Is it realistic (or not) to think I can lose 40kg in a year? 10kg lost so far

[bananasandhoney1]

Since January 1st I have lost 10kg through a combination of keto and intermittent fasting, but it has not been easy and I have been a little up and down with it (not yo-yoing as such but just going a bit too mad on treats etc when I have a bit of a break).

Overall I am happy with my progress but I am wondering whether it is likely I can meet my goal of losing a further 30kgs by December 31st.

I have worked out that this would equate to roughly 1kg per week of loss, not taking account of any times when I am more relaxed for special occasions - eg birthdays and weddings.

Is it possible or am I deluding myself?

Also worried about loose skin. So far seems to be ok but I am expecting this to become an issue further down the line. Tips on that would also be appreciated!

Thanks in advance

Sure it is. I've lost 7kg n the last three weeks (no crash diet, sticking to 1400/day). But I aim for 1kg/week normally and that's totally doable, including the odd day here and there when I relax or a bit further to a special occasion.
Strength training may help with loose skin, particularly upper arms. But other than that it's your genes and age and other factors that will determine how much you'll get.

Thank you for the response! And for the strength training tip, that is on my radar but haven't started yet. Congratulations on your weight loss

I think it’ll slow down a lot so you’ll be looking at maybe 2kg a month, but that’s fine as long as it’s consistent.
id also warn against exercising too often as you’ll lose faster but if you don’t keep it up then you’ll put it back on.
losing is easy - keeping it off is the key.

do the level of exercise you can keep up for life and focus on diet and quantity of food.

My mum lost 30kg in a year through keto and fasting. I think 40kg is a big ask unless you are starting at a very heavy weight.

did you gain the 40kg in a year? It would be awful to set such an ambitious goal and feel disappointed and lose motivation if you don’t achieve it. To be honest 20-30kg is still a fantastic loss in a year

Thanks! I am not exercising at all at the moment - aside from a bit of walking. This is a conscious decision so that I do not lose the weight any faster and for other reasons. I intent to start exercising gently when I have lost a few more KG and then will up the ante on that as I progress.

It’s doable but reading between the lines you’re already struggling with your approach so it’s unlikely to be sustainable. I don’t get this whole approach of demonising foods, I can’t see how it works long time. DH has lost 3st in about 8 months by tidying up his diet, adding strength training and an extra run a week. He still eats crisps, chocolate etc but less.

Thanks for your response. I was 102kg to start with, and I am 5'9.5" so that put me in the obese category - by roughly about 10kg. Losing another 15kg - approx - would take me from 'overweight' to a healthy weight, for context.

No I did not gain it in a year, it has been mission-creep situation over the last 8 years or so.

I had to convert that to stone as I’m not familiar with kgs, I think it’s just over 6 stone?

It’s definitely doable. I used to follow a lot of people who lost up to 7 stone over a year.
One of my best friends lost ten stone in a year, although granted it was gastric sleeve.

I don’t know about loose skin, I think it depends on other variables

Yes, a touch over 6stone I think. Thanks for your response and the encouraging words.

This is certainly the plan - long term (similar to your DH). No food groups have been demonised (for me). Yes I am low-carbing, but that is a 'for right now' not a forever change. I am using this time to also better educate myself about food and have focussed on eating more whole foods too, but nothing is excluded and I am still treating myself too. Perhaps too much, if I am honest. But thinks are improving gradually and noticeably

So you are aiming for 62kgs at 5”9.5?
while not underweight, that is low for your height and I think would be difficult, in particular as you get to the last 10kg.

Yes that is the aim. But I am going to take a view as I get closer to my goal to see if it is 1) necessary and healthy, and 2) achievable.

I hear what you say.

I've lost 8st so far and another two to go over the last couple of years. Theoretically, it's doable. Average a 500 calorie per day eating deficit and the same again through exercise and you're more than covered. The biggest problem is how you do it and whether it's sustainable. A year is a long time and you're not giving yourself much wiggle room. Especially if you're going down the "going on a diet" routine.

You also need to account for the fact that the more, you lose, the more effort it takes to lose more in the same time. It's easy to see quick gains when you have a lot to loose because your body needs more calories just to exist so creating deficits is easier.

When I started, I decided to put the effort into learning more about the food I was eating. I started to research where I could get the most bang for my calorie buck. In all honesty, I wasn't looking to eat "healthier" right away, I just wanted to stick with eating crap but be smarter with it so I could create those deficits and get some quick wins on the scale. I started to walk more and I've built that up over a year to the point where I'm averaging 10,000 steps a day. That's the only exercise I've really bothered with - although I know there are other things I need to start exploring for other health benefits beyond weight loss.

