Question for the men who have lost the pounds :)

leecha2014

Hey guys!

After 3 years on mfp my hubby has asked that I help him lose weight, I've created a profile for him and set up his meal plans. He is so focused and doesn't eat anything before running it by me
For the first three weeks he dropped 4 lb, the 2 lb the 5lb but the last 2 weeks he has stayed the same??? He's a big guy at 305lb this shouldn't be happening! I feel so bad, I need to understand why the scale didn't move? Has this happened to you? Is his body in shock as he feels very hungry? This is what his day looks like which is within his daily target:
Bran muffin
2 hard boiled eggs
2 sandwiches with cheese and turkey, tbsp mayo
Apple
Big bowl of salad ( very big). With romaine, peppers, onions and 400g BBQ chicken breast, feta, oil/vin
150 cal bag of chips
Water all day - I don't think 8 cups

For a man who is 305, who ate probably double this amount in calories before I can't understand why the scale hasn't moved in 2 weeks? I'm cutting out the feta as I didn't realIze how high the sodium was.

If this relates to anyone, please share your thoughts. Trust me he isn't eating pizza on the side. He's feeling very disappointed and confused as I am.

Thanks

Gallowmere1984

It's never linear. When I cut from 265 to 185, I'd have weeks in a row where it seemed like nothing was shifting, and suddenly ten would fall off in a week.

Years later when I cut from 190 to 150, it was more consistent for some reasom, but still pretty zaggy.

I did the first bout on 1600/day, and the second on 1400.

GrahamUK72

Is he drinking enough water? Minimum should be 2litres, but he may need more due to his current size.

Water is definitely a key thing we need for weight loss.

kaizaku

Losing weight takes time. Just like when he put on weight. It didn't happen over night. It's a gradual process. Being patient and consistent is the key. Also, does he exercise? Diet and exercise goes hand in hand.

JeromeBarry1

Don't let yourselves be disappointed or confused. This is an educational process. The lesson to learn at this stage is to simply not expect perfect measuring, logging, consuming, and compliance to your plan to be rewarded with perfectly obedient scale response. But stay compliant with your plan anyway.

I take from your opening sentence that you've been using mfp for 3 years and you know all the details and you know how it works.

Stay patient. Stay persistent. Stay in a calorie deficit. If he's built up a calorie deficit in 2 weeks of 14000 calories without a corresponding weight loss, that does not mean that CICO has failed. It means that a colossal whoosh is coming. Be sure he gets his fiber quota daily. If he's not supplementing with magnesium, start that.

And get him into heavy lifting right away because you don't want to married to a skinny fat shar pei.

randycox73

I do workout along with dieting. I had a month where I lost nothing and I did all of the right things. Then I noticed my pants were loose and I had to move to a smaller belt notch (but zero pounds lost). I also had a week where I dropped 8 pounds. Both situations concerned me but it was just part of the journey.

You are disappointed and concerned because you are expecting weight lose to be linear. Most people who have done it say it was not linear for them. There is a good chance it won't be linear for your husband.

I think it will be beneficial to reset your expectations. He is 5 weeks in and lost 11 lbs. That is more than 2 lbs a week, the higher limit of what is recommended, and yet you two are frustrated that it is not enough. He is doing it! Be happy!

Chadxx

I was 320 when I started and water weight can definitely fluctuate quite a few pounds, especially at that size. I was extremely consistent with my diet and the scale still did funny things. Add in some variation and extra sodium and it really fluctuates. I wouldn't worry about it. If he sticks with it, he will make progress.

Dreamcrusher16

It's already been said, but weight loss isn't linear. Also, look up the woosh effect. Basically it's a theory that claims as you loose weight your body stores more water (maybe this is a defense against starvation since water's more important than food, don't know for sure). When I started in lost very quickly at first then slowly then I'd gain a little and then lose more. I've stayed on the same eating plan and exercise plan the whole time. Ultimately I don't have a time line like a lot of other people do so maybe I don't have the same pressure on me as others feel. Slow and steady, stick to it and don't expect it to be a straight slide for the weight to come off.

