Don't know what to do

emmies_123

Apologies in advance for the long post, but I want to try to get all options out now to avoid confusion later:

So: I am 30, 5'3", currently 130 lbs. I have lost 13 already, and wanted to lose another 5 to be more firmly in "healthy" BMI range.

I have been logging for over a year. I measure everything, I don't have ghost calories (eat without logging). My MFP net goal was 1200/day and I have plateaued for the last few months, fluctuating between 130-132. Unless I have a large dessert item, I can stay between 1100-1200 and be sustainable.

Last week I started increasing intensity of workouts. I am also just starting to make nutrition goals, such as meeting the 8 glasses of water and watching macros.

The trainer at my gym said 1200 is too low and that I should shoot for 1200-1300 a day, with focus on protein (to avoid muscle loss).

My confusion is: If I am not losing at 1200 how can I lose at 1300? Or am I officially at a point where I should put away the scale and ignore those last 5 lbs? I feel like i'm quitting before I hit goal, but maybe that goal shouldn't be my focus?

So confused, not sure what to believe. Don't want to undo my hard work, but don't want to cling to something that is wrong either...

denjan333

I'm also 5'3", and the BMI range is from around 108-140 lbs. At 130 you're already "firmly" in the healthy range. Everyone's body is different, which is why there is a range. However, if you feel a bit "soft", you might want to look more at recomp rather than weight loss. For recomp, you'd want to increase protein and doing more weight lifting (Strong Lifts 5x5 or something similar). To recomp, you probably would need to increase calories a bit, but that will vary based per person. In recomp, the goal is to lose inches and fat rather than weight. You can weigh 130 and look a bit soft, or you can weigh 140 and look fit and lean. When you're in the healthy BMI range, the scale should have at least somewhat less meaning than when weight loss is your #1 goal.

Personally, I would do recomp, weigh once or twice month to make sure I'm not going way off track, and start going by measurements and the look I want.

I hope this helps.

kimny72

You say you measure everything - but do you weigh out all your portions on a food scale?
Also, how carefully are you choosing database entries? Do you check them to the package or the USDA values to ensure they have the right calories listed?

I know it seems nitpicky, but when you are fussing with vanity lbs, every little bit helps. When I went from "measuring" portions to "weighing" portions, and I got really particular about the entries I was choosing, I found I was typically eating around 200-300 more than I thought. And that was the difference between losing 1-2 lbs per month or not!

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10634517/you-dont-use-a-food-scale/p1

Your other option would be to consider a regimented diet break/refeed. Not just a random "Ima stop dieting for awhile" break, but a specific kind of diet break explained here:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks/p1
The full thread can get a little dense, but the OP is pretty straightforward.

Hang in there!

emmies_123

denjan333 wrote: »

I'm also 5'3", and the BMI range is from around 108-140 lbs. At 130 you're already "firmly" in the healthy range. Everyone's body is different, which is why there is a range. However, if you feel a bit "soft", you might want to look more at recomp rather than weight loss. For recomp, you'd want to increase protein and doing more weight lifting (Strong Lifts 5x5 or something similar). To recomp, you probably would need to increase calories a bit, but that will vary based per person. In recomp, the goal is to lose inches and fat rather than weight. You can weigh 130 and look a bit soft, or you can weigh 140 and look fit and lean. When you're in the healthy BMI range, the scale should have at least somewhat less meaning than when weight loss is your #1 goal.

Personally, I would do recomp, weigh once or twice month to make sure I'm not going way off track, and start going by measurements and the look I want.

I hope this helps.

Yes it does. I think for me it is more the mental shift that is throwing me.
Previously I was working out low intensity 5 days a week, 30 a day. It was mix of strength and cardio.

As of last week (9/9) I started a trial. 6 weeks boot camp style (crossfit style?), 45 mins a day. Last week I was able to go every day without painful effects so I will try to keep it up. But each day is what they decide, can't just focus on strength.

emmies_123

kimny72 wrote: »

You say you measure everything - but do you weigh out all your portions on a food scale?
Also, how carefully are you choosing database entries? Do you check them to the package or the USDA values to ensure they have the right calories listed?

I know it seems nitpicky, but when you are fussing with vanity lbs, every little bit helps. When I went from "measuring" portions to "weighing" portions, and I got really particular about the entries I was choosing, I found I was typically eating around 200-300 more than I thought. And that was the difference between losing 1-2 lbs per month or not!

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10634517/you-dont-use-a-food-scale/p1

Your other option would be to consider a regimented diet break/refeed. Not just a random "Ima stop dieting for awhile" break, but a specific kind of diet break explained here:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks/p1
The full thread can get a little dense, but the OP is pretty straightforward.

Hang in there!