Over time I started to integrate healthier eating and I focused on changing one habit a month so that, over time, things gradually build into my routine and it didn't feel like such a shock. I'm at the stage where I'm confident that I won't put the weight back on when it's all over because I've been gradually embedding better habits bit by bit and it's never felt like I'm on a diet.

I'm a bit like you, I still factor in treats to give myself a break and it can be easy to go overboard if you have a tendency to binge. The main thing for me was to accept that the journey would be 2 steps forward, one step back because, overall, it's still going in the right direction and it's sustainable.

I think you should really think about the approach your taking and make sure it's right for you. If there is a diet or combination of diets that works for you and you can sustain it long term, that's great. Just make sure you're taking time to learn about food and diet as a whole and now just through the lens of one diet because you really need to plan for what happens after the diet is over. I think you should extend your target, too. I'd maybe go for 18 months rather than a year. The worst thing you can do is set an unrealistic target and then end up undoing your progress because you're losing motivation when the scales aren't where you think they should be.

Good luck and keep up the good work!

Thank you, this is so supportive and very helpful. Congratulations to you on your weight loss - it sounds as though you have done really well!

"I'm a bit like you, I still factor in treats to give myself a break and it can be easy to go overboard if you have a tendency to binge. The main thing for me was to accept that the journey would be 2 steps forward, one step back because, overall, it's still going in the right direction and it's sustainable."

This really does ring true for me.

I am going to have a think about what you said re extending my timeline to about 18 months.

You probably could if you’re disciplined and motivated enough but I wouldn’t recommend it. Losing it slowly, half a pound a week so 2lb a month would be your best option if you’re worried about loose skin. Plus you’d be much more likely to keep it off for good.

You're welcome. And I think that's a good decision. Be kind to yourself but also be honest with yourself. Set yourself up for the best chance of success. I promise, when you're looking in the mirror, admiring how good you look in something new, you won't care that it took a bit longer than you originally though to fit into it.

In my experience, the bigger I've been the "easier" it's been to lose weight.

So if it's taken you 4 months to lose 10kg, I can't see how you'd lose 30kg in 8 months?

Could you extend your time frame? Or reduce your goal?

Again only in my experience, it's been much more beneficial for it to be slow and steady. To lose 30kg in 8 months would require strict dedication, a calorie deficient eating plan you cannot deviate from (even for special occasions) and a lot more exercise.

I think the reason I like to believe it is possible is that for the first 10kg weight loss I have made a big effort but I have not been as stringent as I could have been, so if I have to take it up a notch for the next 8 months then so be it.

Perhaps you are right though that the timeframe is a bit tight!

Half a pound per week feels too slow to me. I hear what you say and I know that it is necessary to be both consistent and patient, but I think I would be demotivated by loss as this pace.

That’s great…essentially to lose weight you just need to be in a calorie deficit, which can (in theory) be achieved by just eating anything as long as it leaves you in a deficit. You’d be nutritionally deficient though, which isn’t great…even if living off just Oreos would be amazing.

I think you can do it, I lost 19 kg in 4 months on keto but also doing exercise. Now if you get stuck after keto you could try Saxenda. I tried it for month when the weight loss stalled even with keto.

You've lost 10kg in the first third of the year. To maintain the same rate of loss for the remaining two thirds would give you 20kg further loss.

That might be more than enough to aim for and to maintain. It would be more beneficial to focus on maintaining that while finding a consistent and sustainable system of managing eating and exercising rather than trying to lose at an even higher rate.

Work on changing the balance between the types of food you eat and the balance between inactivity and exercise. Find a method that you can live with, for instance gradually add more vegetables or salads and lean protein and a bit less fat cheese, chips or sausages and burgers. Limit eating certain high calorie treats to two specific days a week, e.g. chocolate bars, biscuits or cake, if you can't bear to give them up altogether. Walk a bit more or swim or cycle or jog or play tennis or badminton or go to a yoga or dance class or something else.

What was your broader experience of using Saxenda, if you don't mind me asking? Did you have any side effects? I haven't ever looked into it but it is something I would consider for the future if everything really does grind to a halt.

Do you have loose skin? And did you feel weak or lightheaded doing exercise whilst on keto? sorry lots of questions!

Thank you! And yes I think you might be right. It may well be that I lose another 20kg and that feels like more than enough. I will wait and see.

Oreos... If only. I love them