10 Weeks In, 0 lbs Lost

tcobleigh

I am 5'2", 138 lbs, and I want to get down to 120. I started using MFP every day starting the first of the year. That means I'm 10 weeks in.

In the 10 weeks, I have had a net calorie count of 1650 twice (my highest amount). (For my sedentary lifestyle, MFP says just over 1600 calories consumed in a day will keep me at my current weight.) I exercise regularly and have been under 1000 net calories 40 out of the 70 days I've been using MFP. I eat a lot of vegetables in my diet and feel that I have fairly nutrient-balanced eating habits.

I have yet to lose a single pound or centimeter from my body. Does anyone have any insight into my situation?

StaciMarie1974

How often do you use a food scale?
Do you log everything, every day?
Do you log condiments, cooking oils, beverages?
How do you calculate calories burned for exercise? I assume you've eaten some back as you mention net calories.

Your diary is closed, so we can't see...

PeachyCarol

Usually problems with losing come down to errors in assessing the amount of calories consumed.

Are you weighing the food you eat on a food scale? Are you choosing the correct data base entry for it? Are you overestimating your exercise burns?

If you open your diary, we can look and give you some suggestions.

tcobleigh

I do not use a food scale, but I log everything (down to a snack of 2 Ritz crackers) everyday. I don't use condiments. I cook most of the food I consume and make sure I include the cooking oil, etc. I log every beverage - mostly water.

I usually calculate the calories I've burned by the machines at the gym or I use whatever I've found on MFP for things like swimming.

I'll have to see how to open/share my diary.

malibu927

tcobleigh wrote: »

I do not use a food scale, but I log everything (down to a snack of 2 Ritz crackers) everyday. I don't use condiments. I cook most of the food I consume and make sure I include the cooking oil, etc. I log every beverage - mostly water.

I usually calculate the calories I've burned by the machines at the gym or I use whatever I've found on MFP for things like swimming.

I'll have to see how to open/share my diary.

Most likely you're eating more than you think and/or burning less than you think. A food scale is going to help you know exactly what you're eating, and the burns given by MFP and machines are often overestimated.

PeachyCarol

Go to settings up at the top. It's under there.

Sued0nim

You need to use a food scale for everything that can possibly be weighed, I even weigh oil rather than use spoons.

Without it you are just guessing and your calorie count is clearly at maintenance

Also the general advice is to start at 50-75% of exercise calories given by MFP or machines as for many they overestimate

PeachyCarol

As for the exercise calories, only eat back half of them. MFP estimates are notoriously over. Some gym machines are okay, others are WAY off.

You don't have a lot to lose, I'd highly recommend getting a food scale. It helps you really tighten up your portion sizes to keep your tracking as accurate as possible.

Liftng4Lis

Without a scale, you have no idea what you're really eating. You have a lot of 1 servings. It's impossible to have an accurate calorie count, without having weighed all the portions. Unfortunately, you're not in a deficit.

StaciMarie1974

If you're not losing, and 10 weeks is enough to see some results, then your logging is off. Without a food scale you're guessing at intake. You mean well, but you simply cannot tell the difference between 4 ounces of meat and 6 ounces, or 1 tablespoon peanut butter vs 2, without a food scale.

Also unfortunately, its easy to overestimate burns because most machines and even MFP can be wrong. In my experience MFP is hit or miss, but machines are almost always faulty in their #s.

At your current height & weight, you do not burn a large #. So logging accuracy is key to make sure you have a deficit. As you've found, the result of inaccuracy = no loss. But on the bright side, I assume you're not gaining?

jkal1979

Your goal should not be set to 1,000 calories a day. It should be a minimum of 1,200.

