What am I doing wrong?!

Kitship

Why does it seem like whenever someone has this type of post that there are always people whose answer is "eat more!"?

How about eating less?

Eating less or exercising MORE at still 1200 calorie intake will force your body to start using the resources it has, and then once it does ramp back to 1200. At the OP's exercise level, 1200 is perfectly safe and all that is needed.

Eat more is such an easy answer to believe, because it's the one that is easiest, fun, and what we want to hear.

Maybe I'd go with Eat More Protein but keep calories the same. But that's the only type of "eat more" you should be doing.

P.s. Please no one say anything about a body going into "starvation mode," you're watching too many infomercials. It's a simple calculation: calories in minus calories out. If there is a deficit you will lose weight. If you have a deficit and are not losing, you are miscalculating one number or the other, or both. On Naked and Afraid, Discovery's survival show the participants went 21 days with only a snake and a turtle to eat. The girl who wasn't fat to begin with lost 23 pounds. Her body did not, "miraculously stop using its stored resources" until she ate more.

This is just plain wrong. At her weight her BMR is way over 1200. Please stop spreading disinformation and sourcing a reality TV show as evidence to support your claim.

Leeann1979

Just always remember muscle weighs more than fat. So you may still be toning down but not losing lbs. Maybe change your exercising. stay away from any strength training and do more fat burning exercises. Also remember if you do starve your body the fat is the last to go. It will eat at your muscle before fat.

First off, muscle doesn't weigh more than fat. A pound of muscle weighs the same as a pound of fat. Muscle takes up less space than fat does. Muscles burn more calories also. Keep doing strength training. And net more calories.

Kitship

Recap: starve yourself, just not for a month and you should be fine.

This line has me thinking that you're just a troll. Starve yourself for ANY amount of time (it doesn't matter if you average 1200 calories a day or not) and you will wreack havoc on your body and your metabolism.

mryak750

I agree with nathanfronk....a lot of these comments make no sense

jennifershoo

Eat more!!!!!!

atlchc8

Definitely do more cardio, 2 days even at 2 hours is not enough for sustained weight loss. Your body has adjusted to those 2 days of working out. Up it to 3 hours and see if your weight budges. You have PCOS, I had that too and that makes it very difficult to lose weight, you have to go see your doctor to help you.

Jillian Michael said eating 1200 cals a day is not starving yourself and I eat around 1300 cals a day and work out and I'm not hungry=not starving.

AlongCame_Molly

Definitely do more cardio, 2 days even at 2 hours is not enough for sustained weight loss. Your body has adjusted to those 2 days of working out. Up it to 3 hours and see if your weight budges. You have PCOS, I had that too and that makes it very difficult to lose weight, you have to go see your doctor to help you.

Jillian Michael said eating 1200 cals a day is not starving yourself and I eat around 1300 cals a day and work out and I'm not hungry=not starving.

This is wrong. So, so, very wrong. Cardio is good for your heart, but is not necessary for weight loss. You do not need to do three hours a day, or two, or even one. I promise. Do it if you enjoy it, and yes it will burn calories, but it will not give you the body your profile says you want with JUST cardio.

Strength training and heavy lifting, along with a reasonable calorie deficit and a little patience will give you amazing results.

__Di__

The other issue with forcing your calories down and down and down is a practical one-- are you going to be able to sustain that forever? Or are you going to overcompensate the minute you can eat at a "normal" level again? It's a lifestyle, not a diet.

You don't have to sustain it forever, if you did you would continually lose weight.

__Di__

So funny that the rants against eating more, fueling your body and preserving muscle mas while losing fat comes from people who lost 8 and 13 lbs....:bigsmile:

Don't include me in your little example there, my own ticker is not my full story, at all.

I have lost in the past 33lb and 41lb all on 1200 calories per day.

Now why am I trying to lose weight for the third time you may ask, it is quite simple really, I stuffed my face when I reached my goal and put on weight.

It worked before and it will works again.

Oh, and I am not starving nor is my metabolism wrecked, nor is my muscle being eaten into.:laugh:

_Zardoz_

Why does it seem like whenever someone has this type of post that there are always people whose answer is "eat more!"?

How about eating less?

Eating less or exercising MORE at still 1200 calorie intake will force your body to start using the resources it has, and then once it does ramp back to 1200. At the OP's exercise level, 1200 is perfectly safe and all that is needed.

