Ok. I give up. I open my diary to your judgement.
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Replies
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WinoGelato wrote: »I feel mislead by the title of this thread... somehow I get the sense OP is not actually open to our judgement after all....
No, I am sorry for the way I reacted. There have been a lot of frustrated tears lately and I am sorry I took it out on all of you.
I am so, so impressed that you came back to say that. I know you felt backed into a corner by everyone's responses, and I know when you're already frustrated with your weight and feel like making a huge effort, to have everyone resoundingly say, "you should be doing this" can feel like they are ganging up on you. The reason everyone is saying the same thing is because it is overwhelmingly the most common cause of why people don't lose weight - they are simply eating more than they think, or burning less than they think.
I think it is great you are asking for suggestions for food scales too. I really hope you will come back and update everyone in a week or so after you get that scale when you have an "aha" moment with the calories, and then once you get in the groove with weighing and logging everything, I can't wait to hear an update from you that the weight is starting to drop. Because it will. Logging and exercising are huge steps!. Logging accurately is the final piece of the puzzle.
If you haven't taken the time to do so, definitely read some of the other links that were provided, there is a lot of helpful information in those.
Good Luck!
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I'm not sure what to change or what to do at this point, so I give up. I have made my diary open to the public and will lay out my current regime for you here.
And I am begging you for your advice.
Problem: I have been working out and cutting calories now for six weeks, and literally not one pound has fallen off. Prior to the exercise, I was cutting calories for two weeks. So in total, two months of crap for not one pound. I know not to go by the scale, but after two months, I will admit when I need to reevaluate.
Exercise: I go to CrossFit on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. That's five days a week. I burn anywhere from 300 to 650 calories each WOD. We are running, doing bear crawls, lifting heavy weights, lifting small weights, jumping -- you get the idea. We are doing everything.
Diet: Not on a diet perse-- but I count every calorie that I consume. I'm not exactly paleo, but I measure and make smart choices when I can. You can see for yourself. I am consistently in line or under my calorie goals for the day, depending on how many calories I burned in a workout. The occasional nieces birthday doesn't even phase me too much.
My weight: like a stone, the scale is unmoving at around 172. It has been there since April. It will go down to 169 then the next day up to 174, never really impressing me.
My body: I am pretty much still wearing the same clothes I was before. I feel great because of the exercise (yay!) but I will be honest with you, vanity is a big factor in my weight loss. Don't judge. I want to be smaller!
My stats:
Female
5'5"
172
Lost weight two years ago-- went from 185 to 137 with MFP. I've done this... before!
Hmmm.. this is what confuses me. You knew how to do it so why doesn't it work the same now... Some other things I can think of... there have been changes to MFP in the last two years... I would bet their database isn't as trustworthy as they were back then. Perhaps try being very choosy with which entries you use, eg. ones without * and that have lots of verifications... Compare them to the USDA database for a while until you get an idea of which you can trust. It won't be forever.
Have you tried looking at your old entries from 2 years ago? Any insight there?
If you had surgery, it could be your body is still under stress...
I dunno. I'll defer to other people.
This is what fuels most of my frustration. I am doing exactly (literally even same food, mostly) what I did last time. I dropped the weight steadily in six months. Only this time, I am eating more fresh foods, drinking more water, and working out more consistently since CrossFit is so fun for me. I feel hopeless and I am not prepared, as many here have pointed out, to make my food my life (or weighing food, ounces, etc). I get overwhelmed. It just wasn't this hard before. I watched what I ate, I made smart decisions, I logged. I worked out. Science was my friend.
Now I just feel like everything is against me.
To note, the surgery I had was to remove cervical cancer. I don't think that would necessarily hold me back in any way.
You don't have to make food your life. Many people find that weighing just for awhile helps them get a better grip on portion sizes and are able to eyeball their foods more accurately.
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Everyone gets down sometimes. It happens.
Use this as an opportunity to improve and stay focused.
