Down 5lbs in 7 days – New Year’s Diet Update

by Colin McNulty on 8 January 2011

Whilst I know the first week is always the fastest in terms of weight loss, I’m pleased with losing 5lbs in the first week of the new year, dropping from 193lbs to 188 (13st11 to 13st6).

If my Tanita scales are to be believed, my body fat percentage has dropped from 20.0% to 19.4%, which means I’ve lost 2.1lb of actual fat (rather than shedding water retention which is typically why diets work so well in the first week.

Probably of more importance though is inches lost, measuring: Waist; Hips; Bicep; Left Thigh; and Right Thigh came to a total of 140.5 inches a week ago, but as of this morning is 138.5, so a 2 inch loss there.

I had a plan to lose 18lbs by the end of Feb, which is just over 2 lbs per week, so on the face of it, I’m rather ahead of schedule, although it does fit with the 2.1lb fat loss based on body fat calculations.

• Pete Luxford 8 January 2011, 8:29 am

  Nice work Colin. One thing I souls say is I would only use body fat scales as an indicator of progress as opposed to a basis for calculations. As you rightly say, inches measurements are more telling. Even Tanita scaled are wildly innaccurate. 6 months ago I had my body fat done by 4 different methods including scales, all within 30 mind and results ranged from 9%! To 23%.

  Just make sure you use the same method. Similarly I noticed once I wax 13stone 10lb at home, went to gym and BEFORE working out on their scales I was 13stone exactly, fully clothed!

• Colin McNulty 9 January 2011, 8:04 am

  Cheers Pete, a good point, and I didn’t realise the BF measurements were so inaccurate! Although it is interesting to note that I can get my Tanita scales to take about 8% body fat off straight away, just by setting it to Athlete mode! I wonder at what point I would become an athlete and so could lose 8% BF in 10 seconds?

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