Nothing working, close to despair

ckfromedmonton

I am a repeat mfp person. Never been really heavy but since the onset of perimenopause and now menopause, there is 10-15 pounds I simply can't lose. I am petite - 5' 2.5 and very small frame.

I work with a very good personal trainer 2x week doing strength training ( been working with a trainer for 13 years). I also swim 2x week, 30-40 minutes. I run 5k on Saturdays with stairs (2 sets). And Sunday's I do yin yoga ( sometimes vinyasa on Weednesdays). So I am active for a sedentary person.

I never ever eat junk ( every once in a while I give in and have a biscotti). I eat at home mostly. Clean. Protein every meal, lots of fresh veg. I drink sparingly.

For a month I have been tracking on mfp ( I weigh and measure most foods so am sure I am not underestimating). I eat 1000-1100 calories a day , which is low but I am tiny and I wasn't losing on 1200.

I went to see my naturopath who will test my hormones. I know my DHea and cortisol are low they have been for years.

I sleep well, I love my job, in a commited long distance relationship. My stress is ok, see a shrink have been seeing him for 8 years.

HELP. I could get rid of 1 tsp maple syrup at breakfast, eliminate alcohol completely. I already eat almost no sugar, virtually no wheat.

ummijaaz560

Awe you sound very sad OP? Its going to be fine cheer up. How about you open your diary so we can see how you log everyday?

Do you have any other fitness goals besides losing those pounds? I find that when I focus on being fitter and relax about losing the weight loss happens in time.

Dano74

Frustrating! What does your trainer say about all this? I'm kind of like, trainer can't get you there... huh? Not doubting their awesomeness- just seems there's a disconnect?

That said, with your activity, a reduction of calorie isn't going to do you any good but make your metabolism even slower over the long haul.

So how about this 10-15 lbs. What's your goal, beyond a number on the scale that measures your gravity against the earth? What does that 10-15 lbs. do for you? Taking you to an aesthetic level you're wanting to achieve?

CoffeeNCardio

99% of the time on here, if you're not losing at low calorie setting, it's because you're eating more than you think and just not logging well. I'm not saying that to be mean, it's out of a sincere desire to help you solve the problem so you can reach your goals.

1. Are you using measuring cups and spoons or are you using a food scale?
2. Are you weighing same time every day?
3. Are you barcode scanning your foods or just picking whatever pops up in the search on MFP?
4. If the latter from above, are you picking the green check marked items? Are you verifying against the package?

AS ummijaaz560 said, you'll get a lot of helpful and useful advice if you change your diary settings to "public" so people can have a look and see where the issue is. It's not about shaming your food choices, it's about scrutinizing the MFP database hings you're clicking to see if they are accurate or if they are hurting your progress.

CoffeeNCardio

Another potential problem could be how you are logging your exercise. MFP, as well as other sites, way overblow the calorie burns from exercise. It'll tell you something stupid like you burned 500 calories, when realistically it's probably closer to 200. How are you tracking your work outs? Are you using an activity tracker like fitbit? Or are you just plugging the info into MFP? Are you eating back most or all of your added exercise calories?

Aaron_K123

That "final 10 pounds" is often a matter of muscle and not fat, meaning that "final 10 pounds" look can come from being low muscle while basically having gotten rid of almost all if not all non-essential fat.

With that said have you considered possibly eating more and attempting to gain some weight in the form of muscle by continuing your lifting regimin (maybe lifting heavy) and adding calories so you are a bit above your maintenance level?

I say this simply because you sound like you are already at a healthy weight so this is about your body shape and vanity (not meant in an offensive way, vanity isn't bad really). Getting that "toned" look is typically a matter of gaining weight and adding some muscle, not losing that last 10 pounds.

Its possible that weight loss isn't the solution, its a controlled weight gain that would help...just wondering if you have considered that possibility. If you have a personal trainer perhaps ask them about your diet, your caloric intake, and whether or not it might be good to try to stop losing weight and instead work on muscle building.

ogtmama

ckfromedmonton wrote: »

I am a repeat mfp person. Never been really heavy but since the onset of perimenopause and now menopause, there is 10-15 pounds I simply can't lose. I am petite - 5' 2.5 and very small frame.

I work with a very good personal trainer 2x week doing strength training ( been working with a trainer for 13 years). I also swim 2x week, 30-40 minutes. I run 5k on Saturdays with stairs (2 sets). And Sunday's I do yin yoga ( sometimes vinyasa on Weednesdays). So I am active for a sedentary person.

I never ever eat junk ( every once in a while I give in and have a biscotti). I eat at home mostly. Clean. Protein every meal, lots of fresh veg. I drink sparingly.

For a month I have been tracking on mfp ( I weigh and measure most foods so am sure I am not underestimating). I eat 1000-1100 calories a day , which is low but I am tiny and I wasn't losing on 1200.

I went to see my naturopath who will test my hormones. I know my DHea and cortisol are low they have been for years.

I sleep well, I love my job, in a commited long distance relationship. My stress is ok, see a shrink have been seeing him for 8 years.

HELP. I could get rid of 1 tsp maple syrup at breakfast, eliminate alcohol completely. I already eat almost no sugar, virtually no wheat.

How tiny?

GauchoMark

One thing you didn't tell us is how much you weigh and how often you weigh. More specifically, for the past month that you have been carefully tracking, what did you weigh when you started and what do you weigh now? Ideally, you would weigh daily during that month so you can get a decent trend.