You'll be glad to have a food scale, believe me.
IMO, it's actually fun to weigh food sometimes. Especially when you're trying to eek out as much as you can and get more bang for your buck.0 -
WinoGelato wrote: »I feel mislead by the title of this thread... somehow I get the sense OP is not actually open to our judgement after all....
No, I am sorry for the way I reacted. There have been a lot of frustrated tears lately and I am sorry I took it out on all of you.
Wow! Good for you!
Apology accepted.
I truly hope things improve for you!
ETA-I love my Cuisinart digital food scale from BB&B.0 -
....Any scales you guys can recommend?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NX47YP4?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=A3FUY11FKEN472
had over 4,000 reviews and highly rated.
Yup. that's the one I got, but in silver0 -
And OP - good for you!
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yopeeps025 wrote: »It's pretty clear you're eating more than you think. Log everything (there are several meals and an entire day missing from what I went through). Weigh everything (I see weights for a few items, but not much). Eating out, if it fits into your calories, is fine but you seem to do it a lot (higher sodium can lead to water weight masking weight loss). Once you tighten up on those things, you should start to lose.
How is that clear that I am not logging when I am literally logging everything I consume?
I pretty much only eat out at Chik fil A. If it is the sodium, I will watch that more. I drink SO much water every day though.
high sodium levels will mask weight loss on the scale for a little while. For me it actually does for more than 3 days.
Same here! The scale has gone up SEVERAL pounds for me, but takes several more days for the water retention to go away.
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snickerscharlie wrote: »And OP - good for you!
+10 -
....Any scales you guys can recommend?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NX47YP4?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=A3FUY11FKEN472
had over 4,000 reviews and highly rated.
I have two of these (bought a second one for the office) and LOVE them! Super easy to use with the tare function. I just put my plate on and tare it after each item. For things like grapefruit and steak that might have peels or bones, I weigh the whole thing and then weigh the garbage when I go to clean my plate and subtract that. I keep a pad by the scale to jot the weight down if I don't want to enter it right away in MFP (e.g. if I'm eating with my family and don't want to make them wait). It seriously only takes minutes out of the day.
And, can I chime in with "you are awesome!"? Way to own your own feelings and open yourself up to feedback, even when it's tough to hear.
It is really discouraging to have to lose again, especially when it's not going the way you expect, but you can do it!0 -
Angelfire365 wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »While I don't really see anything wrong with what you're eating - I do not see a lot of weighed food. Or rather, your weighing is really inconsistent.
You do eat out a lot, but I do, too and I've lost a lot of weight, so I don't think that will hold you back.
Do you scan barcodes, or do you use generic entries?
When is the last time you had a physical?
I had surgery in February, and have been to the doctor several times since then for check ups. I scan barcodes when available, and I ALWAYS over estimate what I am eating. If I don't finish my meal, I don't change my log. I do my best to make up for variances.
I just give up. It shouldn't be this hard. If I have to weigh every bite I put in my mouth and resign myself to never eating out of the house, it isn't worth it. I could have laid around on my *kitten* all summer and still be here. *kitten* ridiculous.
Did they test thyroid function and/or insulin levels?
Weighing your food helps a lot though. I weigh everything at home, and guesstimate high when I'm out. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it's a huge eye opener. My scale gets a lot of credit for the 83 pounds I've lost.
Here's a really good example how easy it is to over-eat without realizing it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjKPIcI51lU&list=FLxRg_80KHM-BdcHvV7nkgfg&index=1
Holy *kitten*!!!! I know CICO, and I do weigh and measure almost everything I eat, but over 1000 cal difference??? I'm totally watching this every time I feel I'm slipping. Thank you for this video, this blows my mind.
Glad you came back and found some useful information in the thread. We are trying to help, we just wanted to make sure you realize that logging accurately is more difficult than some people think (but once you realize how to do it, it's not that difficult or time consuming).
