How much weight you can safely lose in a month varies from person to person. However, most health experts and medical organizations recommend a weight loss goal of 1-2 pounds, or lbs (2.2-4.4 kilograms, or kg) per week, which equates to 4-8 lbs (8.8-17.6 kg) per month. This pace helps reduce the risk of complications and improves your chances of keeping the weight off long-term.1

Losing excess body fat can benefit health by improving mobility and lowering the risk of medical conditions like cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.2 People can safely and effectively lose weight by reducing calorie intake, increasing protein intake, and increasing physical activity levels. Setting realistic and safe weight loss goals, including losing weight at a slower pace, is essential. Losing too much weight too quickly can be harmful to overall health.

How Much Weight Can You Lose?

When you’re trying to lose weight, it’s helpful to have goals, such as an idea of how much weight you should aim to lose per month. With the guidance of a healthcare provider, setting a monthly weight loss goal can help you stay on track and keep you motivated throughout the weight loss process.

It’s important to set healthy, appropriate, and realistic goals for yourself. Aiming for slower, gradual weight loss can make hitting your goals more manageable and increase your likelihood of keeping the weight off long-term.

Risks of Rapid Weight Loss

While some people strive to lose a significant amount of weight in a short period, like a month, health experts generally advise against rapid and extreme weight loss. Rapid weight loss and extreme calorie restriction lead to compensatory changes in your body, including:34

• Increased appetite
• Loss of muscle mass
• Reduced basal metabolic rate (BMR)—the calories you burn while at rest.

This can make it harder to maintain weight loss long-term and can also affect your mood and mental health.34

Benefits of Slower Weight Loss

Many experts, including medical doctors and registered dietitians (RDs), generally recommend losing weight at a slower, steadier pace by creating smaller calorie deficits. Slower weight loss can minimize some of these compensatory changes, making it easier for you to maintain your ideal weight.4

Health organizations like the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommend sticking to a weight loss goal of 1-2 lbs per week, which equates to 4-8 lbs per month.1

How To Create a Calorie Deficit

To create a calorie deficit that facilitates slow and consistent weight loss, you’ll need to reduce the number of calories you consume daily or increase your energy output by increasing your physical activity levels. Using both diet and exercise to create an energy deficit is the best way to lose weight, as exercise can help you maintain or build muscle massthroughout the weight-loss process, which can help decrease weight loss-induced reductions to your BMR.5

For example, a diet and exercise program that creates a daily calorie deficit of about 550 calories can help you lose around 4 lbs in one month. Keep in mind that the rate at which you lose weight depends on several factors, including gender and age.6

Factors Affecting Weight Loss

Everyone loses weight at a different pace. Weight loss depends on factors such as age, gender, calorie intake, activity levels, and underlying health conditions.7

For example:

• Your diet and exercise levels significantly affect weight loss, as a larger calorie deficit will result in more rapid weight loss.
• Your energy expenditure declines with age, which can make it harder to lose weight. Studies show that due to decreases in muscle mass, physical activity, and the amount of daily calories your body burns, your total calorie expenditure declines by around 0.7% per year after age 60.8
• Underlying health conditions that affect metabolic rate, such as Hashimoto’s disease and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), can make it more difficult to lose weight.910
• When following a reduced-calorie diet, men usually lose more weight than women because they tend to have larger bodies, more muscle mass, and a higher resting and total calorie expenditure.7

Other factors such as genetic variability, sleep patterns, mental health status, and mobility can also affect a person’s ability to lose weight.11

Sustainable Weight Loss Goals

Some diets and weight loss plans promise fast and significant fat loss. However, using sustainable, realistic, and safe methods to achieve your weight loss goals is better for overall health and long-term weight maintenance.

Most experts agree that a rate of weight loss between 4-8 lbs per month is appropriate and safe for most people.1 Though this may seem like a small amount of weight, if you stick with this goal, you can lose close to 50 lbs in about six months, which is a significant amount of weight.

It’s normal and understandable to want to lose weight as fast as possible, but it’s best to create a diet and lifestyle plan that will set you up for long-term success. Losing weight takes time and effort, and there’s nothing wrong with losing weight at a slower pace.

Many health experts recommend slow weight loss using a small calorie deficit to counteract the effects of weight loss on muscle mass, appetite levels, and BMR.4

Risks of Losing Weight Too Quickly

Research shows that rapid weight loss comes with several downsides.

Muscle Mass Loss

Using extreme methods, such as very low-calorie intake, generally leads to more water weight and muscle loss than slower weight loss methods. This loss of muscle mass and lack of calories can negatively affect your BMR and appetite levels, making it harder for you to keep the weight off long-term.4

One research review compared the effects of gradual (occurring over 9-36 weeks) versus rapid weight loss (occurring over 5-12 weeks) on BMR and fat loss. Gradual weight loss led to greater reductions in fat mass and body fat percentage and significantly preserved BMR compared with rapid weight loss.12

Yo-Yo Dieting

Using extreme measures like crash diets to achieve rapid and significant weight loss can lead to a pattern of weight loss and regain called “yo-yo” dieting or weight cycling. Weight cycling, or losing and gaining weight repeatedly, is linked with several health concerns, including an increased risk of depression and diabetes.1314

Undereating

Undereating, which is very common in people using extreme methods to induce rapid weight loss, can also cause side effects like low blood pressure, irritability, extreme hunger, fainting, and constipation.15

Tips for Healthy Weight Loss

If you’re interested in losing weight, it’s best to use evidence-based, sustainable methods. Here are a few effective ways to lose weight and keep it off:1

• Avoid fad diets: Rather than following a crash diet, such as a very low-calorie eating plan, consider creating a small calorie deficit by cutting back on snacking and increasing your exercise levels to facilitate slow yet sustainable weight loss.
• Bump up your activity levels: If you’re able, increasing your physical activity levels can help you create a calorie deficit to facilitate weight loss. Exercise can also help you maintain or gain muscle mass during weight loss, which is important for maintaining a healthy BMR.6
• Consider working with a professional: A registered dietitian (RD) can help you develop a safe, effective, and sustainable weight loss plan specific to your health needs, wellness goals, and dietary preferences.
• Increase your protein and fiber intake: Studies show that high-protein and high-fiber diets can help you lose weight and make it easier to maintain your weight loss long-term.1617
• Take a look at your diet: Foods and drinks like soda, desserts, fast food, and sugary coffee drinks are often very high in calories and can contribute to weight gain and other health issues. Cutting back on these and other highly processed items can help boost weight loss.18

When To See a Healthcare Provider

Though losing excess body fat can benefit health, unintentional weight loss can indicate illness or disease. Unintentional, rapid weight loss can be a sign of an underlying health issue, such as cancer, hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid), or depression.19

If you’ve lost a significant amount of weight unintentionally, it’s important to contact your healthcare provider right away to rule out underlying conditions.

It’s also important to be aware of disordered eating. If you struggle with an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia, it’s critical to get help right away as these conditions can be extremely harmful to both your short- and long-term health. Treatment also often takes time and can be very challenging.20

A Quick Review

While many people want to lose weight quickly, such as losing a significant amount of body fat in a month, slow and sustainable weight loss is better for health.

Healthcare providers usually recommend a monthly weight loss goal of 4-8 pounds to support metabolic health and improve your chances of weight loss success. While intentional weight loss can benefit health, it’s important to contact your healthcare provider if you’re experiencing unintentional weight loss, as it can be a sign of underlying illness.