Ok, I'm new to dieting so this may sound like an ignorant question. I know 1-2lbs is recommended. My first 3 weeks of dieting, I lost 8lbs. I was cruising. I weighed in every week, and seeing those numbers like 2-2.5lbs lost felt good. It felt like I was doing something.
I weigh in on Wednesday mornings. I had some free time this morning (Monday), so I decided to see how the week was going. I weigh in on my Wii Fit...it's surprisingly accurate and charts my BMI and weight for me.
Well since last Wednesday (5 days ago), I've only lost .6lbs. I was 175.0, now I'm 174.4. That's such a tiny change! I didn't slip up toooo much over Thanksgiving, and I worked out the hardest I've worked out since starting dieting. Please don't tell me I'm reaching a plateau already??
I feel like I have 2 days to knock off the rest of the pound to bring it from .6 to 1lb.
No question is ignorant if the answer means a lot to you. Please feel free to ask about whatever is bothering you.
Weight loss is a fickle thing. Very very seldom does fat come off in a predictable, regular fashion.
You'll soon become used to the vagarities of your own body. But in the mean time ...
You're doing very well. To have any kind of loss over an 'eating' type holiday is fabulous.
Have a look at 8 lbs of butter ... holy! That's a lot of space on one body! Even that .6 of a pound. It's much better gone.
Any loss is a victory. Learn to embrace even the decimal points. I'm proud of you. You should be too.
Everyone hears, "Your weight loss will slow down. Some weeks you won't lose at all, and you may even gain a little."
But we all think that WE are going to be different--surely we can lose every week! Surely!
Well, life isn't like that. You can be perfectly on plan and still have your weight loss just not cooperate. This is normal. The thing to do is to say, "Oh well!" and go on about your business of staying on plan with your food and exercise. Eventually, if you KEEP GOING, weight loss will catch up.
Also, watch out for phrases like "I didn't slip up too much..." because that might be a clue you're not being as careful with planning as you need to be.
You will get to know your body's patterns over time. After the initial whoosh, you might see a few weeks of little-to-no loss followed by a week with a loss of several pounds, lather rinse repeat. You might settle into a weight loss that is steady week-to-week but rarely more than 0.5-1 pounds.
Every body is different and the only way to find out what is normal for you is to stick to plan, watch, and wait - not a week, not even a month, but several months to see your body's long-term patterns emerge.
For me, my water-weight swings are up to 4 pounds. That means that I might lose 2 pounds of fat one week - a real, good, solid loss - and not even see it at all depending upon where I was in water-retention when I weighed in.
So as Jay says, learn to be thrilled with any loss - after all, consider what would have happened to your weight that week if you'd eaten like you did before you went on plan - and start taking a longer-term view. You didn't put it all on in a week or a month or even six months. You can't expect to take it all off that quickly either.
Every time I lose a good amount, I always remind myself to never doubt myself again when I get stuck again, but guess what? I am doubting myself right now! What the heck? I was eating like an angel completely on plan for weeks upon weeks and I lost a little and I gained a little. I didn't panic because I knew that I was retaining water (PMS), but then, it was supposed to go away and I was sure there would be another huge woosh and, instead, there was only a gain!!! Ugh! Anyway, I don't know why this happens, but I'm sure it happens a lot. I'm pretty sure this is the reason many people don't stick to their weight loss plans...they feel like it's too slow going. Well, we're not going to be that way! We will stick to it and hang in there and eventually, it HAS to come off...one decimal point at a time!
It is, in fact, VERY normal. Two weeks ago, I put on 1.2 pounds. But even though my workouts were light or non-existent most days the following week, I kept my eating healthy and at the level my body needs and I still managed to lose 1.4 lbs, taking care of that tiny gain.
Things to consider. Everybody's body is different. All the posters who suggested keeping with it and allowing yourself time to learn your body's patterns are right. A key part of my body is ensuring that I'm getting enough calories a day. Yesterday, I took my daily weight (came in at 216.6) and then, through outside circumstances, I found my intake extremely low for the day. I was away from my house and out with my parents who didn't see fit to stop and let me buy food when I expressed how extremely hungry I was after not having eaten in almost 8 hours. XD Other than that, my water intake was good, my sodium low. But instead of seeing a lose because of the deficit, I found myself exhausted by 8pm. I slept for well over 10 hours, though uneasily, and woke up to a 1 lb gain since yesterday. This might be one of the reasons your lose is lower than you expected this week. If you ate the same number of calories, or less most of the week or even just yesterday, but worked out really, really hard, your body might be resisting the weight loss in order to keep your body functioning. I knew the minute I input my data into fitday last night that I was going to see a gain today. The numbers were just too low. Even without exercising. Given my history of unintentionally not eating enough in high school, keeping my body from going into starvation mode is a very touchy, very delicate balance for me. I have to eat more calories than many of the other here that are my weight, age, and height to achieve similar results. I will never lose as fast as those who eat less and expend the same amount, or more, as I do because if I cut too low, my body almost immediately starts to resist.
