What am I doing wrong????

Lauramumto4

Hi all! I'm stuck and need help!
I've lost 50lbs over two years. I've still got about 20-30 to lose. But I've been stuck for weeks now. I lack knowledge about weight loss and feel lucky that I've lost this much!! Sounds crazy I'm sure. Up until now I've just limited my calorie intake to around 1200. I've not dieted constantly. It's been on and off.
Now I've been back on for a couple months. But with almost no results. I have never exercised that much but now I am doing some. I go for long walks with a pram and kids! And I've got my cross trainer out too! I'm doing more than I use to at least!
My food is mostly fruits, vegetables, cereals, pitta occasionally, weight watchers bread occasionally, dried fruits, different kinds of beans. I'm not clued up on proteins, carbohydrates etc. So I'm not sure if what I'm eating is ok. I'm still consuming 1200 a day. I try to drink more water too!
What should I do now to make a difference???

livingleanlivingclean

How are you determining your intake? Food choices aren't important for weight loss (health is a different matter), so as long as you're in a deficit you should be losing weight.

Do you weigh all solids and measure all liquids?

Nony_Mouse

Are you weighing your food and ensuring that you're using accurate database entries? That's usually the first place to start looking when the scale isn't moving.

You say 'almost no results', which suggests you have had some results. How much weight have you lost since you restarted?

suzesvelte

Hi - you did well to lost 50lb over two years. Bravo!

If you are not losing now you MUST be eating more than you think you are. Espcially as your smaller body needs less food than you bigger body did for its base-level of keeping going.

It is quite easy to overeat on things like dried fruit, so you need to weigh the amounts you eat and log them accurately to see if you are eating more calories than you think. MFP is a great tool for that.

You don't really need to be "clued up" on protein / carbs etc but I have found that eating more protein and less carbs has helped me. What I mean by that is my general pattern is: eggs (protein) for breakfast without toast. Something mainly veg based for lunch with Meat / fish/ beans etc (protein) for dinner with vegetables but NOT rice/pasta/bread/potato (carbs). This is a general pattern. I DO eat other carb foods, sometime, esp when I am cycling and need fuel for the ride ...

suzesvelte

Here's a reliable source on basics of nutrition:
https://www.nutrition.org.uk/healthyliving/basics.html

Orphia

If you only have 20-30 lbs to get to a mid-range healthy BMI, you should only be aiming to lose between half a pound and a pound a week. Don't stress if you're expecting to be losing more than that.

Also, female hormone fluctuations can cause water weight at different times of the month, which can mask weight loss for a week or two.

I recommend using a weight trending app like Happy Scale or trendweight to log your weight daily that smooths out the daily fluctuations and shows the longer term trend.

tinkerbellang83

Some good tips below for accurate logging

Lauramumto4

Thank you so much for all your replies. I am investing in a food scales today. You're probably all right, I could be eating more than I think.

Protein, if I make an effort to eat more will it help me to lose weight? I don't eat much carbs so hopefully this'll do the trick? Weighing food, more protein, less carbs???

ceiswyn

Eating more protein may help you feel fuller and be more healthy. It will not affect your weight loss. Calories in vs calories out is the only thing that affects weight loss.