How long to try the same thing?
paulje03
Posts: 19 Member
This time last year, I ate 1700 calories and maintained my weight . I worked a retail job and was always on my feet, and walked to and from work, class, etc.
Other than that, I did not exercise, except for the occasional run with my boyfriend.
This summer, I got a new desk job. I walk less. Naturally, my new lifestyle made me put on a few pounds.
I lost the weight I gained by adding in more (5x/week, alternating cardio and HIIT) exercise and eating less.
But now, my weight loss has stalled.
I don't have much less to lose; I just want to lose a few "vanity" pounds and see more definition. I wouldn't mind the lack of weight change if my measurements were shrinking, but they're also not budging.
I'm 5'0" and eating 1200 calories. Now I'm wondering if it's better to bump up my intake, or if it's safe to bring it down even more.
Also maybe worth adding--I've always been very "regular"--except now I'm finding myself more bloated and having less bowel movements, despite drinking lots of water and getting more than enough fiber daily--can this affect things? Is this a source of concern?
Other than that, I did not exercise, except for the occasional run with my boyfriend.
This summer, I got a new desk job. I walk less. Naturally, my new lifestyle made me put on a few pounds.
I lost the weight I gained by adding in more (5x/week, alternating cardio and HIIT) exercise and eating less.
But now, my weight loss has stalled.
I don't have much less to lose; I just want to lose a few "vanity" pounds and see more definition. I wouldn't mind the lack of weight change if my measurements were shrinking, but they're also not budging.
I'm 5'0" and eating 1200 calories. Now I'm wondering if it's better to bump up my intake, or if it's safe to bring it down even more.
Also maybe worth adding--I've always been very "regular"--except now I'm finding myself more bloated and having less bowel movements, despite drinking lots of water and getting more than enough fiber daily--can this affect things? Is this a source of concern?
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Replies
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I would increase your calories for a few days see if that helps things shift. I find hormones can play havok with my 'morning' ritual. Also dont drink too much water and too much fiber could have the opposite effect, maybe just cut back on fibre for a day or two x0
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sarahdayski wrote: »I would increase your calories for a few days see if that helps things shift. I find hormones can play havok with my 'morning' ritual. Also dont drink too much water and too much fiber could have the opposite effect, maybe just cut back on fibre for a day or two x
What? Drink water. Your body needs it. Dont cut back on fiber either. Adjust your calories TDEE.
You may not be eating enough. 1200 calories im sure is way to low. Never go under 1200 calories.
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Well, just as an update, I bumped calories up by 200, and it's too early to say, but so far, so good. No weight gain, more "regular."
I actually did read up on fiber and too much can, in fact, be a bad thing, so I've been trying to be mindful of that, but I eat a plant-based diet so that is a huge challenge.0 -
If you want to be more defined... you're going to have to star incorporating lifting. Start out with machines. maybe 2-3 times a week. You'll start burning those stubborn calories before you know it..0
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The magic question is could she be eating more than she thinks?
OP are you weighing your food that log into MFP? When I hear people say they are eating 1200 calories and not loosing weight I am the opposite. I do not tell people to eat more.. My advice is to make sure the 1200 (or whatever the number is) really is that number.
Also if you eat back your exercise calories are you eating back all of them or a portion and how are you calculating your calorie burns.
Drink water. Drink half your body weight in ounces. If you weight 150, drink 75 ounces... YOu will pee all of it out that your body does not need.
And too much fiber can be counter productive. Check the fiber in MFP to see what foods you are eating that are lacking the fiber. taking over the counter fiber can cause rebound affect...
If you have not had a normal BM in about 3 days (max) you should ask your pharmacist and/or doctor for something over the counter to see if it works. If not you must go see the doc.. hands down.0 -
This time last year, I ate 1700 calories and maintained my weight . I worked a retail job and was always on my feet, and walked to and from work, class, etc.
Other than that, I did not exercise, except for the occasional run with my boyfriend.
This summer, I got a new desk job. I walk less. Naturally, my new lifestyle made me put on a few pounds.
I lost the weight I gained by adding in more (5x/week, alternating cardio and HIIT) exercise and eating less.
But now, my weight loss has stalled.
I don't have much less to lose; I just want to lose a few "vanity" pounds and see more definition. I wouldn't mind the lack of weight change if my measurements were shrinking, but they're also not budging.
