Dieting since 18 July - only lost 3lbs HELP!!!

lottietucker

Hi all, could someone help me please? I have been dieting since 18 July 2013 and as of today only lost about 3 lbs. I have 50-60lbs to lose. I exercise regularly - spinning 5-6 days a week for 45-60 mins and 5-6 hours of cross country hiking at the weekends (usually - weather dependent). I use a Fitbit for TDEE. I try to keep my macros at 45% carbs, 30% fat and 25 % protein. My intake varies from day to day but my weekly net average calories have been between 1100-1400 net calories/day since starting on the 18th. My diary is open. I log everything - even binges. I weigh food on digital scales and measure liquids with measuring cups. Intake supplements to make sure my micros are right. I also take Ginseng, cod liver oil and Garcinia Cambogia. I am on a lot of prescription meds for depression. These I also log in my diary. I try to drink 3L of water a day though don't always get there.

Can anyone help please? Thanks.

Cherimoose

Google the side-effects for your medications and see if weight gain is one of them.

Have you had your thyroid function tested recently?

AmyRhubarb

What does the Fitbit give you for TDEE?

From the info you've given, I'm going to guess that for an hour of daily spinning and 5-6 hours of weekend hiking, 1100-1400 cals is probably not enough.

Vivian06703188

It is just my opinion but I think I would not let fitbit choose your TDEE. Do it on MFP and set it for sedentary then add you exercise back in daily. I set my loss for 2 lbs a week what is your set at? I'd be happy to add you and follow your diet and exercise to see if we can improve your loss. But it could be a medical reason.

misski1969

Reading that I have done on caloric intake is that you should eat a minimum of 1200 calories a day. If you are averaging 1100 over the course of a week or several weeks in a row your body could be going into starvation mode in which case your body will not function correctly when it comes to burning off the fat. This happened to me a few years back. I was not taking in enough calories on a daily basis. I was also working off just about every single calorie I was taking in on a daily basis with my cardio workouts. I was busting my butt and I was not losing ANY weight at all.

I also suggest you check in with your doctor to see if there could be another reason why the weight is not coming off. There could be a medical reason that can be address to assist you in your efforts!

Good Luck to you!

whitlisd

Anti depressants = bad news for weight loss. I haven't looked at your diary yet, but perhaps you are eating the wrong types of foods necessary for you to lose as well. Some people need a high protein diet and others need high carb. Perhaps your body is storing those carbs on you...not sure.

taiyola

Your NET is less than your BMR.

Eat more.

Mokey41

First I wouldn't totally trust a FitBit to be giving me calorie advice. It's basically a pedometer that does some math. Second, I'm not sure how you're calculating your spinning burns but they look a bit high. Third, you over eat often and are eating all those exercise calories. I didn't go a long way into your diary but I can definitely see why you wouldn't be getting much loss.

Sarge516

Dieting is one third of the way to true success in weight loss.

Workout...and workout hard. You get to get your butt moving more if you want to lose weight. You need to get OUT of your comfort zone. You need to push yourself.

Eat clean + cardio/areobic exercise + strength training = the fast lane to weight loss & health.

There are no pills or shakes required, but hard work IS a requirement.

Ever watch any of those weight loss TV shows? Now I'm not saying I agree with everything I see on some of them, but what do you see in all of them where the people featured drop huge amounts of weight? Sweat! And lots of it.

peejay65pj

hey kiddo, I 'm not a health guru or anything, this is just my two bits on the matter.... I found with MFP information regarding calories in foods, sometimes there are errors, intentional or not, even the serving sizes are ridiculously small, etc. one time on a chicken pkg it said a breast was 100g, similar calories but when i weighed it, it was almost 400g....this sends calculations for a serious loop. I skulked a little on your food diary and saw some questionable values... like six slices of ham for a total of 66 calories, bacon at 35...they'd have to be about the size of a quarter for that to be true, lol. Just do some more research as to the values you are using and if they are realistic is my advice, good luck.

BTW I personally fill up on alot of raw veg, carrots,cauliflower, celery, mushrooms, cucumbers and raw peppers and use 1% sour cream with mrs dash added for dip, fills me up with a small calorie intake, a good bang for the buck imo. MFP ups your fiber needs when it sees more cardio in your diary

Stage14

Your medication could be a large part of it. Also, it looks like your "binges" are relatively frequent, and your day to day caloric intake and macros are kind of all over the place. I would either calculate your TDEE yourself (there are lots of websites that offer TDEE calculators) and subtract 10-20% from that or enter your goals into MFP and let it set a calorie amount for you, then eat back your exercise. Make it a point to reach your goal (and your macros) as closely as possible each day, and do this for a month to see if it helps.

Right now, your body has a ton of meds and supplements being pumped through it and it has no idea if it's going to get 900 calories or 2100 calories on any given day. I am betting that if you get into a routine of eating the same amount every day, it will make a huge difference. Also, stop taking the GC. That stuff is worthless crap.

TasteMeNot

I just quickly glanced/scanned your food log, but what I have noticed is that there are alot of process (empty calorie) type foods, i.e. - snack type stuff, white bread, processed products - and very little water and little protein. I would greatly up my water intake, especially if your exercising regularly. I would also try to change my eating habits slowly - less processed foord, more whole food - kick white bread for whole grains, real cheese for processed cheese product, more fruits, veggies, and protein for the snack bars.

