Fast vs. Sustainable Weight Loss: What Actually Works?

Weight loss – nobody’s favourite thing to focus on.

That leads to most people trying to get it done as quickly as possible. But is that the best idea?

Slow weight loss – the case for a moderate rate of loss

First, it may be helpful to remember what is happening when our weight changes. We have three states we can be in:

• Calorie surplus – we are eating more calories than we are burning, thereby gaining weight

• Maintenance calories – our calories burned and consumed are relatively similar, leading to no change in your weight

• Calorie deficit – we are burning more calories than we are eating, making us lose weight

That means to lose weight, we just need to – simply enough said – find a way to burn a few more calories, and consume a few less. And if we do that consistently, every time we are in around a 3,500-calorie deficit, we will have lost a pound.

If it’s that easy, does that mean we should just cut calories as hard as we possibly can, exercise as much as possible, and get out of our deficit as soon as we can?

No…

What is the problem with fast loss?

When we lose weight faster, there are a few immediate things wrong – and that’s not even getting to the biggest issue, but we’ll get there.

The first issue is: it’s just harder. Again, if we are losing weight quicker, that means we’re in a larger deficit, meaning we’re moving more and consuming less. This feels unpleasant and makes most people feel irritable, burnt out, and unhappy.

The second issue is: as we weigh less and get fitter, we need to do more to lose weight. Our metabolism adapts as our physical fitness level improves (since the same exercise isn’t as challenging as it used to be), and your metabolism also adapts downwards because you simply weigh less.

Finally, if you lose weight very fast, a higher proportion of it is muscle mass. Most people – from a functional and aesthetic sense – want a decent amount of muscle. And even if not, as you lose muscle, your metabolism goes down.

So, as you create a more aggressive deficit:

• It will feel harder

• You’ll need to adjust very quickly and make your program harder

• You’ll risk muscle loss

But those aren’t even the biggest issues.

It isn’t only about losing the weight — it's about keeping it off.

Common quick weight loss methods include popular diets, bouts of fasting, extreme exercise programs, or quick fixes.

The problem is — once you lose the weight, then what…?

This is the biggest issue.

We want to not only lower our body fat, but keep it off! That means you need to build up habits and strategies to keep it off — not just do a quick fix and then return to the same movement and eating habits as before. Because most likely, you’ll gain the weight back!

What is a better way?

The best way is to create a deficit large enough to see results, but small enough that we mitigate the negative effects — and do all of this with LONG-TERM STRATEGIES.

What does that look like in practice?

• Lift weights – yes, it doesn’t burn a lot of calories in the moment, but it will help you build muscle, increasing your metabolism, strength, function, and overall look.

• Find a sustainable way to move more – almost always, the easiest way is a step goal. It’s trackable and easy to stick to. Pair this with some fun forms of movement (e.g. dance, sports, biking), and you’re set!

• Find a sustainable way to lower calories – the most accurate and reliable way is calorie tracking and swapping foods out for better alternatives. Yes, that’s boring and tedious, but it works. There are other ways: meal prep, intermittent fasting, popular diets… whatever works for you, you don’t dread, and you can imagine sticking to long-term. Again, we want this eating style to be something we not only lose weight with, but could see ourselves sticking to after your goal is reached.

  
  

So is it better to lose weight slowly?

Slowly? Maybe not. That isn’t the goal. Sustainably is. That means not burning yourself out, not needing to overly restrict and bury yourself with endless workouts, not losing all your muscle, and not gaining your weight back after.

Sustainable is slow, just like everything. If you’re good at losing weight (yes, weight loss is absolutely a skill you can be better or worse at), go faster by all means. But whatever you do, make it SUSTAINABLE.

Kurtis Proksch