PLEASE HELP I AM STARTING TO FEEL DEFEATED
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Looking at your ticker it says that you need to lose 140 lbs. If this is true and you are eating 1370 calories you are not getting nearly enough calories! And I too believe depending on your weight you may be over estimating your Zumba Calories burned.
I did Zumba for the first 6 months of my life style change. I weighed between 290 and 270 lbs for most of that and the most I ever burned at high intensity was no more than 600 Calories for 60 minutes according to my heart rate monitor. I am not saying that you are not working your Butt Off, but 1 MFP way over estimates most calorie burns, and a lot of websites over estimate Zumba Calorie burns.
Suggest you get a Heart Rate Monitor and up your calorie intake. Log CONSISTENTLY. It does not help to do this for months and not see any movement. You should be seeing some movement whether on the scale of in the way your clothes are fitting. I have noticed when I eat processed meals, and items with lots of salt I do not see the scale move as much that week. Don't get me wrong I still eat out, and do not make everything from scratch.
I recommend upping your calories, and do not eat your exercise calories back for a while and see what difference it makes.
When I first started around 290 lbs, I was eating around 1700 calories, and exercising about 300 calories a day. The first 30 lbs dropped off kinda quickly. I researched a good bit and found that I was not eating enough and I have stalled. I calculated my TDEE, and started eating closer to 2000 calories, and exercising about 500 calories most days, and the weight started coming off again. I just recently dropped my calories to get through my most recent stall, but will increase them again shortly.
I am just telling you what has worked for me. Everyone is different, and many would say I am still not eating enough, but we do what works for us.
so sweet and thank you so much for your input!!!!! I will continue to persevere, mfp does over estimate for almost all physical activity. I spoke with a fitness coach and I am not eating enough calories & she advised I eat oatmeal before Zumba, which i do daily but at night from wither 720-830 or 830 to 940; i have to do it late at night so i can out my 3 year old to bed. what does tdee stand for??0 -
OP- do you take a multivitamin? I know that sounds crazy but it also helps me. I am also guilty of underestimating my calories when eating!
Good luck! You'll get there
yes I am taking a prenatal, i just recently miscarried.0 -
To all the people who are saying "I only burn X amount doing _____"
Most of you weigh 125 or 150 pounds. A person who weighs twice that will burn a lot more than you will. However, the OP's burn may still be inflated. But not because you say you don't burn that much.
OP- TDEE means Total Daily Energy Expenditure. This is the balance of energy you need for all of your activities in a day. It is also called Maintenance Calories because this is the number where you would not gain or lose weight. If you eat more than this amount, you will gain, if you eat less than this amount, you will lose.0 -
I wish people would stop telling OP to eat more. She is eating plenty (read: more than she is burning). That whole eat more to lose more may work for some, but definitly not those who are "new" and have a considerable amount of body fat to lose. Eat less to weigh less. Thats my .02.
I am not pointing fingers, I dont always log either. But Im also not on the boards wondering why Im not losing. When I stop losing, I know damn good and well why Im not losing.0 -
1. There is no way you burn that in Zumba
2. If you think that you do burn that in Zumba, you need to eat a hell of a lot more.
3. Weigh and measure everything.
4. Eat more to lose more - it does work, especially if you are as active as you say you are.
5. You need to get into the habit of logging. I know you say you're new and sometimes you forget to log, but that's on your shoulders. So if you forget, you are lying to yourself.
6. Cut the fast food - no wonder you aren't losing. Last time i ate fast food like dunkin, mcdonalds, etc? over 6 months ago. And i have Chipotle on the rare occasion of maybe once every other month, if I'm lucky.
7. Feed your body the nutrients it needs, otherwise it'll hold on to them and not let go of them. 3 100 snack packs a day? That's an odd diet if you ask me. Lots of carbs and sugars.
