How fast is weight lost?

Ceze · 09-09-2004, 05:33 PM

I often read about someone that cheats or tries something such as yogurt and finds that their weight is down the next day (especially when they have had trouble losing lately) and they attribute the loss to what they ate the day before. I know that a lot of things can affect a persons weight each day such as gaining or losing water weight. My question for A_N is how quickly (in general) is body fat lost or gained? Is it logical to say that since I ate X yesterday and lost weight today that X is what caused it? I try not to weigh too frequently so I usually wait a week or two to see how I react to a new food. However, I am always curious when I hear about people who feel that they lose weight by the next day.

francine · 09-10-2004, 07:25 AM

Good question, I'm also waiting for the A-N's answer!

lcq · 09-10-2004, 07:31 AM

Bump....................to hear the answer to this

Atkins_Nutritionist · 09-10-2004, 08:51 AM

Your questions are excellent!

1. My question for A_N is how quickly (in general) is body fat lost or gained? This is hard to say. I will answer it as best as I can. If this does not answer your question please let me know.

In general 1-2, pounds of total weight lost/week. A certain percent of this is water, fat...I am not sure of the breakdown. So, as far as "how quickly" you lose fat, you lose fat as you lose weight which would be after a week.

I do know (from body composition studies) that when you burn fat for energy(as on Atkins), you lose more fat than water.... as compared to other weight loss plans.

Because everyone's metabolsm is different, noone will burn fat at the same rate and of course hormones and other underlying conditions can effect this too.

2. Is it logical to say that since I ate X yesterday and lost weight today that X is what caused it? This is certainly logical but it is not the way weight loss works. Maybe the person was retaining fluid and would have lost the weight the next day anyway. There are too many variables effecting weight to make such a smple assumption.

If someone finds a change in their diet pattern that works for them, then they should continue (but, unless it is consistently different how would you tell if for example it was the yogurt or another factor, ie, the addition of more calories or the calcium or the increased carbs or another reason).

If you want to increase carbs to see if it effects weight, control your carbs, add a 1/2 a grapefruit for 1 week and see what happens. If you use a day to eat high carbs, it may work but if does not work, you need to be prepared to get right back on track. You also may need to deal with cravings...

I try not to weigh too frequently so I usually wait a week or two to see how I react to a new food. However, I am always curious when I hear about people who feel that they lose weight by the next day.

LindaSue · 09-10-2004, 09:43 AM

Wouldn't the actual weight of the food eaten be a factor as well? If I had a day where I ate "legal" the whole day, but ate a couple of 1/2 pound steaks, plus everything else along with them, wouldn't I be likely to be up a pound the next morning, especially if I ate the steak late in the day? I would have consumed over a pound of food (of course I'd never do that), so shouldn't I weigh at least a pound more the next morning?

On the other hand, if I had a day where I ate "light" - mostly eggs, salads and creamy things, etc., it would seem that my body would have a better chance of processing the lighter foods by the next morning and thus I might not show a gain on the scale that next day.

Does this seem logical or is that not how it works? Does the weight of the food eaten not come into it at all?

lcq · 09-10-2004, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by LindaSue
Wouldn't the actual weight of the food eaten be a factor as well? If I had a day where I ate "legal" the whole day, but ate a couple of 1/2 pound steaks, plus everything else along with them, wouldn't I be likely to be up a pound the next morning, especially if I ate the steak late in the day? I would have consumed over a pound of food (of course I'd never do that), so shouldn't I weigh at least a pound more the next morning?

On the other hand, if I had a day where I ate "light" - mostly eggs, salads and creamy things, etc., it would seem that my body would have a better chance of processing the lighter foods by the next morning and thus I might not show a gain on the scale that next day.

Does this seem logical or is that not how it works? Does the weight of the food eaten not come into it at all?

good question Linda sue

Diana · 09-10-2004, 10:52 AM

That's my thinking Linda. It's happened to be several times. If I eat a "fuller" meal - steaks, for example I tend to weight heavier. So I now eat lighter dinners, mostly Salads or Breakfast items- omelets etc

lkmjbc3 · 09-10-2004, 04:04 PM

Actually the weight of food you eat has little to do with how much you weigh.....

This is really complicated but really heavy food can often be mainly water. On the other hand some light food can be quite full of calories (whipped cream comes to mind).

To complicate this a persons metabolism and macro- nutrient consumption also factors in...... increasing fat can sometimes lead to greater weightloss.... and of course sometimes this is not the case.

I really think that question may be impossible to answer. The whole process is extremely complicated. Foods consumed change metabolism in many ways.

That 12 oz steak you ate last night may actually make you weigh less in the morning....
and then again maybe not!

lkmjbc3

Atkins_Nutritionist · 09-11-2004, 01:14 PM

I agree lkm,

The process of weight loss is not quite as simple as "weight of food". Although, it is possible.

However, there are studies that show eating 300 less calories (not too little), 1500 vs 1800 contributed to slightly not significantly more weight loss (23 vs 20 pounds) after 3 months.

So an omelette may decrease you caloric intake vs. a steak.

