What am I doing wrong?

huneycutt13

So I started working out and eating better the second week in January. I started doing C25k and Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred along with doing WW. About a month in I decided that WW wasn't for me so I've been using my fit bit force, which I got Feb 1st, to track my calories and activities.

I am doing C25k with a friend to keep me accountable and doing that 3 days a week. The other 3 days I've been doing 30 Day Shred with Sunday as a rest day. My friend and I weigh on Sundays and talk about our week, our goals, etc. I also am eating at a -750 calorie deficit based on the calories that I burn for that day. Which, depending on the day, can range from 1500-1900 calories. Unless I have a cheat meal (on Saturday night) but I try to plan for it and my day can be up to 2200 with one.

I've lost approx 10 lbs since January 7th. I was 195lb at the doctor's office and have been weighing around 188-185.5lbs every Sunday for about a month now. I feel like I'm already starting to plateau and not loosing any weight. I took pictures on Jan 23rd and again on Feb 23rd and I could absolutely not see a difference. The only difference I know about is that now I can jog with the c25k program (on week 7 after I repeated some weeks). My pants aren't feeling any looser and I'm getting really frustrated with my weight. I do have a sedentary job but I'm doing over 10k steps on my c25k days and around 7k-8k on the 30DS days.

Why haven't I been able to get past 185lbs? I used to weigh 150 before I started this job which is more sedentary than teaching (what I used to do). And I would love to get back down to my old weight so that I can 1) feel better/be healthy 2) fit back into my clothes again.

Am I doing anything wrong? What should I change? Am I just going to have to wait some more and just keep doing what I'm doing? I'm so frustrated but don't want to give up!

ETA: I log everything on my fit bit dashboard: https://www.fitbit.com/user/2CSG2K and today looks so bad. I admit it, I ate 3 donuts. No self control!

jac_84

I didnt see an open diary
whats your food intake like?
I wondering if the problem is what you eat.
Everything else seems to be good to me!

LoraF83

Open your diary so we can see what you are doing.

catfive1

Are you saying that your fitbit says that you burn between 1500-1700 calories a day? And you eat 750 calories below that?

huneycutt13

It really depends, I log my food on fit bit. I do have some cheat items occassionally at work. A piece of chocolate, a donut or cupcake for someone's birthday. Would that really hurt me in the long run?

My fit bit profile: https://www.fitbit.com/user/2CSG2K

huneycutt13

No I burn around 2400 calories a day and eat -750 of that number so around 1650 intake.

TArnold2012

Diary?

Lauracharder

>>>>>>>
"English Muffin, 100% Whole Wheat (Thomas') 1 muffin 120 1 3 23 220 6
Egg Alternative, Egg Whites (Egg Beaters) 3 tbsp 25 0 0 1 75 5
Light & Fit, Greek Yogurt, Vanilla (Dannon) 1 container 80 0 0 9 50 12
Donut, Maple Frosted (Dunkin' Donuts) 1 doughnut 210 9 1 30 260 3
Donut, Blueberry Cake (Dunkin' Donuts) 1 doughnut 290 16 1 35 400 3
725 26 5 98 1005 29
Spinach, Raw 7 leaves 16 0.3 1.5 2.5 55.3 2
Carrot, Sliced (Del Monte) 1/2 cup 35 0 3 8 300 0
Hummus, Spinach and Artichoke (Sabra) 1 tbsp 35 2.5 1 2 65 1
Bread, 100% Whole Wheat (Nature's Own) 2 slices 100 2 4 20 230 8
Turkey Breast, Honey Smoked Thin Sliced (Oscar Mayer) 2 oz 60 1 0 2 610 10
Simply Naked Pita Chips (Stacy's) 1 serving 130 5 1 19 270 3
376 10.8 10.5 53.5 1530.3 24
Cinnamon Cake Donut (Dunkin Donuts) 1 donut 260 16 1 27 270 3
260 16 1 27 270 3
Quinoa Chicken Meal (Home Made) 1 serving 366 0 0 0 0 0
Cut Green Beans (Bush's) 1/2 cup 20 0 2 5 400 1
Banana Bread Mix (Concord Foods) 1 serving 130 1.5 0 26 130 2
516 1.5 2 31 530 3 "

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
I'm not going to take the time to do the calculations but definitely looks like WAY too many carbs, not enough protein.

huneycutt13

Diary?