Eat more is such an easy answer to believe, because it's the one that is easiest, fun, and what we want to hear.

Maybe I'd go with Eat More Protein but keep calories the same. But that's the only type of "eat more" you should be doing.

P.s. Please no one say anything about a body going into "starvation mode," you're watching too many infomercials. It's a simple calculation: calories in minus calories out. If there is a deficit you will lose weight. If you have a deficit and are not losing, you are miscalculating one number or the other, or both. On Naked and Afraid, Discovery's survival show the participants went 21 days with only a snake and a turtle to eat. The girl who wasn't fat to begin with lost 23 pounds. Her body did not, "miraculously stop using its stored resources" until she ate more.

Please stop it with this Common sense approach. MFP is no place for it.

babydiego87

Again and for the last time, because this thread is worn thin.

I suggested an average of 1200 calories/day on AVERAGE. One day of limiting calories below that number is not the beginning of a downward spiral that inexorably leads to Dante's 9th circle from which there will be no return.

I love you.

ltkasmala

Being at a plateau for 3 weeks is nothing. I've had spells where my weight didn't change for a couple of months. And it's been as I got closer to my goal weight, so that made it more frustrating. I agree with some of the other posts I read (I didn't read all of them by any means, however), you need to eat enough so your body doesn't think you are starving it, because then it goes into conservation mode and really won't let go of what you have. Also, you mentioned your exercise routine. Not sure how long you've been doing that but I just invested in some new workout videos just yesterday to "mix up" what I am doing. Your body gets used to the routine, too, and then it simply doesn't respond like it did. I usually rotate through Billy Blanks, Jillian Michaels, Zumba, and Leslie Sansone (different levels of intensity mainly) but I injured my knee a couple months ago and I am kind of limited still on what I can do. So I got some new workouts in hopes of loosing these last 8-10 pounds that just won't budge right now. So I understand where you're at. Don't give up! Oddly, I've been stressed out for over a month trying to find another job, debating whether I want to move, etc. and don't feel like I have been eating "well" like usual. While I haven't lost any more weight, I certainly haven't gained any back, so make sure you keep exercising no matter what! Good luck to you! I hope this helps!

alisonlynn1976

Are you taking your measurements? I'm slightly frustrated because I was consistently losing every week and now my weight has been the same for 2 weeks, but I did measurements today and my waist has gone down another inch, so I'm happy! Sometimes you can be making progress without seeing a change on the scale.

Susanthecatwhisperer

I'll say right away, I've been going over my calories a lot more than I should. BUT even when I was being better, I'd have the same issue. For me, it was a cycle. I'd plateau for a couple weeks, GAIN for a week or so of PMS, then lose a pound or 2 the following week. Maybe you're not doing ANYTHING wrong. Maybe it's hormones.

ron2e

Please stop it with this Common sense approach. MFP is no place for it.

Yep, totally agree this is the home of Bro-science, anecdotal evidence, snake oil, misinformation and magic. Common sense has no place here

Lesa_Sass

I will tell you how I did it.

I (was at the time 43) years old. 5'3.5 and was working on my last 8 lbs. I came to MFP, signed up and did the whole 1200 calorie a day thing. I lost a couple of pounds then I stalled at 5 lbs left to go. I started seeing all these post about eating more to lose weight and refused to wrap my head around it. So I continued on, eating 1200 calories a day, being miserable and not losing any more weight. SO, one day I decided, what the heck, let me just try this upping my calories thing for a few weeks and see what happens.


HOLY COW I LOST ALL THE WEIGHT! Not only that, I felt so much better. I was sleeping better and I was waking up feeling rested instead of still so tired. My attitude got way better as did my exercise endurance. I upped them to 1400 at first (plus most of my exercise calories) then to 1500 before hitting goal.

That is what worked for me, a woman over 40. The hardest thing about the whole eating more thing was wrapping my head around it. After I was able to do that and believe that I needed to eat more to fuel my body, my life became better in so many ways. It is so easy to fall into the trap of not eating enough thinking that we will lose the weight, I am living proof that it works, please feel free to look at my pictures to see what I look like now, closing in on 45 years old. I stopped logging because it was stressing me out (switched to clean eating) but I do have a healthy cooking page on facebook that shows many of the meals and snacks I eat during the day. The address is on my profile page if you are interested in checking it out.

