Tidbit Tuesday - Slow vs Fast Weight Loss
Hello,
Welcome to another Tidbit Tuesday where we aim to teach you something new about health, nutrition, lifestyle, training, and so much more, every week!
Today we are talking about WEIGHT LOSS and some of the differences between shedding those pounds slow and steady or as quickly as you can!
First, what would be considered “slow” and what would be considered “fast”?
According to many experts, losing 0.5–2 pounds (0.25–0.9 kg) per week is a healthy and safe rate. Anything more than that can be considered fast, which comes with risks such as muscle loss, gallstones, and nutritional deficiencies to name a few.
However, if you are just starting a diet or exercise plan, then you may lose much more than 2 pounds (0.9 kg) in your first week. For this initial period, fast weight loss is perfectly normal. The weight you lose during this time is commonly called “water weight.”
Here are some factors that affect weight loss:
· Your starting weight – If you have more to lose than you can sustainably lose more per week and still be in the healthy or safe zone.
· Your lifestyle – If you have a lot of unhealthy habits that you can turn around than you will end up losing more weight, faster. If you only change one habit it may happen slower, albeit more sustainably.
· How far you are into your weight loss journey – You will notice that you will lose weight much quicker and “easier” in the beginning. Once your body finds its comfortable “working weight” where you have dropped unnecessary water and your metabolism slows to match your smaller frame, it may feel a little tougher to keep losing weight at the same rate. You may need to up the anti.
· Your hormonal health – Hormones are chemical messengers, instructing cells within your body as to what they should and shouldn’t do. There are any number of hormones that can be imbalanced for just as many reasons. If you believe hormonal issues may be having any negative effect on your weight loss efforts or overall health, talk to your doctor.
· Your genetics - “The biggest thing that makes a difference in how different people lose weight is genetics,” says Dr. Craig Primack, a member of the national board of directors for the Obesity Medicine Association. “It is estimated that 20 major genes and 200 or more minor genes impact fat storage and weight maintenance.”
· Your sleep habits - “The amount of sleep you get makes a large difference in your metabolic rate and how fast you are able to lose weight,” Primack says. “People who sleep less than seven hours per night tend to have slower metabolisms.” Both poor sleep quality and less than 7 hours of sleep per night have been causally linked to slowing your metabolism and increasing your bodies cravings.
· Your age - “As people get older, it becomes harder and harder to lose weight, and when people do lose it, it comes off slower,” Crandall says. While hormonal changes (ahem, menopause and low testosterone) certainly play a role, another big culprit is sarcopenia, or the loss of muscle mass that occurs throughout the aging process.
When the goal is to lose weight, one of the top priorities should be to also keep the weight off!
So, our next question would have to be, can you maintain fast weight loss and the result?
This is where there is some controversy. There are studies, both scientific and anecdotal, that point to both being doable and sustainable. Ultimately it comes down to the person.
It is a combination of all the above factors just discussed, plus a planned exercise regime will help. You as a person should know yourself better than anyone. Are you capable of being extremely strict with yourself and your routine?
Chances are you start out with good intentions and then life gets in the way, halting all your progress. Or, what often happens is people will successfully lose the weight by restricting themselves to minimal calorie intake, but once they achieve that weight they go back to their old habits of eating, putting the weight back on. Often even more weight because they have less muscle mass and a slower metabolism.
You see, when you lose weight quickly it doesn't necessarily all come from FAT. Our bodies can only use so much fat as energy at any given time, and anything above and beyond that is typically lost from water, muscle, or even worse from our bone density.
The goal shouldn't be WEIGHT loss, but FAT loss. And we should be trying to maintain or improve our LEAN MASS. By maximizing our fat-free mass we greatly reduce many impact factors on our health such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, risk of a stroke or osteoarthritis, we also greatly reduce the risk of many cancers.
So what is right for you? Slow and steady or fast and furious!?
Both are doable, with differing pros and cons in each list.
Can you be extremely strict on your diet and exercise regime? Knowing that once you reach your goal you CAN'T GO BACK TO YOUR OLD HABITS. Forcing you to adopt your new way of life very quickly, almost over night. This can get you to your goal very quickly! But can you keep it?
Or, do you want to learn one or two new skills/habits at a time, slowly trading in your old routine for a new, sustainable one? This may take more time to reach your specific goal, however you're more likely to sustain it for the long-term.
Rapid weight loss may come with the loss of some lean mass and increase risk of fractures due to loss of bone density. Yikes!
Slow weight loss may seem like "it isn't working" and take too long to maintain the motivation required for the intended long-term progress.
Once you have decided which path is right for you, it is time to draw up a game plan!
You're going to run into hurdles either way. The best way to stay on track and not allow these hiccups to derail you is to be prepared for them.
Create a S.M.A.R.T. goal and start putting your plan into action TODAY!
Don't wait for next Monday, or just after that next event you have planned or .. just no. Start TODAY!
Don't be "all-or-nothing", because at some point you will indeed want to do nothing. And that's okay to need an extra day off, have a "cheat meal" or some dessert at family dinner. "All-or-nothing" only ever ends in having "all" the regrets.
Use the dial method (1-10, always something, never nothing) rather than the "all-or-nothing" method and you will ensure that you will maintain a much more steady course.
Which ever method you choose we are here to keep you on track, provide you with helpful resources, help you create a specific game plan to achieve your goals, and support you until you smash those goals!!
Cheers,
Coach Sean
Citations:
Ashtary-Larky, D., Ghanavati, M., Lamuchi-Deli, N., Payami, S. A., Alavi-Rad, S., Boustaninejad, M., . . . Alipour, M. (2017). Rapid Weight Loss vs. Slow Weight Loss: Which is More Effective on Body Composition and Metabolic Risk Factors? International Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, In Press(In Press). doi:10.5812/ijem.13249
Purcell, K., Sumithran, P., Prendergast, L. A., Bouniu, C. J., Delbridge, E., & Proietto, J. (2014). The effect of rate of weight loss on long-term weight management: A randomised controlled trial. The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, 2(12), 954-962. doi:10.1016/s2213-8587(14)70200-1
Raman, R. (2017, October 29). Is It Bad to Lose Weight Too Quickly? Retrieved September 29, 2020, from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/losing-weight-too-fast