I log on fitbit.com but its still viewable: https://www.fitbit.com/user/2CSG2K

Today looks so bad bc I had 3 donuts. Such a bad choice.

catfive1

It really depends, I log my food on fit bit. I do have some cheat items occassionally at work. A piece of chocolate, a donut or cupcake for someone's birthday. Would that really hurt me in the long run?

My fit bit profile: https://www.fitbit.com/user/2CSG2K

You really need to be accurate with your intake. Weigh and measure everything. Take a look at this video for reference.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY

gabrielsnapcity

Me personally, I try to eat 1200 calories a day at most. Although I feel like you should be losing more weight. Are you doing physical activity of any kind?

editorgrrl

I've lost approx 10 lbs since January 7th. I was 195lb at the doctor's office and have been weighing around 188-185.5lbs every Sunday for about a month now.

A healthy weight loss is .5–2 lb. per week. And weight loss is not linear.

But you're probably underestimating your food &/or overestimating your burns. Log everything you eat & drink accurately & honestly. Weigh all of your food.

Since you're not logging in MFP, we can't see your diary & offer feedback. Since logging in Fitbit isn't working for you, I'd suggest logging in MFP instead. If you connect your accounts at http://www.myfitnesspal.com/apps/show/30 MFP will send your water intake and aggregate meal data to Fitbit.

Do not log step based activity. Log non-step workouts either in MFP or in Fitbit. I find Fitbit's burns to be more accurate than MFP's one-size-fits-all guesstimates.

Read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

Edited to add that MFP has a Fitbit Users group: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/1307-fitbit-users

LoraF83

It really depends, I log my food on fit bit. I do have some cheat items occassionally at work. A piece of chocolate, a donut or cupcake for someone's birthday. Would that really hurt me in the long run?

My fit bit profile: https://www.fitbit.com/user/2CSG2K

Cheat items won't hurt. Incomplete logging will. Log everything - even on the weekends.

I'm not familiar with fit bit. Is their database pretty accurate? Weigh and measure your foods for accuracy as well.

nxd10

You do need to weigh and measure everything. It makes a huge difference. You also need to LOG everything - mayonaise, mustard, the spoonful of cookie you ate while baking . . . It adds up to a few hundred calories a day for me.

If you've been overweight you are probably at least a little insulin resistant. Especially if anyone in your family has diabetes. You've been overweight enough that you probably are. I cannot lose weight no matter how few calories I eat without keeping carbs under 50%. 35% is better. That's not low carb at all. It's more protein and fewer empty calories. For me, it meant dropping a lot of bread and reducing a lot of things with a lot of calories that I didn't care about too much. One donut yum. 3, no added benefit.

The fitbit is meant for you to log on MFP and for MFP to take the info from fitbit and add it to your daily alottment. Just saying - that's how both sites say to use them. Personally, I love fitbit for exercise, but MFP is more accurate on calories.

FINALLY . . . you've lost weight. You need to tell MFP that so it reduces your calorie alotmment. Every time I stalled it was because I had lost weight and so was now overeating.

huneycutt13

It really depends, I log my food on fit bit. I do have some cheat items occassionally at work. A piece of chocolate, a donut or cupcake for someone's birthday. Would that really hurt me in the long run?

My fit bit profile: https://www.fitbit.com/user/2CSG2K

You really need to be accurate with your intake. Weigh and measure everything. Take a look at this video for reference.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY

I definitely do log these items. I watched the video and now I'm paranoid that I'm logging everything wrong. I definitely measure my food but I don't think I'm filling it up like the show in the video but I guess its definitely possible.