Play with your numbers a little, watch for patterns. If you don't keep a detailed food journal, I'd recommend that you think about it. Having numbers at your disposal make it a lot easier to find your happy place, so to speak between intake and output. Every day since I started logging on the 17th of October, my food is accounted for. And even if I don't log it in Fitday on a particular day, I always input the data within the following two days. I've even told myself it's alright. I balanced fine and I still go back and add it. Why? Because it's invaluable for me and it's become habitual. And good habits are a lovely thing to develop. ^^
Last edited by garnetrising; 12-01-2009 at 03:09 AM.
First I would like to say congrats on your loss so far that is great!! Such an accomplishment Second, our bodies are very funny when it comes to losing fat, some see the numbers go down in a whoosh, some a very slow and steady downward trend. Everyone is different; remember you are still starting your weight loss journey. We would all love to see a loss every week but for some it just doesnt happen that way. So keep it up! weighloss will slow but it wont stop.
I've been working out and eating better since June. I didn't weigh myself until September when I joined 3FC though. The scale has always been very discouraging to me so I avoided it. After I weighed myself I decided to set a goal that in October I was going to lose 15 lbs.
I worked out every day in October. I was sweating with every workout (I don't normally sweat much) and my muscles were sore every morning. So those are good indications it was an effective workout and I wasn't just "phoning it in" like Jillian Michaels says.
So I weigh in on Halloween and I see that I lost a half pound! I was pretty disappointed. In fact, at first I was downright mad at myself, but my boyfriend pointed out that I had no reason to be angry at myself if I did everything I was supposed to do. That helped me get over it and I buckled down and stormed into November. I weighed myself the other day and again, I only lost a few pounds. I'm so annoyed that I haven't even bothered changing my weight on my profile.
HOWEVER, I'm getting stronger and more fit every day. My balance and endurance are even improving. And I'm constantly changing my workout so my body is challanged. It's weird to say, but I've come to like that soreness and stiffness I feel! haha I'm seeing bones and muscles I never thought I had. I'm able to wear my size 14 jeans and I'm hoping to get into my 14 skinny jeans soon. I was wearing a pair of those when I met my boyfriend 3 years ago and it's the smallest I've ever been.
I think I should stop weighing myself for a while or weigh myself every few months or so. I may get a measuring tape and keep track of my progress that way.
Ditto to what all the other ladies have said! I'd also like to suggest that you take your body measurements. The scale is a tricky little apparatus....over the past few weeks, I've only seen a 2-3lb loss on the scale (before, I was seeing a 2-3lb loss EACH week), HOWEVER, I have noticed a VERY significant change in my body...my "muffin-top" is gone when I'm wearing my jeans...by belly is getting tighter...my arms and thighs are getting smaller. I didn't take my measurements before..and now I wish I had so I would know how much of a change there's been...cuz the scale definitely isn't telling me anything!
Amba Dawn, I also wish I started taking my body measurements before. I'm picking up a tape measurer today. I have noticed that my clothes have been fitting better. My skinny-day pants that I could sometimes cram myself into on a good day fit fine on any day straight out of the dryer. I know I'm making progress
I weighed myself this morning...Wednesday mornings are my weigh in days. I was down all of .2lbs since Monday. That puts a total of .8lbs for the week. And ya know, I can live with that. In fact, I'm pretty satisfied with it, especially considering this was Thanksgiving week. (And I'm rounding down, so now I call myself 174lbs instead of 175, haha.)
Amba Dawn, I also wish I started taking my body measurements before. I'm picking up a tape measurer today. I have noticed that my clothes have been fitting better. My skinny-day pants that I could sometimes cram myself into on a good day fit fine on any day straight out of the dryer. I know I'm making progress
I weighed myself this morning...Wednesday mornings are my weigh in days. I was down all of .2lbs since Monday. That puts a total of .8lbs for the week. And ya know, I can live with that. In fact, I'm pretty satisfied with it, especially considering this was Thanksgiving week. (And I'm rounding down, so now I call myself 174lbs instead of 175, haha.)
This talk about measurements made me decide to measure myself a few minutes ago! I actually DID measure myself at my HW (back in april/march). I've lost at *least* a total of 25" since then! (I can't remember what my chest measurement was before so I didn't count it). I wish I had taken measurements each month tho...this past month was the first time I actually NOTICED change in myself...wish I had the numbers to see the difference!
.8lbs is GREAT for Thanksgiving week!! Any week for that matter! Those .8's add up real quick!
Dealing with disappointing weigh ins?
I was eating like an angel completely on plan for weeks upon weeks and I lost a little and I gained a little. I didn't panic because I knew that I was retaining water (PMS), but then, it was supposed to go away and I was sure there would be another huge woosh and, instead, there was only a gain!!! Ugh! Anyway, I don't know why this happens, but I'm sure it happens a lot. I'm pretty sure this is the reason many people don't stick to their weight loss plans...they feel like it's too slow going. Well, we're not going to be that way! We will stick to it and hang in there and eventually, it HAS to come off...one decimal point at a time! 
Second, our bodies are very funny when it comes to losing fat, some see the numbers go down in a whoosh, some a very slow and steady downward trend. Everyone is different; remember you are still starting your weight loss journey. We would all love to see a loss every week but for some it just doesnt happen that way. So keep it up! weighloss will slow but it wont stop.
