SO FRUSTRATED!
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I could have written your post. In the last 2 years I have lost 75 pounds and am too at 150 with a goal of 135. I have been at 150 since January however in January I was a size 8 and now I'm a size 6. I also log daily and weigh my foods. My MFP is set at .5 per week and I go up a few pounds and then down. I eat back half my exercise calories and don't really feel like I'm dieting though.
I'm trying my best to get out of the goal weight mindset. Maybe 150 is my ideal weight. Others have said no one but you sees the scale number and that's true and hits home for me. I have never seen a person and thought, wow, she looks great, she must weight 135. It doesn't happen. I see someone fit and happy and I think, wow, she worked hard and it shows.
I'm not giving up, I'm changing my mindset. My goals are fitness related not so much scale related.0 -
I've been losing and gaining those same 5-8 lbs. since the end of 2014. I was only 2.5lbs. from goal when this started, and it became really obvious to me that I could not (probably ever) consume more than 1400 calories a day, even if I burned a lot of them with walking/jogging, and still lose weight. My advice is to stick with the plan, and give it another couple of weeks. If you're really only consuming 10k calories, you *will* eventually see the pounds come off. Also - keep your sodium intake in mind. It can pack on 2-3 lbs. of water overnight. At least, it can for me.0
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daymonalisa wrote: »I've been losing and gaining those same 5-8 lbs. since the end of 2014. I was only 2.5lbs. from goal when this started, and it became really obvious to me that I could not (probably ever) consume more than 1400 calories a day, even if I burned a lot of them with walking/jogging, and still lose weight. My advice is to stick with the plan, and give it another couple of weeks. If you're really only consuming 10k calories, you *will* eventually see the pounds come off. Also - keep your sodium intake in mind. It can pack on 2-3 lbs. of water overnight. At least, it can for me.
This is maintenance!
My "goal" weight is 165 pounds (I'm 6'1").
On Tuesday morning I was 167.2; on Wednesday morning, I was 171.4; this morning I was 164.4 (stomach flu).
Goal weight has to be an acceptable range.
Overall I'm happy with my body - whether it's 171 or 165. It doesn't look that different - and certainly not to anyone else around me.
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Open your diary
Using measuring cups and or serving sizes can give you hundreds of not logged calories.
When you start off you dont notice this....you have lots to lose your deficit is big enough
But when your deficit get smaller and smaller ( because you lose weight) and you get closer to your goal/healthy weight range..it slows down.
you lose less and you have to be very accurate with weighing your food on a scale to maintain that deficit.
So measuring cups and serving sizes can throw off your accuracy
Here a short video about how much difference it can be for only 2 kind of foods we all use ( almost daily) and make hundreds of difference between using a cup or a food scale
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY
I think that maybe in your case you eat more than you think because you said you are using measuring cups....your deficit is too small without you knowing it.
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If you are not losing you are not in a deficit, use a food scale on ALL solid foods and ONLY use measuring cups/spoons for liquids!! Make sure you are accurate with diary, you know those secret little bites they add up. Watch the video, it will open your eyes!!
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Oh my gosh. I PROMISE you I am NOT miscalculating my calories. And just for the sake of argument, even if I was, it couldn't possibly be by more than a couple hundred calories which would still put me at consuming around 1200 calories plus burning calories during exercise that I don't consume. So even if I was wrong (I'm not!) I still should be in a deficit. I should have several hundred calories to play with and still be in a deficit.0
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If you're absolutely confident you are in a deficit, and still not losing over an extended period (I would say 8 weeks or more), I would suggest visiting your doctor for a blood workup, including TSH as well as Free T3 and Free T4 to check that your thyroid is functioning well.
Note in this chart that the lab will only indicate low or high ranges as abnormal, but that doesn't mean that your levels are optimal..
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Oh my gosh. I PROMISE you I am NOT miscalculating my calories. And just for the sake of argument, even if I was, it couldn't possibly be by more than a couple hundred calories which would still put me at consuming around 1200 calories plus burning calories during exercise that I don't consume. So even if I was wrong (I'm not!) I still should be in a deficit. I should have several hundred calories to play with and still be in a deficit.
