Hello. I need to lose about 50 pounds and I'm trying to set reasonable goals. So with that in mind, is it a stretch to hope to lose 2 pounds per week for the duration of my diet?

I think so! I set that same goal for myself at the beginning of December, and its working!

It's so hard to know, but for most of us, it's very unrealistic to expect 2 pounds a week as we get nearer to the end.

At the beginning of my journey I was getting 12-13 lbs per month, then 10, then 8. When I was nearing my goal, I was so happy with a 3-4 pounds loss for the month.

There are a lot of reasons for it slowing down. First, it's harder to create the same deficit as in the beginning. You should only decrease your eating by so much (and for most of us under 1200 is too low. I can't seem to eat less than 1400 without feeling very hungry). So, if you can't decrease your food, then you need to increase your workouts. And again, there's only so much most of us are able or willing to do. I workout an hour a day 6 days a week. I wasn't willing to put in 2 hours a day just to take off the weight faster.

I know we all have "goals". I had mine for my first year and I have one now for getting back to where I was and for finishing up, but I also try to tell myself this, "I didn't put the weight on in 6 months. I don't need to take it off in 6 months".

Goals are good if they help us (it did help me stick to my plan), but they are bad if we see, "crap, I'm not going to get to 50 pounds lost by July 1st, so to heck with all of it." Well, what's better for us really? to not lose any or to lose close to 50 and get CLOSE to our ideal and more importantly, to get healthier in the process.

So... to expect to lose 2 pounds a week for the duration is very unrealistic. It "can" be done, but not many do it.

I think that 2 lbs a week is possible, but it probably wot be a consistent 2/ week every week. Sometimes it might be 0, sometimes 3, sometimes + 1... I think it's POSSIBLE, but ambitious. everyone is different so you'll just have to see what works best for you! Good luck!

If you only need to lose 50lbs, I think its too ambitious. I think more likely 1 lb a week with many weeks of 2 lbs a week towards the beginning and some weeks with only .5 or zero when you get very close to your goal.

That's about right, at least in my experience.

You said 50 lbs, but didn't mention your height and weight. The "realisticness" of your goal all depends! If you're like 250 and say like 5'4" hoping to hit 200 ya it's pretty realistic. But if you're say 170 and 5'4" and are wanting to be 120, that 2 lbs a week goal may be very lofty once you hit a normal wight range.

2 lbs is a reasonable amount to lose in a week, but life happens; it's very rare to consistently lose the same amount every week. There's water fluctuations, TOM, and any number of other things that like getting in the way and causing crazy little changes just to make us want to rip our hair out. So yes, hoping for 2 lbs is reasonable, but don't beat yourself up if you don't get it. Sometimes you'll get more, sometimes you'll get less...what's important is that you're making positive changes and sticking to them, so in time you WILL lose.

For me, no. I've set my goal to that in the past and ended up attempting to live on 900 calories a day. It sucked.

1 lb/week is much better and reasonable for me long term.

We can't dictate how much we will lose , depemds on many things. 2 pounds a week is not unreasonable but you will more likely vary from week to week, a pound a week some times, two pounds other times. It varies, it is the bottom line that counts.

Exactly. I think too many people have what I like to call 'Biggest Loser Syndrome', in that they embark on a quest to drop some pounds and have unrealistic expectations. If they don't lose 10 pounds in a week they think it's all for naught!

For each of us it depends on our starting height and weight (as LockItUp highlighted), any medical issues you may have (PCOS, inability to exercise, metabolic damage due to previous crash diets, etc.) and what you are willing to devote in terms of time and effort.

The key for a lot of us isn't to focus so much on losses per week, month, year, etc. but to look at the end goal and perhaps mini goals along the way. Maybe instead of saying "I want to lose 8 pounds this month" say "I want to lose just 10 pounds." When you hit that 10 pound mark celebrate! Get a massage or have a Zumba party for yourself and then set your next 10 pound goal.

Whatever you decide works best for you just remember; "Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss you'll land among the stars."

I agree with the posters above, and think about it this way... lets say you start at 200 pounds. 2 pounds is 1% of that weight, and that percent weight loss is reasonable.

If you weigh 100 pounds, it's 2.0%

So it's harder to lose the same weight weekly the less you weigh.

Oh, and of course, weight loss isn't linear, for lots of reasons, but a big one is that the scale fluctuates so much from WATER changes, rather than the FAT changes we want to focus on.

I agree with what everyone else has said. My original goal had been 2lbs a week, which I rarely make now. It is true that many people at higher weights lose weight very quickly at the beginning.

That being said, when I look at the average for my entire weight loss, a about a year or so, it's averaged somewhere about 1.7 lbs a week. That's losing maybe nothing for 2 weeks and then bam, 4lbs in one week. I do expect that average to keep going down closer I get to goal.

I agree with what Joss said, have a goal of 10lbs and then make that goal, regardless of how long it takes you.

I suggest aiming lower. The idea is to make the "diet" as pain-free as possible, so you'll stick to it and be less vulnerable to the rebound effect after losing the weight. I see 1 pound per week as an ideal pace: fast enough to keep you motivated and slow enough to keep you in physical and psychological equilibrium.

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Ack! For some reason I didn't get any notifications of response so I apologize for not replying sooner.

I'm actually 5'4" and want to be just under 120 pounds. I currently weigh 172 and lost 4.2 pounds these last 7 days. I was just hoping it continues at an accelerated pace.

Ohhhhh I like that idea of making weight, rather than calendar goals, and small incentives for meeting them!!! Thank you for that idea!