OMG Everything I know is wrong!
bubbaduts
Posts: 196 Member
I have been on MFP for over 3 years and initially lost 77 pounds FAST! But I have been stuck for 2 years of gaining and losing the same 10-15! I thought I had a health issue so I saw my Dr. she ran every test in the book and said I was healthy but decided to send me to a nutritionist because of my symptoms. I met with the sports nutritionist and man oh man was I wrong about what I thought my body needed! She looked at my MFP food and exercise diaries and then told me I was eating the calories of a 90 year old grandma and no wonder I can't lose weight. With the running Mileage I do a week alone I should be eating 3100 calories a day and 75 percent carbs! Not to mention the other exercise! I was floored I am still having a hard time believing her but an 8 year degree in sports nutrition can't be wrong. She explained that I am no longer the 270+ pound girl that started, I am a marathon runner and an athlete now and if i dont eat like one my body will fight back. I will be using MFP to help me up my calories and get my carbs in but I think I am finally ready to transition to the athlete I am! I just wanted to post this just in case there is anyone else that is facing the same problem of not losing.
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Replies
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Wow. I hope she is correct!!!! Eating 3150 cal/day!?!? I guess if you like to run that much! I'd rather cut back on the running and eat a little less, lol. Good luck and congrats on the loss!!!0
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Did you never update your activity profile? If you start out sedentary at 270+ pounds and then start walking everywhere and exercising frequently, you'll need to be moved up in activity level. Also, were you eating back your exercise calories before? You're obviously moving a lot more if you've lost that much weight and are supposed to eat over 3000 calories a day, and that needs to be reflected in your activity levels and logged exercise.0
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Glad you figured it out
I'm eating over 2,200 calories a day now that I'm in maintenance and my exercise schedule is pretty low key compared to yours. I can definitely see why you need higher calories! 0 -
I have been on MFP for over 3 years and initially lost 77 pounds FAST! But I have been stuck for 2 years of gaining and losing the same 10-15! I thought I had a health issue so I saw my Dr. she ran every test in the book and said I was healthy but decided to send me to a nutritionist because of my symptoms. I met with the sports nutritionist and man oh man was I wrong about what I thought my body needed! She looked at my MFP food and exercise diaries and then told me I was eating the calories of a 90 year old grandma and no wonder I can't lose weight. With the running Mileage I do a week alone I should be eating 3100 calories a day and 75 percent carbs! Not to mention the other exercise! I was floored I am still having a hard time believing her but an 8 year degree in sports nutrition can't be wrong. She explained that I am no longer the 270+ pound girl that started, I am a marathon runner and an athlete now and if i dont eat like one my body will fight back. I will be using MFP to help me up my calories and get my carbs in but I think I am finally ready to transition to the athlete I am! I just wanted to post this just in case there is anyone else that is facing the same problem of not losing.
It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.0 -
Yes! I am so glad you are listening to expert advice AND your body! You rock so hard. :bigsmile:0
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Although, her 3100 calorie estimate probably includes your exercise calories
But I have known people whose weight has stalled and when they upped it a bit, they started losing again.
Play around with the calories. I hope you find what works for you!0 -
Yeah, it's pretty important to feed your body, especially if you're really training. I talk to so many people who want that "fitness body" but they're eating like a bird and it frustrates me to no end...because how are you going to have any muscle and achieve that fitness look without eating food and fueling your body.
When I was sedentary I took in about 2300 calories or so to maintain...now that I workout regularly I take in around 2700 - 2800. When I'm actually training for an event I'm around 3200 + to maintain.
I'm glad you figured it out...I find it very frustrating that people don't understand that as you increase your level of activity, you increase your body's calorie requirements...it just baffles me...it's a relatively simple concept.
I wouldn't take her estimate as gospel though...you'll likely need to play with things. I only know my numbers from making adjustments over these last 16 months or so per real world results. You also have to be as precise as humanly possible with your intake..i.e. use a food scale and measure anything that isn't weighed.0 -
It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.
This. Quoted for truth.0 -
need more info ..
how many calories are you eating right now?
current height/weight?
do you own food scale?
weigh/log/measure everything?0 -
It was hard wrapping my head around eating more to lose but after I did, boy was I happy!