I'm 5'0" and eating 1200 calories. Now I'm wondering if it's better to bump up my intake, or if it's safe to bring it down even more.
Also maybe worth adding--I've always been very "regular"--except now I'm finding myself more bloated and having less bowel movements, despite drinking lots of water and getting more than enough fiber daily--can this affect things? Is this a source of concern?
You should look into some kind of strength training if you want to see more "definition".
You don't say if you use a food scale to weigh/measure everything you eat/drink. Before bumping up/down any calories I'd tighten up my logging first.
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How long have you been stalled?
How do you track your calories in? Do you log everything, weighing with a scale for accuracy? Or measure with cups/spoons, estimate quantities, etc.?0 -
I weigh and measure my food meticulously. So I know for sure(as well as I can) that I had been eating 1200 calories a day. I put close to nothing in my mouth that I haven't pre-logged a day in advance. If I do, then I promptly account for it after the fact. I tend to round up my consumption, when in doubt. Better safe than sorry.
I do incorporate some lifting into the routine I have been doing. I've been doing what I can exercise-wise considering I'm studying to be a CPA and I have to spend a lot of time in the library. So about an hour or less per day of exercise has been the cap. And have not been eating back exercise calories.
I mentioned I'm only 5'0 which is why I'd considered lowering calories more. I have a healthy bmi and have an athletic build already; I am simply concerned with losing extra fat.
Every calculator I've used says I should be eating less than 1200, even though people always cite 1200 as the minimum, and though I have historically been able to lose weight eating more than 1200 calories.
My main concern was that usually my method worked with my body; however I hadn't seen a budge in the scale or measurements in about 2 weeks. I was wondering if after two weeks (a month total of eating 1200 calories--before that it was 1400)I should continue trying the same methods (was I not being patient enough) or should I try something new?
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Do use a food scale for everything?. Do you pick the correct entries from the database?0
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Some samples. I just post everything in dinner for simplicity. I make 90% of the things I eat. The waffle was my recipe and I divided the servings by weight. Everything else I measure by grams
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And the exercise tracker is not accurate. I suppose I could be more diligent in recording exercise, but I've always opted not to include exercise at all so I'm not tempted to eat back those calories0
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Cups and tbsp?0
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Like I said, I weighed it. I went by weight. They are in the database as cups and spoons0
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Example above. Note that the serving is listed as grams and cups. I entered it into my diary as cups, but measured by weight.
I'm an accountant. I work with numbers. I converted units. If you don't believe me, I don't care--I'm not here to argue whether I weighed my food or not.
I seem to have the issue under control now, anyway but thanks for all the input0 -
To be fair, I do this sometimes. The package says a serving is 1/2 cup/ 100 grams, so I measure out 100 grams and log it as half a cup.
OP, if you are only trying to lose a few vanity pounds, it will be VERY slow and will not always show up on the scale every week. You are basically aiming for 1/2 lb per week, which can easily be hidden by normal fluctuations. I would say give it a full month or even 6 weeks of not seeing any change before you worry about a new plan.
ETA: If you aren't as regular as you used to be, you might be carrying around some extra ummm waste which would affect your weight as well. I would try to get that squared away too before changing anything else. Make sure you are getting enough fiber and drinking plenty of water!0 -
To be fair, I do this sometimes. The package says a serving is 1/2 cup/ 100 grams, so I measure out 100 grams and log it as half a cup.
OP, if you are only trying to lose a few vanity pounds, it will be VERY slow and will not always show up on the scale every week. You are basically aiming for 1/2 lb per week, which can easily be hidden by normal fluctuations. I would say give it a full month or even 6 weeks of not seeing any change before you worry about a new plan.
ETA: If you aren't as regular as you used to be, you might be carrying around some extra ummm waste which would affect your weight as well. I would try to get that squared away too before changing anything else. Make sure you are getting enough fiber and drinking plenty of water!
I do that too. If something is accurate in the database, but only lists the measurement in tbsps, cups, etc. I will look at my package, see where it says something like 1 cup (125g) and if my measurement was 75g, I will round it up to 76, do 76/125 which is 0.608 and enter it as .61 cups on MFP.0 -
Example above. Note that the serving is listed as grams and cups. I entered it into my diary as cups, but measured by weight.
I'm an accountant. I work with numbers. I converted units. If you don't believe me, I don't care--I'm not here to argue whether I weighed my food or not.