But you wont open your diary?0 -
I do appreciate all the advice. To answer a few questions, I have 15 pounds to lose still. It was my Obgyn who recommended the shakes. She did say that she would do blood work when I go back in three months if I'm still not losing. Someone mentioned not worrying so much about the number on the scale but more about how I look and feel, and I understand that. It might be a mindset that I'm going to have to change. I've been fluctuating between 150-158 for about 8 months now and it just seems like no matter what I do my body just doesn't want to be any lower than that. I just don't want to accept it. I also don't want to accept that 1400 calories is going to be my maintenance intake. I can do whatever it takes in the short term in order to get the weight off, but I cannot imagine staying that low forever. MFP gives me like 1700 for maintenance. That sounds a lot better, but I know from experience that I will gain weight if I eat that much.0
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I do appreciate all the advice. To answer a few questions, I have 15 pounds to lose still. It was my Obgyn who recommended the shakes. She did say that she would do blood work when I go back in three months if I'm still not losing. Someone mentioned not worrying so much about the number on the scale but more about how I look and feel, and I understand that. It might be a mindset that I'm going to have to change. I've been fluctuating between 150-158 for about 8 months now and it just seems like no matter what I do my body just doesn't want to be any lower than that. I just don't want to accept it. I also don't want to accept that 1400 calories is going to be my maintenance intake. I can do whatever it takes in the short term in order to get the weight off, but I cannot imagine staying that low forever. MFP gives me like 1700 for maintenance. That sounds a lot better, but I know from experience that I will gain weight if I eat that much.
I'm 46 years old, weigh 122 pds and 5'2, right now I am doing a cut, eating around 1800 to 1900 cals to lose weight. My maintenance calories is around 2300-2400 cals.
ETA: Remember you came on here asking for advice. We you gave tips and ask you to open your diary.
Good luck.
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Okay - I completely get your frustration. And posting about a plateau and receiving replies similar to this are what made me initially quit MFP on my first account. Sometimes plateaus happen. Everyone here seems to agree that weightloss isn't linear, but everytime someone posts about going on a several month plateau, there are immediately a group of replies that simply state, "YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG" without any consideration for that person's physiology and what their body might be experiencing. (Yes, I'll admit it that 90% of those people are probably actually doing it wrong, but there's that 10% that are just... stuck.)
I'm posting what worked for me knowing I'll probably get backlash. But it worked... for me. I'm not saying it's cure-all, but it helped me.
My daily intake was 1200 and I'd been stuck for 3-4 months. I increased to 1500-1800 for a couple of weeks. I gained weight (important note), but (more importantly), when I dropped to 1200 again, I started losing again.
I don't know why it helped. I have no scientific, peer-reviewed, published journal articles to back this up. I have no evidence to say it'll do anything for you. I'm just saying it helped me and it's an idea.
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Open your diary, people will be able to give you more insight.0
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I am not gonna read all the replies but question. Have you checked your BMI lately? Your muscle mass index as well? You do know that muscle does weigh more then fat. Maybe you have more muscle then fat..
Also drink lots of water! I see people don't even drink water. Water cleans your system out!0 -
This came in the mail from the MFP newsletter today: The Upside of a Weight-Loss Plateau
After reading Why do so many people hide their Food dairy? I can't fault the OP for not opening her diary.
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I opened my diary. (The reason why I didn't before was because I know that all the "clean eating" people are going to start picking on what I eat. I'm a firm believer that a calorie is a calorie and I'm not at all interested in clean eating.) My BMI is 24.2 and I have no idea what my muscle mass is or even how to find out. I drink 80-100 oz of water a day.