Glad you got some REAL EXPERT advice.0 -
I have been on MFP for over 3 years and initially lost 77 pounds FAST! But I have been stuck for 2 years of gaining and losing the same 10-15! I thought I had a health issue so I saw my Dr. she ran every test in the book and said I was healthy but decided to send me to a nutritionist because of my symptoms. I met with the sports nutritionist and man oh man was I wrong about what I thought my body needed! She looked at my MFP food and exercise diaries and then told me I was eating the calories of a 90 year old grandma and no wonder I can't lose weight. With the running Mileage I do a week alone I should be eating 3100 calories a day and 75 percent carbs! Not to mention the other exercise! I was floored I am still having a hard time believing her but an 8 year degree in sports nutrition can't be wrong. She explained that I am no longer the 270+ pound girl that started, I am a marathon runner and an athlete now and if i dont eat like one my body will fight back. I will be using MFP to help me up my calories and get my carbs in but I think I am finally ready to transition to the athlete I am! I just wanted to post this just in case there is anyone else that is facing the same problem of not losing.
It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.
trust me i've tried every "low calorie" way to lose weight in the past including weighing all my food. It doesn't work because it's not enough food. I'm sorry but as much as I appreciate your advice I think I will listen to the person who has a degree based around this since doing the low calorie thing isn't working.0 -
I have been on MFP for over 3 years and initially lost 77 pounds FAST! But I have been stuck for 2 years of gaining and losing the same 10-15! I thought I had a health issue so I saw my Dr. she ran every test in the book and said I was healthy but decided to send me to a nutritionist because of my symptoms. I met with the sports nutritionist and man oh man was I wrong about what I thought my body needed! She looked at my MFP food and exercise diaries and then told me I was eating the calories of a 90 year old grandma and no wonder I can't lose weight. With the running Mileage I do a week alone I should be eating 3100 calories a day and 75 percent carbs! Not to mention the other exercise! I was floored I am still having a hard time believing her but an 8 year degree in sports nutrition can't be wrong. She explained that I am no longer the 270+ pound girl that started, I am a marathon runner and an athlete now and if i dont eat like one my body will fight back. I will be using MFP to help me up my calories and get my carbs in but I think I am finally ready to transition to the athlete I am! I just wanted to post this just in case there is anyone else that is facing the same problem of not losing.
It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.
trust me i've tried every "low calorie" way to lose weight in the past including weighing all my food. It doesn't work because it's not enough food. I'm sorry but as much as I appreciate your advice I think I will listen to the person who has a degree based around this since doing the low calorie thing isn't working.
but you would still lose weight in the form of lost muscle mass ...so perhaps your "low calorie" was really not that low...
I mean it is basic math ..burn more then you consume and you will lose from somewhere....0 -
It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.
This. Quoted for truth.
It does make sense...if you do not fuel your body properly it will hold on to EVERYTHING it has. It's like a car, the farther you go the more gas it needs. Simple.0 -
I have been on MFP for over 3 years and initially lost 77 pounds FAST! But I have been stuck for 2 years of gaining and losing the same 10-15! I thought I had a health issue so I saw my Dr. she ran every test in the book and said I was healthy but decided to send me to a nutritionist because of my symptoms. I met with the sports nutritionist and man oh man was I wrong about what I thought my body needed! She looked at my MFP food and exercise diaries and then told me I was eating the calories of a 90 year old grandma and no wonder I can't lose weight. With the running Mileage I do a week alone I should be eating 3100 calories a day and 75 percent carbs! Not to mention the other exercise! I was floored I am still having a hard time believing her but an 8 year degree in sports nutrition can't be wrong. She explained that I am no longer the 270+ pound girl that started, I am a marathon runner and an athlete now and if i dont eat like one my body will fight back. I will be using MFP to help me up my calories and get my carbs in but I think I am finally ready to transition to the athlete I am! I just wanted to post this just in case there is anyone else that is facing the same problem of not losing.
It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.
While this is true (because science), I must say that out of all the "Help me, not losing" posts I see on MFP, most of them do a ton of cardio and not eating very much. I am not going to say that it's starvation mode or any BS like that, but there has got to be something to it. When I started running exclusively this month, I stopped losing weight. I didn't gain either, but the changes to my body were minimal at best.
