I REALLY need help.. 2 year anniversary and not where I want to be.

Jaffsa

Hello everyone-
I'm apologizing in advance for the long post, but I'm looking for honest help/opinions and want to provide as much detail as possible.
I've been using MFP for 2 years as of yesterday.. (thanks TimeHop).
I've certainly have had my ups and downs (literally and figuratively) but after realizing its been 2 years and I have only lost 10lbs is making me believe I'm doing something seriously wrong.
I have finally made my diary public. PLEASE tell me what I'm doing wrong. Yes, I have missed a day or 2, but I promise you that I did not go crazy every day I missed an entry. In fact, I think I under-ate in my calories. My days logged beat my days not logged (I'm not saying that's a good mentality to have- but I don't think missing a meal or 2 once or twice a week would cause this SLOW of a loss)
But anyway-
My workout routines usually consist of:
*30-40 minutes of medium paced walking 5 days a week during my lunch break. Runkeeper says I burn between 220-260 calories on most days and I usually round down to 150-200 (depending on how long I walk for) to account for overestimation as I have heard Runkeeper does.
*At least 3 times a week I do either T-25 or JNL Fusion both of which are strength/cardio type videos where I use a heart rate monitor that shows I burn between 220-275 calories (depending on which video).

Sometimes I eat my exercise calories, sometimes I don't.

I know the first question will be- "Do you weigh your food?"
YES- I have a kitchen scale and I will not go a gram over- even with lettuce.

My scale broke a couple of months ago (not because of me- haha)- and my mentality was that it wouldn't be the scale that makes me lose weight- so I have yet to replace it.

Within the past couple of months I have felt more focused and conscious as ever- and moving a lot more. In addition to my normal workout routine I have been walking around the office more, taking the stairs, parking further away, walking my dog longer than normal, etc..)

I weighed myself at my friends house and have gained 8 pounds since my last weigh in.
I understand weight fluctuates throughout the day, I understand we have our ups and downs, but it was just really depressing.

Considering yesterday was my 2 year anniversary and only 10 pounds have been lost.. I'm feeling defeated.

Any help, suggestions or comments would be appreciated.

Thank you!

DemoraFairy

Your 8lbs weight gain is probably attributed not only to fluctuations during the day as you mentioned, but possibly also if you were wearing clothes, and the fact that scales tend to give slightly different readings anyway. For example, my mum's scale will always say I'm about 5lbs heavier than I am, so whenever I was home from uni I'd just subtract 5lbs whenever I weighed on her scales, then I'd be 5lbs down again when I went back to uni and used my own scales.

As to why you haven't lost more than 10lbs in that time, if you truly are counting calories accurately, then I'd guess either you're overestimating your exercise calories when you eat them back (though even if you are I can't believe this would make that much difference since you're on 1200 anyway which is pretty low) or you have a medical condition. I hesitate to suggest medical conditions as they're so rare, but after 2 years of accurate counting at 1200 a day I can't think of much else, unless you're actually really small and 1200 isn't that much of a deficit for you. What're your stats (height, weight, age)?

yarwell

height and current weight ? Is your 8 lbs gain between two measurements on the same scale ?

Jaffsa

Thank you for your response @DemoraFairy !
Ive been tested for my thyroid twice in my life. Once several years ago (they found it was SLIGHTLY off- no action required) and once recently (they found it completely normal). I'm 26, 5'2 and 180

peachyfuzzle

If your profile picture is a before/current, it looks like you've lost a LOT more than 10lbs.

Jaffsa

yarwell wrote: »

height and current weight ? Is your 8 lbs gain between two measurements on the same scale ?

Technically no- however when I was at my lowest (several months ago), I weighed the same on that scale as I did on my home scale within an hour of each other and it was the same. But my home scale has been broken for so long I was only going by this one for now.

DemoraFairy

Jaffsa wrote: »

Thank you for your response @DemoraFairy !
Ive been tested for my thyroid twice in my life. Once several years ago (they found it was SLIGHTLY off- no action required) and once recently (they found it completely normal). I'm 26, 5'2 and 180

Hmm... maybe your old scales were broken :P I'd say buy some new ones so you can measure properly (first thing in the morning, naked). Have you been tracking weight loss any way other than weight? Progress pictures, measurements, how clothes fit, etc?

Jaffsa

peachyfuzzle wrote: »

If your profile picture is a before/current, it looks like you've lost a LOT more than 10lbs.

