This shall be Interesting...140lbs in 6 months!?!?!?

Ok...so..I know it sounds impossible but I think I might can do it..I mean I pretty much have too! Ok this is what happened. I'm a senior in high school and we had to order our cap and gowns back in September..and the gown guy was there and he told us if you don't put your height and weight just right..your gown won't hang properly. Well I knew I wanted to loose some weight before then but I didn't know how much so I thought it would be motivating for me to put that I weighed 165lbs instead of 320lbs. So yea basically I have 6 months to loose 140-150lbs otherwise I'll be wearing a blue sheet to graduation. Lol I just thought I'd share my little dilemma with you all! I think I can possibly make it if i follow a strict diet. My body actually looses weight pretty fast but then I just stop dieting for some reason and I gain it all back. Anyways...my diet and exercise plan starts on Monday. Wish me luck!!

oh honey, it's not possible. in any sort of way it is not possible and definitely NOT healthy. 40-60 lbs, yes, probably. i started at 250 and in six months have lost 65. maybe with exercise i could have lost more, but there's no way i or anyone else could possibly lose 140 without serious deficiantcies and whatnot.

hate to kill your dreams, but seriously, go for the long term. that is what really will pay off in the end!

There's no way you can healthily lose that much weight in 6 months. You might lose 5 lbs a week at the beginning, at the weight you are now, but that's going to slow down with time and weight loss. Even if you were to lose an average of three lbs a week, that would be about 72 lbs, or half of what you're looking at. Can you still change your gown order? It would be so much better for you to enjoy your last months of high school and be healthy when you get your diploma, rather than miserable all year and sick on graduation day, or not able to fit your gown and disappointed. Change your goal (and your gown size) to something more realistic.

I really have to agree.  It is very admirable that you have such confidence, but with all the confidence in the world, it doesn't change the facts.  It would be completely unhealthy for you to lose that kind of weight that fast.  Even losing half that would make a drastic difference in your size.

Please, please go back and get that changed.

You are right about being able to lose weight easily.  At your weight, and at my original weight, it was easy to let go of the weight at first.  Now that I'm halfway to goal and still trying hard my loses have slowed dramatically.  It will most likely happen to you too and if your goal is that aggressive, not making it will do a lot of damage to your motivation and ego. 

well i dont know i mean i lost a lot of weight fast with no exercising depending on how hard this boys looking to work he might be able to do it

Get it changed.  If you lose weight you can always order the gown from another place in a smaller size down the road.

knuckz, that's really bad advice!  To lose that much he'd have to lose 6 pounds a week, which would land him in the hospital.  6 months is enough time to develop a full fledged nutritional disorder.

Better to call the company and ask to change the size of the cap and gown!  It can always be taken in.  Anyway, too big is better than not being able to button the thing.

courtneyw, the reason you gain it back so fast is because you lost it too fast.  Your body adjust and lowers your energy level to match your intake.  When you then increase your intake, you will gain on fewer calories.  Here's a good explantion from the CC Library Q&A

the restrictiveness of a very low calorie level can lead to binging and weight cycling, which will take you further from your weight loss goal. What's more, very low calorie diets can cause excessive muscle breakdown and metabolic adaptations, which can drive down your calorie requirements. In the end, you'll need fewer calories to maintain a higher weight.

claireelaine is right.  You can get something taken in, but you can't necessarily get something let out.  Maybe half an inch, tops, but you risk bursting a seam.

Original Post by courtneyw: I'm a senior in high school and we had to order our cap and gowns back in September... so I thought it would be motivating for me to put that I weighed 165lbs instead of 320lbs.

I hate to dampen anyone's enthusiasm but these guys are right. You're setting yourself up for serious disappointment and maybe even health problems. You said you ordered these things in September. How did the weight loss go from September through November?