The advice I like to give those people is to take a rest day or two, and mix up the workouts to include strength training instead of so much cardio. I'm sure you can lose weight doing endurance running, but in my experience, it's not the most effective workout to lose the last 10-15 pounds.0 -
If you are freaking out about the number of calories her Nut told her, try looking at a real athlete, Lolo Jones. She won in track and field and is now on the bobsled team in the upcoming olympics. I saw an interview and she said she was eating 9000 calories a day.
I can't imagine trying to eat that much, but you know she wasn't eating junk either. Her body is solid muscle. Lolo's story blew me away!!0 -
I'm sure your nutritionist mentioned this, but I would add your calories back slowly and work up to that total.
You probably are going to see some amounts of weight gain, because there is a lot of adjustments your body is going to need to go through, but keep in mind your end goal and stick through them. Everything will work itself out if you stick to the plan 0 -
I have been on MFP for over 3 years and initially lost 77 pounds FAST! But I have been stuck for 2 years of gaining and losing the same 10-15! I thought I had a health issue so I saw my Dr. she ran every test in the book and said I was healthy but decided to send me to a nutritionist because of my symptoms. I met with the sports nutritionist and man oh man was I wrong about what I thought my body needed! She looked at my MFP food and exercise diaries and then told me I was eating the calories of a 90 year old grandma and no wonder I can't lose weight. With the running Mileage I do a week alone I should be eating 3100 calories a day and 75 percent carbs! Not to mention the other exercise! I was floored I am still having a hard time believing her but an 8 year degree in sports nutrition can't be wrong. She explained that I am no longer the 270+ pound girl that started, I am a marathon runner and an athlete now and if i dont eat like one my body will fight back. I will be using MFP to help me up my calories and get my carbs in but I think I am finally ready to transition to the athlete I am! I just wanted to post this just in case there is anyone else that is facing the same problem of not losing.
It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.
trust me i've tried every "low calorie" way to lose weight in the past including weighing all my food. It doesn't work because it's not enough food. I'm sorry but as much as I appreciate your advice I think I will listen to the person who has a degree based around this since doing the low calorie thing isn't working.
It certainly is your choice to decide what to do and how much to eat, but remember if the nutritionist is giving you advice based on your MFP log, she's doing with the understanding that your calorie count is accurate. If you haven't been losing weight after tracking for months and months, something is wrong with your calorie calculations. You are either overcalculating your calories burned, or undercalculating your calories consumed. There is no "starvation mode" where your body holds on to weight because you aren't eating enough. That's not physically possible. If you aren't giving it enough fuel, your body needs to break down either fat or muscle for energy. If starvation mode were a real thing, they wouldn't have pictures of starving children all over the television or anorexics all over the internet.0 -
Sounds familiar. I used to run marathons on about 1100 a day (total, not net- SMH). I lost weight but didn't look the way I wanted. Now I go to 2700 a day in training (TDEE method), and that is still a slight deficit. 3,000 total does seem reasonable for someone running very high mileage. 75% carbs seems kind of high (not that I don't love my carbs). I tend to follow the 1g protein per pound lean mass rule. Once I hit that goal, and my minimum 70g fat, then I fill the rest up with carbs. i weigh more than I did at my lowest, but i have a lower body fat % and look a lot better.
Good luck! Sounds like you're heading towards a better path.0 -
I'm sorry, i just cant get my head around the idea that you need to eat more to lose weight.
People may need to eat more in some cases for fitness and to feed their body properly etc but to lose weight it just does not add up.
The proposed world is one where starvation is the lead cause of obesity and people unfortunate enough to suffer from anorexia are plus size models.
It does not add up.0 -
It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.
This. Quoted for truth.
It does make sense...if you do not fuel your body properly it will hold on to EVERYTHING it has. It's like a car, the farther you go the more gas it needs. Simple.
Thank you. This is exactly what she said. I eat more than the 1300 I was consuming plus some exercise calories and I would put on weight! She has me slowing increasing my calories so my body adjusts. She will still keep me at a deficit to help me lose but she wants me more at 2100. I am 5'9 I run at least 25 miles a week plus cross training and lifting and weigh 187 pounds.0 -
I don't get this logic....
Try telling this to the people starving in Ethiopia - They sure as hell are losing weight by not eating... it's the basic law of calories in and calories out.