Thank you! HA-- I think I was just having a good day.

tephanies1234

I'd say take a nice long diet break if you've been dieting for two years straight, buy a new scale and weigh in every day to see the general trend, then after the diet break try dieting again and watch the scale weight. If it doesn't move down on 1200 calories for a few weeks, go to a doctor and get checked out again. Also I agree with the above poster that you look a lot different in those two side by side pics

Unknown

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Jaffsa

DemoraFairy wrote: »

Jaffsa wrote: »

Thank you for your response @DemoraFairy !
Ive been tested for my thyroid twice in my life. Once several years ago (they found it was SLIGHTLY off- no action required) and once recently (they found it completely normal). I'm 26, 5'2 and 180

Hmm... maybe your old scales were broken :P I'd say buy some new ones so you can measure properly (first thing in the morning, naked). Have you been tracking weight loss any way other than weight? Progress pictures, measurements, how clothes fit, etc?

Yes- I've been doing measurements- which havent budged much at all.. and I did 1 progress picture.. but I've gone up the "after/during" picture, so I'm petrified to do it again. haha.

tephanies1234

MrM27 wrote: »

How much did you weigh 2 years ago when you started?
How tall are you?

She's 26 yo, 5'2 and 180

Jaffsa

MrM27 wrote: »

How much did you weigh 2 years ago when you started?
How tall are you?

When I started 2 years ago, I weighed 190. I was able to get down to 174 but without changing anything continuing with MFP and exercise I somehow went back up to 180.
I'm 5'2.

Lounmoun

I would get a new scale and start fresh with the number it gives you. Always use that scale. So if the new scale tells you that you weigh 180 then go with it.
What is your goal?

Jaffsa

Lounmoun wrote: »

I would get a new scale and start fresh with the number it gives you. Always use that scale. So if the new scale tells you that you weigh 180 then go with it.
What is your goal?

Thank you for your response! I think that may be my best bet as well.
My goal is 120 eventually.

Unknown

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4legsRbetterthan2

so I went back about a month in your diary. I did not see a single sat or sunday that was completely logged in that time so unless you really just are not eating on the weekends I think that would be the place to start. It is really easy to think you are making good choices when you are not. Especially when you go out to eat, what we often percieve as a healthy choice (restaurant salads are notorious for this) can have way more calories than you realize.

Jaffsa

4legsRbetterthan2 wrote: »

so I went back about a month in your diary. I did not see a single sat or sunday that was completely logged in that time so unless you really just are not eating on the weekends I think that would be the place to start. It is really easy to think you are making good choices when you are not. Especially when you go out to eat, what we often percieve as a healthy choice (restaurant salads are notorious for this) can have way more calories than you realize.

Thank you for your response!
I can certainly understand your point and that is definitely something I need to work on- however to be honest, my meals on the weekends are VERY close with what I have during the week- if not less. I hardly go out (and by hardly I mean once every month or so). Though, I'm certain that my lack of accurate weekend logging isn't helping my situation, I would think I wouldn't be gaining or not losing AT ALL?

dubird

Accurate logging of food is essential. I ended up installing the app on my phone, which makes it MUCH easier to log when eating out. Granted, it's not always as accurate as it should be, but I can usually find what I'm eating and make a good guess. When doing so, I overestimate what I eat.

And I would suggest getting an HRM to track your calories burned from exercise. MFP is notoriously bad about over estimating calories burned, and that may be where your problem is. It's not a perfect counter, even Fitbit seems to be off by a bit, but it will increase accuracy.

Francl27

Eat at maintenance for a while. I can't imagine how eating so little for 2 years would NOT have messed up your metabolism.

justsayinisall

I hear you about the logging, I do! I've been "dieting" for about 3 years. I, too, thought that I didn't eat THAT badly on the days I didn't log. Truth was, I wasn't eating that badly...all my choices were healthy and in respectable range of quantity...turns out though, just those few days of not logging were causing me to stay stagnant, and even gain a bit.

Once I got serious and started using the scale (yes MFP people, I DID hear you!) to weigh everything that can be weighed and also logging every day, everything that goes in my lips...weight started coming off again (15# in 6-7 weeks).

You are already "doing the diet". So really, stop messing around and DO IT RIGHT! You'll see the scale move.