Commander_Keen

Could he be cheating?
What about 1hr worth of cardio?
What about an hour worth of weight lifting?

SoCo1906

I have currently been eating around 1000 calories a day for the last month. The past week I gained 2 lbs. I started at 270, and have plateaued at 250 for the past 8 days. Woke up today and lost 4 lbs. I am just in it for the longer term, and have noticed my sodium intake varying bits by bits. But my first week was 8 lbs (I am guessing water), 4.4 lbs, 3.8 lbs. 3 lbs, and then the plateau.

flatlndr

leecha2014 wrote: »

Hey guys!

After 3 years on mfp my hubby has asked that I help him lose weight, I've created a profile for him and set up his meal plans. He is so focused and doesn't eat anything before running it by me
For the first three weeks he dropped 4 lb, the 2 lb the 5lb but the last 2 weeks he has stayed the same??? He's a big guy at 305lb this shouldn't be happening! I feel so bad, I need to understand why the scale didn't move? Has this happened to you? Is his body in shock as he feels very hungry? This is what his day looks like which is within his daily target:
Bran muffin
2 hard boiled eggs
2 sandwiches with cheese and turkey, tbsp mayo
Apple
Big bowl of salad ( very big). With romaine, peppers, onions and 400g BBQ chicken breast, feta, oil/vin
150 cal bag of chips
Water all day - I don't think 8 cups

For a man who is 305, who ate probably double this amount in calories before I can't understand why the scale hasn't moved in 2 weeks? I'm cutting out the feta as I didn't realIze how high the sodium was.

If this relates to anyone, please share your thoughts. Trust me he isn't eating pizza on the side. He's feeling very disappointed and confused as I am.

Thanks

Can you open your (his) diary, so we can see quantities?

The bran muffin, depending on size and how it's made, could be calorie-laden. Likewise the mayo (if regular mayo), the cheese, the oil, etc. Nothing wrong with him eating any of that, it's all a matter of quantity.

Are you measuring with a digital scale, or just estimating? I make a strictly measured chicken and cheese sandwich, and it comes in at around 500 cals => two sandwiches for your hubby could be ~1000 cals. Depending on the size of that muffin, that could be 500 cals as well. 400g of chicken (raw) is about 450 cals. BBQ sauce can be loaded with sugar and therefore more cals. add the cheese, the oil, etc, and i'm already counting at least 2500 cals.

If I assume he's 6' tall, then his sedentary maintenance calories are only about 2000/day. Add some exercise and he'll burn off more.

So, to help truly answer your question, please note his height, his age, and his typical daily activity, and open up the diary.

I went from 279 to 174, with very strict/accurate measuring and logging ... the first 50 lbs practically melted off. If he's weighing/logging correctly, there's no real reason why he can't do very well in his first couple months. After that, that pace will slow down.

SayBoo4

In my experience (I've dropped 20-30 pounds in 5 weeks twice), when calorie counting and taking in about 1000 calories, I plateau after about 3 weeks. I'll lose about 10-12 pounds in those first three weeks. I'm currently down twenty in five weeks. I started off down at 1000 calories per day and didn't take that many in on a lot of days. When I plateaued, I UPPED my calories to 1400 because my body had slowed down its metabolism due to the low caloric intake. When I reach my goal, I'll probably settle around 2000 to maintain the weight. I'm no doctor, by any means, and am only speaking from my own experience and Internet "research." Here are some recommendations:

- First two weeks, drop caloric intake to 1000-1200. You need to be careful though, one's ability to do this can vary. I'm 5'7 and started off at 184 pounds. My goal is 155ish. Bigger guys shouldn't go so low. Feel yourself out for getting dizzy (I never did) and have something on standby in the event you need it. Don't be weak though.
- Cutout carbs in the evenings
- Don't intake "good" fats and similar high- calorie foods in the beginning
- Go heavy on egg beaters in the morning
- I cut out rice, nuts, etc.
- I eat a lot of steamed chicken, baked fish, broccoli-cauliflower mash (don't add cream! or butter), fruits, cottage cheese, spinach, dry toast, etc
- NO ALCOHOL!!!!
- EXERCISE! There are several days I burn as much as I intake but I have a job where I must stay physically fit.

