Beyond frustration
jesshali119
Posts: 44 Member
I'm asking sincerely because I obviously can't figure it out myself. Maybe someone could point out something I'm missing.
I have been at a plateau for about a year and a half. No matter what I did, I didn't gain or lose any weight. As far as gaining muscle, I'm sure I have but it's not visible. For a period of 2 or 3 months each, I ate between 1200 to 2200 one month at a time seeing what would prompt a difference and there was no change during the entire process.
My routine for the past month has been spin class Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Sunday. It's cardio that I don't dread going to or getting through. Monday, Wednesday, Friday I've been doing upper body weights.
Diet has been as follows:
Breakfast
Starbucks grande cold brew, no sugar no milk
53g kodiak cakes for 190 cal
Lunch
Typically roasted carrots or green veggie and 5 oz protein (chicken, turkey, meatballs, fish)
Snack
Either 1 organic apple with 30g no added sugar peanut butter that i make myself or a protein shake (powder, pb2, almond milk).
Dinner
Changes every day. Could be soup, small portion of protein/whole wheat pasta with veggies, sandwich, omelette. Pretty much whatever i want to make. All ingredients weighed out on a scale.
Aside from the coffee, I only drink water. no juices, no milk.That routine has been keeping me at 1450 calories at the most. What I have for dinner depends on not going over the number.
My problem is not figuring out why I'm not losing weight working out that much, and eating at that deficit. Based on a TDEE calculator and averaging a week on my Fitbit, my TDEE should be 2291. Technically I should be losing at 1700 calories or less. There is nothing medically wrong, I have done tests and everything always comes back normal.
Any advice would be appreciated.
I have been at a plateau for about a year and a half. No matter what I did, I didn't gain or lose any weight. As far as gaining muscle, I'm sure I have but it's not visible. For a period of 2 or 3 months each, I ate between 1200 to 2200 one month at a time seeing what would prompt a difference and there was no change during the entire process.
My routine for the past month has been spin class Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Sunday. It's cardio that I don't dread going to or getting through. Monday, Wednesday, Friday I've been doing upper body weights.
Diet has been as follows:
Breakfast
Starbucks grande cold brew, no sugar no milk
53g kodiak cakes for 190 cal
Lunch
Typically roasted carrots or green veggie and 5 oz protein (chicken, turkey, meatballs, fish)
Snack
Either 1 organic apple with 30g no added sugar peanut butter that i make myself or a protein shake (powder, pb2, almond milk).
Dinner
Changes every day. Could be soup, small portion of protein/whole wheat pasta with veggies, sandwich, omelette. Pretty much whatever i want to make. All ingredients weighed out on a scale.
Aside from the coffee, I only drink water. no juices, no milk.That routine has been keeping me at 1450 calories at the most. What I have for dinner depends on not going over the number.
My problem is not figuring out why I'm not losing weight working out that much, and eating at that deficit. Based on a TDEE calculator and averaging a week on my Fitbit, my TDEE should be 2291. Technically I should be losing at 1700 calories or less. There is nothing medically wrong, I have done tests and everything always comes back normal.
Any advice would be appreciated.
6
Replies
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I am interested to see what the responses are too. This sounds like me. The only thing I know for me is that unless I really cut back on my food, I do not lose weight. I also do not eat back my exercise calories. If I do, I do not lose weight. I am 53 which could be part of my problem. I don't know.2
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Well, the simple answer is you're inputting more calories than you're outputting.
How do you measure your food intake? Do you use a food scale? Do you log every single meal you eat every day, or do you only do it sometimes? Do you eat back your exercise calories? How are you calculating those?12 -
How much do you weigh and height? You look normal size in the photo. Age isn't it. I'm 52 and so far I've lost 28 lbs. since July--however I also have 72 to go, and the heavier you are above normal, the faster/easier the weight comes off since there is so much extra fat stored and a calorie deficit is easier to achieve. When I first started on MFP, I was shocked to see how many calories I was eating, probably over 3,000 per day, so to cut back even to 2000 would have had me losing some weight, with a small deficit. My TDEE is about 2300 or something like that.
In your photo, if that's current, you look like you don't need to lose anything, IMO.2 -
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It looks like you have very very little to lose if any. And if you are talking 5-10 vanity pounds, it takes precision in all that you do to lose this little bit. Lots of patience.
If you are not weighing your food with a scale, its time to start. Reset up your goal in MFP with current stats and set it lose .5 lbs a week. You should have enough calorie intake data to figure TDE if you have been logging accurately, if not, use MFP's goals to start with.
The exercise is great, but if your calories are not in check you won't lose weight, it comes down to being consistently in a calorie deficit to cut fat.6 -
Are you using a food scale? 1,200 to 2,200 is a VERY wide range. My current maintenance calories are around 1,900 net. If I ate 2,200, I would gain. Open your food diary if you're using a food scale and if you aren't, start!1
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Well, the simple answer is you're inputting more calories than you're outputting.
How do you measure your food intake? Do you use a food scale? Do you log every single meal you eat every day, or do you only do it sometimes? Do you eat back your exercise calories? How are you calculating those?