Natmarie73

>>>>>>>
"English Muffin, 100% Whole Wheat (Thomas') 1 muffin 120 1 3 23 220 6
Egg Alternative, Egg Whites (Egg Beaters) 3 tbsp 25 0 0 1 75 5
Light & Fit, Greek Yogurt, Vanilla (Dannon) 1 container 80 0 0 9 50 12
Donut, Maple Frosted (Dunkin' Donuts) 1 doughnut 210 9 1 30 260 3
Donut, Blueberry Cake (Dunkin' Donuts) 1 doughnut 290 16 1 35 400 3
725 26 5 98 1005 29
Spinach, Raw 7 leaves 16 0.3 1.5 2.5 55.3 2
Carrot, Sliced (Del Monte) 1/2 cup 35 0 3 8 300 0
Hummus, Spinach and Artichoke (Sabra) 1 tbsp 35 2.5 1 2 65 1
Bread, 100% Whole Wheat (Nature's Own) 2 slices 100 2 4 20 230 8
Turkey Breast, Honey Smoked Thin Sliced (Oscar Mayer) 2 oz 60 1 0 2 610 10
Simply Naked Pita Chips (Stacy's) 1 serving 130 5 1 19 270 3
376 10.8 10.5 53.5 1530.3 24
Cinnamon Cake Donut (Dunkin Donuts) 1 donut 260 16 1 27 270 3
260 16 1 27 270 3
Quinoa Chicken Meal (Home Made) 1 serving 366 0 0 0 0 0
Cut Green Beans (Bush's) 1/2 cup 20 0 2 5 400 1
Banana Bread Mix (Concord Foods) 1 serving 130 1.5 0 26 130 2
516 1.5 2 31 530 3 "

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
I'm not going to take the time to do the calculations but definitely looks like WAY too many carbs, not enough protein.

Is this from the OP's food diary???

Woah - way too much junk food for someone trying to lose weight. Have a treat occasionally but only a small one and only if it's deserved ie you've burnt a tonne of calories excersising or something. Both donuts and banana bread is very high in carbs and fat.

My first thought is to eliminate the processed stuff and incorporate more fresh and whole foods and see if that helps.

catfive1

It really depends, I log my food on fit bit. I do have some cheat items occassionally at work. A piece of chocolate, a donut or cupcake for someone's birthday. Would that really hurt me in the long run?

My fit bit profile: https://www.fitbit.com/user/2CSG2K

You really need to be accurate with your intake. Weigh and measure everything. Take a look at this video for reference.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY

I definitely do log these items. I watched the video and now I'm paranoid that I'm logging everything wrong. I definitely measure my food but I don't think I'm filling it up like the show in the video but I guess its definitely possible.

Once I started using a digital scale the weight started to come off.

huneycutt13

I've lost approx 10 lbs since January 7th. I was 195lb at the doctor's office and have been weighing around 188-185.5lbs every Sunday for about a month now.

A healthy weight loss is .5–2 lb. per week. And weight loss is not linear.

But you're probably underestimating your food &/or overestimating your burns. Log everything you eat & drink accurately & honestly. Weigh all of your food.

Since you're not logging in MFP, we can't see your diary & offer feedback. Since logging in Fitbit isn't working for you, I'd suggest logging in MFP instead. If you connect your accounts at http://www.myfitnesspal.com/apps/show/30 MFP will send your water intake and aggregate meal data to Fitbit.

Do not log step based activity. Log non-step workouts either in MFP or in Fitbit. I find Fitbit's burns to be more accurate than MFP's one-size-fits-all guesstimates.

Read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

I'm such a dork, I didn't even know they connected! I'm going to set up everything so that they are connected and hopefully that will give me a better and more accurate picture.

Question, do you mean that I should log my c25k activities as well? I log my 30 day shred already on those days since fitbit is not accurate on that.

lindsey1979

It really depends, I log my food on fit bit. I do have some cheat items occassionally at work. A piece of chocolate, a donut or cupcake for someone's birthday. Would that really hurt me in the long run?

My fit bit profile: https://www.fitbit.com/user/2CSG2K

You really need to be accurate with your intake. Weigh and measure everything. Take a look at this video for reference.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY

I definitely do log these items. I watched the video and now I'm paranoid that I'm logging everything wrong. I definitely measure my food but I don't think I'm filling it up like the show in the video but I guess its definitely possible.

Somethings you may want to consider:

(1) I totally agree on measuring/logging food. Many people are often really surprised about how often they're off once they start using a kitchen scale. It's really quite easy to overestimate what you're eating, especially if any number of them are from processed foods and refined grains -- they add up so, so quickly.

(2) May want to consider implementing heavy lifting and sprint workouts into your regime or substituting them. Heaving lifting (3x5, stronglifts, etc.) has been shown to minimize muscle loss in a caloric deficit. Spring workouts or other HIIT can really boost fat loss.

