I just want a success story already :(

2

Replies

  • wickedwendy6
    wickedwendy6 Posts: 117 Member
    Firstly, thanks for having your diary open when you ask this question. I HATE people who ask for help but don't let anyone see the full picture. :bigsmile:

    Here's my suggestion: I don't see much in the way of fruit and vegies in your food diary. Now, I am well aware of the whole 'a calorie is a calorie' debate but I think it truly makes a difference and if you've tried for this long and not had much success then I'd definitely be thinking of giving it a go to see if it would work.

    Hope you have some success soon! :happy:
  • AmelieMustLoseWeight
    AmelieMustLoseWeight Posts: 180 Member
    I would try to stay away from anything that bulks you up. I for one Love breads. I got rid of carbs from my diet and anything with high frutose corn syrup in it. Lots and lots of water. Don't be afriad to sweat either. I wear hoodies while running to help me sweat more. Dont do it if you feel you will pass out though. My body likes to stay in the same range as well. I learned I just have to keep on moving. Doing something physical at all times. You have to burn more cals than you take in. Thats the key to losing the weight.

    Sadly I love my food as well but thats why I make on healthy meal and drink protein shakes with fat free milk instead. they are so thick and nasty you wont want to eat.

    good luck!
  • Rosplosion
    Rosplosion Posts: 739 Member
    I second weighing your food. I know, with me, my estimates were way off one way or the other depending on how I felt that day. 1 cup of rice or pasta or whatever could be either 1/2 cup or 1 1/2 cups.

    QFT

    I'm pretty sure this is the cause of my current plateau. I NEVER weigh/measure my food and clearly my guesstimates are off.


    Also, I'm exactly the same height as you and I would be so super stoked to be your weight right now. I know I wasn't happy at that weight when I was there, but it sounds like you have a much better body composition than I had back then, so give yourself some props!
  • TheRealParisLove
    TheRealParisLove Posts: 1,907 Member
    I would get a BF analysis. You might already be at a healthy level like 20%. If you are already there then it's going to be very hard to lose more fat.

    Sorry, but if she was at 20% at 150 and 5'4" she'd be built like a body builder, and it would be obvious. I'm 5'7" and 135 at 24% and I have some serious muscle mass.

    I know everyone here thinks that you have to eat a lot of food to lose weight, but have you tried eating fewer calories? Try eating at at the calorie levels MFP suggests for your goal (I'm guessing it will be at 1200-1300) for three weeks. I'd be willing to bet you'll be able to start shedding pounds.

    I don't know why so many people think that they will get fat if their calories fall below 1200. I find the whole idea of eating extra food so that you can lose weight, absolutely ridiculous.
  • LeanneGoingThin
    LeanneGoingThin Posts: 215 Member
    Perhaps you're not logging your calories correctly. It's the only logical explanation. Make sure you aren't underestimating calories or forgetting about some (such as baking oils). Weigh what you eat for a period of time to check this.
  • amnsetie
    amnsetie Posts: 666 Member
    Another vote for sodium as the problem
    And some of your food even said no sodium where I'm sure it has a lot
    like the Old El Paso Taco kit
  • pluckabee
    pluckabee Posts: 346 Member
    If you aren't weighing and measuring your food you cant know how many calories you are eating.

    Start weighing and measuring absolutely everything for a few weeks to make sure you're eating ~1600 calories. If you still cant lose weight after that you need to increase your deficit
  • khall86790
    khall86790 Posts: 1,100 Member
    Are you weighing and measuring all your foods? No.

    Then you probably aren't logging your food intake accurately. Potentially seriously going over your calories. Most people's estimations are under what they really ate.
  • Saaaam42
    Saaaam42 Posts: 154 Member
    Sodium is a big one for me. It's in everything! I have such a hard time avoiding it. Will start to watch that though.

    When I started on this site I ate 1200 calories per day for 3 months and didn't lose anything, so I bumped it up as so many people suggest on MFP.

    Thanks for the suggestions everyone! I think I will start by eating smarter and weighing my food.

