Looking for help and advice - cals up, down or stay?

Sapphire_Elf

Hi all
Looking for any help and advice you might be willing to give. Apols in advance for what might be lengthy post!!

Stats: female, 44yrs, 5 ft 6.
Current weight 163.8 lbs. Managed to get to 159.6 about 2 weeks ago but those lbs just came back.

Exercise:
Mon: Kettle bells (45mins, 4-6kg), spinning (45)
Tues: fitness suite at gym (10 mins cardio, then weights, dumbbell squat 10kg each side), ab work. Approx 60-70 mins all in.
Weds: Body pump class (45 mins)
Thurs: Boxercise class (30mins) followed by repeat of Tues minus cardio
Fri: rest / horse riding (1hr - walk,trot and canter work)
Sat: repeat of Tues
Sun: boxercise (45mins)

I am currently eating 1600 cals a day (confession: using a site other than MFP to log - gasp! ) I am more or less hitting my macros though don't always reach my carb goal. I am fairly positive that I am burning more than I am eating....?

On about 4th week but getting a bit discouraged as nothing is changing. Not lost Inches: body fat remains the same: weight fluctuates by the same 1lb up and down.

I am now wondering what to do next as I am obviously not doing something right. Should I lower my cals? Put them up? Stay the same? Change my macros? (can't remember what they are without looking and don't want to lose this post as I'm typing it on phone!)

If anyone wants further info I can detail the weights etc and probably copy some sort of screenshot of food diary.

Any advice would be gratefully received.
Thank you.

kshama2001

Yes, screenshot of food diary would be useful.

Is the exercise new? You could be retaining water from that, which would mask fat loss.

Where are you in your menstrual cycle? I gain at ovulation and right before my TOM. Because of this (and because Lyle McDonald said to) I compare myself to last month, not last week.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6846ZTBu08k&index=4&list=PLUXvX9BaxgqG9yO5XWB3gA_QshvrrcjVr

mazdauk

You are doing a lot of exercise, so possibly need more of a rest, Or try changing the order, trying a new class. Do you ever go over your calorie goal - I'm not talking about a binge, but a day when you have three good meals, maybe a snack or two extra? Once a fortnight it can help to wake up your metabolism. Or try working out your TDEE and taking 100 cals off that - when I stalled (at about your weight - I am the same height) my calories actually went up. I got to 140lb but looked scrawny so am now settled at 143-147 (I am slightly older). my weight actually went up from 140 to 143 but my inches went down, which is why I give myself that tolerance.

DX2JX2

The first question is always about the quality of your calorie tracking and logging. Remember that your macros don't really matter for weight loss - calorie totals are the key regardless of what you eat.

If you're comfortable with your tracking, then how are you handling exercise calories? I ran your stats through a few online calculators and show your maintenance at a sedentary lifestyle as something around 1900. Before factoring in exercise, your targets should be something like 1400 per day to lose 1 pound per week or 1200 per day to lose ~1.5 pounds per week.

Assuming that you're burning about 200 calories per day on average (derived mainly from the cardio since resistance work doesn't burn a ton), then a target of 1600 calories per day should be good to give you a 1 pound per week loss, or 1400 calories for 1.5 pounds per week.

Given those loss rates and the relatively short time you've been on this, it's not unusual to not see drastic changes in weight on a daily/weekly basis. Water weight alone from new exercise programs or sodium intake can swing your weight by more than 2 pounds on a daily basis.

I'd say keep doing what you're doing. Maybe drop your calories by 100 per day to see what happens but the main thing is to give yourself a little more time.

JeromeBarry1

That 1600 calories ... Do you use a food scale to weigh everything you eat? Do you accurately and honestly log everything you eat?

And about that 4 weeks ... Be patient. Be accurate with your food logging and stay within your calorie budget every day, even on weekends and date nights, and special occasions.

Exercise? If you must. Log it accurately and eat back less than you burn.

DX2JX2

mazdauk wrote: »

You are doing a lot of exercise, so possibly need more of a rest, Or try changing the order, trying a new class. Do you ever go over your calorie goal - I'm not talking about a binge, but a day when you have three good meals, maybe a snack or two extra? Once a fortnight it can help to wake up your metabolism. Or try working out your TDEE and taking 100 cals off that - when I stalled (at about your weight - I am the same height) my calories actually went up. I got to 140lb but looked scrawny so am now settled at 143-147 (I am slightly older). my weight actually went up from 140 to 143 but my inches went down, which is why I give myself that tolerance.

OP - not to derail the original thread, but note that there is no such thing as 'waking up your metabolism'. Nothing wrong with giving yourself a treat but the relief you get tends to be more mental than physical.

quiksylver296

Food scale?

Sapphire_Elf

Hi all, thanks for replies. Been waiting till I could actually get to a laptop to type!!

In answer to various questions (rubbish at quoting):
Kshama: TOM - just sort of had that (on the pill where you don't really have a break, as such) so I was sort of hoping that was what had bumped me back up those 4-odd lbs.

Exercise is relatively new, yes. I have just added in the spinning and pump classes.

Mazdauk: I don't think I can try any new classes LOL I've had a go at most of them that my gym run. The most I've been over my calorie goal was last week when I was about 100 last Weds or Thurs (I gave in and had a small chocolate bar!). In terms of meals I'm afraid I hate breakfast so I don't eat it. I have a smoothie instead (skimmed milk, protein powder, frozen banana). All weighed/measured out. I am making myself have lunch and dinner. I don't tend to snack as I have a fondness for crisps....!

DX2Jx2: I am logging everything. I have digital scales so everything is weighed - I don't rely on measurements like cups etc (one reason I prefer the other site to log, to be honest, rather than MFP). I have run my stats through a number of calorie calculators; in terms of factoring in exercise I'm not, really - as in, I'm not thinking, "oh, I burned 500 calories so I'll eat them back on top of the 1600 I already have," A number of the calculators came out at roughly 1600 cals when activity was factored in so that's what I've plumped for. Having said that I am still finding that I am hungry, in the evening and when I wake up - which is odd considering I'm now probably actually eating more! (Makes me reluctant to drop them ;/)

JeromeB: yes, food scale used for everything. I take my own lunches to work so am not buying ready made sandwiches etc and I weigh/measure everything out the night before. Mostly salads with ham/chicken, something like that. I am not logging any exercise/eating back those calories (I don't think!).

Quiksylver: Thanks for posting the chart, I have seen it before on a few threads I have looked through it and seem to be in the big red circle area LOL.


I know it's cals in/cals out which is why I'm looking for help, as I feel that I am doing something slightly off. If I'd seen any sort of change (even 1/2lb loss or the way clothes fit, absolutely anything at all), I would be happy and keep going but there's nothing happening - I'm stuck. I weigh daily and track it using an app which shows trends etc etc. At the moment it's on a curve up *sigh* I'm also making sure I drink at least 2 litres of water a day (which plays havoc with exercise classes haha!).

MegaMooseEsq

My two cents: it sounds like you know what you're doing with the logging, so my suspicion would be that you just need to give your body time to get used to the new exercise routine. And who knows, maybe TOM had something to do with it. Four weeks is early days though - don't give up!

Sapphire_Elf

Cheers. I will keep slogging and hope for a whoosh!!