Help me out with "weight loss isn't linear."

Jmgkamp

So, I'm trying to continue losing weight while adding more calories (to where MFP suggested I be). I've lost 32 pounds since March 4. This is a lot, in a short time span. I was one of the "I can't even eat 1000 calories" people for the first few weeks. Honeymoon stage perhaps? I'm supposed to eat 1200 (started at 5'2", 219 pounds, 42 years old). I'm now 187 and I've been so hungry! I've started exercising daily, 7x a week, for 1 hour - until the machine says 500 calories. I didn't used to eat back any calories. Now I eat back some, still no more than 1350.

This week I've lost zero pounds. I'm hoping that it's a fluke. The whole "weight loss isn't linear" line of thinking. But man, it stinks!

The good is that I've lost a noticeable amount. The bad is, I've got to be able to exist on more than 1200 calories. I could stick to it - but for the rest of my life?! The sheer horror!!

Jmgkamp

But this is where I've gotten so far

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Jmgkamp

Oh Hell no, I'm not planning on giving up. I'm just trying to lose weight while eating more than the 700-900 calories per day I was doing for the past two months. That isn't sustainable - and my hair was starting to shed.

I'm in it for the long haul. Just wondering why the scale doesn't move sometimes.

macgurlnet

Someone else may have something better to say but here's my $0.02.

1) Patience is key. If your logging is good, the weight will come off. Water weight can and will mask fat loss. Stick with it.
2) You're exercising too much if you're working hard daily. A slow walk is one thing but if you're doing intense cardio 7 days a week, STOP. At least 1 day of rest. Your body will thank you for it.
3) Start strength training if that's not part of your routine. I personally vastly prefer cardio but I know strength training will help me look better so I'm sucking it up and doing it, lol. I should've started really doing this sooner but ah well. We'll see how much change I see in 4 weeks

~Lyssa

jaqcan

Water retention, sodium, hormones, any number of things. It's maddening though!

Jmgkamp

Every day I walk to the weight room and see only men. I've got no problem being the only woman. No shame in my game . But I've got no clue what to do! I can't do upper body, at least nothing that could effect my neck (which is in bad shape). Guess I need to meet with a trainer there. I'm meeting a trainer on Thursday. Hopefully that'll be a good start!

I didn't think I needed a rest from cardio, thought that was only weights/muscle repair.

Thanks for the $.02. I appreciate it!

WinoGelato

So many reasons weight loss stalls temporarily on a day to day or week to week basis. Hormonal fluctuations, water weight from sodium waste retention, increased glycogen stores, etc.

Easier said than done but I would not be discouraged and would not think that you are doomed to a life of 1300 cals... Give it some time, you're doing great.

I'm 5'2 and 40 and lose weight eating >1800 cals/day. I'm not a marathon runner or heavy lifter and I have a desk job. I've lost about 30 lbs, and there are definitely weeks with no loss.

Jmgkamp

Thank you fellow short person

macgurlnet

Jmgkamp wrote: »

Every day I walk to the weight room and see only men. I've got no problem being the only woman. No shame in my game . But I've got no clue what to do! I can't do upper body, at least nothing that could effect my neck (which is in bad shape). Guess I need to meet with a trainer there. I'm meeting a trainer on Thursday. Hopefully that'll be a good start!

I didn't think I needed a rest from cardio, thought that was only weights/muscle repair.

Thanks for the $.02. I appreciate it!

Well you use your muscles when you do cardio, too, though perhaps not as much as when you're doing weights

The lifting programs I've seen mentioned here are Stronglifts 5x5, New Rules of Lifting for Women, You are Your Own Gym, and Strong Curves. Gosh I hope I got the names right! Look into those and see if anything there strikes your fancy. The trainer may be able to help as well - but if he/she tries to get you to buy their supplements, politely say no and carry on

~Lyssa

Jmgkamp

Thanks Lyssa! This trainer is actually with an orthopedist's practice (neck issues) so I'm pretty confident there won't be a push to supplements. Now if he insists on prescribing muscle relaxers... well, far be it from me to refuse.

macgurlnet

Jmgkamp wrote: »

Thanks Lyssa! This trainer is actually with an orthopedist's practice (neck issues) so I'm pretty confident there won't be a push to supplements. Now if he insists on prescribing muscle relaxers... well, far be it from me to refuse.