I did come here asking for advice and I appreciate all of it and will take it all into account, but I've repeatedly said that I'm not underestimating my calories and yet people keep saying that I must be.0 -
I cannot imagine that someone who is 5' 2" and weighs 122 lbs could lose weight eating 1800 calories a day or maintain at 2200! You must have metabolism like Superman!0
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Oh my gosh. I PROMISE you I am NOT miscalculating my calories. And just for the sake of argument, even if I was, it couldn't possibly be by more than a couple hundred calories which would still put me at consuming around 1200 calories plus burning calories during exercise that I don't consume. So even if I was wrong (I'm not!) I still should be in a deficit. I should have several hundred calories to play with and still be in a deficit.
I looked at your diary for the month of May. You have 11 unlogged days and 3 partially logged days. That's almost half the month. You said you weigh and measure everything but I see cup entries that don't vary from day to day. My apples and bananas are never the same weight day to day. Neither are my bread slices. The egg beater you have in the mornings...do you use any oil to fry them in? The salad, 1 serving entry, is that your entry or just pulled from the database (crockpot BBQ, rotini pasta salad, same question, your entry or random?) If not, these are all ways you are unintentionally taking in more calories than you think. If those are your entries that you've weighed on a food scale and portioned out, I'd say it's time to book an appointment with your gp to rule out any medical conditions.
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I cannot imagine that someone who is 5' 2" and weighs 122 lbs could lose weight eating 1800 calories a day or maintain at 2200! You must have metabolism like Superman!
I resemble that remark...
I am 5'2 and weigh 121 lbs. 4 lbs below my original goal weight. I lose weight NETTING 1650. I eat anywhere from 1800-2000 cals. According to my FitBit my TDEE is about 2100 cals. According to MFP, my maintenance level excluding exercise is about 1850, which matches up perfectly with FitBit.
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I opened my diary. (The reason why I didn't before was because I know that all the "clean eating" people are going to start picking on what I eat. I'm a firm believer that a calorie is a calorie and I'm not at all interested in clean eating.) My BMI is 24.2 and I have no idea what my muscle mass is or even how to find out. I drink 80-100 oz of water a day.
I did come here asking for advice and I appreciate all of it and will take it all into account, but I've repeatedly said that I'm not underestimating my calories and yet people keep saying that I must be.
I don't judge what people eat.
I looked at your diary, a few days back, you gone over a lot on sodium and do you weigh your fruits?? I noticed the same weight several days in row and know that apple and bananas never seem the same weight. I would definitely make sure you are weighing I believe that is culprit. I see half piece of ham, did you weigh it?? Just my thoughts.0 -
If the clean eaters start poking at it tell them to float...
That being said I am looking...it doesn't look like you use a scale as a lot of your entries are in scoops, pieces, slices, oz (grams are more accurate), cups etc.
Logging accurately means the following:
Using a scale in grams/oz for all solids (powders included), cups/spoons for liquids and...here is the kicker choosing the correct entries...not all entries in MFP are correct...The choice for banana is always the same...are you really eating a 101 gram banana everytime?
And logging consistently is important too..I see Sunday is blank
I suspect and yes you can hate me for saying it but your logging needs tightened up..it's not as accurate as you think.
If you look at my diary there are very few entries that are not by weight/cups/spoons...those that are like 1/2 flat bread is a scan from the package but I did weigh the bread and it equalled the weight for 1/2 a piece on the package...0 -
I cannot imagine that someone who is 5' 2" and weighs 122 lbs could lose weight eating 1800 calories a day or maintain at 2200! You must have metabolism like Superman!
My sister is 5 ft 3, 44 and maintains on 2300 a day...but...she exercises a lot and is very lean with visible muscle..it can be done.
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Oh my gosh. I PROMISE you I am NOT miscalculating my calories. And just for the sake of argument, even if I was, it couldn't possibly be by more than a couple hundred calories which would still put me at consuming around 1200 calories plus burning calories during exercise that I don't consume. So even if I was wrong (I'm not!) I still should be in a deficit. I should have several hundred calories to play with and still be in a deficit.
