Time to Lower Calories?
somethingsoright
Posts: 99 Member
Five weeks ago, I started working on losing weight by tracking calories (kept a paper journal at first, then switched to MFP later on).
First week, lost nothing. So I changed up my foods (started eating less processed, kept calories in same range) and lost 3lbs/wk for the next 3 weeks. This past week (5th week), I gained a lb at the start and since then haven't lost anything.
This entire time, I've been at around 2,000 calories a day and most days doing an hour of biking along with weight training. Is it time for me to lower the calories more? (For reference, I'm stuck at 204 lbs and am only 5'3".)
First week, lost nothing. So I changed up my foods (started eating less processed, kept calories in same range) and lost 3lbs/wk for the next 3 weeks. This past week (5th week), I gained a lb at the start and since then haven't lost anything.
This entire time, I've been at around 2,000 calories a day and most days doing an hour of biking along with weight training. Is it time for me to lower the calories more? (For reference, I'm stuck at 204 lbs and am only 5'3".)
2
Replies
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Patience. Weightloss isn’t linear. Some weeks you will lose. Some weeks you will gain. And some weeks nothing will change. It’s normal. Look at your trend over time. Having only been at 204 for 2 weeks, I would hardly say you are stuck there.
So let’s do some math. If we count the first week you are averaging 1.6 lbs a week. If we don’t count that week, you are averaging 2lbs per week.
Recommended weight loss rates:
National Institute of Health recommends losing 10% bodyweight over 6 months.
For sustainability:
0.5 lb per week if you have less than 25lbs to lose
1 lb per week if you have 25-50lbs to lose
1.5 lb per week if you have 50-75lbs to lose
2 lb per week if you have 75+ lbs to lose
No more than 1% bodyweight loss per week if you want mostly fat loss.10 -
sounds like you're just being a bit impatient.
weight loss isn't linear9 -
It takes time to lose. Well done on your progress so far.5
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agree with all the above but also ensure logging is accurate. weighing is better than measuring and be careful when choosing entries (they are user generated so some are not all that accurate).2
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The weight on the scale is not just the fat. It's all of it, including water and food and it fluctuates even if your intake is exactly the same. It's a living organism. Read the stickies.5
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You've lost 8 pounds in 5 weeks. Beyond ensuring you are tracking accurately, and thus really consuming the amount of calories you think you are not more, nothing needs to change.
If the 102 in your username is your goal weight, you should be aware that is underweight for someone 5'3.9 -
I suggest reading:
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1234699/logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide/p1
You should never react to a single week of data. That is a classic mistake that can really hinder sustainability. You could drive yourself nuts because no matter what you do the scale may still go up or stay the same for weeks at a time and it will have nothing to do with fat loss. You have to make sure you are logging correctly and then wait about 5 weeks or 7 weeks after you begin weight loss to get enough information (under normal conditions) to make a decision.3 -
Do. Not. Make. Changes. Week. To. Week.!!!!
You will sabotage yourself by making changes based on faulty data. Weight loss in not linear, as folks have mentioned. There will be weeks where you will match your deficit perfectly and gain weight (not necessarily fat). If you are in a deficit, it is not possible to store fat. That only leaves one alternative: fluctuations in the other components of your weight. Other components of your weight include:
1. Lean Body Mass - your bones, muscle, etc. In a deficit you'll lose a small portion of muscle (if at all) if you deficit is not too large. But this is mostly unchanged week to week. But be careful, too big of a deficit will reduce your muscle dramatically too - meaning your body fat percentage won't change as much as you like.
2. Fat - if you are in a consistent deficit, your fat loss itself should be roughly linear, but it can be hidden because of....
3. Water, glycogen, other fluids. These vary for many reasons - most of which you have no control over and many of which are positive things. Like holding extra water for muscle repair. (Don't try to keep from retaining water because of exercise - it defeats the purpose of the exercise).
What this means is that if you are disappointed with the scale because of 1 week and no change, you can make a decision that does not work with what's really happening.
You should change your intake requirements only when you have enough time to where your fat loss is bigger than your fluctuations. If you are trying to lose 2 pounds per week, for example, it should take 4-6 weeks (or more) to really see your trend. If you are trying to lose at a slightly slower rate, the trend time takes even longer.
So....
Be Patient!