@auddii -> Not sure what you're referring to; I'm not the OP? Have we met in a previous conversation? Although I am quite glad I found some useful information in this thread as well! Lol.0 -
snickerscharlie wrote: »And OP - good for you!
+1
+2
OP - I know that wasn't easy. I commend you. Here, have a peep.
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tincanonastring wrote: »snickerscharlie wrote: »And OP - good for you!
+1
+2
OP - I know that wasn't easy. I commend you. Here, have a peep.
How much does the peep weigh?? HOW MUCH?
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....Any scales you guys can recommend?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NX47YP4?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=A3FUY11FKEN472
had over 4,000 reviews and highly rated.
Yep I have this one and it's great. Before I got this one, I had a Wal-Mart one that you had to set to grams, by an annoyingly hard to press button UNDER the scale, EVERY time you turned it on. Urgh.tincanonastring wrote: »snickerscharlie wrote: »And OP - good for you!
+1
+2
OP - I know that wasn't easy. I commend you. Here, have a peep.
How much does the peep weigh?? HOW MUCH?
~ 3 kitten souls0 -
I'm not sure what to change or what to do at this point, so I give up. I have made my diary open to the public and will lay out my current regime for you here.
And I am begging you for your advice.
Problem: I have been working out and cutting calories now for six weeks, and literally not one pound has fallen off. Prior to the exercise, I was cutting calories for two weeks. So in total, two months of crap for not one pound. I know not to go by the scale, but after two months, I will admit when I need to reevaluate.
Exercise: I go to CrossFit on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. That's five days a week. I burn anywhere from 300 to 650 calories each WOD. We are running, doing bear crawls, lifting heavy weights, lifting small weights, jumping -- you get the idea. We are doing everything.
Diet: Not on a diet perse-- but I count every calorie that I consume. I'm not exactly paleo, but I measure and make smart choices when I can. You can see for yourself. I am consistently in line or under my calorie goals for the day, depending on how many calories I burned in a workout. The occasional nieces birthday doesn't even phase me too much.
My weight: like a stone, the scale is unmoving at around 172. It has been there since April. It will go down to 169 then the next day up to 174, never really impressing me.
My body: I am pretty much still wearing the same clothes I was before. I feel great because of the exercise (yay!) but I will be honest with you, vanity is a big factor in my weight loss. Don't judge. I want to be smaller!
My stats:
Female
5'5"
172
Lost weight two years ago-- went from 185 to 137 with MFP. I've done this *kitten* before!
You said you measure everything you eat. That's the problem. You need to use a food scale and weigh all solid foods.0 -
OP, I think it's just the other way around. Most people who don't weigh/measure their food and log accordingly get frustrated if they don't lose. In their frustration they try all the time to come up with reasons for their lack of loss. That takes a lot of time, energy, alters one's mood ( which in return influences, even if it is just a little bit, our hormones and that can negatively influence weight loss ).
I am willing to bet that the time you spend today writing your posts, could have been the time you could have used to weight your food for a whole month.
I eat two large meals a day and for each meal it takes me a minute or less to weight my food. That's less than fifteen minutes a week and much less than many of the people here spend worrying about and second guessing their diet.
Also, once you log, it is much, much easier to find flaws and even easier to correct them so you will lose weight. The really neat thing is that once you weigh and log, you still have almost 24 hours in each day, you don't have to worry about weight loss and food.
I realize that you have some health concerns and I would like to suggest that you work with them. When I had cervical cancer I was put on HRT which caused me to gain some weight ( less than ten pounds ) but kept me still in my normal weight range at age 41. Ten years later I had thyroid cancer, had my ovaries ( which had kept me from going through early traumatic menopause ) removed and went into dramatic menopause at age 51.
Self pity eating caused me to gain a lot of weight. My weight increased further when I was diagnosed four years ago with rampant systemic Lupus, because again I ate all my emotions. I started to " diet " in January 2013 also refusing to make weighing & logging of food my life. I have all my life eaten a natural diet and thought that I was doing ok.
