quit too. she took hers for ADD but she just couldn't handle it.

Lily, you say you're jealous, because you gain back the weight every time. That means you can successfully lose the weight. That is something to be proud of. And it's a great place to start. You need to figure out what happens when you have lost the weight, that makes you gain it back. Do you go back to the old ways that made you gain in the first place? You may want to look into Maintenance.
Just to be clear, I have re-lost the same 30 lbs a few times, my problem is also maintenance, which is why I'm focusing on it now.
Also, I have ADD, and am on Dexedrine, low dose. It does not make me mean or hungry. It helps me be able to focus on doing errands, paying bills, remembering to return phone calls, and staying out of the kitchen.

That right there is the bottom line. Maintenance.

And I find those stats *very* hard to even believe in the first place.

Lily, sweetie, everything you say just adds to what I'm telling you - if she was so sick she couldn't eat for a week, then that's not "diet and exercise" that caused her to lose the weight.

Atkins *can* cause withdrawal type symptoms in some people who quit carbs cold turkey, but it should NOT make them "so sick they can't eat".

What you're describing is physically impossible on any kind of healthy diet - including a REAL Atkins diet. Atkins does NOT mean starving yourself or eating fewer calories than is healthy. A proper Atkins induction involves severely cutting carbs, yes, but it also means replacing those calories with other healthy calories.

And if you have seen her eat - and eat normal meals - and she's still lost that weight, then I'll be honest is that my first suspicion is that she went somewhere and puked up everything she ate. Because I'll tell you again ... it is quite simply mathematically IMPOSSIBLE to lose 50 lbs in 2 months while eating regular meals.

You posted that you were jealous of her loss. I've been telling you and will continue to tell you that you should not be jealous of something that is patently impossible w/out severely damaging your body. If she truly lost 50 lbs in 2 months, then she's compromised her health. If you are really jealous of that, then I would suggest - with all concern - that you need to talk to a doctor about what is TRULY healthy weight loss.

Losing 50 lbs in 2 months is not something to be jealous of. It's cause for concern. Be worried for your friend who has probably risked her health and will gain all of her weight back - and maybe more. Don't be jealous of her. What she's done is nothing to be jealous of.

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Thanks for the words of encouragement. No she isn't bulimic but I am pretty sure she isn't eating enough, she even said that she hates the fact she is only eating meats and cheese...and she is bored with her menu. It just sucks that you see celebrities losing weight 123 and they drop a ton so fast. They don't even gain it back either. It seems like all around me everyone can lose weight fast but me.

I think you have some selective vision going on here. :)

And remember that many celebs have personal trainers, spend many hours a day working on their weight, and many of them are unhealhy as well in what they eat.

Again... focus not on what others are doing that is unhealthy. Focus on YOU and your weight loss and being healthy. Comparing yourself to others is never productive.

And what about all the women here on 3FC who have lost weight - slowly, reasonably, and kept it off? Have you considered any of THEM as somone you should watch and follow and admire? :)

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Have you or your friend considered the idea that there may be an underlying illness that has helped contribute to this fast drastic weight loss? For instance a hyperactive thyroid.

We are human and of course we want instant gratification, but unfortunately that is not real life. I know its torture watching others lose while you struggle with every pound, but what you have to understand it that you are changing a lifestyle, you didnt gain the weight over night and you wont lose it over night. Losing it slowly is not only healthy but gives you time to learn along the way, learn better healthier habits that you can maintain for the rest of your life. So keep your chin up and have faith that next year your friend will be coming to you to find out how you lost your weight and kept it off.

I have to respectfully disagree with some of these things. While losing 50 pounds in 2 months is A LOT, and usually unhealthy and unreasonable, its not impossible. The reason I became overweight in the first place was binge eating/lack of exercise. When i decided to get healthier and change my eating habits, i did it slowly. All i did was take a walk a few times a week, and make better choices with food. For a while i wasn't even counting calories, **** i even had mayonaise and 2 slices of full fat cheese on my sandwich everyday. Looking back when i first started losing weight i was probably eating around 2200 calories a day, just of healthy food. The first month i lost 25 pounds, the second month i lost 20. In no way was i starving myself or doing anything unhealthy, all it was is that my body is not naturally heavy, so when i stopped the binging and started moving more, the weight fell off, gradually my weight loss slowed to a few pounds a week and evened itself out, but for the first few months it was literally falling off. Overall I lost 130 pounds in a year doing it the right way, plus allowing myself a few treats here and there.

I guess what my point is, is that while losing that much weight in 2 months is a cause for concern, not everyone who does it is starving themself/being unhealthy.

Jess - the thing you have to consider is that you started off at 275 lbs (according to your ticker). A healthy rate of loss is considered to be around 1% of your weight, so for you 3lbs a week would be ok. And just starting out, it would be reasonable to assume that maybe the first couple of weeks or even the first month or so, you might lose a lot more than that just because of your body readjusting. Even at your starting weight, you could consider 4-5 lbs a week to be reasonable (given water weight and so forth) and so a first month loss of 25 lbs at nearly 300 lbs is not out of the realm of possiblity

Also, at a weight of 275 or so, your daily calorie intake for maintenance is pretty high, so being in a calorie deficit of over 1000 calories a day and still getting enough nutrition is entirely possible - even a 1500 - 1700 calorie a day deficit if you exercise is well within the realm of possibility.

But someone who goes from 180 to 130 simply doesn't have that leeway. It's practically impossible for someone who is 160 lbs to burn 3000 calories a day OVER AND ABOVE their maintenance. I know - I weigh 163 as of today. Not only would I have to completely quit eating to burn that much, I'd also have to put in 3+ hours per day of vigorous exercise - while not eating. Which simply isn't possible unless you're taking drugs or doing something else equally unhealthy - like binging and purging.

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very true. i tend to get defensive over these things, at least several times a week i get accused of starving it off/drugs/you name it. But yea your right, the less you have to lose the slower it comes off.

Yeah. When I first started losing at 245, I lost faster too. Now I crawl. :) Knowing the stats helps me keep perspective on these things and not consider my crawling to be a failure. :)

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ITA. I know the reason I've lost so much weight so far is that I STARTED at 376 and so 5 lbs a week is totally reasonable for me... but someone that starts out not that large to begin with ... it's insane.