    And for those of you who pointed out that I didn't log for a few days recently, as I said, *******I lost my job. I was a little preoccupied and frankly a lot depressed. That is the only time in 230 days where I didn't log my food.*******
  • Saaaam42
    Saaaam42 Posts: 154 Member
    I looked at your diary and can tell you exactly what the issues are. But as you stated you prefer to eat "real food" If you want to see serious changes you might want to consider changing that up.
    I never said anything about "real food" I just said I eat "food" meaning I eat well above 1200 calories per day.
  • kznovo
    kznovo Posts: 16 Member
    I am the exact same way.

    Its frustrating to know you are doing everything that people suggest and still see nothing.

    Just know that you aren't alone and I"m gonig to be following the same advice too.
  • NovemberJune
    NovemberJune Posts: 2,525 Member
    Are you weighing and measuring all your foods? No.

    Then you probably aren't logging your food intake accurately. Potentially seriously going over your calories. Most people's estimations are under what they really ate.

    I agree.

    I'd start weighing and measuring, wait 4 weeks, see the change (or no change) in your weight, go back and see what your average calories were for those 4 weeks, then adjust from there. If you lost about 4 lbs, stick to those calories. If you stayed the same, lower calories and wait a few more weeks to see what happens. Good luck :smile:
  • jadelunar
    jadelunar Posts: 31 Member
    I've noticed that MFP overestimates calories burned, if you're logging your workouts. So, in addition to potentially under reporting your intake, your calories burned may be overestimated as well.

    I would seriously consider buying a device that will more accurately estimate calories burned. It helps take the guesswork out of figuring what your intake should be. The bodymedia armband is quite accurate in estimating calories burned. I've had much success with it in the past. I recently joined MFP and have lost about a pound a week with it. It's incredibly motivating and teaches you how much you're actually burning with each activity you perform. Of course for this to be effective, I'd also weigh and measure all of your food, as others suggested. Feel free to add me for support and/or message me for more info.
  • Saaaam42
    Saaaam42 Posts: 154 Member
    I have the FitBit One and I personally think it way overestimates calories..but who knows.
  • judykat7
    judykat7 Posts: 576 Member
    I am 5'4" too and I don't think I would lose eating that much. I try to eat between 1200 and 1400, regardless of exercise. I also wonder if you are getting a true measurement on your calorie burn? Do you use MFP or a HRM? When I switched from MFP to using a HRM to measure my burn (mostly from elliptical, walking, and strength training) my calorie burn was only half what I had thought it was. I believe fiber and protein are so very important. Maybe if your diet had more fiber and protein and less fat and carbs it would help? Everyone is different-just some ideas.
  • jwdieter
    jwdieter Posts: 2,582 Member
    Eat healthy, log accurately. As a side note, not losing weight as a sedentary 5'4, 158 with 1700 cals seems about right.
  • stacetherainbow
    stacetherainbow Posts: 131
    This is good advice! Starting measuring/weighing your food. It works.
    Also, the protein is REALLY important. Try adding a whey protein shake. It may take a while to find one that works for you in terms of taste, calories and price, but it's worth the effort. There are other ways to get more protein (chicken breast, lean meats, etc) but I like these with breakfast to give me a boost of protein after morning workouts
    Good luck. Don't give up and stay open to the advice offered :)
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    As others have said - start weighing your food.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

    Then assess after a few weeks and tweak your calories up or down as appropriate.
  • ryry_
    ryry_ Posts: 4,966 Member
    The problem either lies in one or two areas. By you not weighing you are eating more than you think you are which is inhibiting your weight loss. Start tracking and faithfully eat that amount and see if you start to lose.

    If not then bottom line is you need to decrease current daily intake or increase your daily expenditure (excercise) or a combination of both. Good news is you have 230 days of data so it should be easy to cut like 300 calories and start to lose.
  • Saaaam42
    Saaaam42 Posts: 154 Member
    Calorie counting is so frustrating when people are pulling you in all different directions...Never eat less than 1200, never eat less than 1600, never eat more than 2000 calories a day....gggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
  • SueFromRI
    SueFromRI Posts: 206 Member
    Quick estimation for break even calorie intake is "weight" times 11. 152 times 11 equals 1672 calories estimated to BREAK even, NOT gain.
    You will need to net below that to lose weight. 350 below every day (1323) will lose 3 pounds per month. IF you count accurately.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    Calorie counting is so frustrating when people are pulling you in all different directions...Never eat less than 1200, never eat less than 1600, never eat more than 2000 calories a day....gggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