I don't deny that you need to eat more to sustain your activity, but not eating enough is not why you are not losing weight. Are you sure you haven't just mis-calculated your new smaller body's TDEE in the past?
I am not being rude here, just trying to get my head around it0 -
Except when your car runs out of gas, it stops running. It doesn't hold on to some gas because it's going to run out. your body CAN NOT hold on to stored fat if you are not eating enough to provide it fuel to convert to energy, it has to break some part of your body down for that. If it isn't fat, it's muscle that gets broken down and used.It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.
This. Quoted for truth.
It does make sense...if you do not fuel your body properly it will hold on to EVERYTHING it has. It's like a car, the farther you go the more gas it needs. Simple.0 -
It doesn't really make sense for her to say you can't lose weight because you aren't eating enough calories. If you aren't eating enough calories you should be having trouble with losing too much weight, including lean muscle. You should weigh everything you eat and calculate how many calories you need using your TDEE, and then eat below that to lose weight. If you aren't losing weight it's because you are calculating your intake incorrectly and not eating at a deficit.
This. Quoted for truth.
It does make sense...if you do not fuel your body properly it will hold on to EVERYTHING it has. It's like a car, the farther you go the more gas it needs. Simple.
Thank you. This is exactly what she said. I eat more than the 1300 I was consuming plus some exercise calories and I would put on weight! She has me slowing increasing my calories so my body adjusts. She will still keep me at a deficit to help me lose but she wants me more at 2100. I am 5'9 I run at least 25 miles a week plus cross training and lifting and weigh 187 pounds.
regardless of the 'starvation mode argument', which everyone on both sides is going to get wrong anyway...
2100 cals/day for a woman of your height and age who runs 25 miles a week is a totally reasonable and sane goal.0 -
If you are freaking out about the number of calories her Nut told her, try looking at a real athlete, Lolo Jones. She won in track and field and is now on the bobsled team in the upcoming olympics. I saw an interview and she said she was eating 9000 calories a day.
I can't imagine trying to eat that much, but you know she wasn't eating junk either. Her body is solid muscle. Lolo's story blew me away!!
something tells me that OP does not have the caloric requirement of an Olympic athlete...0 -
^Agreed.regardless of the 'starvation mode argument', which everyone on both sides is going to get wrong anyway...
2100 cals/day for a woman of your height and age who runs 25 miles a week is a totally reasonable and sane goal.0 -
Yah there is something off...
1. You are not weighing your food. I looked at your diay and you have 1 tortilla, 1 patty, 1 stalk, 1cup of this, 1 small apple etc.
You are eating more than you think...bottom line.
And to top it all off....
2. On Monday Your have 85mins of running at 819 calories...HRM with chest strap? if not...I am dubious because another day it was 83 mins a 1091 calories...
group powerlift 60mins 385 calories burned????
Zumba with HRM 60mins 628...0 -
I think its great you got professional advice. I agree with it completely. I hope you post again down the road with results of how increasing calories worked out for you. By the way, great progress. Very impressive. Take away all her exercise calories off 2100. That puts her at a very reasonable deficit. Eat back the exercise calories and she is still at the same deficit. Much healthier overall to fuel those workouts.0
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OP - lets try this one more time..
I am just curious and really want to help...
how many calories are you eating right now?
current height/weight?
do you own food scale?
weigh/log/measure everything?
I just think that going up to 3150 a day is not going to get you the results you want..0 -
Sounds about right, I've been stuck for about 5/6 months and realized that I too need to up my calories and my workouts...BAM! it worked, started to lose again. Now I wouldn't got to 3000 + but up it a little.0
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I don't get this logic....
Try telling this to the people starving in Ethiopia - They sure as hell are losing weight by not eating... it's the basic law of calories in and calories out.
I don't deny that you need to eat more to sustain your activity, but not eating enough is not why you are not losing weight. Are you sure you haven't just mis-calculated your new smaller body's TDEE in the past?
I am not being rude here, just trying to get my head around it
trust me I am trying to get my head around it too. but she showed me hard proof that her approach has worked for other runners with the same issue as me. She's sending me to follow up with the head of sports nutrition next month to work on a plan for once my body is used to the higher calories. I merely posted this for people who are as frustrated as me with low energy levels and other "issues" going on. I seriously thought I had a thyroid issue.0
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