What am I doing wrong

sandyy0605

Hello everyone, in short of my weightloss history, few years ago I lost 80 pounds naturally with exercise and food. I was able to keep it off until I became pregnant with my daughter. Within 3 years I gained it all back. I'm finally mentally ready and have been at it for a month. The first two weeks I lost 2.8 and today's weigh in I only lost .8 pounds. I feel that I've been in my calorie deficit I've even weighed my food and exercise at least 3 times a week, because my personal life has changed such as a toddler and "adult" responsibility. I should be happy, but I was really expecting a bigger loss. What am I doing wrong?

avskk

You're not doing anything wrong -- you lost weight! Just remember you're never going to lose weight precisely, in a straight line over time. Bodies do weird stuff. One week you may not lose anything at all and the next three pounds might whoosh away overnight. What matters is what happens over the long haul, not on any single day or during any one week.

quiksylver296

The only thing you're doing wrong is being impatient. Read this thread, it helps to understand the stupid scale.

http://physiqonomics.com/the-weird-and-highly-annoying-world-of-scale-weight-and-fluctuations/

nutmegoreo

The only thing wrong is that your expectations are too high. Weight fluctuates. You may even have an increased weigh in now and again. Stay patient and keep working the plan.

sandyy0605

Thanks you posters that have replied so far. I feel anxious about this journey due to my factors have changed a lot. Before I was single, a hermit and just focused on my goal, now I'm a mother, going to school and work

avskk

sandyy0605 wrote: »

Thanks you posters that have replied so far. I feel anxious about this journey due to my factors have changed a lot. Before I was single, a hermit and just focused on my goal, now I'm a mother, going to school and work

That's a lot, and you're doing great. You lost weight, which means you're doing what you need to do to meet your goals, and you did it in the face of what sounds like a full, complex life. Be proud of yourself, and don't sweat the small stuff.

nutmegoreo

sandyy0605 wrote: »

Thanks you posters that have replied so far. I feel anxious about this journey due to my factors have changed a lot. Before I was single, a hermit and just focused on my goal, now I'm a mother, going to school and work

That's an absolutely normal feeling. If you only weigh in weekly, you won't see nearly as much of the ups and downs. When I get to my laptop, I'll share a picture that clearly demonstrates what I mean. Focus on what you can and try to let go of what you can't control. Things like exercise, TOM,and sodium can all influence water retention. That's usually what causes the ups and downs. You could also consider a weight trending app. Libra for android or HappyScale for iPhone. It smoothed out the ups and downs.

sheloves89

Scales are helpful tools, but they don't really indicate how much fat you're losing.

You are doing everything right! That 0.8 lbs lost may very well translate to far more fat loss than you think. Be forgiving - you have a lot on your plate (no pun intended), and you are achieving your goals - just maybe not at the speed you were hoping for.

Maybe this will help put it in perspective - 80 lbs gained over the course of 3 years is an average of about 0.5 lbs gained a week. So in three weeks you would have gained 1.5 lbs - but not in these three weeks! Instead, you've lost 3.6 lbs! You're losing it faster than you gained it, that's something!

nutmegoreo

Here are some pictures that show what I mean by fluctuations. It's 3.5 months of daily weights. The upward hill in the middle was what had started as an intentional 2 week diet break, but ended up running for 4 weeks. I just needed some time to focus on other things. You can see that despite the ups and downs, the overall picture is in a downward trend.

MFP graph:



Trendweight graph (syncs with FitBit - notice the smoothed line):


They both sync with FitBit, so I enter my weight over there and the data goes to both of these apps.

jean133mjg

Working out can bring on an increase in water weight which will look like you haven't lost or have gained. Give it time and patience.

Seffell

Just to clarify - tissue loss IS linear (if your deficit is), but your water fluctuates and this is what causes the uneven weight loss. The fluids weight mask the actual fat loss.

Sometimes people don't realise this and try to convince themselves that fatloss isn't linear while their deficit is which is counterintuitive and illogical and you need to believe it without understanding it and then the whole counting of calories theory crumbles unless you're good in believing without thinking.