I weigh everything by my food scale and do grams and ounces. I log everything I eat in a notebook. I do not eat back exercise calories. I use my Fitbit, and whether or not the Fitbit is accurate, I am not eating anywhere near what it says I burn or more than that.1 -
lucerorojo wrote: »How much do you weigh and height? You look normal size in the photo. Age isn't it. I'm 52 and so far I've lost 28 lbs. since July--however I also have 72 to go, and the heavier you are above normal, the faster/easier the weight comes off since there is so much extra fat stored and a calorie deficit is easier to achieve. When I first started on MFP, I was shocked to see how many calories I was eating, probably over 3,000 per day, so to cut back even to 2000 would have had me losing some weight, with a small deficit. My TDEE is about 2300 or something like that.
In your photo, if that's current, you look like you don't need to lose anything, IMO.
I'm 29 years old, 5'3" and 165lbs. Three or four (it's a blur) years ago I went from 212 to where I am now and that was from only cardio and barely eating. Yes, I have a lot of fat and weight to lose. I am not happy with where I am.0 -
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It looks like you have very very little to lose if any. And if you are talking 5-10 vanity pounds, it takes precision in all that you do to lose this little bit. Lots of patience.
If you are not weighing your food with a scale, its time to start. Reset up your goal in MFP with current stats and set it lose .5 lbs a week. You should have enough calorie intake data to figure TDE if you have been logging accurately, if not, use MFP's goals to start with.
The exercise is great, but if your calories are not in check you won't lose weight, it comes down to being consistently in a calorie deficit to cut fat.
No, I have at least 20 pounds to lose. I use a food scale with everything I eat. I do not eat back exercise calories.0 -
Are you using a food scale? 1,200 to 2,200 is a VERY wide range. My current maintenance calories are around 1,900 net. If I ate 2,200, I would gain. Open your food diary if you're using a food scale and if you aren't, start!
I do use a food scale with everything I eat. It's just frustrating because no matter how much I eat, whether its 1200, 1500 or 2000 or more, even with exercise and not eating back calories, I have not gained or lost anything. That's why I'm trying to figure out where I should be.0 -
Hmmm... Maybe there are hidden calories that you aren't logging? For the soup, are you using the recipe builder? Are you logging any cooking oils you might be using in roasting your vegetables? Do you have cheat meals that could be wiping out any deficit you have? Because eating 2200 and then eating 1200 averages out to 1,700, which could be kind of close to maintenance, especially for someone who is 5'3".5
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Can you please open up your food journal?0
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Ah I missed where she said that. I need to read slower.
With that being said, OP, we can't see how much you are eating. When you say you are eating 1,200 to 2,200, is that a weekly average or each day?
The reason I ask is because one day I may eat 2,700, but the next only 1,200. I look at my weekly average and it comes out to be about 1,800-1,900. I wonder if that is what is occurring with you. You may fluctuate how many calories you eat each day but weekly you are averaging your TDEE.4 -
That's because it's all evening out. The extra calories are burned off with exercise. What you're doing now is maintenance. Have you tried eating 1200-1400 calories for a week or two? That's what I would do. And not eat exercise cals back. Make sure your scale is working. If stored on its side you have to weigh a couple of times for it to be accurate.3
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Hmmm... Maybe there are hidden calories that you aren't logging? For the soup, are you using the recipe builder? Are you logging any cooking oils you might be using in roasting your vegetables? Do you have cheat meals that could be wiping out any deficit you have? Because eating 2200 and then eating 1200 averages out to 1,700, which could be kind of close to maintenance, especially for someone who is 5'3".
I weigh the oil out before putting everything together, though it's barely any oil. It sucks but I'm doing it without. I don't have "cheat meals" but I do have what I want for dinner as long as I stay in range of what calories I think I should be in. And to clarify, i meant like, I did 3 months at 1200 calories then 2 months at a higher amount. I wouldnt change it daily or weekly.0 -
I think what she’s saying in the original post is for 2-3 months she ate 1200 and then another 2-3 months at 1500 and then another at 2200.2
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Goober1142 wrote: »That's because it's all evening out. The extra calories are burned off with exercise. What you're doing now is maintenance. Have you tried eating 1200-1400 calories for a week or two? That's what I would do. And not eat exercise cals back. Make sure your scale is working. If stored on its side you have to weigh a couple of times for it to be accurate.
I do not eat exercise calories back. It's just not making sense. Take yesterday for example. I ate 1476, and between spin class and burning calories throughout the day, I burned 2720. For 4 out of 7 days, that's what my days looks like. So then why wouldn't I be losing if that were the case?0 -
Ah I missed where she said that. I need to read slower.
With that being said, OP, we can't see how much you are eating. When you say you are eating 1,200 to 2,200, is that a weekly average or each day?
The reason I ask is because one day I may eat 2,700, but the next only 1,200. I look at my weekly average and it comes out to be about 1,800-1,900. I wonder if that is what is occurring with you. You may fluctuate how many calories you eat each day but weekly you are averaging your TDEE.
