Need weigh loss tips and motivation

dejesus1991

Hi guys!
So for the last three months I have been trying to lose weight by using MFP and exercising, I went from exercising 3X a week to 5-6x a week and I had some success. In the last week I started using BCAA supplement as a pre/intra workout drink. I try to apply as much protein through diet. I do allow myself to have one cheat day a week and that usually consists of going out for some drinks with my girls. But lately I have not seen any progress which is why I am here and becoming discouraged.

I stopped relying on the scale because I know muscle weighs more than fat but my clothes seem to fit the same and inches stay the same. I feel like its too early to be on a platoa. So what should I do or makes sure I'm doing things correctly? Should I stop having cheat day? Is it all in my head?

pennyks88

Do you have a food scale? I've found that by weighing my food, I was really surprised to see that some of the things I eat are way more caloric per serving than I thought.

ncboiler89

dejesus1991 wrote: »

Hi guys!
So for the last three months I have been trying to lose weight by using MFP and exercising, I went from exercising 3X a week to 5-6x a week and I had some success. In the last week I started using BCAA supplement as a pre/intra workout drink. I try to apply as much protein through diet. I do allow myself to have one cheat day a week and that usually consists of going out for some drinks with my girls. But lately I have not seen any progress which is why I am here and becoming discouraged.

I stopped relying on the scale because I know muscle weighs more than fat but my clothes seem to fit the same and inches stay the same. I feel like its too early to be on a platoa. So what should I do or makes sure I'm doing things correctly? Should I stop having cheat day? Is it all in my head?

How can you tell if you are losing or not losing if you are not measuring - getting on the scales. How your clothes fit is going to show long term results where the short term is going to be seen on the scale. Log everything even if you have a 'cheat' day (for the life of me I have no idea what that is). You need to know how many calories you are taking in. Weigh your food and log your food. Weigh your food and log your food! EVERYTHING.

Losing weight is eating fewer calories than you take in and it's as simple as that. If you aren't losing then you are eating too much. Don't get too hung up on exercising as your biggest bang for you buck will be controlling calorie intake. By all means exercise but the fact that you do doesn't mean you can eat a lot more food than if you weren't.

SharonLouiseCollins07101972

They Gym doesn't work for me, I go too easy on myself. I started a self defense class called Krav Maga, its military combat training with the very serious aim of arming you with skills to take down an assailant if such an unfortunate thing should occur to you. Its tough, you train as hard as the men in the class and you build skills. I now go to the Gym once a week to keep my physical strength up but .. yeah, the gym was a waste of time for me otherwise. I needed a trainer to make me keep going to peak my heart and burn the fat. I'm on here 12 days and made this lifestyle change and I feel its working. It has to work if you combine it with diet and challenging circuit training. Cut out all booze.. calories you don't need.

ncboiler89

SharonLouiseCollins07101972 wrote: »

Cut out all booze.. calories you don't need.

No. They are calories just like anything else. What the OP needs and what you think she needs are two different things.

SergeantSausage

Stop cheating.

Eat less.

blankiefinder

You need to use a food scale and log everything, including the cheats. Overestimate consumption, underestimate burns.

Also, you will not add significant muscle while in a deficit.

BicepsAndBows

When you are actively trying to lose weight, the scale is important. Obviously it's not a good idea to obsess, but it's a helpful way to measure if what you are doing is working so you can adjust if needed. You don't have to weigh yourself every day, especially since weight can fluctuate so much on a daily basis. I would recommend weighing yourself once a week. Do it first thing in the morning, after you use the restroom, fully nude. And do it on the same day and on the same scale each week. That'll give you the most accurate data. Once you get into more of a maintenance place, you can cut way back on weighing yourself to only about once a month, just to make sure you are maintaining where you want to be

Make sure you are drinking plenty of water, make sure you are logging everything (even on your cheat day...it's still needed data so you can see if you are taking in too much to still have a deficit for the week), and make sure you are accurately measuring the foods you are eating. Also, like someone above said, if you are eating at a deficit (burning more calories than you take in through eating), you will not be bulking up or building significant amounts of muscle, so any weight gain you see on the scale will not be coming from muscle most likely.

Good luck, and remember this is a constant process of trial and error, finding what works for you, and making adjustments along the way. It can be frustrating when you are not seeing the results you want, but just remember that weight is always changing and you can always tweak what you are doing if it is not working. Just keep working hard.