Also, your med might be contributing to your weight, I would discuss that with your doctor - to see what you can/should do. Also discuss with your doc a daily calorie goal, that would be much more reliable than Fitbit or MFP.

In addition, I agree with what some of the above posters say, use either your doc's calculation (perferred) for you calorie goal or MFP, not the Fitbit. Moreover,1200 should be a minimum goal, and with exercise it should be incramentally higher. Do your best to accurately estimate your exercise calories, I think a heartrate monitor does that best, otherwise I would err on under, reather than over estimating.

Good luck.

whitlisd

Yes, get rid of the processed stuff and the white bread for sure!

QuilterInVA

Try eating healthy food. All I see is processed stuff with little nutrition but lots of calories. Up your protein a little - 40% complex carbs, 30% protein, 30% fat.

TribeHokie

Eating processed food doesn't intrinsically keep you from losing weight. You don't have to "eat clean" to get there. But that's a debate for another thread.

It sounds like you are measuring properly so I would suggest trying to up your calories a bit. Maybe start by aiming for 1400 every day instead of 1100-1400, though your activity level might even necessitate more. I would agree with using your fitbit to verify calorie burn and maybe eat back a portion of those calories. You may also want to try changing up your routine and incorporate strength training instead of all that cardio.

cora_torrence

Your meds could be causing you to stop losing. ALso try eliminating processed foods ( white and substitute for wheat) also eliminate sodas and sweets from your diet. Depression meds tend to carry weight and could be a side effect.

lottietucker

Thanks for all the advice. I forgot to say I use a Polar HRM to work out my exercise burns. I workout with my AHR at 85% (goes up into the 90s during hard bits). I maintain around 85% for the entire workout. Obviously this does not include hikes but I still wear my HRM to get a fairly accurate burn calculation.

As per the quality of what I eat: am on a very tight budget so have to buy the cheapest food I can. I live I the UK and fresh fruit and veg is expensive so I have to buy frozen. I try as hard as I can to get protein in. Eat dry cooked chicken and tuna in brine.

Could those ppl who commented my diet is bad give me some ideas of what I should be eating, remembering I am on a budget.

socajam

Hi all, could someone help me please? I have been dieting since 18 July 2013 and as of today only lost about 3 lbs. I have 50-60lbs to lose. I exercise regularly - spinning 5-6 days a week for 45-60 mins and 5-6 hours of cross country hiking at the weekends (usually - weather dependent). I use a Fitbit for TDEE. I try to keep my macros at 45% carbs, 30% fat and 25 % protein. My intake varies from day to day but my weekly net average calories have been between 1100-1400 net calories/day since starting on the 18th. My diary is open. I log everything - even binges. I weigh food on digital scales and measure liquids with measuring cups. Intake supplements to make sure my micros are right. I also take Ginseng, cod liver oil and Garcinia Cambogia. I am on a lot of prescription meds for depression. These I also log in my diary. I try to drink 3L of water a day though don't always get there.

Can anyone help please? Thanks.

Unless your snacks are from fruits and vegetables, I would cut back on some of the processed ones you are eating dialy. I would also watch my iron intake.

lottietucker

When you say watch iron, are you saying my iron intake is to high or too low? I take a Centrum Performance day which has 100% iron I it.

tiger4nikki

Go get bloodwork done, especially thyroid.

irishcurls22

You sound like me! I am 53, I work out 5-6 days a week for about 90 minutes. I also use a Polar HRM and track my calories. I was stuck and couldn't lose anything but the same 2 pounds. Then I read www.fat2fitradio.com and increased my calories. I sounds like you aren't eating enough either...I know it seems counter intuitive, but you have to eat more to lose more.

Renaeaka

I hear your frustrations. Did you do a whole body detox before starting. I did one this time and it helped jump start my weight loss. I take a lot of prescriptions because I have high blood pressure and it will slow you weight loss. Just be patient. Remember everyday is a new day.

Lizzy622

Certain conditions and medications make weight lose slow but not impossible. It took me 3 years to lose 30 lbs but I did it and have at least that much to go. Don't give up. Keep up the good work.

ChrisM8971

I am in the UK as well and while fresh fruit and veg can be expensive it helps to shop around if you have time. Lidl and Aldi always have specials on fruit and veg while most markets will sell them off cheaper towards the end of the day. By going for frozen you are going for a good alternative, I have some frozen berries in the freezer for smoothies if needed or to defrost for use with Greek yogurt.

As to protein, there are many sources you can look at: I eat a lot of tinned mackerel at the moment which helps but if you are not into that sort of fish then apart from lean meats you can try:

Eggs, Tofu, Beans (such as soya & kidney beans), peanut butter, chickpeas and greek yogurt

peejay65pj

My suggestion for eliminating white bread, and I'll admit it, I'm cheap and when I saw how much more low sodium bread and little choices that were available, I "borrowed" a friends breadmaker, and make my own low sodium whole wheat regularily. BTW there's nothing like fresh baked bread and if you buy bulk flour and yeast, it's pretty economical too. I was at a thrift shop a few days ago and they had oodles of used makers for cheap, looks like alot of people get them then don't use them. Only drawback is it's about 3-4 hrs from start to finish.