09-09-2004, 05:33 PM	#1
Ceze Senior LCF Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 556 Gallery: Ceze Stats: size: too big/smaller/just right WOE: Low Carb Start Date: Atkins-2002	How fast is weight lost? I often read about someone that cheats or tries something such as yogurt and finds that their weight is down the next day (especially when they have had trouble losing lately) and they attribute the loss to what they ate the day before. I know that a lot of things can affect a persons weight each day such as gaining or losing water weight. My question for A_N is how quickly (in general) is body fat lost or gained? Is it logical to say that since I ate X yesterday and lost weight today that X is what caused it? I try not to weigh too frequently so I usually wait a week or two to see how I react to a new food. However, I am always curious when I hear about people who feel that they lose weight by the next day.

09-10-2004, 09:43 AM	#5
LindaSue Big Yapper!!!! Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Spring, TX Posts: 8,279 Gallery: LindaSue Stats: 167/117/120 - 5'7" WOE: Atkins Maintenance Start Date: July 2002	Wouldn't the actual weight of the food eaten be a factor as well? If I had a day where I ate "legal" the whole day, but ate a couple of 1/2 pound steaks, plus everything else along with them, wouldn't I be likely to be up a pound the next morning, especially if I ate the steak late in the day? I would have consumed over a pound of food (of course I'd never do that), so shouldn't I weigh at least a pound more the next morning? On the other hand, if I had a day where I ate "light" - mostly eggs, salads and creamy things, etc., it would seem that my body would have a better chance of processing the lighter foods by the next morning and thus I might not show a gain on the scale that next day. Does this seem logical or is that not how it works? Does the weight of the food eaten not come into it at all? __________________ Visit my Low Carb Menus & Recipes site Menus Recipes Recent website updates My Before and After pics

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09-10-2004, 07:25 AM	#2
francine Senior LCF Member Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Buffalo, New York, USA Posts: 918 Gallery: francine Stats: 155/130/135 WOE: little of everything	Good question, I'm also waiting for the A-N's answer!

09-10-2004, 07:31 AM	#3
lcq MAJOR LCF POSTER! Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: FAR FAR AWAY Posts: 2,739 Gallery: lcq Stats: 5' 5": 293 - 271.6 - ? WOE: LOW CARB all the way Start Date: 2 Jan 2008	Bump....................to hear the answer to this

09-10-2004, 08:51 AM	#4
Atkins_Nutritionist Nutritionist Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Atkins Health and Medical Information Services Posts: 684 Gallery: Atkins_Nutritionist	Your questions are excellent! 1. My question for A_N is how quickly (in general) is body fat lost or gained? This is hard to say. I will answer it as best as I can. If this does not answer your question please let me know. In general 1-2, pounds of total weight lost/week. A certain percent of this is water, fat...I am not sure of the breakdown. So, as far as "how quickly" you lose fat, you lose fat as you lose weight which would be after a week. I do know (from body composition studies) that when you burn fat for energy(as on Atkins), you lose more fat than water.... as compared to other weight loss plans. Because everyone's metabolsm is different, noone will burn fat at the same rate and of course hormones and other underlying conditions can effect this too. 2. Is it logical to say that since I ate X yesterday and lost weight today that X is what caused it? This is certainly logical but it is not the way weight loss works. Maybe the person was retaining fluid and would have lost the weight the next day anyway. There are too many variables effecting weight to make such a smple assumption. If someone finds a change in their diet pattern that works for them, then they should continue (but, unless it is consistently different how would you tell if for example it was the yogurt or another factor, ie, the addition of more calories or the calcium or the increased carbs or another reason). If you want to increase carbs to see if it effects weight, control your carbs, add a 1/2 a grapefruit for 1 week and see what happens. If you use a day to eat high carbs, it may work but if does not work, you need to be prepared to get right back on track. You also may need to deal with cravings... I try not to weigh too frequently so I usually wait a week or two to see how I react to a new food. However, I am always curious when I hear about people who feel that they lose weight by the next day.

09-10-2004, 10:52 AM	#7
Diana Allergic to Carbs- I break out in Fat! Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Anderson, Indiana Posts: 34,966 Gallery: Diana Stats: 176.5/138.8/134 (5'3") WOE: The Original Atkins Start Date: 8/11/03 Restart 4/08	That's my thinking Linda. It's happened to be several times. If I eat a "fuller" meal - steaks, for example I tend to weight heavier. So I now eat lighter dinners, mostly Salads or Breakfast items- omelets etc

09-10-2004, 04:04 PM	#8
lkmjbc3 Senior LCF Member Join Date: Sep 2002 Posts: 368 Gallery: lkmjbc3	Actually the weight of food you eat has little to do with how much you weigh..... This is really complicated but really heavy food can often be mainly water. On the other hand some light food can be quite full of calories (whipped cream comes to mind). To complicate this a persons metabolism and macro- nutrient consumption also factors in...... increasing fat can sometimes lead to greater weightloss.... and of course sometimes this is not the case. I really think that question may be impossible to answer. The whole process is extremely complicated. Foods consumed change metabolism in many ways. That 12 oz steak you ate last night may actually make you weigh less in the morning.... and then again maybe not! lkmjbc3

09-11-2004, 01:14 PM	#9
Atkins_Nutritionist Nutritionist Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Atkins Health and Medical Information Services Posts: 684 Gallery: Atkins_Nutritionist	I agree lkm, The process of weight loss is not quite as simple as "weight of food". Although, it is possible. However, there are studies that show eating 300 less calories (not too little), 1500 vs 1800 contributed to slightly not significantly more weight loss (23 vs 20 pounds) after 3 months. So an omelette may decrease you caloric intake vs. a steak.