Even with your goal set so low you are eating more than you think. Take the advice of the previous posters and start weighing your food. Also make sure to double check the entries that you are using. Avoid using generic and homemade entries. This link will help you with accuracy.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1234699/logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide/p1

jennifershoo

tcobleigh wrote: »

I do not use a food scale, but I log everything (down to a snack of 2 Ritz crackers) everyday. I don't use condiments. I cook most of the food I consume and make sure I include the cooking oil, etc. I log every beverage - mostly water.

I usually calculate the calories I've burned by the machines at the gym or I use whatever I've found on MFP for things like swimming.

I'll have to see how to open/share my diary.

That's the problem right there.

SilverRose89

tcobleigh wrote: »

I do not use a food scale, but I log everything (down to a snack of 2 Ritz crackers) everyday.

This will be why. You are eating at maintenance. Get a food scale.

It's so much harder to eyeball servings than we think. I still don't weigh everything but know when I don't I am WAY off.

Also, machines and MFP over estimate calories considerably. Half it. MFP told me I burned 750 calories the other day in about an hour I wish!

lemonlionheart

As others have pointed out, you need to use a food scale. You have things like cereal, cooked rice and butter logged in spoons and cups- you might be shocked to find out how inaccurate these can be. Things like 'brussels sprouts in olive oil'- you need to weigh and log the oil separately as it can really pack on calories at 120 cals per tbsp. There is a video floating around (anyone?) showing how using cups and spoons for cereal and peanut butter alone can leave hundreds of calories a day unaccounted for.

Your exercise burns look reasonable, but since the machines and MFP entries have no way of telling the effort and intensity you are putting in I'd recommend only eating back half of your exercise calories, as these too can be inaccurate.

Christine_72

Try weighing your peanut butter and cereal. I can guarantee you'll be surprised by the small amount it actually is

ndj1979

tcobleigh wrote: »

I do not use a food scale, but I log everything (down to a snack of 2 Ritz crackers) everyday. I don't use condiments. I cook most of the food I consume and make sure I include the cooking oil, etc. I log every beverage - mostly water.

I usually calculate the calories I've burned by the machines at the gym or I use whatever I've found on MFP for things like swimming.

I'll have to see how to open/share my diary.

you are underestimation calories consumed by not using a food scale. Solution - get a food scale and weight all solids and as many liquids as you can.

you are overestimating calorie burns by using machine numbers. Solution - only eat back half of exercise burned.

these two factors are probably resulting at your losing at maintenance level and that is why no loss.

SergeantSausage

There is one-and-only-one answer : you are eating too much.

tcobleigh

Alright, it seems that everyone who is serious about logging calorie consumption uses a food scale. I might have to go buy one. If it's true that I'll be shocked at how much I'm really eating and that's all it is, that's an easy (though laborious-sounding) fix.

Serah87

jennifershoo wrote: »

tcobleigh wrote: »

I do not use a food scale, but I log everything (down to a snack of 2 Ritz crackers) everyday. I don't use condiments. I cook most of the food I consume and make sure I include the cooking oil, etc. I log every beverage - mostly water.

I usually calculate the calories I've burned by the machines at the gym or I use whatever I've found on MFP for things like swimming.

I'll have to see how to open/share my diary.

That's the problem right there.

Bingo!!!

jemhh

It is far from laborious. On a scale from putting your socks in the hamper to digging ditches, it's definitely in sock territory.

janejellyroll

tcobleigh wrote: »

Alright, it seems that everyone who is serious about logging calorie consumption uses a food scale. I might have to go buy one. If it's true that I'll be shocked at how much I'm really eating and that's all it is, that's an easy (though laborious-sounding) fix.

I also resisted using a food scale because I thought it sounded really difficult. It's actually been super-easy. I toss my breakfast and lunch items on in the morning (I brown-bag 99% of the time) and weigh everything at once when I'm cooking dinner. I quickly found out that I was eating way more grains, pastas, beans, and fruit than I thought. Knowing that I'm logging accurately it worth pulling out the scale a couple of times a day -- and my weight loss has sped up since I joined this site and stopped using measuring cups for everything.