After the first two to three weeks, you can start working in rice, sweet potatos, etc, more regularly. For example, I upped my breakfast calories by 100 by adding a Wholly Guacamole mini to my omelet. Everybody will be different.

THE ABSOLUTE KEY FOR ME when I dropped weight the first time back in 2012 was COUNTING CALORIES. It is eye-opening seeing how many calories are in certain foods. Get him to log his foods. It made me stop having creamer with my coffee and led to many other changes. Encourage him, he can do it. Anyone can. Get him excited about it. That's why I like the extreme start because the results are evident right off. Good luck!

BiggDaddy58

I am 58 and started at 308 pounds..I watched my calories very carefully when I started. I put myself on a strict 1200-1300 calorie a day diet for a good 3 months. I also started exercising.

I am not recommending that for your husband. I would say..is his 305 a "fat" 305 or is he a big, tall athletic type?

I dropped weight very regularly for a long time. Now that I am down in the 230s, it isn't as easy..but I am not nearly as strict in my diet..

It would also be helpful to know his exercise routine, before being able to be helpful.

I would say, find out his TDEE (without the exercise added) How many calories does he burn on an average daily basis. Then add exercise calories.

Once you have that total..set your calories in at 500 less than that (for a 1 pound a week weight loss) or 1000 under for 2 pounds a week..

If he is a fat 305 and sticking to exercise and calories..he really shouldn't stop losing, as that excess comes off pretty fast for the first 30-50 pounds..then it gets harder.

I hope this helps some..

Other than that..this usually works to burn fat :

JLP2017

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leecha2014

Thanks guys for the advice! He has a lot of underlying muscle, he's very strong and is a construction manager so active although many times in the office. I have weighed and measured everything, muffins were bought that listed the calories for ease. He is going to start walking our dog ( bonus for me ) I should add he is keeping the best attitude and we are both thrilled with the results do far, I just didn't expect so early on a stall. I thought the weight, especially for men, just fell off in the beginning. We are staying positive and plugging away. Thanks again, it's reassuring to read all of this. Best to your journey

RyanSapp

Just tell him to stick to it and trust the process!! Weight lifting and then some cardio can really kick it in to gear. 3-4 days a week at an hour each time. I would like to see his progress!!

Dreamcrusher16

RyanSapp is right, lifting is super important when you're on a deficit. If your husband doesn't put in some time lifting he'll lose muscle right along with body fat. Personally I only do as much cardio as I need for my own specific goals. I'm not training for a marathon or anything so I'm not running 10 mules a day three times a week. He'll need to set his own cardio goals. I also use extra cardio when I go over my calorie goals just to keep myself in a deficit.

xlgman

I'm a tall guy, started at 296 and I'm down to 235. My daily and weekly weight loss has fluctuated a lot despite the fact that I'm extremely consistent with my food logging and calorie intake - it's just the way our bodies work. However, when I look at the weight loss month to month it is very steady. My advice to him is to be very consistent for three more weeks and see what happens. By consistent, I mean try to hit the same calorie and macro goals (within +/- 100 calories) every day. Do the same amount of weekly exercise, preferably the same amount he plans to adopt as his new routine. It doesn't matter what it is (but recommend heavy lifting ASAP). Weigh in every day when he first wakes up, after he pees, but before he drinks anything. If he does all those things, he'll be able to calculate what his actual TDEE is. Once he knows that, he can customize his calorie deficit to establish a maintainable weight loss rate.