I am now close to 70 and am under five feet tall. This means that 1200 calories a day with a .5 pound loss are accurate for me. When I started to log accurately ( convinced that I was doing ok ) I was surprised that on average I ate 1800-2000 calories. Yes, it was all healthy, whole food. But eating daily double portions of brown rice, no matter how healthy, also makes fat.
The first three month here were difficult and twice I was close to quitting, because people were mean and nasty I thought. I still think that often people could say what they have to say in a more compassionate way...but that's just me. I got the message. Started to weigh and measure everything and in a little over two years I have lost 65 pounds at a pretty consistent .5 pound loss a week.
Today I no longer feel that weighing and measuring my food is an intrusion on my lifestyle. It is just the opposite, it makes my life easier and worry free, because I see that I am on the right path. And the few times thing were out of balance it only took about 15 minutes checking out my food log to figure out where I went wrong.
You have to find your own way in terms of calories as well as kinds of food that help you to stay on course to achieve sustainable weight loss.
For me it was cutting down to 1200 calories ( for you it's probably more because you are 40 years younger than I and you are taller ). I avoid certain foods, because they make me lethargic and when I am lethargic ( directly connected to not having a thyroid ) I don't want to do certain things. like exercise, cooking etc. You will have to figure out what works for you and what works not so much. And if you need help, there are always people who help you through rough patches.
I really hope that things will get easier for you and less frustrating.
Good Luck !0 -
WinoGelato wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »I feel mislead by the title of this thread... somehow I get the sense OP is not actually open to our judgement after all....
No, I am sorry for the way I reacted. There have been a lot of frustrated tears lately and I am sorry I took it out on all of you.
I am so, so impressed that you came back to say that. I know you felt backed into a corner by everyone's responses, and I know when you're already frustrated with your weight and feel like making a huge effort, to have everyone resoundingly say, "you should be doing this" can feel like they are ganging up on you. The reason everyone is saying the same thing is because it is overwhelmingly the most common cause of why people don't lose weight - they are simply eating more than they think, or burning less than they think.
I think it is great you are asking for suggestions for food scales too. I really hope you will come back and update everyone in a week or so after you get that scale when you have an "aha" moment with the calories, and then once you get in the groove with weighing and logging everything, I can't wait to hear an update from you that the weight is starting to drop. Because it will. Logging and exercising are huge steps!. Logging accurately is the final piece of the puzzle.
If you haven't taken the time to do so, definitely read some of the other links that were provided, there is a lot of helpful information in those.
Good Luck!
Co-signtincanonastring wrote: »snickerscharlie wrote: »And OP - good for you!
+1
+2
OP - I know that wasn't easy. I commend you. Here, have a peep.
How much does the peep weigh?? HOW MUCH?
LOL.0 -
OP, I really wish you luck and hope you are successful. It takes a lot to apologize and change your mindset, and I know it can be hard to be told you're doing something wrong. I commend you for taking our advise and giving it another shot; please don't give up. It's worth it, I swear it's worth it, and we will be here with you every step of the way, rooting you on, if you so choose. If you are dedicated and work hard for it, if will happen. Feel free to add me as a friend; I'm in your corner!0
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WinoGelato wrote: »I feel mislead by the title of this thread... somehow I get the sense OP is not actually open to our judgement after all....
No, I am sorry for the way I reacted. There have been a lot of frustrated tears lately and I am sorry I took it out on all of you.
You rock OP. Frustration can often make us the ragey not best version of ourselves. It takes a much bigger person than most to come back and admit that, so you be awesome.
Hugs.
+10 -
It happens to all of us.
(sigh) Slacking on the weighing/measuring probably accounts for some of my stall lately. That and deciding I didn't give a **** for a few weeks, basically eating at maintenance.
It's perfectly all right to take a break now and then if you need to get refocused!0
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