WOW!! Thanks for all the responses! And Yea I know it seems near impossible and it might not be to healthy but i'm willing to work hard at it..and if push comes to shove and by next year when they do the fitting and I'm not at the right weight i'll just tell them i've gained some weight so they won't think I was a complete idiot and put the wrong weight lol. I just want to loose as much as I can..and also I'm moving to LA after I graduate to go to UCLA and I refuse to enter college fat..I was overweight in middle school and in high school...college is going to be different! No more of this "freshmen 15"...it will be the "freshmen -15+" lol..yea that probably didn't even make sense lol..sorry...

Anyways..I'm really excited about starting my diet Monday!! Oh and to southcarolinaguy, I actually haven't lost any weight since september..I kinda forgot about it until last week when we took our senior yearbook portraits..lol...so yea these next 6 months are gonna be hard..but i'm gonna give it all I got!!

Original Post by courtneyw:

WOW!! Thanks for all the responses! And Yea I know it seems near impossible and it might not be to healthy but i'm willing to work hard at it..and if push comes to shove and by next year when they do the fitting and I'm not at the right weight i'll just tell them i've gained some weight so they won't think I was a complete idiot and put the wrong weight lol. I just want to loose as much as I can..and also I'm moving to LA after I graduate to go to UCLA and I refuse to enter college fat..I was overweight in middle school and in high school...college is going to be different! No more of this "freshmen 15"...it will be the "freshmen -15+" lol..yea that probably didn't even make sense lol..sorry...

Anyways..I'm really excited about starting my diet Monday!! Oh and to southcarolinaguy, I actually haven't lost any weight since september..I kinda forgot about it until last week when we took our senior yearbook portraits..lol...so yea these next 6 months are gonna be hard..but i'm gonna give it all I got!!

CourtneyW ...

There are only two ways to lose weight: (1) The healthy/safe way (that stays off and makes you healthier), and (2) the unhealthy/unsafe way (that comes back, bringing more fat with it, and causing serious health issues.)

I am losing weight the healthy way ... I have figured out my daily calorie requirements, and then I have subtracted enough calories from those requirements to lose weight as a safe, structured pace. I am staying above the minimums set by this site for women (1200 calories -- it is 1500 calories for adult men).  I log everything I eat, and I get a healthy balance of fats, proteins and carbohydrates EVERY day, and I also eat the RDA minimums for veggies/fruit as well as fiber.  I stopped eating junk food, fast food, potato chips, and anything fried.  And I am on a weekly plan of getting moderate exercise.

And, do you know what? It works. In 14 weeks, I've gone from weighing 369 pounds, to weighing 314 pounds (a loss of 54 pounds) ... and I am eating a very healthy, very balanced, 1500-calorie a day diet (and taking vitamins and supplements.)  And I'm 42 years old with asthma and diabetes and other issues -- so exercising isn't always easy.  But this is the healthy way to lose weight.

We can't choose for you ... we can only give you advice. We have decades of years of experience dieting the wrong way (the unsafe/unhealthy way) ... and we can testify that the weight comes back.  I know that you want your weight loss to be permanent, so my suggestion is to choose the healthy path.

YOU CAN DO THIS. Just take things one meal at a time, one day at a time, one pound at a time!

=^..^= MOLLY

You realize that to lose 140lbs in 6 months that you'd have to lose nearly 1lb a day, everyday? It's NOT humanly possible. To lose 1lb of fat you have to create a deficit of 3500 calories LESS than you burn through diet and exercise and to do this every single day?! NOT POSSIBLE or realistic.

I've lost 50lbs in 5 months, down to 269lbs from 319lbs by eating right, exercising and going at it slow. There is no quick solution. I'm sorry. You can be as dedicated as you want to be but it doesn't change the basic laws of energy.

I used to want to lose weight as fast as you did when I was younger, it never worked. I would try and try and then go off of it because I was hungry and miserable. I don't starve myself or do stupid fad diets anymore. I gave up on all of it and realize the only way to do it is SLOW and steady.

I eat on average 1829 calories a day. I cycle my calories:

Sun: 1800
Mon: 2000
Tue: 1400
Wed: 2800
Thu: 1200
Fri: 1500
Sat: 2100

I also take a free day every 2 weeks and everything anything I want. It works for me.

