How Much Weight Should You Lose Per Week?

General health guidance recommends losing about 0.5-1% of your body weight per week, which usually works out to roughly 0.5-1 kg (1-2 lb). This pace comes from keeping your calorie deficit moderate (typically 300-750 calories a day), and it allows fat loss while preserving muscle mass. Heavier individuals can often sustain a slightly faster rate, while people closer to their goal weight should aim lower.

Why Is Losing Weight Too Fast Risky?

Sustained weight loss noticeably above 1 kg (2 lb) a week forces your body to draw on muscle tissue, not just fat, to cover the energy gap. Muscle loss slows your metabolism, which makes continued weight loss harder over time. Very low-calorie diets can also cause fatigue, hair loss, irregular periods, and nutrient deficiencies, and because they're rarely sustainable, the weight tends to come back quickly (the yo-yo effect).

How to Build a Calorie Plan for Your Goal

Once you know how much weight you want to lose per week, you can work out the daily calorie deficit that gets you there. About 1 kg of fat corresponds to roughly 7,700 calories, so losing 0.5 kg a week requires an average daily deficit of around 550 calories, and 1 kg a week requires around 1,100 calories a day (too aggressive for most people). Use our calorie calculator to find your TDEE first, then set a sustainable deficit that fits your goal.

How to Set a Realistic Goal

Basing your target weight on a healthy range for your height, rather than an arbitrary number, leads to better outcomes. Our ideal weight calculator gives you a healthy weight range based on your height, which you can use to plan realistically how much you need to lose and how long it will take. For example, if your goal is to lose 10 kg, a healthy pace of 0.5-1 kg a week means the process will take roughly 10-20 weeks.

What to Do When You Hit a Plateau

It's normal for the scale to stay flat for weeks at a time during weight loss, usually due to water retention, hormonal cycles, or your body adjusting to its new weight. Instead of panicking and cutting calories drastically:

  • Look at your weekly average weight rather than a single daily reading.
  • Stick with your current plan for at least 2-3 weeks and watch the trend.
  • Recalculate your TDEE if your weight has changed by 4-5 kg.
  • Check your sleep, stress, and water intake; they directly affect the scale.

Practical Tips

  • Don't push past a 0.5-1 kg per week target; consistency, not speed, determines the outcome.
  • Keep protein intake high to reduce muscle loss. Use our macro calculator to find the right protein target for your goal.
  • Track progress with your weekly average and photos, not a single scale reading.
  • As you get closer to your goal weight, shrinking the deficit further and slowing the pace helps make the loss stick.