One kilo per week: achievable or not?

[SaraZZ]

Eat always under Fitbit Budget, meet calories burnt and steps per day, 1kg/week weight loss seems impossible although all the numbers are saying that it should happen.

I am losing weight but not 1Kg/week. What is the problem?

[WavyDavey]

Achievable? Sure.

Sustainable? Unlikely.

Patience? Recommended.

I think Dominique's answer on your other thread about says it all.

[Dominique]

If we lived in a perfect world, calories burned from Fitbit would match exactly your total energy expenditure, calories in logged by you would also be an exact match for your total intake and a 3500 calorie deficit would turn into a weight loss of exactly one pound. However, we don’t live in a perfect world, so none of the above applies with 100% certainty.

As to whether one kilo per week is achievable or not, it depends on your starting weight. At my current weight, I would end up weighing 12 kg if I kept losing 1 kg / week for one year, so it’s obvious I wouldn’t be able to do it for very long. Someone starting at 150 kg may be able to do it.

There’s this thing called homeostasis that tries to keep you at the same weight. If you try to disrupt it very abruptly (by having a huge deficit), it will fight back. Likewise, if you try to drag your weight loss for too long without taking breaks, it will also slow things down. Therefore it’s not a bad thing you’re losing at less than what "the numbers are saying". Your goal is likely to lose weight, not to prove your weight loss goes exactly as predicted by the numbers. Your weight is still moving in the direction predicted by the numbers.