5 -
Scale weight fluctuates, especially for females. Read this awesome article!
http://physiqonomics.com/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-weight-and-fluctuations/2 -
Be patient.
Also, you’re female so any gains can be hormonal as well.
I agree that if the 102 is your goal weight, that’s way too light for your height.3 -
shadow2soul wrote: »Patience. Weightloss isn’t linear. Some weeks you will lose. Some weeks you will gain. And some weeks nothing will change. It’s normal. Look at your trend over time. Having only been at 204 for 2 weeks, I would hardly say you are stuck there.
So let’s do some math. If we count the first week you are averaging 1.6 lbs a week. If we don’t count that week, you are averaging 2lbs per week.
Recommended weight loss rates:
National Institute of Health recommends losing 10% bodyweight over 6 months.
For sustainability:
0.5 lb per week if you have less than 25lbs to lose
1 lb per week if you have 25-50lbs to lose
1.5 lb per week if you have 50-75lbs to lose
2 lb per week if you have 75+ lbs to lose
No more than 1% bodyweight loss per week if you want mostly fat loss.
This is good info to know. I almost want to start weighing in just once a month to avoid seeing these weekly fluctuations.1 -
You've lost 8 pounds in 5 weeks. Beyond ensuring you are tracking accurately, and thus really consuming the amount of calories you think you are not more, nothing needs to change.
If the 102 in your username is your goal weight, you should be aware that is underweight for someone 5'3.
I was going by this new BMI calculator. It's supposed to adjust for short (and tall) people better. Plus, I used to weigh 108 at my fittest (running daily and lifting heavy) and still had unwanted fat on my thighs and didn't look skinny.0 -
I am reading the links you all posted. Will read more after work. I will soak up the good info. Thanks!1
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You've lost 8 pounds in 5 weeks. Beyond ensuring you are tracking accurately, and thus really consuming the amount of calories you think you are not more, nothing needs to change.
If the 102 in your username is your goal weight, you should be aware that is underweight for someone 5'3.
I was going by this new BMI calculator. It's supposed to adjust for short (and tall) people better. Plus, I used to weigh 108 at my fittest (running daily and lifting heavy) and still had unwanted fat on my thighs and didn't look skinny.
I'm 5ft 5 and 137lbs, that BMI calculator told me I'm obese... utter rubbish.5 -
TavistockToad wrote: »You've lost 8 pounds in 5 weeks. Beyond ensuring you are tracking accurately, and thus really consuming the amount of calories you think you are not more, nothing needs to change.
If the 102 in your username is your goal weight, you should be aware that is underweight for someone 5'3.
I was going by this new BMI calculator. It's supposed to adjust for short (and tall) people better. Plus, I used to weigh 108 at my fittest (running daily and lifting heavy) and still had unwanted fat on my thighs and didn't look skinny.
I'm 5ft 5 and 137lbs, that BMI calculator told me I'm obese... utter rubbish.
Something is seriously wrong with that tool -- I'm 5'4 and 108 and according to that tool, I'm overweight. My ideal range is 69 to 93 pounds. It's either built incorrectly or is designed to appeal to the ED community.
OP, if you don't like how you look at 108, you should probably consider resistance training. It's probably going to be way more impactful for your happiness with your appearance than going into an unhealthy weight range will be.6 -
janejellyroll wrote: »TavistockToad wrote: »You've lost 8 pounds in 5 weeks. Beyond ensuring you are tracking accurately, and thus really consuming the amount of calories you think you are not more, nothing needs to change.
If the 102 in your username is your goal weight, you should be aware that is underweight for someone 5'3.
I was going by this new BMI calculator. It's supposed to adjust for short (and tall) people better. Plus, I used to weigh 108 at my fittest (running daily and lifting heavy) and still had unwanted fat on my thighs and didn't look skinny.
I'm 5ft 5 and 137lbs, that BMI calculator told me I'm obese... utter rubbish.
Something is seriously wrong with that tool -- I'm 5'4 and 108 and according to that tool, I'm overweight. My ideal range is 69 to 93 pounds. It's either built incorrectly or is designed to appeal to the ED community.
OP, if you don't like how you look at 108, you should probably consider resistance training. It's probably going to be way more impactful for your happiness with your appearance than going into an unhealthy weight range will be.
