Weight-loss struggles amongst so many success stories

svlofthouse · September 2018

I really applaud everyone who has been able to lose weight and keep it off. However, even when I’m carefully logging, I don’t lose weight. I eat fairly healthily but get downhearted when I can’t see results. This leads to a bread binge and I hate cheating in logging, but I can’t bring myself to log a thousand calorie deficit. What can I do?

DoubleUbea · September 2018

The first question you will be asked by everyone is, "Do you use a food scale to measure your food?"

svlofthouse · September 2018

DoubleUbea wrote: »

The first question you will be asked by everyone is, "Do you use a food scale to measure your food?"

I use one every time I prepare my own meals but I’m sometimes forced to pick the closest thing I can find preprepared on the app. This I the issue, as I feel like I’m doing everything right most of the time.

janejellyroll · September 2018

svlofthouse wrote: »

DoubleUbea wrote: »

The first question you will be asked by everyone is, "Do you use a food scale to measure your food?"

I use one every time I prepare my own meals but I’m sometimes forced to pick the closest thing I can find preprepared on the app. This I the issue, as I feel like I’m doing everything right most of the time.

How are you forced? I can understand *choosing* to eat something that you aren't sure of the calories on, but forced? No.

Anyway, you don't need a thousand calorie deficit to lose weight. If 1,000 calories is too hard and leads you to binge (which would be the case for a lot of people), opt for something more reasonable like 250 calories a day. Yeah, it's slower weight loss. But if it allows you to be more consistent and avoid binges, it will wind up being faster in the long run.

LivingtheLeanDream · September 2018

If you don't log you are only cheating yourself. Log everything, that way it might make you make different choices. Learn from it. It takes time to lose weight, so try to be patient and stick with it, you will be glad you did.

climberbry · September 2018

The first question should be: "Do you have an exercise routine that includes resistance training?"

kommodevaran · September 2018

You aren't carefully logging if you don't weigh everything and using valid database entries.

emmamcgarity · September 2018

Start logging the days when you binge. It’s hard at first but it will help. Or at least it has helped me.

jtechmart · September 2018

If you really feel like you’re doing everything right you may want to focus on sugar and carbs. Too much of either and your body may be using that for energy instead of burning stored fat.

VUA21 · September 2018

svlofthouse wrote: »

I really applaud everyone who has been able to lose weight and keep it off. However, even when I’m carefully logging, I don’t lose weight. I eat fairly healthily but get downhearted when I can’t see results. This leads to a bread binge and I hate cheating in logging, but I can’t bring myself to log a thousand calorie deficit. What can I do?

1. Log everything! No matter how much under or over your calorie goals you go, still log everything.
2. Weigh everything you can. Weighing restaurant food is rather impractacle, so just use their website (or similar item if at a local or small chain restaurant).
3. You don't have to eat different foods, just less to lose weight. "Healthy" eating isn't required for weight loss, and if eating "healthy" means overhauling your entire diet, it's not going to be sustainable. Make small changes.

PAV8888 · September 2018

Bring yourself.

I've logged 3000 deficits for a day. Still lost weight

My goal is set to a deficit even though I am aiming to maintain.

I am regularly over my "goal" and in the red... and maintaining.

It is called: mind games

Sounds like your pre-set deficit may be too large, your loss expectations aggressive with a secondary expectation of predictability and you are not using a trending weight app and discriminating between fat level changes and temporary water weight variations.

Review your weight level change vs purported deficit achieved in 4 to 6 week time periods to make adjustments.

cmriverside · September 2018

So if you log everything for a month you'll have good data from which to start deducting more calories if you haven't lost weight.

How long have you logged food using a food scale? If you do it accurately and you are maintaining your weight, then you need to lower your calories by 250-500 per day.

mph323 · September 2018

climberbry wrote: »

The first question should be: "Do you have an exercise routine that includes resistance training?"

Why? How is this relevant to the OP?

cmriverside · September 2018

PAV8888 wrote: »

Bring yourself.

I've logged 3000 deficits for a day. Still lost weight

<snip>

I'm sorry - what does this mean??

seska422 · September 2018

svlofthouse wrote: »

I really applaud everyone who has been able to lose weight and keep it off. However, even when I’m carefully logging, I don’t lose weight. I eat fairly healthily but get downhearted when I can’t see results. This leads to a bread binge and I hate cheating in logging, but I can’t bring myself to log a thousand calorie deficit. What can I do?

In order to lose weight, you need to have an overall calorie deficit for a long time. Patience and persistence are required. It's better to lose an average of half a pound per week successfully than it is to keep trying to lose two pounds per week and giving up so that you don't lose any at all.

Experiment to find a comfortable way of eating that leaves you at a calorie deficit for the week. Start by logging how you like to eat without making any changes for a couple of weeks. That gives you some data so that you can look back to see where you might eat smaller portions and/or make satisfying substitutions. Nutrition is important for overall health (I aim for 80% of my calories from nutrient-dense foods and 20% from treats) but weight loss and maintenance come down to how many calories you consume versus how many calories your body uses.

Concentrate on the process rather than the results or the speed of those results. Measure your success from something you can control (your behavior) rather than something that's out of your control (what the scale says today). Weight naturally fluctuates. You want a downward trend in your weight over months. Each day's weight is just a data point toward your trend.

Figure out a plan that works for you and then settle in for the long haul.

Millicent3015 · September 2018

svlofthouse wrote: »

I really applaud everyone who has been able to lose weight and keep it off. However, even when I’m carefully logging, I don’t lose weight. I eat fairly healthily but get downhearted when I can’t see results. This leads to a bread binge and I hate cheating in logging, but I can’t bring myself to log a thousand calorie deficit. What can I do?

The only cheating in not logging everything is you cheating yourself of valuable information that might give you insight into your eating patterns, moods and triggers. No one cares what or how you eat. Your diary is for you, no one else. Yeah, you might be embarrassed logging certain foods, but so what? You're not likely to get people scrutinising your diary over your calories, or a particular thing you ate. Your food choices are your business. Logging might spur you to make different choices, if you can see where you might want to consider making any changes.

lorrpb · September 2018

If you're not willing to face the facts by logging EVERYTHING, you are unlikely to achieve the results you want.

fiddletime · September 2018

Yup. You have to log the good, the bad, and the ugly. A binge of 1000 calories isn’t a big deal, but two weeks of that is. Be honest with yourself to understand this process and how it works- for you.