Sorry sweetheart, you can hate that we are trying to help you, but you did ask, and you just don't like the responses you're getting because it's not what you want to hear - Good luck and I hope you reach your goals one way or another :flowerforyou:
I am not looking for you solve the national deficit, so lets all just take a step back.. I am following a diet and if you would like I am more than happy to send you a copy of it. I am realizing it isnt doing much help, making my body function to the best of its capabilities. I certainly do not hate your advice and or help, but we can only do so much. It may take me some time to get the logging down perfectly, but I am trying, and if I dont get a chance or I forget, it certainly isn't lying, I do the best I can. However since I did post asking for some helpful tips, I have realized that some people on this web site, don't have compassion for other people and or their hardships.. I appreciate your tips and will keep pushing forward in order to implement all things that work! My goal and yours may be different, but I appreciate learning more about this everyday. If I was a an expert I dont think i would be asking questions about this on mfp..0 -
I really dont care about the exact number, <snipped>
Also, about my being honest on my food input.. None of this has anything to do with anyone else, so why would I lie to myself, I am too old for that, however, logging my food into mfp is new to me, and I am learning how to do it. <snipped>
And this is why you are frustrated. You need to care about the burns and the intake.
As for the diary that is now closed...when it was open people commented to help you understand why you weren't losing weight...you didn't like it...got defensive and well here you are...some new friends who may or may not help you...but refusing to accept or acknowledge where you are going wrong. So it's like my profile says you either want it or you don't...if you do want it do it and take the advice regardless of weather you like the advice or not...but that being said...based on the above...yah no.
One of two things is going to happen...you will leave MFP due to frustration and/or failure or finally take the advice given here on logging ie food scale, logging everything, getting real on exercise calories and finally accepting that you could be wrong and then you will start to lose weight, consistently and in a healthy manner.....
And I am out.0 -
Not even close. :laugh: Hell, my LBM alone is more than that!Most of you weigh 125 or 150 pounds.
That is only true if they accomplish the same amount of work (ie, run the same distance), which is almost never the case. Walking X miles at Y weight burns the same amount of calories as walking 2*X miles at Y/2 weight. And for some exercises, such as cycling on a flat roads, weight has surprisingly little impact.A person who weighs twice that will burn a lot more than you will.
The internal perceptions of "work" or "effort" is more or less uncorrelated with the actual amount of work done.0 -
To all the people who are saying "I only burn X amount doing _____"
Most of you weigh 125 or 150 pounds. A person who weighs twice that will burn a lot more than you will. However, the OP's burn may still be inflated. But not because you say you don't burn that much.
OP- TDEE means Total Daily Energy Expenditure. This is the balance of energy you need for all of your activities in a day. It is also called Maintenance Calories because this is the number where you would not gain or lose weight. If you eat more than this amount, you will gain, if you eat less than this amount, you will lose.
is there a calculator to help determine that number that you think is good??? thanks for writing!0 -
I spoke with a fitness coach and I am not eating enough calories & she advised I eat oatmeal before Zumba, which i do daily but at night from wither 720-830 or 830 to 940; i have to do it late at night so i can out my 3 year old to bed. what does tdee stand for??
Keep in mind, that's only if your calorie count is accurate. You will get far better accuracy if you log by ingredient, rather than finding a similar item on mfp and hoping that it's accurate. Remember, you have no idea what size it is, how it's prepared, and even if the person entered accurate information for it in the first place. For example, you have logged things that list calories only, without any of the macronutrients such as carbs, protein, and fat. That makes it harder to know if you are hitting a protein goal.
I'm sure your fitness coach will agree that a food journal is only as good as the accuracy of the information put in it.
TDEE is "total daily energy expenditure". There are a few calculators available, with some variations to the numbers. This gives you a maintenance level calorie intake. Then you deduct 10-20% in order to lose weight. One important thing to note is that with this method, you do not eat back exercise calories because they are already included in the calculation.
thank you so much!!!! do you suggest for eating something like oatmeal that is prepackaged like quaker instant oatmeal to scan so all the nutrition goes into the mfp???0 -
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is there a calculator to help determine that number that you think is good??? thanks for writing!
Here's a way to estimate...figure out how far you can jog in the length of time the class takes. IE, if the class is 45 minutes, how far can you run in 45 minutes? Then use this formula...
