What is a normal weight loss rate?

[heavy2long]

I have been on the Atkins diet for six weeks and in that time I have only lost 6 lbs. Is this a normal rate of weight loss? I am walking at least 4 times a week for a minimum of 1/2 hour. I still have 19 lbs. to lose too. I read about all these people who are losing at least a pound a week!! I am really frustrated by this!

[Natrushka]

What do you weight? Am I right in assuming you have 25lbs (in total) to lose? If so, thats not much, and it will be slower. People losing 5, 6 or 7 lbs a week during induction usually have a LOT of weight to lose (and even that peters off to 1 or 2 lbs). I read that weight loss is usually 5% the first month, and 2% for those that follow.

There a lot of things that could be stalling you. Do you drink enough water? Eat enough each day? What are you eating? Keeping a Journal is useful for just such purposes. There are a lot of knowledgeable people here who'd be able to point out where you might need help.

Nat

[heavy2long]

Thanks Nat for your quick reply.

I did have 25 lbs total to lose. I drink only water about 80 ozs. a day. I do have decaf coffee in the morning.

A sample menu:

2 egg omlet with cheese (sometimes ham)

Chicken salad with Ceaser dressing or Chicken Breast w/brocolli or cucumbers

Chicken breast or red meat with salad or vegetables

I never feel like I have overeaten, I don't snack or have desserts. I guess since I don't have a huge amount of weight to lose it will go slower. I guess I just need to be more patient.

[Natrushka]

I'm no expert but it looks like you may not be eating enough (certainly looks like there isnt enough fat there). You should be consuming 10 to 12 times your body weight. Hard to tell without knowing what you weigh, but you can figure it out. :)

Nat

[agonycat]

Originally posted by heavy2long
I have been on the Atkins diet for six weeks and in that time I have only lost 6 lbs. I read about all these people who are losing at least a pound a week!! I am really frustrated by this!

Umm correct me if I calculated wrong, but haven't you lost a pound a week? If so why frustrated?

[Natrushka]

Originally posted by agonycat


quote:
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Originally posted by heavy2long
I have been on the Atkins diet for six weeks and in that time I have only lost 6 lbs. I read about all these people who are losing at least a pound a week!! I am really frustrated by this!
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mm correct me if I calculated wrong, but haven't you lost a pound a week? If so why frustrated?

*LOL* I missed that.

Did you realize, heavy, that you have lost a lb a week? ;)

Nat

[heavy2long]

Thanks again Nat.

It is nice to hear from someone that I don't eat ENOUGH!!

I currently weigh 139 and I am assuming you mean 10 to 12 times body weight for calories?

[heavy2long]

Yeah, I know I shouldn't complain about a pound a week. I just thought the weight loss would be faster! That's why I wanted to know if the rate that I was losing was normal. I need to have patience but like my Dad says, "If I had 'patience', I would be a doctor!!!
Thanks for your replies. I will try to remember to be thankful for the pounds that do come off!!

[Natrushka]

Yes, use 10 to 12 times your goal weight and the same for your current weight as guidelines (i.e. eat between 1390 and 1668 carlories daily). Different isn't it? EAT EAT EAT. oh and Fat is good. Sure tastes good!.

Good luck and hang in there.

Nat

[wenderwomn]

Heavy2long, I'm one of the ones that lost quite quickly on induction, however I started out having 170 lbs to lose! It's true that the more you have to lose, the quicker you lose at first. It slows down after awhile. A pound a week for six weeks is great! :)

I just wanted to add my two cents on the eating enough issue. It's so true, if you don't eat enough, you stop losing (or at least slow down). Once I upped my calories, the weight loss picked up again. Now that you're done with induction, start munching on macadamia nuts, brazil nuts, or walnuts in between meals. They do have some carbs, but more calories and fat most importantly. You could also add a dessert of low carb fruit like strawberries, raspberries, blackberries...that will add some calories. Do you have a carb counter? There's a mini one in the back of Dr. Atkin's New Diet Revolution too, it will help you figure out some lowcarb but high calorie treats you can have.

Hang in there, you're doing great! :)

Wendy

[heavy2long]

Okay Wendy and Nat, you made my day! I just realized why it seems I don't eat as much. I'm not hungry and if I'm not hungry I shouldn't eat right?

I will do some more "munching" as Wendy says and see if that helps. Also, I do have a carb counter and I confess I am not very consistent in using it. So it sounds like I need to start counting calories too. Oh well!

[Natrushka]

There's a great carb counter on this site, under "low carb tools"... also I've found FitDay (http://www.fitday.com) a great resource for planning ahead and seeing just where those carlories are coming from.

Nat

[wenderwomn]

So it sounds like I need to start counting calories too. Oh well!


Well, I don't actually count my calories, I just make sure I'm eating enough throughout the day (which is usually way more than I'm actually hungry for). I eat my three meals, plus some snacks of nuts in between. To be honest, I still don't think I'm anywhere near the calories I should be eating (10x my body weight would be 2700 calories!) but at least I'm up past the starvation point. I agree with Nat that Fitday is a great tool, you just input what you ate and it does all the calculations for you. I'm not one for counting calories either, it seems like too much bother. ----> lazybones here....lol

But it's important to eat several meals and snacks a day, whether you actually feel hungry or not. :) Good luck!

Wendy