I do use a food scale for everything, I only take in weighted/measured portions for work lunches so I can't be bad. When eating out I will go with the higher calorie restaurant option, if the specific restaurant is not listed. If on the menu, i trust restaurant nutrition info. Only thing I struggle weighing accurately is homemade food, as recipes only let you enter "serving" and I'm terrible about weighing whole amount prior to eating/storing.

denjan333

emmies_123 wrote: »

Yes it does. I think for me it is more the mental shift that is throwing me.
Previously I was working out low intensity 5 days a week, 30 a day. It was mix of strength and cardio.

As of last week (9/9) I started a trial. 6 weeks boot camp style (crossfit style?), 45 mins a day. Last week I was able to go every day without painful effects so I will try to keep it up. But each day is what they decide, can't just focus on strength.

Yeah, cardio is great for overall heart health and weight loss, but to become lean you will want to start a strength program. Women do not "bulk up" with lifting unless they work really, really hard and focus on it and eat LOTS (and probably take enhancers), so you don't have to worry about something like becoming massively muscled. I've known women who did nothing but cardio and yoga for years and years but never had the body they wanted until they started lifting. Personally, when I was into it and going to the gym 6 days a week, I felt SO GOOD and strong. Some studies have shown that women who lift have a better body image than those that don't.

There are lots of starter programs. Going with compound full body workouts is great, which is why Stronglifts 5 x 5 is good, but if you have a personal trainer that can set you up on a good plan, go for that. Just be cautious with PTs. Some are great, some are not. Keep it simple, especially to start with.

88olds

I don’t know what you should do. But your post reminded me of how badly I messed myself up pursuing a number on the scale when what I needed was fitness.

emmies_123

88olds wrote: »

I don’t know what you should do. But your post reminded me of how badly I messed myself up pursuing a number on the scale when what I needed was fitness.

I am really trying not to let scale control me. I was never overweight as a kid, and worked off what i gained due to desk job fairly quickly. And while I have been stuck at 130, I also haven't gained significantly.

I know logically that you can be the same number on the scale and look radically different. But I have been determined to reach 125 for so long that part of my brain says I'm quitting because it got hard...no matter how logical it seems to change focus to changing composition...

cmriverside

Well, using the suggestions in this thread, you should be able to get there IN TIME.

The last 15 pounds I lost to get to the same place you're going (which is 21-22 BMI) took me nine MONTHS. That was with eating 13 out of 14 meals every week prepared by me. I didn't eat "out" more than once a week. I logged every bite, used my digital food scale in grams for everything, I learned how to use the Recipe tool so my portions would be correct in my homemade recipes, and I had a lot of setbacks.

It's tough, those last few pounds. Be gentle with yourself. Consistency, logging accurately and time (along with patience) will get you there.

88olds

Ok. The voice in your head. Get there and the voice might quiet down. Maybe move on to something else.

And there’s the get there because it’s what you decided. Totally legitimate reason.

And this- just because you get there doesn’t mean you need to stay. You might decide you don’t like it. But there is only one way to find out. Good luck.

denjan333

emmies_123 wrote: »

88olds wrote: »

I don’t know what you should do. But your post reminded me of how badly I messed myself up pursuing a number on the scale when what I needed was fitness.

I am really trying not to let scale control me. I was never overweight as a kid, and worked off what i gained due to desk job fairly quickly. And while I have been stuck at 130, I also haven't gained significantly.

I know logically that you can be the same number on the scale and look radically different. But I have been determined to reach 125 for so long that part of my brain says I'm quitting because it got hard...no matter how logical it seems to change focus to changing composition...

We sound really similar. I've been trying to get to 125 for decades. I go down and up and down and up but have never seen the elusive 125 on the scale. That includes spending $1800 on a PT that had me on keto and tons of supplements and training hard, lifting 6 days a week. Nada. It is REALLY hard to let go of that number on the scale. I have cried over it so many times. But at some point we have to acknowledge that that number is just a measure, same as inches. It's a tool. It should really not be the GOAL. The goal should probably be in the healthy BMI range and be healthy and fit and feel good in our own skin. At some point, we have to stop looking down (at the scale) and look forward to our active, healthy lives.

pinuplove

There is a little something to be said for inadvertent reduction of TDEE at a low calorie point (I call it "slug mode" for myself). Sometimes a small increase in calorie intake is enough to trigger a higher TDEE and the perception that eating more led to weight loss, when in reality, eating more led to more activity which led to more calories burned and thus weight loss. You might or might not experience that with a modest calorie increase.

I'm 5'2.5 and in the 128-130 range. It's proving more difficult than I care to fight to get down to 125 at the moment, so I'm happily maintaining while occasionally flirting with the thought of someday getting there Honestly, 130 at 5'3 IS firmly in the normal BMI range (in my opinion).

emmies_123

Thank you all for the words of encouragement.

I think I am going to try to commit to stepping OFF the scale for at least the duration of the gym trial. Focus instead on macros and working hard in the gym. That way I won't let macro suggestions be affected by "oh well i don't have more calories today so can't do that."

Gonna keep logging though. I stop that I know i'm going to be back to sneaking extra portions or large sweets again!