Ohhhh and also, do yourself a BIG favor and just bite the bullet and invest in a real scale. One that will sync with MFP. I can not believe how much a Withings scale has made this so much easier. Yep, I still see the weight fluctuations on the scale but I also see a downward trend. I can even see the results of a night out, eating at a restaurant, does to the weight loss.

michellekicks

The only way to know what you're doing wrong is to know exactly what you're eating. You must log 100% accurately as much as possible. Weigh everything; use the correct brand names and/or barcodes; estimate anything you don't know as closely as possible - be honest with yourself.

But if you haven't lost as much weight as you think you should have, you're eating more than you think you are or you need less than you thought you did.

Log accurately for a month. See what happens with your weight. Adjust as needed.

callsitlikeiseeit

you are eating more than you think you are...

LaydieJo

Firstly I think you need to stop being so hard on yourself and give yourself a break.
The positive thing is that you have lost 10lb!! I started on here two years ago too and I have put probably 14lb on!!
I wouldn't be looking to the past for a comparison just concentrate on what you are going to do differently tomorrow and beyond to make sure the weight you want to lose drops off!
Perhaps doing the exercises you enjoy because you like them not because the app tells you it burns xxx calories may help.
All the practical advise is useful, you haven't said what your reason for wanting to lose weight is?
Jo

snowflakesav

I noticed that your tracking didn't include beverages. Just curious about alcoholic beverages.

The other things...thyroid, medications, sleep...should be explored with your dr.

angelexperiment

Maybe you need a more accurate food scale. A regular scale. And consistent logging of foods and exercise. And maybe your calories intake needs to be adjusted bc maybe its too high? Possibly more exercise.

StaciMarie1974

First thought is have you ever used your friend's scale before? If not then that weigh in can't really compare to your previous weigh ins. Kind of like saying I will be somewhere at 1pm. My watch says its 12:22 but your watch says its 12:25. I could be on time by my watch, but late by yours. They are not set to the same time. Scales are bad about that.

Other than that, how are you determining a calorie intake goal? Could be that your activity level is wrong. Such as if you say 'lightly active' and MFP interprets that to mean you will burn X per day, but you're maybe burning a little less than MFP thinks. The key to 'fixing' that if you're not losing at a pace you think you should be is to adjust your calorie goal. Downward 100-200/day for example. Then be accurate, honest and check for results in 4-8 weeks.

But if you're going to use a scale for monitoring progress it needs to be the same scale and weighins need to be consistent.

Edited-I see you're aiming for 1200/day. Disregard my comment about lowering calorie intake. Aim for 100% (as much as humanly possible at least) accuracy for 2-3 months. Yes its frustrating to look so far out, but its easier to see 4-6 pounds than 2-3. If you track for a month and you're down 2-3, you will wonder if its normal fluctuations. But giving it more time, you can see a trend forming.

galaxyeyed

If weekends are just like your weekdays, why don't you log them? I also went back a bit and saw that you didn't log for like 2/3 of December. Holidays are full of yummy but calorie dense foods. If you spent almost a whole month not logging, you could have easily gained back some of the weight you lost.

atypicalsmith

You're not logging all your food, so you don't really know how much you're eating. Saying it's the same as when I log doesn't cut it. You have to commit to this if you truly want to lose. Good news is you probably gained slower than five pounds a year . . .

Jaffsa

LaydieJo wrote: »

Firstly I think you need to stop being so hard on yourself and give yourself a break.
The positive thing is that you have lost 10lb!! I started on here two years ago too and I have put probably 14lb on!!
I wouldn't be looking to the past for a comparison just concentrate on what you are going to do differently tomorrow and beyond to make sure the weight you want to lose drops off!
Perhaps doing the exercises you enjoy because you like them not because the app tells you it burns xxx calories may help.
All the practical advise is useful, you haven't said what your reason for wanting to lose weight is?
Jo

Thank you!!
I appreciate your response
My reason for losing weight is to be happy with myself again. Its been so long since I've felt comfortable in my own skin. I've been there before! I know I can be there again!

Jaffsa

snowflakesav wrote: »

I noticed that your tracking didn't include beverages. Just curious about alcoholic beverages.

The other things...thyroid, medications, sleep...should be explored with your dr.

Hi there- thank you for responding!
I rarely drink alcohol and all other beverages I have are 0 calories (tea, water). I hardly ever drink soda and when I do, its diet coke (1 glass).

And I have discussed those issues with my doctor. Thyroid and sleep normal. However, I'm convinced the medication I'm on (not going to specify- but lets just say, some women take it every day... ha) isnt helping my situation, but my doctor "assures" me its not.