Mine said 72 to 98... pro ana site was my first thought too4 -
TavistockToad wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »TavistockToad wrote: »You've lost 8 pounds in 5 weeks. Beyond ensuring you are tracking accurately, and thus really consuming the amount of calories you think you are not more, nothing needs to change.
If the 102 in your username is your goal weight, you should be aware that is underweight for someone 5'3.
I was going by this new BMI calculator. It's supposed to adjust for short (and tall) people better. Plus, I used to weigh 108 at my fittest (running daily and lifting heavy) and still had unwanted fat on my thighs and didn't look skinny.
I'm 5ft 5 and 137lbs, that BMI calculator told me I'm obese... utter rubbish.
Something is seriously wrong with that tool -- I'm 5'4 and 108 and according to that tool, I'm overweight. My ideal range is 69 to 93 pounds. It's either built incorrectly or is designed to appeal to the ED community.
OP, if you don't like how you look at 108, you should probably consider resistance training. It's probably going to be way more impactful for your happiness with your appearance than going into an unhealthy weight range will be.
Mine said 72 to 98... pro ana site was my first thought too
Weird, mine said at 5'4 and 131 that I'm healthy but could go as low as 105.7 all the way to 142. 105.7 is way too low for me though. I'd look like a skeleton. I initially got obese but didn't click on the lbs. and inches bubble so had to redo it.0 -
3
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Tacklewasher wrote: »
Maybe it's not always doing the lb/inches even when you check it? I got similar results and I double-checked my settings.1 -
It has me 93# at least I wouldn’t have to worry about what I need to look like on Halloween. That’s crazy!0
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janejellyroll wrote: »TavistockToad wrote: »You've lost 8 pounds in 5 weeks. Beyond ensuring you are tracking accurately, and thus really consuming the amount of calories you think you are not more, nothing needs to change.
If the 102 in your username is your goal weight, you should be aware that is underweight for someone 5'3.
I was going by this new BMI calculator. It's supposed to adjust for short (and tall) people better. Plus, I used to weigh 108 at my fittest (running daily and lifting heavy) and still had unwanted fat on my thighs and didn't look skinny.
I'm 5ft 5 and 137lbs, that BMI calculator told me I'm obese... utter rubbish.
Something is seriously wrong with that tool -- I'm 5'4 and 108 and according to that tool, I'm overweight. My ideal range is 69 to 93 pounds. It's either built incorrectly or is designed to appeal to the ED community.
OP, if you don't like how you look at 108, you should probably consider resistance training. It's probably going to be way more impactful for your happiness with your appearance than going into an unhealthy weight range will be.
I feel like the "smart BMI" tool is geared toward either those who want an excuse to get lower than is really healthy, or those who are outliers on the other side of the spectrum.
I also got odd results. At 5'4" -- not my precise height -- it told me I could go to 105.7. When I entered my precise height of 5'4.4", I magically got back 1.7 pounds. I have a hard time believing that that little .4 of an inch really carries that much weight.
At any rate, 5'3" isn't *short*. Considering that 5'4" is average, I wouldn't put a short label on anyone until they were 5'1" or even 5' and below.2 -
shadow2soul wrote: »Patience. Weightloss isn’t linear. Some weeks you will lose. Some weeks you will gain. And some weeks nothing will change. It’s normal. Look at your trend over time. Having only been at 204 for 2 weeks, I would hardly say you are stuck there.
So let’s do some math. If we count the first week you are averaging 1.6 lbs a week. If we don’t count that week, you are averaging 2lbs per week.
Recommended weight loss rates:
National Institute of Health recommends losing 10% bodyweight over 6 months.
For sustainability:
0.5 lb per week if you have less than 25lbs to lose
1 lb per week if you have 25-50lbs to lose
1.5 lb per week if you have 50-75lbs to lose
2 lb per week if you have 75+ lbs to lose
No more than 1% bodyweight loss per week if you want mostly fat loss.
This is good info to know. I almost want to start weighing in just once a month to avoid seeing these weekly fluctuations.
A weight trending app can be very helpful to get your mind around the daily fluctuations. HappyScale, Libra, Trendweight are the three I know of.2 -
Still no change in weight (or clothing fit). I have to keep coming back to this thread and re-reading all of your comments when frustration hits. Amazing how freaky fast I can put on weight, but it won't come off at even half that rate. I appreciate all of your advice so much!0
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