I looked at your diary for the month of May. You have 11 unlogged days and 3 partially logged days. That's almost half the month. You said you weigh and measure everything but I see cup entries that don't vary from day to day. My apples and bananas are never the same weight day to day. Neither are my bread slices. The egg beater you have in the mornings...do you use any oil to fry them in? The salad, 1 serving entry, is that your entry or just pulled from the database (crockpot BBQ, rotini pasta salad, same question, your entry or random?) If not, these are all ways you are unintentionally taking in more calories than you think. If those are your entries that you've weighed on a food scale and portioned out, I'd say it's time to book an appointment with your gp to rule out any medical conditions.If the clean eaters start poking at it tell them to float...
That being said I am looking...it doesn't look like you use a scale as a lot of your entries are in scoops, pieces, slices, oz (grams are more accurate), cups etc.
Logging accurately means the following:
Using a scale in grams/oz for all solids (powders included), cups/spoons for liquids and...here is the kicker choosing the correct entries...not all entries in MFP are correct...The choice for banana is always the same...are you really eating a 101 gram banana everytime?
And logging consistently is important too..I see Sunday is blank
I suspect and yes you can hate me for saying it but your logging needs tightened up..it's not as accurate as you think.
If you look at my diary there are very few entries that are not by weight/cups/spoons...those that are like 1/2 flat bread is a scan from the package but I did weigh the bread and it equalled the weight for 1/2 a piece on the package...
This!!! 0 -
I'm losing on 1800 calories a day - plus exercise calories - and I'm OLD. I wanted to lose 8 lbs., and I am down 6. It has not happened fast. It is slow, and I mean slow. But I have no interest in eating a super-low amount of calories, and I like lots of carby snacks and chocolate.
Maybe adjust your patience level. 0 -
I opened my diary. (The reason why I didn't before was because I know that all the "clean eating" people are going to start picking on what I eat. I'm a firm believer that a calorie is a calorie and I'm not at all interested in clean eating.) My BMI is 24.2 and I have no idea what my muscle mass is or even how to find out. I drink 80-100 oz of water a day.
I did come here asking for advice and I appreciate all of it and will take it all into account, but I've repeatedly said that I'm not underestimating my calories and yet people keep saying that I must be.
So you definitely won't hear me picking at you for not eating clean. My initial thought, besides the fact that it doesn't look like you weigh your food (and for the record - I don't weigh my food, but I also know that if I hit an unexplained plateau that would be the first thing I would need to do) - is that there isn't a lot of food in your food. I know you eat the shakes, but your other sources of calories is like Starbucks frappucinoes and meager amounts of frozen vegetables. Your protein level is really low - less than 50g? Is there a reason for that? Don't you get hungry, drinking most of your calories?
I would be starving, personally, on what you are eating. Has nothing to do with clean or unclean, I just don't think there is much food in there.
So my advice is: set your goal for 0.5lb/week, get a food scale, if you aren't already strength training, start. Oh and eat more protein!
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Oh my gosh. I PROMISE you I am NOT miscalculating my calories. And just for the sake of argument, even if I was, it couldn't possibly be by more than a couple hundred calories which would still put me at consuming around 1200 calories plus burning calories during exercise that I don't consume. So even if I was wrong (I'm not!) I still should be in a deficit. I should have several hundred calories to play with and still be in a deficit.
I looked at your diary for the month of May. You have 11 unlogged days and 3 partially logged days. That's almost half the month. You said you weigh and measure everything but I see cup entries that don't vary from day to day. My apples and bananas are never the same weight day to day. Neither are my bread slices. The egg beater you have in the mornings...do you use any oil to fry them in? The salad, 1 serving entry, is that your entry or just pulled from the database (crockpot BBQ, rotini pasta salad, same question, your entry or random?) If not, these are all ways you are unintentionally taking in more calories than you think. If those are your entries that you've weighed on a food scale and portioned out, I'd say it's time to book an appointment with your gp to rule out any medical conditions.
I have to agree with this. I also see several restaurant meals. While there's nothing wrong with these, what you consume could be very different from what is expected, especially with fries and chips, etc. because restaurants tend to be more generous with these types of items. What is 1/2 basket of chips? It could be 10 chips or it could be 25. It's really going to depend on who filled it and how full. When you have the NI from chain restaurants, you really have no way of knowing that the chef didn't throw an extra tablespoon or two of oil in when preparing the food.