Net calories burned = 0.63 * Body weight in pounds * miles run
If you can't run for the length of time the class lasts, then use the distance you can walk:
Net calories burned = 0.3 * Body weight in pounds * miles walked (eg 2 miles @ 250 pounds -> 150 net calories burned)
Normally I wouldn't be following up on this, because a hundred calories here or there is not really a big deal in the long run, for most people. But when you run those numbers, you will see that your over-estimate is *so* huge that it does in fact make a substantial difference to how you manage your food intake.0 -
I can feel your pain. Most days I feel defeated as well. When I'm doing cardio burning 700 plus calories and logging my food and I can't get past 245. I've lost 20lbs since July but I can't do any better. MFP tells me most days if I ate like I eat then I should drop 15 to 18 pounds in 5 weeks but I just can't get there. I know that I'm bad logging and sometime I have bad days where I don't work out and consume more than my calorie limit but for 1 to 2 bad days to erase 3-5 days off working out and eating right, sucks! All I want is to lose 8-10 pounds a month to show me that I'm getting there and that my hard works counts. This is super frustrating.0
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I can feel your pain. Most days I feel defeated as well. When I'm doing cardio burning 700 plus calories and logging my food and I can't get past 245. I've lost 20lbs since July but I can't do any better. MFP tells me most days if I ate like I eat then I should drop 15 to 18 pounds in 5 weeks but I just can't get there. I know that I'm bad logging and sometime I have bad days where I don't work out and consume more than my calorie limit but for 1 to 2 bad days to erase 3-5 days off working out and eating right, sucks! All I want is to lose 8-10 pounds a month to show me that I'm getting there and that my hard works counts. This is super frustrating.
You hit the nail on the head without even realizing it....
Yes, 1-2 bad days per week definitly erases 3-5 decent days. On the bad days you are filling in the deficit you created on your good days. That is exactly why you are left spinning your wheels. Are the so called "cheat days" really worth it? Not for me. This is something I myself had to come to terms with.
Everytime I reach for a snack I repeat the same phrase in my head....it may be dumb but it works...
"Eat good. Feel Good. Look Good. Eat Bad. Feel Bad. Look Bad.0 -
I have done several exercise programs and unless you have done Zumba with an instructor pushing you don't automatically assume she isn't burning that many calories!! Our zumba class is intense and according to several people who have the bands they are buring app 700 a class!! Different brands and different age groups. Dont be so fast to judge people! Unless of course you are in their class and your just so supe smart you know everything. This site is really starting to get annoying. SO you lost a few pounds whoopy for you but DO NOT think you are a health professional since most of us arent Be supportive not a pain!0
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I really dont care about the exact number, <snipped>
Also, about my being honest on my food input.. None of this has anything to do with anyone else, so why would I lie to myself, I am too old for that, however, logging my food into mfp is new to me, and I am learning how to do it. <snipped>
And this is why you are frustrated. You need to care about the burns and the intake.
As for the diary that is now closed...when it was open people commented to help you understand why you weren't losing weight...you didn't like it...got defensive and well here you are...some new friends who may or may not help you...but refusing to accept or acknowledge where you are going wrong. So it's like my profile says you either want it or you don't...if you do want it do it and take the advice regardless of weather you like the advice or not...but that being said...based on the above...yah no.
One of two things is going to happen...you will leave MFP due to frustration and/or failure or finally take the advice given here on logging ie food scale, logging everything, getting real on exercise calories and finally accepting that you could be wrong and then you will start to lose weight, consistently and in a healthy manner.....
And I am out.
you know some people on here really show no respect for the fact that someone is trying to make changes. some changes are hard pills to swallow, but then again if you've been on your own journey you would know that already. I am not here to judge you, however your judgement of me and my posts really cant change the fact that i will continue to exercise and make positive changes to eat better.0 -
I am honestly not trying to sound judgmental or harsh, but the first thing you have to do is get honest and consistent about logging what you eat. I'm betting that will pretty much solve your issue right there.
Yes. Honesty and accuracy is the best policy. It's alot of hard work and diligence, but it will pay off in the end.
As for the Nike Fuelband, I've actually heard it's not very accurate. The way it calculates calorie burn is completely different from a normal HRM. I would highly suggest getting a HRM with a chest strap. I have a Polar FT4 and I love it.