I meant like, I did 3 months at 1200 calories then 2 months at a higher amount. I wouldnt change it daily or weekly. For instance, I'm trying to not go over 1500 daily right now and for the past month or so. Based on a TDEE calculator and averaging a week on my Fitbit, my TDEE should be 2291. Technically I should be losing at 1700 calories or less.0 -
jesshali119 wrote: »Goober1142 wrote: »That's because it's all evening out. The extra calories are burned off with exercise. What you're doing now is maintenance. Have you tried eating 1200-1400 calories for a week or two? That's what I would do. And not eat exercise cals back. Make sure your scale is working. If stored on its side you have to weigh a couple of times for it to be accurate.
I do not eat exercise calories back. It's just not making sense. Take yesterday for example. I ate 1476, and between spin class and burning calories throughout the day, I burned 2720. For 4 out of 7 days, that's what my days looks like. So then why wouldn't I be losing if that were the case?
Unfortunately without being able to see your diary, all we know for sure is you are not actually eating in a deficit. Perhaps you are using incorrect data for the foods you are eating?
Personally, I would start using MFP to log. Make sure your data is correct in the system, set your goal to lose 1 lb per week, get your calorie goal, and start logging everything accurately and consistently for 6-8 weeks, including exercise. At that point, if you still aren't losing or haven't discovered where you are dropping calories, come back and see if anyone here can spot anything in your diary that might be the issue. And if that doesn't help, it might be time to take everything to your doctor, get blood work done, and see if maybe there is a medical or hormonal reason you can't get lower.10 -
At your weight and height, your Sedentary TDEE is coming up at 1730 for me. And with your Fitbit telling you your TDEE is 2291, that would mean you're burning 561 calories in exercise every day. Does that sound about right to you? An average person running a 10k in an hour will burn about 500-600 calories.0
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jesshali119 wrote: »Goober1142 wrote: »That's because it's all evening out. The extra calories are burned off with exercise. What you're doing now is maintenance. Have you tried eating 1200-1400 calories for a week or two? That's what I would do. And not eat exercise cals back. Make sure your scale is working. If stored on its side you have to weigh a couple of times for it to be accurate.
I do not eat exercise calories back. It's just not making sense. Take yesterday for example. I ate 1476, and between spin class and burning calories throughout the day, I burned 2720. For 4 out of 7 days, that's what my days looks like. So then why wouldn't I be losing if that were the case?
Unfortunately without being able to see your diary, all we know for sure is you are not actually eating in a deficit. Perhaps you are using incorrect data for the foods you are eating?
Personally, I would start using MFP to log. Make sure your data is correct in the system, set your goal to lose 1 lb per week, get your calorie goal, and start logging everything accurately and consistently for 6-8 weeks, including exercise. At that point, if you still aren't losing or haven't discovered where you are dropping calories, come back and see if anyone here can spot anything in your diary that might be the issue. And if that doesn't help, it might be time to take everything to your doctor, get blood work done, and see if maybe there is a medical or hormonal reason you can't get lower.
It's not in my diary here so there's nothing for you to look at. I used to use MFP log and it got to an obsessive level which was unhealthy for me mentally. This is the best I can do right now. I already said I've done tests and there's nothing medically wrong.0 -
At your weight and height, your Sedentary TDEE is coming up at 1730 for me. And with your Fitbit telling you your TDEE is 2291, that would mean you're burning 561 calories in exercise every day. Does that sound about right to you? An average person running a 10k in an hour will burn about 500-600 calories.
Yes, that does sound right. Depending on how hard I work in the class is it could be between 430 and 650, as I've noticed while doing indoor cycling.0 -
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@jesshali119 You may find this link worth a read: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks#latest3
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Also changing the type of Exercise you do maybe something to think about . Muscles burn more calories then fat. Maybe doing more weights then cardio and spin class would be a better solution for your situation. Give it a try for a couple of months see where you stand with your weight goal after that. Good luck
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jesshali119 wrote: »At your weight and height, your Sedentary TDEE is coming up at 1730 for me. And with your Fitbit telling you your TDEE is 2291, that would mean you're burning 561 calories in exercise every day. Does that sound about right to you? An average person running a 10k in an hour will burn about 500-600 calories.
Yes, that does sound right. Depending on how hard I work in the class is it could be between 430 and 650, as I've noticed while doing indoor cycling.
Hmmmm, well it's definitely a tricky situation. I can see how you're frustrated. I read an article that fitbits can be up to 27% inaccurate in some cases, so your calorie burn could be inflated a bit. Let's just assume you're burning about 400 calories through exercise each day, so your TDEE could be around 2130. So to lose 1 lbs a week, you'd wanna aim for 1630. It sounds like you're tracking your intake well, but are there any areas where you could be slipping? I'd take a look at things like: your homemade peanut butter (maybe it's higher in fat than you think?), cooking oils/butters, etc. Those little sneaky calories. Really buckle down for a month and see what happens. When you're fairly short without a lot of weight to lose, the margin of error really tightens up. Sorry if this isn't super helpful, that's all I can think of!3 -
Have you tried backing off on some of the exercise (like dropping one of the spin classes). I'm just wondering if this is some type of stress response, since you've been at this so long. Maybe a full diet break with a little less exercise might be helpful?5
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