I haven't lost weight in the first 3 days

[Emilymay12]

I started my diet on Monday, have been sticking to 2100 calories ish (the maximum was 2314 yesterday) I’m logging everything. Being very obese my Fitbit has put me at burning around 4000 calories day. Even my TDEE maintenance calories are 3,086. 

Got on the scales this morning (Thursday) and I’ve lost 0.4lbs. I was expecting such a big weight loss. Can you lose any weight in 3 days or is it worth just weighing weekly? Thank you.

Moderator edit: subject for clarity/format 

[Emilymay12]

I started my diet on Monday, have been sticking to 2100 calories ish (the maximum was 2314 yesterday) I’m logging everything. Being very obese my Fitbit has put me at burning around 4000 calories day. 

Moderator edit: format

[Glenda]

Emily,  Good for you, making this effort.  I hope you will not be too easily discouraged.  I wonder if water or elimination  could be slowing things down.  Sounds like you are doing everything right to me.  Hang in there for a while.  Best wishes.

[Heybales]

I'd suggest a weight trending app may be very important as you continue on.

Because indeed 3 days too short, 6-8 days could even show no progress as you do this journey.

But a weight trending app will show progress and graph where it appears you are going (just don't use the optional end date - time-based weight loss very stressful).

Then you can weigh daily - learn the fact water weight fluctuations constantly and therefore 1 scale reading should never be the basis for any action.

Also - TDEE obviously came from calculator, but Fitbit could be inflating it's burn estimate too, it's just a more complex calculator, instead of 4-5 levels you are guessing from, it's got 1000's.

How did you get your TDEE?

What's your daily activity that's causing Fitbit to read 1000 more than that TDEE estimate?

Because indeed - most people starting a diet auto-lower sodium intake merely by what they pick to eat, and eating less means less in stomach - and so 1st week is usually a good water weight drop.

Unless you started workouts recently too - then water weight gain for several reasons.

[kaelarenee7]

I weigh in daily and see what the average for the week is. You could also just weigh in once a week if you prefer. It is possible that on Tuesday and Wednesday, you had more of a loss, but something made the scale go back up a bit on Thursday, which is why people generally recommend watching overall trends in the scale rather than putting too much importance on individual weigh ins.

[mashizou]

I wouldn't stress about it. The scale might stay the same, but that doesn't mean you aren't losing fat. Your muscles are going to hold onto water, especially when you're starting out or trying an exercise that stresses your body in a new way. Your body will shed that water with consistency. In my case, I've been logging my weight every morning for over 3 months and I've found that my body goes through a weekly cycle of plateau > slight weight gain > substantial weight loss.

[mashizou]

I will say that Fitbit devices have been shown to overestimate calorie burn. Some devices overestimate by a lot. You'll have to do a little digging to figure out the accuracy of your specific model. From there you can calculate an approximation of your actual calorie burn.

[DavidPa]

Good for you on starting. From what I've read and experienced, three days is really too soon. I've read advice that suggests weighing daily, and other that suggests weekly. My preference is to weigh weekly to track my progress and then I use daily to try and understand how my lifestyle causes variation. Remember (de)hydration, time of day, what you did yesterday, and even what you eat yesterday or just before weighing will make changes that could depress you. Hence I weigh every week at the same time. When I was in weight losing phase I looked for an overall downward trend and now I'm in maintenance I look for it staying within a pound or two of my target and tweak  my diet if it strays too far. However, the important part is to hang in there and don't let daily/weekly/or monthly blips discourage you.

[DavidPa]

Don't forget that the quality (make sure you get the right amount of nutrients) and source (fat, carb, protein) of the calories is important, especially for ensuring you're losing excess fat and maintaining or even building muscle. Muscle weighs more so improving muscle mass has the effect of looking like a diet is failing - in this case the shape of your body should be improving - over time. So the number on the scale is a good tool, but it's not the whole story. Finally make sure you're getting good professional help and guidance.