What am I doing wrong?

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hotmamma0607
hotmamma0607 Posts: 9 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm 5'4, 190 pounds pretty muscular female. I'm trying hard to lose and get down to 140. I eat basically the same thing every day. Yes I use scales and pre-portioned meals. I eat around 900-1000 calories a day. I workout 5 days a week. I do something g different everyday. Some days kickboxing, Zumba, running, calisthenics, etc. all activities keep my HR around 150-160 for an hour. I lost 9 pounds my first month but now I'm gaining again. Can anyone help? Please be nice...I'm super depressed right now. Thanks so much!

Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Often when people report a very low calorie intake and are maintaining/gaining weight, there is an issue with their logging (that is, they are eating more than they think they are). If you open your diary, you may get some useful advice.
  • Squirrel698
    Squirrel698 Posts: 127 Member
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    I would recommend, and I'm not any kind of expert, throwing an occasional cheat meal in there. It would help with Leptin resistance if that's your problem. That is what works for me.

    http://authoritynutrition.com/leptin-101/
  • DanyellMcGinnis
    DanyellMcGinnis Posts: 315 Member
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    I'm 5'5" and about 150 pounds at the moment. I am working out somewhat more (1.5-2 hours, 7 days a week, also mixing it up). But I am eating a heck of a lot more. I could not possibly be satisfied on 900-1000 calories per day and am probably closer to 1800. Still losing, just a bit slowly. So make sure you are eating enough!

    How long have you been gaining? And by how much? You can pack on a lot of water because of monthly hormonal cycles. And also if you eat too much sodium. Which packaged meals tend to have (not sure if pre-portioned = packaged in your case or not). So if you are gaining for like 2 or 3 days, or even a week or two, that is not time to worry. And be sure you are drinking enough fluids.

    Also don't expect your rate in the second month to be the same as the first. You lose a lot of water weight quickly at first but that levels off. I also only weigh once a week, in the morning, before eating. So I can see trends instead of daily fluctuations. It's less stressful for me, personally, but you have to do what works for you.

    Do you have access to a body fat scale? (You can get a basic one for under $50 on Amazon.) Or a measuring tape (super cheap at any store with sewing supplies)? Even when I am not losing much weight, I find that I am losing inches and/or losing fat and gaining muscle.

    Try to add some strength training. It doesn't sound like you are doing a ton of that right now. It doesn't have to be all gym/free weights, either. Body weight exercises, kettlebells, etc. can be good workouts too. Or try to make your existing workouts harder. I like 90s step aerobic videos, as an example, so I do them but after a time, I increase the step height to burn more calories. Or I just moved up to a 20 pound kettlebell instead of a 15, as another example.
  • hotmamma0607
    hotmamma0607 Posts: 9 Member
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    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Often when people report a very low calorie intake and are maintaining/gaining weight, there is an issue with their logging (that is, they are eating more than they think they are). If you open your diary, you may get some useful advice.

    I don't eat more than I log. It has become so much of an obsession that I even logged the 2 m&ms I ate yesterday. I don't think that is the problem.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    hotmamma0607 wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Often when people report a very low calorie intake and are maintaining/gaining weight, there is an issue with their logging (that is, they are eating more than they think they are). If you open your diary, you may get some useful advice.

    I don't eat more than I log. It has become so much of an obsession that I even logged the 2 m&ms I ate yesterday. I don't think that is the problem.

    So you're using a scale to weigh all food and you're not using "generic" or "homemade" items from the database? I'm not trying to doubt you, but it's possible to log everything you eat and still make some common mistakes (mistakes I and many others have also made) that mean you're eating more than you think.
  • jdleanna
    jdleanna Posts: 141 Member
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    Just want to say I am shorter than you, weigh 70 pounds less, am far less active than y ou, and eat a few hundred calories more than you do. I would bet any weight gain you're experiencing is simply water weight due to time of the month or sodium inyske, and isn't real weight and isn't permanent. I also bet you could eat more and still lose weight. It'd be heathier for you - you'd be less likely to lose lots of muscle mass - and it'd be more sustainable too.