THIS.
The following are my OPINIONS...as asked for. I'm not judging or claiming to know better than you or anyone else.
Log EVERYTHING...right down to a tic-tac. I wouldn't worry about anything else right now but that. Get in a habit of logging...almost obsessively.
I would also say the Calorie burn is too high...I've noticed some REALLY high numbers on EVERYONE's exercise logs so it might not be real accurate...for some it IS...for others they are not. I'm one that doesn't burn a lot and I realize this through LOTS of trial and error.
*For those that continually lecture people about "judging others"....well...that's kind of what the original poster ASKED FOR. I mean if you post something asking people to look over your diary and help you figure out what might be wrong...that's JUDGEMENT. Some people could be a bit more tactful with it, but essentially they were ASKED for their opinions.0 -
Keep going strong friend!!!! Everyone has bad days, we are human! You can never go wrong exercising more than before and eating better than before!!! Keep moving forward!!!!I can feel your pain. Most days I feel defeated as well. When I'm doing cardio burning 700 plus calories and logging my food and I can't get past 245. I've lost 20lbs since July but I can't do any better. MFP tells me most days if I ate like I eat then I should drop 15 to 18 pounds in 5 weeks but I just can't get there. I know that I'm bad logging and sometime I have bad days where I don't work out and consume more than my calorie limit but for 1 to 2 bad days to erase 3-5 days off working out and eating right, sucks! All I want is to lose 8-10 pounds a month to show me that I'm getting there and that my hard works counts. This is super frustrating.0 -
I have done several exercise programs and unless you have done Zumba with an instructor pushing you don't automatically assume she isn't burning that many calories!! Our zumba class is intense and according to several people who have the bands they are buring app 700 a class!! Different brands and different age groups. Dont be so fast to judge people! Unless of course you are in their class and your just so supe smart you know everything. This site is really starting to get annoying. SO you lost a few pounds whoopy for you but DO NOT think you are a health professional since most of us arent Be supportive not a pain!
I love you! thanks for writing that!0 -
I am honestly not trying to sound judgmental or harsh, but the first thing you have to do is get honest and consistent about logging what you eat. I'm betting that will pretty much solve your issue right there.
Yes. Honesty and accuracy is the best policy. It's alot of hard work and diligence, but it will pay off in the end.
As for the Nike Fuelband, I've actually heard it's not very accurate. The way it calculates calorie burn is completely different from a normal HRM. I would highly suggest getting a HRM with a chest strap. I have a Polar FT4 and I love it.
THIS.
The following are my OPINIONS...as asked for. I'm not judging or claiming to know better than you or anyone else.
Log EVERYTHING...right down to a tic-tac. I wouldn't worry about anything else right now but that. Get in a habit of logging...almost obsessively.
I would also say the Calorie burn is too high...I've noticed some REALLY high numbers on EVERYONE's exercise logs so it might not be real accurate...for some it IS...for others they are not. I'm one that doesn't burn a lot and I realize this through LOTS of trial and error.
*For those that continually lecture people about "judging others"....well...that's kind of what the original poster ASKED FOR. I mean if you post something asking people to look over your diary and help you figure out what might be wrong...that's JUDGEMENT. Some people could be a bit more tactful with it, but essentially they were ASKED for their opinions.
opinion and judgement are two very different things friend.. if you saw someone crying would you laugh and call them stupid, or would you show care and empathy.0 -
Hi - I know that this thread is a "whirlwind" and a lot to process. Here is a suggestion that someone made to me.
1. Read as many success stories as you can - positive ones abound.
2. Check out some groups or threads here
3.. If you like them - join them or just "watch from the side for a while"
Here is a group that I belong to which has one of the most positive guys around
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/15552-infinite-ambitious-possibilities
Here is a super group that is just about how many miles you can walk, run, swim, bike, elliptical, stairmaster, swim etc.
It's called the MYA challenge - It is a fun!
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1120673-october-2013-move-your-a-challenge
Here is a group that I started which is in it's 2nd month and has a "laid back supportive atmosphere"
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/16790-keeping-it-green-while-eating-challenge-oct-2013
Feel free to friend0
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