Oh good! Sounds like someone that should be trustworthy.

I'm a shorty also (5 feet tall, even) and my initial calorie goal is 1260 for a 0.5lb/week loss. I make sure I get in 10k steps a day and that bumps it up to 1660 or so. Even on my rest days I still go for a leisurely walk unless I hurt a lot.

I'll eventually change my activity level but I want to make sure I absolutely stick to a certain number of steps, first.

~Lyssa

victoria_1024

We have similar stats. I am 5'2" and was 212 when I started on February 1st. Now I'm down to 176. I work out 30-60 minutes a day 6 days a week and eat back half of my estimated exercise calories. I usually eat about 1700 calories a day (plus an additional 300 calories a day for breastfeeding, so then 2000) and have been losing pretty steadily. I would think you should be able to eat more calories and still lose weight, maybe try slowly adding calories to your days to see what your weight loss does? Just make sure you're weighing all your food and logging accurately.

Jmgkamp

Thanks Victoria, that's encouraging. I just really enjoyed the 3-4 pound weekly drops. But I know that's not realistic long-term. But with 60+ pounds left I was hoping I could squeeze out another 12 pound month!

cmoll520

This is my weight log chart for the last 3 months. I log every day. Certainly not linear but the downward trend is clear. I notice many things cause me to retain fluid- eating out, eating too much salt, changing up (intensifying) my workout routine, and my monthly cycle.




Don't get discouraged! You are doing awesome! And it is important to make this change sustainable.

jgnatca

I definitely need rest days from my cardio! Your cardiovascular system has adapted but it takes longer for your muscles and tendons to adapt. My physiotherapist had me dial back to three run days a week and any extra cardio had to be after a full rest day.

Your muscles may have swollen while they rush repairs to catch up. Water weight.

Which is why loss isn't linear.

segacs

Sounds like you started off at a very aggressive pace, and are now hitting the burnout wall that is the main reason why such an aggressive pace is not recommended in the first place.

Some of that rapid drop in the first few weeks will have been from water weight. You simply aren't losing 12lbs of body fat per month, since that would require a daily caloric deficit of 1500, which is not realistic for even large men, let alone small women.

With your stats, 1lb/week is an appropriate goal. Yes, I know it sounds slow. But you want slow. Slow means sustainable. Slow means not feeling hungry all the time. Slow means minimizing muscle loss while you lose weight.

I'd suggest resetting your MFP goal to 1lb/week, and that should give you a higher base calorie goal. Eat back some of your exercise calories on top of that too, but be conservative; the machine saying 500 calories doesn't mean you're burning 500 calories either. Those machine burns are vastly overestimated.

And you're right, weight loss is not linear. 1lb/week doesn't mean 1lb every week. Some weeks you'll lose 2-3 pounds. Others you may not lose anything, or even be back up on the scale. Time of day, time of month, water retention, hormones, a whole host of other factors can impact the reading on the scale. Focus on the trends, not on the individual data points. Trust the process, weigh and log your food as accurately as possible, and you WILL lose the weight.

Good luck!

T1DCarnivoreRunner

Here's my experience: As I've lost more weight, plateaus get longer and longer. The last one ended after 5 months and I had a large loss over a few days (the "whoosh") at the end. That was 2 months ago, and I've not lost any more since then (i.e. I'm in a plateau again). I know what I'm doing works, and I know eventually I'll have a whoosh. In the past, I wasn't as comfortable with plateaus because it seems nobody would acknowledge that they are real. The general consensus on MFP is that if you haven't lost for 2-4 weeks, you have to be logging wrong. That doesn't match my experience.

Jmgkamp

Thanks all! I also took a spinning class for the first (last?) time yesterday. Yeah, I'm no Kelly Rippa yet. That HURT.

I'm taking all of this advice. I need this to be a permanent change.

Liftng4Lis

Most likely, its water retention due to the increase in exercise. Still, not losing for a week is not really a big deal in the scheme of things. Keep doing what you're doing and it will come.

fr3smyl

Kruggeri wrote: »

So many reasons weight loss stalls temporarily on a day to day or week to week basis. Hormonal fluctuations, water weight from sodium waste retention, increased glycogen stores, etc.

