Restarting my workouts after a year of inactivity

ftwjessicat

Hey everyone! So about a year ago I moved to a new city where a close and affordable gym wasn't an option until about a month ago. Needless to say, I lost any and all muscle I had built while gaining that same weight back in fat (boo!).

Luckily, I was able to start back at the gym exactly a month ago. The problem is, I haven't noticed any real changes. I decided to start off easy:
I'm 26
female
starting weight of 152
Height of 5'3"
My BMR is about 1480 so I started my first 2 weeks eating 1400 net while doing about an hour of cardio a day to equal 600. I didn't lose any weight and my measurements hasn't budged in those two weeks so I decided to lower my net calories to 1300 and then 1200 this last week. Problem is I'm still only weighing in at 150 and my waist, hip, neck, And thigh measurements still haven't changed.

I don't eat like garbage, me and my partner make most of our meals at home and if I'm unsure of the exact proportion I always estimate high. I do eat when I'm hungry and try to drink as much water as possible.

The only two things I can think that might be halting my weight loss are
A. I am somehow in starvation mode from occasionally only eating 1000 net (but I don't feel hungry?)
B. This slow starting weight loss is normal and I just didn't notice the first time around (I started working out regularly at 20) because I wasn't paying attention to my weight or measurements then.


I'm just sort of looking for some good vibes, maybe some ideas of what I could do differently, positive encouragement! I just want to meet my goal weight of 140 and then work on building muscle at that point.

LivingtheLeanDream

A - there is no such thing as starvation mode. (plenty of threads here about that)
B - Slow is more sustainable, although at 26 though your metabolism is higher than someone older.

The reality is, if you aren't losing weight, you are eating too much.

You say you prepare your own meals but how do you know quantity? eating healthy is all well and good but if we eat TOO much of anything then we don't lose weight. You need to start weighing your foods so you can log your meals more accurately and know that you aren't eating above your calorie allowance.

Don't cut your calories, just make sure you are logging those calories as accurately as possible, and remember to log/track every single thing that goes in your mouth. People often forget about little nibbles or condiments or cups of tea/coffee etc.

It takes longer than a month to see visible changes when working out. But keep up the good work of going to the gym and consistency pays off

LivingtheLeanDream

oh and I want to add that I started off at 154lbs/5ft 2/46yrs - it took me a year to get to my goal of 134lbs.

I preferred the slow and steady route where I didn't feel deprived/ ate 1600 cals including some exercise cals and lost 1/2lb per week/ became more active.

Been maintaining that loss since 2013, in fact am even lighter than then (now 130lbs) which is a bonus

VintageFeline

I think you could probably lower your expectations a bit. You, relatively, don't have a lot to lose. You're going to have to make sure your logging is tight. Also, you just started exercising again, you are likely experiencing some water weight gain from that.

As for results from exercise, add in some resistance work, either a heavy lifting programme like Strong Lifts or NROLFW or bodyweight. I can guarantee you will see physical changes far quicker from that alone than with just cardio and a deficit.

terbusha

I would give it a month of really tight consistency in nailing down your nutrition and hitting your workouts HARD. Lift and do cardio with intensity. The more you can bring to your workouts, the better you'll do. If you go a month with no reduction in weight or inches at a lower calorie level, then I would start a reverse diet to get your metabolism up. Just take it 1 day at a time though. If you need some help with the specifics, then hit me up!

kbmnurse

Me too. I slacked off for last 3 months and bingo weight on feel horrible. I started this week increasing exercise and logging again. What a big PIA but, necessary.

laur357

You went from 152 to 150 in 4 weeks. That's a healthy loss of 1/2 pound a week for someone who doesn't have a whole lot to lose and is still testing to find their appropriate caloric deficit.
You also dramatically increased your exercise to an hour of cardio a day, so you may have experienced some inflammation and water retention that is masking some additional loss.

I also agree with the strength training suggestions. Cardio can burn lots of calories, but swapping in some strength training definitely helped me lose inches faster. Even body weight exercise a few times a week is a great start!
Otherwise, I'd be patient for a few more weeks and see where you are. If you think you should be seeing a faster loss, being more accurate in calorie tracking might help - weigh food when possible and calculate your recipes carefully.
Try to net at least 1200 calories a day to make sure you're meeting nutritional needs and be aware that many pieces of gym equipment and calorie trackers overestimate actual calories burned (I'm also 5'3," and sadly we don't get as much wiggle room as our taller friends). Many people here eat only 50%-75% of the calories they burn to make up for any discrepancies.