Using a Fitbit trying to lose weight but gaining! Help!!
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georginacullen wrote: »I_Will_End_You wrote: »georginacullen wrote: »Take what your fitbit says with a grain of salt (or any wrist-based HRM). They have been known it be inaccurate. While it is good for a ballpark estimate of your calories and heart-rate it's not completely correct. As big of a pain as some might think it is, the chest strap is much more accurate then the wrist mount HRM, especially if it's not worn correctly.
Also, it could be other reasons that you're not losing. Such as food, you may be eating more than you think.
I hear you about the Fitbit - I'll try a chest HRM, as for eating too much I'm logging absolutely as accurately as I can, everything as possible !! If it's got a barcode I scan it and my snacks are fruit/raw veg. Plus I eat less calories than what I gain through exercise, apart from a couple of days when I my knee hurt then I ate less than the 1200, I don't eat rubbish or white bread.
I'm very active. I need to eat...
You're probably under estimating how much you are eating. It doesn't matter how "healthy" you eat, if it's too many calories you won't lose. If you're just scanning barcodes, using cups and spoons to measure your food, or guessing on portions, you can't really be sure how many calories you're eating.
Just to be clear I'm not eating too much. I have a VERY physical job - I'm a UK traditional plasterer and decorator - I'm by no means sedentary. I have a boarder collie X and power walk at least two hours a day on top of my job, and go hill walking at the weekends. I am meticulous with my diary to the point of distraction! I find the food I eat isn't enough to satisfy me esp when working. If I didn't eat my fruit / veg nutty snacks i'd feel faint and I can't have that up ladders.
I eat a rawish plant based vegetarian/vegan diet. No cakes, no processed sugars, very little dairy... (Eggs!) I'd definitely say I was very 'healthy'. Unless you're saying I should be weighing every banana/Apple/blueberry I eat?
I can honestly say last week hasn't been as active as I might have been as I'm on holiday... But hey still pretty chuffed with how many km I did!
I've still got 600k left to eat... Apparently... Maybe I'll leave them there for tonight.
If you continue gaining or not losing? Yes. When it comes to weight loss, it doesn't matter how healthy you consider the food to be, it's about the calorie content. If you aren't losing weight, you aren't eating less than you burn. I'd give it a couple more weeks and see if you start seeing the scale move downward. It could be possible water retention, but that only lasts so long.
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Definitely weigh everything you eat. Prelog your day in the morning before you go to work. There is no point in eating back your exercise calories if your food logging isn't on point and as close to accurate as possible. Little omissions here and there add up at the end of the week.0
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georginacullen wrote: »I_Will_End_You wrote: »georginacullen wrote: »Take what your fitbit says with a grain of salt (or any wrist-based HRM). They have been known it be inaccurate. While it is good for a ballpark estimate of your calories and heart-rate it's not completely correct. As big of a pain as some might think it is, the chest strap is much more accurate then the wrist mount HRM, especially if it's not worn correctly.
Also, it could be other reasons that you're not losing. Such as food, you may be eating more than you think.
I hear you about the Fitbit - I'll try a chest HRM, as for eating too much I'm logging absolutely as accurately as I can, everything as possible !! If it's got a barcode I scan it and my snacks are fruit/raw veg. Plus I eat less calories than what I gain through exercise, apart from a couple of days when I my knee hurt then I ate less than the 1200, I don't eat rubbish or white bread.
I'm very active. I need to eat...
You're probably under estimating how much you are eating. It doesn't matter how "healthy" you eat, if it's too many calories you won't lose. If you're just scanning barcodes, using cups and spoons to measure your food, or guessing on portions, you can't really be sure how many calories you're eating.
Just to be clear I'm not eating too much. I have a VERY physical job - I'm a UK traditional plasterer and decorator - I'm by no means sedentary. I have a boarder collie X and power walk at least two hours a day on top of my job, and go hill walking at the weekends. I am meticulous with my diary to the point of distraction! I find the food I eat isn't enough to satisfy me esp when working. If I didn't eat my fruit / veg nutty snacks i'd feel faint and I can't have that up ladders.
I eat a rawish plant based vegetarian/vegan diet. No cakes, no processed sugars, very little dairy... (Eggs!) I'd definitely say I was very 'healthy'. Unless you're saying I should be weighing every banana/Apple/blueberry I eat?
I can honestly say last week hasn't been as active as I might have been as I'm on holiday... But hey still pretty chuffed with how many km I did!
I've still got 600k left to eat... Apparently... Maybe I'll leave them there for tonight.
Your daily calorie goal may need to be changed. Recalculate with MFP, and double check it with several other calculators. The reason I say double check it is that each calculator has their own idea of what activity levels entail, so they're all going to be different. If they're all close to MFP, you're probably fine there.