Easier said than done but I would not be discouraged and would not think that you are doomed to a life of 1300 cals... Give it some time, you're doing great.

I'm 5'2 and 40 and lose weight eating >1800 cals/day. I'm not a marathon runner or heavy lifter and I have a desk job. I've lost about 30 lbs, and there are definitely weeks with no loss.

Really helpful!

MoiAussi93

Mine has never been linear. I will lose two pounds a week for a couple of weeks, then gain a pound or two, then stay flat, then lose 7 pounds in 2 days. That's eating and exercising about the same amount every week!

I have also had stalls where I wouldn't lose for a month or two...and then I would lose 12 pounds the next month. I am a firm believer in the whoosh...you steadily lose fat but the body retains excess water for some reason, so you don't see the fat loss. Then all of a sudden the body releases the water and you see a huge loss.

Also, when I started weight training I gained several pounds which took a few weeks to disappear...most likely water weight for muscle repair. And if I eat more carbs than usual, I retain a few pounds of water until the glycogen is used up. And sometimes I gain a couple fo pounds of water around ovulation. The point it, there are many reasons it is not linear. Just keep doing what works for you and you will see the pay off soon.

Jmgkamp

I love this board. You are my sanity.

jwschutz

cmoll520 wrote: »

This is my weight log chart for the last 3 months. I log every day. Certainly not linear but the downward trend is clear. I notice many things cause me to retain fluid- eating out, eating too much salt, changing up (intensifying) my workout routine, and my monthly cycle.




Don't get discouraged! You are doing awesome! And it is important to make this change sustainable.

What App is this? I've been using Libra, but like this layout. It's nice to see a consistent trend even when you are stalled for a week. I went up 2 lbs today, and I skipped lunch due to a busy meeting schedule, not sure how the dded weight happened but it seems lately like I see my losses on a bi-weekly basis.

avskk

Another thing to consider is that you were eating at a very, very aggressive deficit (700-900kcals) before. Now that you're eating more healthfully, your body is doing a bit of recovery -- replenishing glycogen stores, repairing muscle more quickly, perhaps even slightly replenishing blood volume -- and all of that means added water weight. It's very possible that you lost fat on your new intake of 1200, but it was masked by water. Don't let it stress you out, especially after only a week! Take it a little easier on your body. Keep eating at healthy levels, give yourself some rest days from your workouts, and have faith in the process. You're doing just fine.

Sophiasmomma

I am in a very simliar boat as you. Started in feb at 1200 cals i workout almost every single day. I was only netting 800-900 cals a day. was ok the first 2 months lost about 1.5 lbs a week. last month reality is set in and i upped my calories to 1360 for a 1 lb a week loss... did ok almost a 1 lb loss each week.. now the past two weeks its getting tough. I want this for the long haul so I upped my calories to 1500. Mentally I think its nerve wracking to think 1300 calories isnt fun to live off of and would set all of us up for failure if we had to stick to that little calories a day. Ive read so many great threads here about slowly increasing daily calories so that once you get to maintance your "magic number" will be alittle higher. good luck...and sticking with it will eventually give you the resuts u want... dont give up if the number doesnt move!!

Jmgkamp

Glad to hear I'm not alone! No way am I giving up. I've come too far, I've picked up some new, healthy habits (working out) - and I'm going all the way!

Sued0nim

Weight loss isn't linear

Jmgkamp

Like the visual. This weight loss thing is fascinating.

MelodyandBarbells

jwschutz wrote: »

cmoll520 wrote: »

This is my weight log chart for the last 3 months. I log every day. Certainly not linear but the downward trend is clear. I notice many things cause me to retain fluid- eating out, eating too much salt, changing up (intensifying) my workout routine, and my monthly cycle.




Don't get discouraged! You are doing awesome! And it is important to make this change sustainable.

What App is this? I've been using Libra, but like this layout. It's nice to see a consistent trend even when you are stalled for a week. I went up 2 lbs today, and I skipped lunch due to a busy meeting schedule, not sure how the dded weight happened but it seems lately like I see my losses on a bi-weekly basis.

The app is MyFitnessPal. You can log your weight as often as you want and it can graph that chart for you in the Progress area of the app. You can also plot similar charts on the website, I believe