Started losing weight quickly: is it good or bad?

Author: Mikhail Ziborov - author of the site makefitness.pro.
2021-11-17

There’s a common belief that rapid weight loss is not good and that one should lose weight slowly. It’s said that after quick weight loss, people often relapse and regain the weight they lost (or even more). Conversely, after slow weight loss, everything is fine. In reality, things are a bit different: rapid weight loss is better than slow weight loss. And subscribing to our Telegram channel is better than not subscribing and missing out on daily valuable information and discounts for iHerb.

Rapid Weight Loss: Pros and Cons

So, we are currently discussing the case when you are purposefully losing weight and have started to shed extra kilograms quite quickly. This, of course, cannot be disappointing, but there are cases where rapid weight loss has led to a relapse, and a person who lost a significant amount of subcutaneous fat regained it. And this is the first con. But to be fair, such cases are not frequent.

The second con is the loss not only of fat but also of muscle tissue. Here is a study showing that rapid weight loss leads to a slightly greater loss of muscle compared to slow weight loss. But this can be addressed in no time: simply add more protein to your diet, and you will stop losing muscle (the body has no need to take protein from muscles if there is enough protein from food).

The main pro of fast weight loss is… rapid and significant weight loss. In other words, you don’t have to worry for six months to a year about your figure, as is the case with slow weight loss. You lose weight quickly and much more than with slow loss (13.5 kg vs. 5.1 kg over 6 months).

The second pro is positive reinforcement: those who lose weight rapidly tend to adhere better to the diet, see their results immediately in the mirror (which improves mood and changes behavior), and they develop healthy eating habits much faster.

On the other hand, those who lose weight slowly and moderately experience a drop in motivation; even though there are results (for example, losing 200-400 g per week), visible changes are not apparent. Seeing that progress is slow, and the desired figure is still far away, many tend to abandon such weight loss. In short, there is no positive reinforcement. And you can't explain to someone that slow weight loss is good for health (for example, there are no fluctuations in weight, and there is no significant stress for the body).

The third pro is better maintenance of lost weight. That is, those who lose weight quickly can maintain it much better compared to those who lose weight slowly (the chance of regaining lost kilograms is much higher for slow losers). By the way, those who lose weight quickly shed an average of 2.25 kg per week (study showing the advantages of rapid weight loss).

It’s worth noting that such rapid weight loss is primarily achieved through proper nutrition and the willingness to adhere to it to achieve results. The second place goes to physical activity, especially if you don’t want to just lose weight but also avoid sagging skin and compromised health.

Fast vs. Slow Weight Loss: Differences in Women and Men

Men and women react differently to rapid weight loss. More precisely, their bodies do. Women’s bodies tend to lose slightly less weight than men’s (16% less). Here is the study. This is likely because women’s bodies are generally more inclined to store fat. However, women tend to show better decreases in blood pressure and lose fat more efficiently in the thighs.

Conclusion: rapid weight loss is largely beneficial: you lose more, lose faster, maintain the lost weight better, and clearly see the results of your efforts. But this strategy is not suitable for everyone, just those who are ready to endure temporary difficulties (after all, eating less than you are used to is not something everyone can handle).

On the other hand, slow weight loss protects your body from excessive stress (but the risk of regaining everything you lost is much higher). Here are examples of our clients and the heads of the MakeFitness.Pro resource who lost weight in a short period.