You obviously know how to lose weight. I think a recommitment to weighing everything you eat for a while will show you some successes. For the protein/drink replacements, you will definitely want to way it, not just use the scoop provided. The stuff I have at home it only takes about 4/5 scoop to equal the weight of a serving and the bag says it's 1 rounded scoop per serving. If I did that, I'd probably be consuming an extra 50 calories without knowing it. A little error here and a little error there really can add up. When you combine these small errors that eat away at your daily deficits with the non-logged days, you could easily be eating hundreds more calories than you think on average.0 -
Oh my gosh. I PROMISE you I am NOT miscalculating my calories. And just for the sake of argument, even if I was, it couldn't possibly be by more than a couple hundred calories which would still put me at consuming around 1200 calories plus burning calories during exercise that I don't consume. So even if I was wrong (I'm not!) I still should be in a deficit. I should have several hundred calories to play with and still be in a deficit.
I looked at your diary for the month of May. You have 11 unlogged days and 3 partially logged days. That's almost half the month. You said you weigh and measure everything but I see cup entries that don't vary from day to day. My apples and bananas are never the same weight day to day. Neither are my bread slices. The egg beater you have in the mornings...do you use any oil to fry them in? The salad, 1 serving entry, is that your entry or just pulled from the database (crockpot BBQ, rotini pasta salad, same question, your entry or random?) If not, these are all ways you are unintentionally taking in more calories than you think. If those are your entries that you've weighed on a food scale and portioned out, I'd say it's time to book an appointment with your gp to rule out any medical conditions.
this... not using the food scale... it so easy to mess up the calories in by not weighing food as the closer you get to goal, the less wiggle room you have...0 -
Ok. I didn't say I've always logged consistently! LOL. Just lately. No, I don't weigh my fruits or foods that are prepackaged such as bread slices. But I do buy the tiniest bananas and apples that I can find so they have to be pretty close to accurate. I actually am not starving all the time now that I am doing the shakes. They keep my very full. I WAS starving all the them when I was eating 1200-1400 calories a day and eating real food. Those entries you see that say "salad" or "crock pot BBQ chicken" are recipes that I have created using MFP and yes, I do measure and weigh all the ingredients that I use and the I portion it out evenly to determine the see in sizes.
Now I'm more interested in these people who are losing or maintaining at such a high calorie intake. I want to know your secrets!0 -
Ok. I didn't say I've always logged consistently! LOL. Just lately. No, I don't weigh my fruits or foods that are prepackaged such as bread slices. But I do buy the tiniest bananas and apples that I can find so they have to be pretty close to accurate. I actually am not starving all the time now that I am doing the shakes. They keep my very full. I WAS starving all the them when I was eating 1200-1400 calories a day and eating real food. Those entries you see that say "salad" or "crock pot BBQ chicken" are recipes that I have created using MFP and yes, I do measure and weigh all the ingredients that I use and the I portion it out evenly to determine the see in sizes.
Now I'm more interested in these people who are losing or maintaining at such a high calorie intake. I want to know your secrets!
Consistency is needed. Not only in logging but in weighing too. If you don't want to weigh, and I know a lot of people who don't, then you need to accept that this is the result. Every underestimation in your caloric consumption eats into your deficit. One here or there, no big deal. But half a dozen or a dozen underestimations through the day and you can easily wipe out your deficit. Same with not logging at all. It's super easy to undo a week's hard work of maintaining a deficit on the weekends when you don't log. Out of sight, out of mind.
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KristenMarie1181 wrote: »I am not gonna read all the replies but question. Have you checked your BMI lately? Your muscle mass index as well? You do know that muscle does weigh more then fat. Maybe you have more muscle then fat..
No...just no.
Agree with everyone else. If you're not losing, tightening up your logging (meaning both accuracy and consistency) is the first place to start.
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