For example, by the end of my 6th week, I'd determined that I was losing 1.4 pounds per week on 2700 calories and a lightly active lifestyle (office job, heavy lifting 3x/wk and walking 5-10 miles per week). So my calculation for my TDEE was 2700+1.4*500=3400 calories per week. I set my new calorie goal to 2400 to try to lose 2 pounds per week. Then I re-evaluated again 3 weeks later and calculated TDEE as 3500. 3 weeks later 3200. Eventually, I settled into a routine of 2400 calories and a reduced level of exercise that has given me a TDEE of around 3100 per week and a consistent weight loss of roughly 5-6 pounds per month.

I treated the entire thing like a giant lab experiment, only changing one variable at a time to really understand how things affected me. I now know my body better than ever before and have completely taken back control of my life. And I no longer need to be super consistent because it all averages out over the long haul if I stick to my weekly and monthly goals.

He can do it, too and the fact that you are supportive is a huge help.

xlgman

Oh yeah - I also highly recommend Weightgrapher to track the actual weight loss trends - it helps reassure you that you're actually losing weight long haul. There are others but that one is pretty straightforward and easy to use.

Tacklewasher

I'm sorry, but some of the advice above scares me. Please ignore anyone talking about 1000 - 1200 calories. That's dangerous for his health. Minimum is 1500 and he should probably be in the 2000 range.

I'm 6'. Started at 330 and am down to 261 as of this morning. I'll be more tomorrow based on what I had for dinner today. Not a true weight gain, but more sodium than normal so I will be retaining water. If it doesn't hit tomorrow, it will hit Tuesday. And that is just the way it is. I'll be down again by the end of the week, but my weight yo-yos based on what I eat. Again, not actual fat gain, but water retention.

It's frustrating. I hit my calorie goals so I should be down 0.2857142857142857 lbs tomorrow (2 lb / 7 days). Life does not work that way.

If you can open his diary, some here can have a look. Feel free to look at mine if it helps. I'm targeting 2000 cals per day and doing cardio to make sure I can eat that much. I'm also doing light lifting twice a week, but that is not for the calorie burn. That is to be sure most of my weight loss is fat and not muscle. I should do more, but I hate lifting and enjoy the treadmill.

I haven't stalled as bad as 2 weeks, but this last week frustrated me. Weighed 263.5 Sunday. Enjoyed Superbowl and was 265.9 Monday. That was fine. Back to 263.5 Tuesday through Friday with no movement, and a 2 lb woosh Saturday followed by a 1/2 lb this morning. It is just the way it is for guys, except we can't blame it on the time of the month.

Also, be careful with the scale. It may be hiding a small weight change. I learned that one the hard way. Read http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10485204/dumb-scale-question-weight-watchers-scale to see what I learned about my dumb scale.

DaveDR7

Think he's doing pretty well myself.
I've noticed I've hit a bit of plateau for last week, as a 52 year old male, no real exercise for last 15 years. I decided to be insane enough to do Insanity.
So far it's working and apart from cutting my meal sizes, I've tried to enjoy a similar life style, although have pretty much cut out Pizzas, currys, but every month, I have a treat; which takes 2-3 days to recover from!
My weight yo-yo's as much as 5lb after a hefty carb meal, I don't profess to be into all this nutritional counts and maybe I should.
I started at 251lb and now at 240lb, 11lb loss over 4.5 weeks, still over the 2lb week loss recommendation, but reasonably happy with the success so far.
Last week or so the weight has bobbed around 238 -242lb, makes me feel something is wrong, but I'm going to carry plodding on; I'll check to see if my salt intake has increase, meaning you might be holding onto more water than normal. I'm still exercising as per normal 5-6 days out of 7 and burning 300 - 500 calories, so almost a 1lb per week and my daily deficit hits about a further 500 calories per day, based on average 2500 calorie intake.
I some times (2 weeks ago) failed to hit my BMR and my weight loss slowed down and think this maybe why I'm yo-yoing at the moment, tried to hit my BMR for last 10 days and continue my Exercise regime, hopefully my body will 'reboot' itself and my weight loss will start all over again.
If I didn't have any weight loss/or losing inches on my measurements for 4 weeks, then I might be checking my calorie intake or make note if I'm sneaking some snacks and forgetting to log them! Easily done, if you fail to do it there and then!
But don't lose hope, I honestly think if you can get in your mindset that you're in it for the long haul 52+ weeks, you will definitely see the hard work pay off.