I think you'll find losing weight and keeping it off much easier if you just eat sensibly and be patient. You obviously have enough brain power to graduate high school and go to college, don't play dumb with losing weight. Do it the smart way or you WILL regret it later.

Personally, I think if you're that determined to get goin' you wouldn't wait until Monday.  What's wrong with starting today, or yesterday for that matter?

I can understand losing 50 pounds by then, and think that would be a great accomplishment.  At best, you can get into a smaller gown and still be at a high weight.  I was around 200 pounds and wore a small gown just fine, but that's just how my body is shaped.

If you're this gung-ho about it and trying so desperately to not enter college "fat", then you're probably going to wind up with an eating disorder, or giving up entirely on your goal and feeling horrible.

Why put yourself through it?

I can understand how you feel, you want that weight gone now!  The important thing is to follow a healthy plan, such as losing 2 lbs a week.  I wanted to lose 100lbs last year on jan 1, i probally could have done better but i lost 70lbs and though i do look and feel pretty good i want to lose more.  The slower you take it off the better chance you have at keeping it off.  Two lbs a week would have you over 50lbs thinner and even though that is not your goal you would be well on your way.

Hunny please don't do this to yourself. Trust me. I lost 156 pounds in a year and a half's time and that was too fast for my body. Now I have to have surgery to have my gallbladder removed because it doesn't function properly anymore. You could develop problems as such, or heart disease. Your hair can start falling out, teeth decaying. It could get really bad really fast. You never want to put yourself at those types of extreme dangers.

Contact the cap and gown ordering people and inform them that you made a mistake on the order and would like to change it. I'm sure they'd be okay with changing the order. I can't imagine why not. You're just graduating high school and on to living the rest of your adult life. As wonderful as losing 140 pounds in 6 months would be, it's really not wise. It's beyond unhealthy and can land you in the hospital with tons of complications.  You can screw up your body so much you may not be able to have kids some day. It's important to go about this the right way.

Please PM me or even ask here if you have any questions for me. From someone that has been through that kind of loss, I know exactly the frustration and  drive that you have to "just get it off". 

that will be hard 100 lbs would be pushing it in that time frame. you'd have to be real active and strict on your diet.  I've loss 124 lbs in almost that time frame but it wasn't easy and i was under doctor's guidance and a nutrionist. June 18 i weighed 345 last week i was at 221.

Original Post by syntitan: That will be hard 100 lbs would be pushing it in that time frame. you'd have to be real active and strict on your diet. I've loss 124 lbs in almost that time frame but it wasn't easy and i was under doctor's guidance and a nutrionist. June 18 i weighed 345 last week i was at 221.

 Seems to confirm what we're saying:  Under a doctor's supervision, you lost 124 pounds in about six months, he's trying to lose 31 pounds MORE than that in about six months. (from 320 down to 165)

Congrats on your success. Let's hope courtneyw also consults a physician before undertaking anything so drastic.

If you weight 320 lbs, then please do see your doctor about a weight loss plan. There may be health concerns which a doctor is better able to evaluate where it might be advisable for you to lose weight faster than is recommended for a typical individual. If you attempt to do this on your own, you are putting your heath at risk and no one here is going to advocate that.

I know that you can safely lose 1-2 lbs per week by following the guidelines on CC and eating a healthy diet.  If you really want to try for a faster weight loss you need a doctor and a nutritionist to help you get all of the nutrition that is essential at your age.  It won't do you any good to lose weight if you're doing damage to your health in the long run.  Losing weight at 18 only to regret the method a few years later is not the best plan.

Until you see your doctor, please follow the advice on CC and get a moderate amount of exercise and eat a reasonably healthy diet.  If you need help with caculating the calories, send me a PM or post your height and age so I can crunch the numbers through the calculator.

Another helpful item would be weight training. Converting some of the fat into muscle will make you look and feel better and burn calories when you're not doing anything else.  Muscle takes up less volume for the same weight so if you're more muscular, you might weight more, but you'll fit into a smaller gown size.