I seem to have the issue under control now, anyway but thanks for all the input
Did I say I don't believe you?
I asked why you would log in cups if you weighed it as it seems like a 2 step approach to me
Wowsa0 -
Example above. Note that the serving is listed as grams and cups. I entered it into my diary as cups, but measured by weight.
I'm an accountant. I work with numbers. I converted units. If you don't believe me, I don't care--I'm not here to argue whether I weighed my food or not.
I seem to have the issue under control now, anyway but thanks for all the input
Did I say I don't believe you?
I asked why you would log in cups if you weighed it as it seems like a 2 step approach to me
Wowsa
I'm a little jealous of you that you've never had to use a database entry that only had cups listed, and you had to read the label's conversion of cup to g or oz and then pulled out a calculator to enter the right amount of 'cups' on the diary lol0 -
Protranser wrote: »
Example above. Note that the serving is listed as grams and cups. I entered it into my diary as cups, but measured by weight.
I'm an accountant. I work with numbers. I converted units. If you don't believe me, I don't care--I'm not here to argue whether I weighed my food or not.
I seem to have the issue under control now, anyway but thanks for all the input
Did I say I don't believe you?
I asked why you would log in cups if you weighed it as it seems like a 2 step approach to me
Wowsa
I'm a little jealous of you that you've never had to use a database entry that only had cups listed, and you had to read the label's conversion of cup to g or oz and then pulled out a calculator to enter the right amount of 'cups' on the diary lol
I'm British - cups make no sense to me - we even bake in grams (or ounces)
I've never chosen a cup entry - there's always one with grams somewhere or I enter my own food if it doesn't exist in the format I want in grams or scan the barcode or build a recipe
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Protranser wrote: »
Example above. Note that the serving is listed as grams and cups. I entered it into my diary as cups, but measured by weight.
I'm an accountant. I work with numbers. I converted units. If you don't believe me, I don't care--I'm not here to argue whether I weighed my food or not.
I seem to have the issue under control now, anyway but thanks for all the input
Did I say I don't believe you?
I asked why you would log in cups if you weighed it as it seems like a 2 step approach to me
Wowsa
I'm a little jealous of you that you've never had to use a database entry that only had cups listed, and you had to read the label's conversion of cup to g or oz and then pulled out a calculator to enter the right amount of 'cups' on the diary lol
I'm British - cups make no sense to me - we even bake in grams (or ounces)
I've never chosen a cup entry - there's always one with grams somewhere or I enter my own food if it doesn't exist in the format I want in grams or scan the barcode or build a recipe
That makes sense. As myself and others have stated in the thread, we just do the math and enter the portion of cups based on the decimal. It's rare that I have to do that, but for me it's easier than searching until I find grams. My career is in Mathematics so it's pretty much ingrained in me to just find the ratio and enter it if something isn't in grams, but I do prefer complete entries with gram measurements and when I add entries I use grams. However, you were just trying to help the OP and they got a bit harsh. @rabbitjb is constantly trying to help people here and frequently drops words of wisdom, OP; she wasn't calling you a liar. We all just want to help.0 -
Example above. Note that the serving is listed as grams and cups. I entered it into my diary as cups, but measured by weight.
I'm an accountant. I work with numbers. I converted units. If you don't believe me, I don't care--I'm not here to argue whether I weighed my food or not.
I seem to have the issue under control now, anyway but thanks for all the input
Did I say I don't believe you?
I asked why you would log in cups if you weighed it as it seems like a 2 step approach to me
Wowsa
I apologize for snapping--I had mentioned in one of my previous posts why I entered things the way I did so I legitimately thought you were questioning the validity of what I was doing. Which I guess you were, but with good reason. Thanks for the explanation.0 -
Anyway, I do apologize, I just felt like I was repeating the same things and I'm defensive of my habits in food logging because I am meticulous about it.
Thanks again for everyone's input.0 -
Cups are inaccurate. Use a food scale.0
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Anyway, I do apologize, I just felt like I was repeating the same things and I'm defensive of my habits in food logging because I am meticulous about it.
Thanks again for everyone's input.
No worries
I can be kind of direct because I've been doing this so long and I have a different cultural background to many on here
It boils down to increased activity if you're sure your intake is accurate though - you shouldn't cut below 1200 IMO
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY&feature=youtu.be
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