Good luck. My mission in life is to help change the world, one fork at a time. I promise you that I would not tell you something that is going to hurt you or make you gain weight. Just give eating more a try, even if it is an extra sweet potato or cup of quinoa, some nuts or an extra filling smoothie.

michelle7673

The hardest part is patience. Weight loss rates are averages over time, really, and you lost a lot in the first two weeks. I'm not saying that you shouldn't re-examine your methods, but I am saying that, from what I've seen, people who do it every few weeks out of impatience tend to get frustrated and quit.
I would also suggest that you think about a more detailed goal. Is there magic in the 120 number? Or are you after a certain look or shape? Because that makes a difference too.

determinedbutlazy

Calculate your TDEE and minus 20% from it.

You may initially gain a couple of lbs but they should drop off within a few weeks. You don't have a lot of weight to lose for your height, I suggest you focus more on fitness goals and hitting your macronutrient goals than stressing over 1200 calories. As much as some people on this thread want to convince you it's okay to undereat, it gives you nowhere to GO.

1: start on 1200 cals
2: plateau
3: cut calories to 1000
4: plateau
5: cut calories to 800
Rinse/repeat, be miserable.

Calculate your calorie goal using something like

http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/

And think of some fitness goals you'd like to hit rather than a scale weight. Do you want to complete a workout programme like p90x or 30 Day Shred? Do you want to run a 5k? 10k? For charity maybe? I wanted to run a 5k in less than 40 minutes as one of my first goals when I was starting out. I went from not being able to jog for thirty seconds to a 33 minute 5k Race for Life. I also happened to lose over 40lbs in the process. Fuel your body, fuel your goals.

Turnaround2012

^^^ this - What Determinedbutlazy said.

-- This is the "internet' so you are going to see answers from every angle --

Your own knowledge is power:

---

This link below takes time to explain about

TDEE - Total Daily Energy Expenditure
BMR - Basal Metabolic Weight

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/975025-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet

--> Me I try to eat somewhere between my TDEE and BMR

Don't worry - this is a lot of info, but it eventually makes sense.

---

My favorite TDEE calculator - Scooby's workshop

http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

Good luck on your journey

Jimaudit

Perform a search on this topic and read some of the 12,000 other posts.

mmuzzatti

So I reached my all time high of around 155 pounds - I then quickly dropped to 144 in the first two weeks of mfp, and I haven't budged since.

Eat more to lose weight? I just got used to eating so little! How many calories should I be consuming a day then?

I drink around 2 litres of water a day - I don't think I can consume more than that.

Is 1200 the amount MFP set for you? Are you eating back your exercise calories? MFP calculates your needs assuming no exercise, i.e. you would lose weight without exercise. When you do exercise, you need extra fuel. Also, set your goal to lose 1 pound per week if it is not already. If you said 2 pounds per week, that deficit will be too large.

So I saw all the back and forth but you are right my dear you need to eat in order to lose weight! You want to eat like a bird go right ahead and we will see you here again!

jetlag

Because she is a young woman who is 5'5 and she is not extremely overweight. She shouldn't be eating so little and exercising so hard. By doing that, she is creating too much cortisol and upsetting other hormonal balances. She needs to be taking a smaller calorie deficit and giving it time.

The reason I disagree with you is not because I'm not a cat person, your profile picture is that of an obese cat, or because you said she's "eating so little and exercising so hard" as though we were living on another planet where that was a bad thing. It's because 1200 calories is sufficient, she's not starving (obviously or she'd be losing weight) and whatever negative effects there are from heightened levels of cortisol are outweighed by the benefits of being in great shape.

Have you looked at her diary? She's not even eating 1200 calories, don't tell her to eat less!!!

heidimomoftwo

I agree, eat more! Your body needs fuel! Otherwise you go into starvation mode. At 5'5" you should be around 1400-1600 calories. Good calories though, don't o all crazy and open up that can of Pringles. Pay attention to your ratios, you want to be on target there with your carbs, fat and protein.

BabyGrl726

I always plateau around 160. Im 5ft 5in as well. When I plateau, I kick my exercise routine into high gear with some kickboxing or high intensity cardio.....or i dramatically alter my diet by increased protein (no red meat) for a few days per week then dropping carbs dramatically for the remaining days of the week. It definitely seems like you need muscle confusion in your work outs too.

jetlag

I have one question for the OP: you know what your TDEE is, right? And you know that if you eat below your TDEE, you will lose weight.

So what have you got to lose (apart from weight) by eating more, as long as you stay below your TDEE? What you're doing is clearly not working