Type of diet means NOTHING in terms of what you eat to gain/lose weight. All that matters is the actual calories you consume. If that's less than the calories you burn over the course of the day, you will lose weight. And unless you're weighing EVERYTHING, chances are you're not being as accurate as you think you are. I didn't realize myself until I spent a week just weighing everything I ate and boy was I surprised!! Get a digital food scale if you don't already have one and make sure you're getting the right numbers. It doesn't hurt to double check yourself, and digital food scales aren't that expensive. Since your diary is closed, we have no way of knowing what exactly you're doing for it, so all we can do is make guesses.
You may also be burning less than you think. Unless you're using a Fitbit with an HRM, it's only a rough guess. Even with an HRM, it's not going to be 100%. And if you've set your daily activity to anything besides sedentary, well, each system has their own idea of how many calories those settings burn, like I said above, so you may not be getting as accurate a count as you think. The system may be assuming you'll burn X number of calories a day, when you're actually not burning that much even though you are active.
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georginacullen wrote: »JustMissTracy wrote: »Chain_Ring wrote: »Fitbit pretty much sucks. It is essentially a glorified pedometer. Go buy yourself a Garmin device, it'll make all other devices look like the toys that they are.
That's funny, I love my Fitbit. To each their own.
I would do as gia07 says above. If you're not using a food scale, you can't really say your logging is as accurate as it can be. I wouldn't rely on packages and barcodes. I thought I was on the money with my guestimates until after three or four meals, I was SHOCKED at the difference in what I thought a serving was, and what a serving truly should be. And you should def be weighing your veggies and raw fruit, as they add up really fast. And give it time. I go many weeks in a row before seeing a number change, all the time. I rarely see a change every week..You can do this, be patient, log and weigh everything, including your beverages and condiments. Then watch your trends and adjust accordingly...you can do this
That's really helpful. Thank you. So I should be weighing every gr of Apple/bananas? I'm not sure people understand how inconvenient this can be in a dusty/painty room I just count the pieces I eat. It is pretty unenjoyable weighing salad!! TBH I only drink coffee and water no sugar or fizzy drinks.
Hope I get there.
I'll give it a go.
LOL...Well, I guess it depends on what you're looking to achieve....I personally do weigh my apples, bananas, berries....veggies...butter...oils...everything. I log my tea in the morning, or juice or milk...I started MFP in August with the food scale, and yes it was a bit of a process to get started, but after two days, I was weighing in seconds; I keep a little book by the counter and log it while packing my lunch, then at the end of the day, when I'm having some down time, I can log it. Or I'll log it in the morning, and adjust at the end of the day. But again, it all comes down to what you want to have happen. It sounds like you may be eating at maintenance mode, so if you are looking to lose a bit more weight, you may really need to turn the inconvenience into a habit, and then you'll be able to cross that plateau. Tightening up on logging is key. I know it's not easy, but it's not easy for anyone of us on MFP (well, maybe for some, but I doubt they think so!). But it is WORTH IT. Again, good luck!0 -
georginacullen wrote: »I_Will_End_You wrote: »georginacullen wrote: »Take what your fitbit says with a grain of salt (or any wrist-based HRM). They have been known it be inaccurate. While it is good for a ballpark estimate of your calories and heart-rate it's not completely correct. As big of a pain as some might think it is, the chest strap is much more accurate then the wrist mount HRM, especially if it's not worn correctly.
Also, it could be other reasons that you're not losing. Such as food, you may be eating more than you think.
I hear you about the Fitbit - I'll try a chest HRM, as for eating too much I'm logging absolutely as accurately as I can, everything as possible !! If it's got a barcode I scan it and my snacks are fruit/raw veg. Plus I eat less calories than what I gain through exercise, apart from a couple of days when I my knee hurt then I ate less than the 1200, I don't eat rubbish or white bread.
I'm very active. I need to eat...
You're probably under estimating how much you are eating. It doesn't matter how "healthy" you eat, if it's too many calories you won't lose. If you're just scanning barcodes, using cups and spoons to measure your food, or guessing on portions, you can't really be sure how many calories you're eating.
Just to be clear I'm not eating too much. I have a VERY physical job - I'm a UK traditional plasterer and decorator - I'm by no means sedentary. I have a boarder collie X and power walk at least two hours a day on top of my job, and go hill walking at the weekends. I am meticulous with my diary to the point of distraction! I find the food I eat isn't enough to satisfy me esp when working. If I didn't eat my fruit / veg nutty snacks i'd feel faint and I can't have that up ladders.
I eat a rawish plant based vegetarian/vegan diet. No cakes, no processed sugars, very little dairy... (Eggs!) I'd definitely say I was very 'healthy'. Unless you're saying I should be weighing every banana/Apple/blueberry I eat?