Spliner1969

I started at 305 lbs, I'm 6'2" tall, 47 years old. MFP set me at around 1600-1800 calories a day, and I started out walking 2 miles a day and worked my way up to 4 miles a day. I managed to probably average 2lbs a week loss but it definitely wasn't linear at all. Some weeks I lost more, some nothing. It depended greatly on whether or not my body decided to retain water, be constipated, or just plain be mean. I'm serious though, there were weeks I gained weight even though I was on nearly a 1000 calorie a day deficit. It made no sense at all. But overall it worked out, and although I could not help but get discouraged I kept it up and was successful.

Here are a few things to watch:

1) Salt/Sodium intake. You can track this on MFP easily by swapping the sugar category out for it on the diary page. Too much sodium will make you retain water, and I've even seen it be as much as 7lbs, or as little as 1lb.
2) When you're logging, make sure you're weighing everything. Don't use diary entries like "bbq chicken", use the "usda cooked boneless skinless chicken breast", weigh it after it's cooked, then add in 1 tbsp or two (depending on how much you believe is on the chicken breast and made it to the plate) of bbq sauce. Condiments, salad dressings, drinks, oils (for cooking) all make a HUGE difference, and are the first things people forget to log. When he's 300 lbs it isn't as critical, but as he loses weight it'll be much more critical to be accurate.
3) Make sure he's drinking plenty of water. Near a gallon a day or more. If he works construction this is likely a no-brainer for him, but just keep it in mind.
4) Are you certain he's not snacking and just not saying anything? Don't beat him up about it, if he works a physically strenuous job it requires calories for energy. But not logging it throws things off.
5) Don't expect him to live on salads (not saying you are, but most men won't enjoy them daily), consider lower calorie dressings, sides, main dishes rather than just less of a specific dish he likes. Sometimes volume matters to be satiated, and most things can be prepared differently, but taste the same, to reduce calories.
6) Last but not least, make sure he's getting adequate fiber. This mixed with adequate water intake is a huge factor in keeping things regular. Not just digestion and waste, but weight loss in general (because when things get backed up, weight loss looks like it stalled).
7) As far as lifting, if he's not doing it now, I wouldn't require it of him. It's not required for weight loss. He likely keeps enough of that going while working on a daily basis, unless he's more of a manager and less of a worker. Just keep his protein levels up (more than what MFP suggests) and he should be fine on retaining muscle. There are people who love to lift weights, and those will be the first people to tell you to have him lift heavy right away (I'm not saying there's anything wrong with it, and if you want to do it, I think it's great). Those same people will argue in other threads that you can't build muscle while in a deficit. I did just fine by keeping my protein levels up, and I managed to build muscle just doing body weight training regularly (no heavy lifting). I won't look like Arnold Schwarzenegger any day soon but I didn't lose any muscle, I managed to gain muscle but lose fat. I kept my protein at around .8g/lb of my target body weight or more.
8) He should be eating back at least 50% of his exercise calories gained unless you used some calculator that already figures that into his daily goals. MFP does not figure in exercise calories, so purposeful exercise is meant to gain you calories to eat.

Good luck!

ninerbuff

If the deficit is too high, it's not uncommon to lose a couple of weeks then stall. Just be consistent and it will pick up again. As mentioned, weight loss isn't linear.

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