working out 5x a week for 5 weeks and no weight loss

sjlockyer912

I have been working out for over a month, 5x a week or more and have not lost a single pound! The first 4 weeks i focused mostly on strength training, and only did about 10 minuets of cardio each day. The last 2 weeks i have upped my cardio to 20-30 minuets on strength training days and 45-60 minuets on just cardio days. The first 4 weeks i did not count calories but i did not do any snacking or eat anything terrible. I am now on 1200 calories a day. I don't really see any changes in how my clothes fit and the only measurement i took was my waist and it hasn't changed, however i have noticed increased strength…what do i need to do/ change to actually loose weight?

bwogilvie

You don't work out to lose weight. You work out to be stronger, fitter, and have more endurance.

To lose weight, you need to eat less than you expend in energy. Your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) has four components:

RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) - energy that you would burn just lying in bed.
NEAT (Non Exercise Activity Thermogenesis) - energy you burn in your daily life (brushing teeth, walking around, cooking, etc.)
DIT (Diet Induced Thermogenesis) - energy you burn to eat and digest the food you eat (it takes more energy to digest whole grains than refined grains, etc.)
EAT (Exercise Associated Thermogenesis) - energy you burn in exercise.

For most people, EAT is a pretty small part of the total. Focusing on it, by upping exercise, generally won't get results--especially if you don't count calories, because exercise makes us want to eat more.

I suggest starting with these posts:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819925-the-basics-don-t-complicate-it
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

Then read some others linked from this page:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/833026-important-posts-to-read