I can honestly say last week hasn't been as active as I might have been as I'm on holiday... But hey still pretty chuffed with how many km I did!
I've still got 600k left to eat... Apparently... Maybe I'll leave them there for tonight.
if you are not losing weight, and you are not WEIGHING your food (no matter how 'healthy' it may be.... you need to start WITH A FOOD SCALE0 -
georginacullen wrote: »
Yes weigh everything. You might find that fruit is larger than you think.So that banana might not be 6 inches?
It may be six inches, but that has nothing to do with the weight. I can understand not wanting to weigh your food. I find it tedious and time consuming. But it can also be very helpful if you aren't losing, even if just for a little while. Take what you think the calories are in your banana, then weigh it and look at the actual calories (per the weight, which is most accurate) and see if it's off. Try this with the more calorie dense foods you eat. You can see if your estimates have been off and get a better feel for portion sizes.0 -
georginacullen wrote: »Take what your fitbit says with a grain of salt (or any wrist-based HRM). They have been known it be inaccurate. While it is good for a ballpark estimate of your calories and heart-rate it's not completely correct. As big of a pain as some might think it is, the chest strap is much more accurate then the wrist mount HRM, especially if it's not worn correctly.
Also, it could be other reasons that you're not losing. Such as food, you may be eating more than you think.
I hear you about the Fitbit - I'll try a chest HRM, as for eating too much I'm logging absolutely as accurately as I can, everything as possible !! If it's got a barcode I scan it and my snacks are fruit/raw veg. Plus I eat less calories than what I gain through exercise, apart from a couple of days when I my knee hurt then I ate less than the 1200, I don't eat rubbish or white bread.
I'm very active. I need to eat...
HRMs are only, and I means ONLY, for steady state cardio. They will have nothing to do with overall daily calorie burns which Fitbit is for.
It is possible your Fitbit is overestimating, but it is just a likely you are underestimating how much you are eating.
My guess is that there is an issue with calories in since unless you are really short you should be losing at 1400 a day regardless of what the fitbit says, and it indicates you are plenty active, making it much more likely the issue is eating more than you think you are.
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georginacullen wrote: »
Yes weigh everything. You might find that fruit is larger than you think.
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So that banana might not be 6 inches?
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Sounds to me like you've got it figured out
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callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »georginacullen wrote: »I_Will_End_You wrote: »georginacullen wrote: »Take what your fitbit says with a grain of salt (or any wrist-based HRM). They have been known it be inaccurate. While it is good for a ballpark estimate of your calories and heart-rate it's not completely correct. As big of a pain as some might think it is, the chest strap is much more accurate then the wrist mount HRM, especially if it's not worn correctly.
Also, it could be other reasons that you're not losing. Such as food, you may be eating more than you think.
I hear you about the Fitbit - I'll try a chest HRM, as for eating too much I'm logging absolutely as accurately as I can, everything as possible !! If it's got a barcode I scan it and my snacks are fruit/raw veg. Plus I eat less calories than what I gain through exercise, apart from a couple of days when I my knee hurt then I ate less than the 1200, I don't eat rubbish or white bread.
I'm very active. I need to eat...
You're probably under estimating how much you are eating. It doesn't matter how "healthy" you eat, if it's too many calories you won't lose. If you're just scanning barcodes, using cups and spoons to measure your food, or guessing on portions, you can't really be sure how many calories you're eating.
Just to be clear I'm not eating too much. I have a VERY physical job - I'm a UK traditional plasterer and decorator - I'm by no means sedentary. I have a boarder collie X and power walk at least two hours a day on top of my job, and go hill walking at the weekends. I am meticulous with my diary to the point of distraction! I find the food I eat isn't enough to satisfy me esp when working. If I didn't eat my fruit / veg nutty snacks i'd feel faint and I can't have that up ladders.
I eat a rawish plant based vegetarian/vegan diet. No cakes, no processed sugars, very little dairy... (Eggs!) I'd definitely say I was very 'healthy'. Unless you're saying I should be weighing every banana/Apple/blueberry I eat?
I can honestly say last week hasn't been as active as I might have been as I'm on holiday... But hey still pretty chuffed with how many km I did!
I've still got 600k left to eat... Apparently... Maybe I'll leave them there for tonight.
if you are not losing weight, and you are not WEIGHING your food (no matter how 'healthy' it may be.... you need to start WITH A FOOD SCALE
Yep, I always say that weighing every little thing you eat is not a prerequisite when trying to lose weight, but if one is NOT losing, accurate food weighing/logging would be the first thing I'd be looking at0 -
Maybe you gained some muscle ?0
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callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »georginacullen wrote: »I_Will_End_You wrote: »georginacullen wrote: »Take what your fitbit says with a grain of salt (or any wrist-based HRM). They have been known it be inaccurate. While it is good for a ballpark estimate of your calories and heart-rate it's not completely correct. As big of a pain as some might think it is, the chest strap is much more accurate then the wrist mount HRM, especially if it's not worn correctly.