    But really, if this gain is recent, it's not actual weight. It's just normal fluctuations that happen to everyone. Keep on going (though please consider adding 400 calories or so) and give it time.
  • hotmamma0607
    hotmamma0607 Posts: 9 Member
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    No. I use a scale for everything! I also eat pre-packaged meals for dinner with veggies. So maybe sodium is a problem. I also have PCOS so I guess it's harder to lose weight? I ALSO have ADHD and I'm on adderall which is a major stimulant so it still seems like that should be helping with the weight loss as well. I'm going to cut down on my carbs and up the protein so we shall see how that goes. And replace my pre-packaged meals with chicken breast. Thanks so much for all your help. I'm really depressed!!!
  • dubird
    dubird Posts: 1,849 Member
    edited February 2016
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    janejellyroll wrote: »
    hotmamma0607 wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Often when people report a very low calorie intake and are maintaining/gaining weight, there is an issue with their logging (that is, they are eating more than they think they are). If you open your diary, you may get some useful advice.

    I don't eat more than I log. It has become so much of an obsession that I even logged the 2 m&ms I ate yesterday. I don't think that is the problem.

    So you're using a scale to weigh all food and you're not using "generic" or "homemade" items from the database? I'm not trying to doubt you, but it's possible to log everything you eat and still make some common mistakes (mistakes I and many others have also made) that mean you're eating more than you think.

    Second this. I logged at first, but didn't get very far. It wasn't until I started using a scale for EVERYTHING that I realized how bad my guesstimations were! Now, 3 years later, I've gotten much better at it, but I still need to weigh new things and double check myself from time to time.

    How long as the weight loss been stalled? Gaining some here and there is normal. Water weight, hormone fluctuations and the like will cause the number on the scale to go up. Weight loss is not linear; your numbers will swing up and down a LOT. I can look back on the graph MFP gives you for your entered weights and there's a lot of peaks and valleys. But I can draw a line from start to finish and it's going down, which means I'm on track. Keep logging, weigh yourself once a week at the same day and time, and give it a few months.

    Also, it might be a good idea to up your calories. Check some other online calorie calculators and see what they say. If you go too low, you're in danger of losing muscle mass and possibly malnutrition.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    hotmamma0607 wrote: »
    No. I use a scale for everything! I also eat pre-packaged meals for dinner with veggies. So maybe sodium is a problem. I also have PCOS so I guess it's harder to lose weight? I ALSO have ADHD and I'm on adderall which is a major stimulant so it still seems like that should be helping with the weight loss as well. I'm going to cut down on my carbs and up the protein so we shall see how that goes. And replace my pre-packaged meals with chicken breast. Thanks so much for all your help. I'm really depressed!!!

    PCOS can complicate weight loss. I don't have it myself, but I think there is a group of people here who do. Maybe someone will swing by and drop the link for the group so you can get advice from one of them.
  • blankiefinder
    blankiefinder Posts: 3,599 Member
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    When you say 'you're gaining again', what does that mean? Does that mean you're up 2 pounds today over your last weigh in? Does that mean you've been up consistently every weigh in over the last 3+ weeks? Huge difference in reasons between the two.
  • Maxematics
    Maxematics Posts: 2,287 Member
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    Why are you eating such an absurdly low amount of calories?
  • CoffeeNCardio
    CoffeeNCardio Posts: 1,847 Member
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    Sorry I'm late:

    zlnfjg6j45io.jpg
  • CoffeeNCardio
    CoffeeNCardio Posts: 1,847 Member
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    OP: your calories are absurdly low, even for PCOS, when you account for your activity level. Find out your maintenance, eat at that level, and drop 100 cal/day per week until you start losing and stop there. It's virtually guaranteed that number is above 1000.
  • californiagirl2012
    californiagirl2012 Posts: 2,625 Member
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    The flow chart is really good. But also some of us lose very slowly and it can "seem" like nothing is happening. Guaranteed, if you are truly eating at a deficit and not binging or sneaking bites and forgetting about it you will lose fat over time.

    The scale is a very limited tool and since your body has a lot of water, the body weight scale is not very useful except as a trend over time. Many people get discouraged from the body weight scale, when if they just kept their focus on the process of the calorie deficit and wait patiently, the results will eventually happen. People give up too soon because it's like watching water boil sometimes. Put your focus on other things, keep busy, and wait because it won't happen quickly.
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
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    Since you have a particular medical condition (PCOS), I would recommend talking to your doctor to get a referral to a dietitian that specializes in PCOS. Between your test results (that your doctor has) and the dietitian's experience and knowledge, they should be able to help you.

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