    It does not have to be that complicated. Weigh your food - eat to the 1,680 you have set yourself (seems a reasonable target). Give it a few weeks and tweak accordingly. You will probably find you have been eating more than you think from not weighing and measuring.
  • NovemberJune
    NovemberJune Posts: 2,525 Member
    Calorie counting is so frustrating when people are pulling you in all different directions...Never eat less than 1200, never eat less than 1600, never eat more than 2000 calories a day....gggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

    It definitely is! But it's all about pinning down your maintenance calories imo. No one really knows if it's 1200 or 2000 for you. But if you measure and track over a period of a few weeks, you should be able to pin down that number and go from there.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    Quick estimation for break even calorie intake is "weight" times 11. 152 times 11 equals 1672 calories estimated to BREAK even, NOT gain.
    You will need to net below that to lose weight. 350 below every day (1323) will lose 3 pounds per month. IF you count accurately.

    A factor of 11 is for someone who is pretty sedentary - the OP seems more active than that.
  • Saaaam42
    Saaaam42 Posts: 154 Member
    Just because I've been logging for so long with absolutely no movement on the scale, I'm going to assume that 1680, for me, is maintenance. Perhaps I should lower it.
  • smn76237
    smn76237 Posts: 318 Member
    You don't know if you were eating 1680 calories because you don't weigh and measure your food. Don't change your target, measure to see what you're *actually* consuming, and after 4 weeks the scale hasn't budged, then lower your target.
  • barbaratrollman
    barbaratrollman Posts: 317 Member
    Sadly I love my food as well but thats why I make on healthy meal and drink protein shakes with fat free milk instead. they are so thick and nasty you wont want to eat.

    good luck!
    Did you mean to say "tasty"? :D
  • butterfli7o
    butterfli7o Posts: 1,319 Member
    The the OP - I could have written your post myself. It definitely is frustrating.
  • KyliAnne26
    KyliAnne26 Posts: 209 Member
    Hey Saaaaam,

    I realize it can be overwhelming and frustrating when everyone on MFP says different things :) It's different for everyone, so it may just be a trial and error thing for you. If eating at 20% of your TDEE didn't work, then maybe you oughtta try a lower calorie goal for a few weeks - just to see what happens? If that doesn't work, maybe re-evaluate your food choices. Honestly, the first thing I noticed when flipping back through your diary is your meat/cheese : vegetable/fruit ratio. There were very little vegetables logged. Maybe you're eating them and not logging them, but I'm a veggie fanatic, and I find that I lose more weight in weeks when I eat a lot of veggies and high fiber foods (dark green salads, beans, apples, etc....).

    I'm not sure about the science behind this, but I think of it like this: giving your body access to the nutrients it wants (e.g. dark green roughage like spinach, mixed greens, broccoli - or other veggies like asparagus, eggplant, zucchini) gives your body the option to take what it needs and 'pass on' what it doesn't. If the majority of your food is nutrient deficient, your body is going to cling to it in an attempt to find nutrients it needs/wants.

    I love to eat pizza, burgers and beer occasionally just like the next girl (I'm from Oklahoma, afterall :) ), but I generally try to do a good job of getting a big salad in every other day and incorporating vegetables into recipes that didn't originally call for them. Feel free to send me a friend request if you'd like to check out my diary. Hopefully this info was helpful!

    Kyli
  • lilRicki
    lilRicki Posts: 4,555 Member
    I've been on here for years, and i've lost 14 lbs. You just have to figure out your chemistry I guess. I lift heavy and do cardio, I eat 1650 calories a day BUT i was eating way to many carbs. Most of my calories came from carbs, but now that I'm high protein it seems to be working a lot better. I feel better anyway. I also have a problem with consistency. I do really well during the week, while I'm at work, i just bring food that I have pre-logged. But when weekends roll around it's like a free for all. Either I don't eat enough and bust my *kitten*, or I EAT ALL THE CARBS! I'm still working on that. Don't get discouraged, you'll figure it out. Even my dr couldn't figure out why i wasn't losing.

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