No weight loss 😞

baldwindeborah3

Hi ladies,
I saw this group and thought I’d give it a try to get some help with post menopausal weight loss.

I cut refine sugar out of my diet months ago and then started tracking my calories on fitness pal a month ago so that I could be more aware of staying in a calorie deficit.

I am meeting 1500 cal a day, staying below 100 g of carbohydrates a day, but those are healthy carbohydrates, high protein, and keeping sure which are natural sugars less than 15 g a day. I am exercising five days a week.
I am doing everything right. No cheating.

I’m frustrated because I have not lost an ounce. Not one ounce. My body fat hasn’t changed so it’s not that I’m gaining muscle and losing fat unfortunately. It seems scientifically impossible to be in a calorie deficit and
not lose weight.

My thyroid is normal. I’m 61 and I know at my age. Weight loss is very very difficult. Has anyone experienced a long period of rigid compliance to their diet with absolutely no weight loss?

AnnPT77

Did you start new exercise when you started counting calories? That could be a factor, if you did. (If yes, comment back and I'll say more.)

Are you trying to lose weight very slowly (which can be the right choice in many cases!), such as a half pound or quarter kilo per week? That, too, can produce these scale-weight symptoms for a surprisingly long time, even when actually losing fat at the intended pace. (Again, if yes, comment back and I'll say more.)

Also, I wonder how often you weigh yourself, when you say there's been no change? Bodies are weird. They go up and down by pounds/kilos within a day or over a period of days. The main reason is shifts in water retention or differing amounts of food waste on their way to the exit. That's perfectly healthy, and it's not body fat, but it can play peek-a-boo on the scale with fat loss, masking the fat loss. When weighing infrequently, it's possible to unknowingly catch random high days, and not see the overall down-trend.

In a broad sense, our calorie needs are individual. MFP, calorie calculators, or even fitness trackers just give us an estimate that's essentially the average for people of similar demographics to what we input about ourselves. We're not averages, we're individuals.

Most people will be close to average in calorie needs, but it's not super unusual to be noticeably higher or lower, and a rare few people can be surprisingly far off average for reasons that may not be obvious. (I don't want to scare you, but 9+ years of careful logging, a year of loss then maintenance, supports me saying I'm around 25-30% off what MFP and my good brand/model tracker estimate, when those same sources are quite accurate for others. That's very unusual, but obviously it can happen.)

I want you to understand that this next bit is 100% not a criticism in the slightest. Particularly if new to calorie counting and food logging, it is common to underestimate food intake, and overestimate activity/exercise. In one research study, even dietitians did that by a significant percentage, better than the general public, but still not accurate. Logging can be a surprisingly subtle skill, and it takes many of us time and practice to hone that skill to be most effective.

We want to be logging everything we eat/drink that may have calories, at least at first. Maybe you're already doing that, every bite, lick, taste? Some common things to miss are condiments, dressings, sometimes beverages, oils used in cooking, and that sort of thing.

One option that can accommodate both non-averageness in calorie needs and some imprecision in calorie logging is to adjust calorie goal based on 4-6 weeks of results. (Women with menstrual cycles would want to use whole cycles, but I'm guessing that like me, you may be in menopause.) A pound a week of body fat change is roughly 500 calories per day. (A kilo would be 1100 calories per day.) Once we have that 4-6 weeks or so of personal calorie logging and body weight data, we can use that to adjust our goal, tuning it in to our individuality. Our own results are a better guide than any calculator or tracker! Again, I can provide more details, if that would be helpful.

I want to assure you that I think this can work, but I also think it can take a bit of patient persistence at first. As context, I lost weight myself with MFP at age 59-60, while severely hypothyroid (medicated) and menopausal, going from class 1 obese to a healthy weight in just under a year. I've stayed at a healthy weight since, now age 69. Many others here our age have done similar things.

I would like to help you if I can, because I believe you can succeed if you commit to the process and stick with it through a learning curve. If you could comment on some of the questions or possible scenarios above, I will answer back and try to help.

Wishing you success: The results are worth the effort!