Not too sure whats going on anymore.

MichelleNicole93
MichelleNicole93 Posts: 89 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Im 5'3 and I started at 185 and I'm now down to 150lbs I fluctuate from 150-145. My goal weight is between 130-125. I do 20-30 Mins of cardio everyday like incline walking with a bit of jogging and lift a bit everyday. since lifting (started jan 1st) I haven't seen a drop on the scale. Perhaps even an increase most days. which is quite annoying it makes me feel unmotivated like I'm doing something wrong. Im not sure if this is normal... or not. Mfp tells me to eat 1200 calories. So i usually stick to that with a clean diet. (most days.... weekends I'm in the restaurant so it can become diff. at times not to pick on unhealthy foods, but i record it) I also eat back my exercise calories. Im just wondering if I'm doing this all right and if anyone has ever had this happen to them and how long did it last before you started losing the weight again?

Replies

  • angelalf1979
    angelalf1979 Posts: 244 Member
    You're more than likely gaining muscle.
  • SherryTeach
    SherryTeach Posts: 2,836 Member
    You aren't gaining muscle eating 1200 calories a day. More than likely your muscles are retaining water since your strength training is new.
  • AshwinA7
    AshwinA7 Posts: 102 Member
    Are you having trouble losing weight or are you worried about the spread?

    The spread will always be there, mainly because of water weight fluctuations.

    But if you're talking about a weight loss plateau, it could mean that you're scale is wacky (like mine) or that you're not counting all the calories you're eating. For me, the big thing is counting sauces. There's usually a couple hundred of calories of sauce that gets used in my cooking so if I didn't log those I'd be consistently over my daily limit.

    How long have you been at the plateau?
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    I stalled out around 145 lbs and kept bouncing around. I was stuck there for 3 months. What changed for me was that I started logging everything (even weekends and "cheat meals") and I started using a food scale.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    Also I didn't lose any weight for the first month of lifting, because of the water retention.
  • 2Dozen
    2Dozen Posts: 66 Member
    Keep in mind that what the scale tells you is only a portion of the story, try to use BMI calculators to get the whole story(which involve measuring of certain sections of your body, not just your weight). When you lift weights you gain muscle, muscle weighs more than fat. So you could actually be much leaner but weigh roughly the same. How long have you been working with weights? Its hard to troubleshoot with the little bit we know.
  • BrainyBurro
    BrainyBurro Posts: 6,129 Member
    there is much in your OP that needs to be addressed (you've literally ticked off a whole bingo card full of common topics discussed on MFP again and again and again), but i don't have time to do more than just list them for you. in this case, you should spend some time using the search function and treat each topic separately to find relevant threads.

    - why am i not losing weight?
    - water weight gain (especially when starting new exercise regimens)
    - accurate/inaccurate settings and/or logging
    - 1200 calories
    - so-called "clean" eating

    there are even more topics implied by your OP, but it's best not to give you too long a list to search right now.

    however, first go read this and keep an open mind. some of the things you are doing are counterproductive and if you're open to changing your regimen for the better, this is a good thread to start with.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants
  • wilsoje74
    wilsoje74 Posts: 1,720 Member
    You're more than likely gaining muscle.

    No
  • acogg
    acogg Posts: 1,870 Member
    Weight loss is about the rolling average. If you are going over on weekends and making up for it on weekdays and you are not in a deficit overall , you will not lose weight. Your body doesn't recognize that it's the weekend and that those calories should count less.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,336 Member
    Are you measuring progress with anything other than the scale? If not, you really should since the scale is often not much help when starting to lift weights. You could be losing fat and the only place it will show is in your measurements.

    Also, you likely should be eating more than 1200 calories.

    Case in point.
    http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

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