Here is a problem - if you really do maintain at 1200 calories and you are set at 1100 calories, that is only targeting 0.2 lb/wk. If you go for a month, that is only a 0.8 lb loss in a month. The error measurement of bathroom scales is really unable to measure that kind of change with one or two measurements - you need a lot of data to overcome the error.

It could be that you are doing just fine, but you just can't measure it.

MissusMoon

CoffeeNCardio wrote: »

99% of the time on here, if you're not losing at low calorie setting, it's because you're eating more than you think and just not logging well. I'm not saying that to be mean, it's out of a sincere desire to help you solve the problem so you can reach your goals.

1. Are you using measuring cups and spoons or are you using a food scale?
2. Are you weighing same time every day?
3. Are you barcode scanning your foods or just picking whatever pops up in the search on MFP?
4. If the latter from above, are you picking the green check marked items? Are you verifying against the package?

AS ummijaaz560 said, you'll get a lot of helpful and useful advice if you change your diary settings to "public" so people can have a look and see where the issue is. It's not about shaming your food choices, it's about scrutinizing the MFP database hings you're clicking to see if they are accurate or if they are hurting your progress.

All of this.

And honestly, I'd go to a real doctor to have tests run. You're going to get a lot of unsubstantiated woo at a naturepath.

Alamo0809

I agree that the calorie counts are iffy no matter where they come from. I am also 5 ft. and 65 yrs old. I dropped to 900 calories at one point and had minimal success except that I was very successful at becoming light in the head and had difficulty concentrating. There was a BBC series about weight loss and there are reasons that some of us need a more controlled diet. If you google "BBC low responders weight loss research" you might be able to find the programs. It might give you some direction. I would look into research based programs because there are reasons some of us struggle more than others and simple calorie counting is not the solution. I wish it was... it would be so much easier.

11Templars

Hi @ckfromedmonton, If you've been paying a personal trainer for 2+ years and they can't figure this out or point you in the right direction then you might want to look for someone new. Just sayin..

I'd be happy to help (as I'm sure are plenty of ppl on here).

Let's look at a few things here:

You're only eating 1000-1100 cals a day? Every day, 7 days a week? That's a tough job. Does this include "earned calories"?

@CoffeeNCardio suggested; "earned cals" are highly fluffed up. I would stick to eating 1/2 of any earned calories. Also, I would submit that easily %75 of ppl are eating more then they think.

How's your water intake? Should be a min. of 1 litre a day, more is better.

How are your energy levels? If you are legitimately only eating 1100 cal a day and doing cardio as you suggested, and eating no more 300 earned cals a day and you still cannot lose wight I would consider getting your Thyroid checked out, and not from a Natural Path. From your family Dr.

Based on what you've said; if accurate; your body would be in "Starvation Mode". So something clearly is amiss..

ckfromedmonton

Seeing naturopath, checking hormone levels, I know I am not a scientific marvel but I am very commited to losing and have hit this wall so many times. Trained for and ran a half marathon and lost zilch. Thanks for your response. Will stick to it,

ckfromedmonton

Thanks to all!

CattOfTheGarage

Are you sure you need to lose it? What's your BMI? Remember it is normal to increase in weight with age, some fat can be protective for women in later life. Check your BMI against a calculator that takes account of age as well as gender. If you are in the healthy range but just not happy with how you look, strength training might work better for you than weight loss.

JustMissTracy

I'm the same height as you, 47 years old, and am still losing eating, weighing and logging between 1500 and 1800 (sometimes more) every day. I'd say there's something not right with your logging. Are you weighing your food? How are you determining your daily burns? Is there a chance that you no longer need to lose any more weight, maybe just need to recomp?

If you are weighing your food properly, tracking your activity and logging, and still not losing weight on such a low number, I think you should go see your doctor and see if something else isn't going on (not a naturopath!!).

xperiencerage

What about doing cardio first thing in the morning with an empty stomach? Remember to have food ready cause you'll feel weak after you are done. Take the number 220 and subtract your age. Then multiply by .6 and .8. The numbers you get is the heart rate you need to get to lose the most fat possible. For example, I'm 20 years old so if I subtracted 20 from 220 and multiplied by .6 and .8 I'd get 120 and 160. If I stay bet those two I burn the most fat I can that's also healthy.

RobD520

OP has not posted her weight. I am curious as to whether she is actually overweight.

joans1976

OP, I do t have any advice to offer but good for you for sticking with a personal trainer as you get older. So many of us women lose weight but forget about the benefits for our bones and hearts for the long term with strength training. Myself included.

Packerjohn

xperiencerage wrote: »

What about doing cardio first thing in the morning with an empty stomach? Remember to have food ready cause you'll feel weak after you are done. Take the number 220 and subtract your age. Then multiply by .6 and .8. The numbers you get is the heart rate you need to get to lose the most fat possible. For example, I'm 20 years old so if I subtracted 20 from 220 and multiplied by .6 and .8 I'd get 120 and 160. If I stay bet those two I burn the most fat I can that's also healthy.

Fasted cardio and "the fat burning zone" are both myths, similar to unicorns.

JenniferNoll

As active as you are, it may be that those 10-15 pounds are supposed to be there. I don't know your weight or BMI, but if your doctor says you are at a healthy weight for your age and height, perhaps you should go into maintenance. Keep working out and eating healthy, but stop beating yourself up.

peggyyaeger9

Have you had your thyroid function tested? I have hypothyroidism and even with medication I have a very difficult time losing weight, although it is not impossible. Before medication, no amount of diet and exercise would bring my weight down. Get it checked and don't give up!