Also, it could be other reasons that you're not losing. Such as food, you may be eating more than you think.
I hear you about the Fitbit - I'll try a chest HRM, as for eating too much I'm logging absolutely as accurately as I can, everything as possible !! If it's got a barcode I scan it and my snacks are fruit/raw veg. Plus I eat less calories than what I gain through exercise, apart from a couple of days when I my knee hurt then I ate less than the 1200, I don't eat rubbish or white bread.
I'm very active. I need to eat...
You're probably under estimating how much you are eating. It doesn't matter how "healthy" you eat, if it's too many calories you won't lose. If you're just scanning barcodes, using cups and spoons to measure your food, or guessing on portions, you can't really be sure how many calories you're eating.
Just to be clear I'm not eating too much. I have a VERY physical job - I'm a UK traditional plasterer and decorator - I'm by no means sedentary. I have a boarder collie X and power walk at least two hours a day on top of my job, and go hill walking at the weekends. I am meticulous with my diary to the point of distraction! I find the food I eat isn't enough to satisfy me esp when working. If I didn't eat my fruit / veg nutty snacks i'd feel faint and I can't have that up ladders.
I eat a rawish plant based vegetarian/vegan diet. No cakes, no processed sugars, very little dairy... (Eggs!) I'd definitely say I was very 'healthy'. Unless you're saying I should be weighing every banana/Apple/blueberry I eat?
I can honestly say last week hasn't been as active as I might have been as I'm on holiday... But hey still pretty chuffed with how many km I did!
I've still got 600k left to eat... Apparently... Maybe I'll leave them there for tonight.
if you are not losing weight, and you are not WEIGHING your food (no matter how 'healthy' it may be.... you need to start WITH A FOOD SCALE
WOW. Chill out luv. I get the food scale message.
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I am experiencing something similar. I gained 3 pounds in two weeks, but I have also lost 4 inches. I think this could be due to some muscle toning. Hopefully next week it will show that I have lost some weight also.0
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Suspected my Fitbit ChargeHR was showing inaccurate calorie burn, so tested it today versus the treadmill at the gym and the exercise search on MFP. Walking at 3mph for 25 minutes: Fitbit said 160 calories burned, treadmill said 117, and MFP says 112. That is a big difference in just 25 mins. I am not going to eat back the calories I burn. And I have started to weigh some food. A banana that looked medium to me ended up being large and more calories. I think we all tend to underestimate portion sizes. Plus make sure you get enough protein daily, esp if vegetarian. Good luck.0
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JustMissTracy wrote: »
So that banana might not be 6 inches?
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Sounds to me like you've got it figured out
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Haha
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All the comments say that you are just doing it wrong and that getting a smaller body is JUST calories in/calories out (please remind me how it takes months, even years for someone to starve to death? just sayin). Oh that repeating record gets old. You might want to consider that your plant based (likely high grain/nut/sugar, probably low in essential natural saturated fats- yes I said "essential saturated fats") diet may not be as "healthy" as you think. ("What human society was ever only vegan or vegetarian?" may be a good question to ask.) Otherwise just keep doing what you are doing and hopefully it works out for you. Weight loss takes lots of time and is not linear as also already mentioned.0
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Suspected my Fitbit ChargeHR was showing inaccurate calorie burn, so tested it today versus the treadmill at the gym and the exercise search on MFP. Walking at 3mph for 25 minutes: Fitbit said 160 calories burned, treadmill said 117, and MFP says 112. That is a big difference in just 25 mins. I am not going to eat back the calories I burn. And I have started to weigh some food. A banana that looked medium to me ended up being large and more calories. I think we all tend to underestimate portion sizes. Plus make sure you get enough protein daily, esp if vegetarian. Good luck.
Thank you that's very useful and cheers for the encouragement. I've got a Fitbit Surge, the battery keeps losing life so I'm sending it back for a replacement. Maybe the new one might show something completely different? Hmmm slightly annoying if it does.
To be honest I'm dunno how much more exercise I can fit in in a day... I literally run myself into the ground every day! I'm at work at 8am and home for 8pm, in bed for 10!
Bonkers.
Yes, I thought about protein, I'll defo add more this week.
I also think I eat too much bread. Oooh lovely seeded loaves and I do like a wrap. Trying to switch to raw wraps... Time though, I'll have to make some - time!
G
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martyguy74 wrote: »I am experiencing something similar. I gained 3 pounds in two weeks, but I have also lost 4 inches. I think this could be due to some muscle toning. Hopefully next week it will show that I have lost some weight also.
That sounds good. Keep it up!!0
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