Realistic weekly rates
The rate that works for most people is about 0.5% to 1% of your bodyweight a week. Faster than that usually means eating so little that you lose muscle, feel flat in training and give up. Here is what that looks like at different starting weights:
| Starting weight | Per week | Losing 5 kg | Losing 10 kg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 kg | 0.3–0.6 kg | 8–17 weeks | 4–8 months |
| 70 kg | 0.35–0.7 kg | 7–14 weeks | 3.5–6.5 months |
| 80 kg | 0.4–0.8 kg | 6–12 weeks | 3–6 months |
| 100 kg | 0.5–1 kg | 5–10 weeks | 2.5–4.5 months |
These are averages across weeks, not promises for any single week. Your rate also slows a little as you get lighter, because a smaller body burns less.
Why the scale jumps around
Your daily weight is mostly water, not fat. Salt, a big dinner, a hard leg session, poor sleep and your menstrual cycle can all move it by a kilogram or more overnight. That's why the first week often looks amazing (stored water drains when you eat less) and why some later weeks look like nothing is happening.
Weigh yourself a few mornings a week, after the toilet and before eating, and compare weekly averages. Add a waist measurement every two weeks and a photo once a month. When the scale stalls, those often keep moving.
What actually speeds it up
- A moderate calorie deficit you can keep. Consistency over months beats a perfect fortnight. Work out your target with the calorie and protein calculator.
- Enough protein. Around 1.6 to 2.2 g per kg of bodyweight helps you keep muscle and stay full.
- Strength training two to four times a week. It decides whether you lose fat or muscle.
- More walking. Daily steps add to the deficit without the hunger that hard cardio can bring.
- Sleep. Short sleep makes you hungrier and makes training feel harder.
- Fixing the drinks. In Malaysia, sweetened teh tarik, Milo and kopi add up fast. Switching to kosong or kurang manis is one of the easiest changes there is.
When it stops working
Almost everyone hits a plateau. Before cutting more food, check three things honestly: are you weighing and counting the same way you did at the start, have your weekend meals crept up, and has your step count dropped? If all three hold for three or four weeks and the weekly average still hasn't moved, then it's time for a small adjustment, usually 100 to 200 calories or a few thousand more steps a day.
What results can look like
One of my clients went from 38.8% to 33.2% body fat in about seven weeks, tracked on InBody. That's faster than most people should expect, and I don't promise it. What I see far more often is strength and energy improving inside a month and body shape following over the next two or three.
Want help putting this into practice? See how I coach weight loss.
Sources
- Rate of loss: Helms ER, Aragon AA, Fitschen PJ. Evidence-based recommendations for natural bodybuilding contest preparation: nutrition and supplementation. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2014;11:20.
- Protein: Morton RW et al. A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults. Br J Sports Med. 2018;52(6):376–384.
General information for healthy adults, not medical advice. If you're pregnant, under 18, have a medical condition or a history of disordered eating, talk to your doctor or a registered dietitian before changing how you eat.