(3) Sufficient protein intake.. This has also been shown to reduce lean body mass loss in a caloric deficit. What the best amount is up for debate, but I personally use 0.7 g protein per lb bodyweight.

editorgrrl

Do you mean that I should log my c25k activities as well? I log my 30 day shred already on those days since fitbit is not accurate on that.

It will take trial & error to find what works for you.

Your Fitbit burn is your TDEE. When you connect your accounts, MFP uses your Fitbit burn instead of your activity level to calculate your calorie goal and adjusts your calories accordingly.

huneycutt13

Is this from the OP's food diary???

Woah - way too much junk food for someone trying to lose weight. Have a treat occasionally but only a small one and only if it's deserved ie you've burnt a tonne of calories excersising or something. Both donuts and banana bread is very high in carbs and fat.

My first thought is to eliminate the processed stuff and incorporate more fresh and whole foods and see if that helps.

I agree with you, today was terrible. I am an emotional eater, I know this, admit it, and I'm working on it. I was super stressed today at work, which isn't an excuse, but it is what it is. I thought about eating the banana bread and logged it but decided to wait 30 mins and now I'm full. I think I just need to cut out treats for awhile and maybe introduce them in moderation after awhile. I'm trying my best to cut out processed foods and eat fresh items. Working on it, not yet perfected it.

editorgrrl

I think I just need to cut out treats for awhile and maybe introduce them in moderation after awhile. I'm trying my best to cut out processed foods and eat fresh items. Working on it, not yet perfected it.

Eat "healthy" (whatever that means to you) 80% of the time. Fit yummy, portion-controlled treats into your calorie goal. Deprivation can lead to bingeing.

LexiMelo

Hi,

You don't have to log your C25k in your fitbit because it's already calculated into your step count. I don't log any activity since I have my Force connected to my MFP account. Today I did a weightlifting program for instance, and between walking around the office and gym and to my car, etc. I walked approximately 4 miles. I got a credit for like 350 calories, and I just use that and it's been working great. Of course days I run (I ran 4 miles at lunch yesterday) I get a ton of extra calories and don't always eat them all back.

I agree with the suggestion to eat more protein. Try to get 100 g. per day. I enjoy treats too, but not every day.

Also - yes, weight loss is not linear. It will start and stop just stay consistent and it will work!

Feel free to check out my diary for ideas, it's not perfect but I feel like I eat reasonably well.

Natmarie73

Is this from the OP's food diary???

Woah - way too much junk food for someone trying to lose weight. Have a treat occasionally but only a small one and only if it's deserved ie you've burnt a tonne of calories excersising or something. Both donuts and banana bread is very high in carbs and fat.

My first thought is to eliminate the processed stuff and incorporate more fresh and whole foods and see if that helps.

I agree with you, today was terrible. I am an emotional eater, I know this, admit it, and I'm working on it. I was super stressed today at work, which isn't an excuse, but it is what it is. I thought about eating the banana bread and logged it but decided to wait 30 mins and now I'm full. I think I just need to cut out treats for awhile and maybe introduce them in moderation after awhile. I'm trying my best to cut out processed foods and eat fresh items. Working on it, not yet perfected it.

Good for you! For the record, I haven't perfected it either and still have days where I eat way too many treats. Stick with it though as it does get easier to resist naughty treats the more healthy you eat as your body stops craving them as much. My trick is to always have dark 90% cocoa chocolate on hand so if I crave a sweet treat I have a square of it and it is very low in sugar so Im not doing too much damage.

Maybe when you are stressed you could go for a quick walk or something? Excersise is supposed to be a great stress reliever

huneycutt13

I'm so glad that I've posted this question, I really appreciate everyone's comment and advice. What I'm taking away so far is:

1) Connect my MFP and Fit Bit accounts for a more accurate picture
2) Invest in a weigh scale for measuring food
3) Work on my clean/healthier eating and continue to cut back on sugar/processed foods
4) It's ok to have a treat every once in a while but prepare myself so that I don't binge on unnecessary stuff

I'm still a bit unsure about my calorie count. So I'm trying to calculate my BMR and my TPEE. I'm using the http://www.fat2fittools.com/tools to help with these calculations.

My body fat right now is 34% based on the military tool. My BMR at my current weight is 1578 and my TPEE for my current weight is 2289 on light activity/exercise. A 20% subtraction for the amount of weight I want to lose is 457.8 for a total of 1831.2 to lose weight. Does this sound right? Not sure if I did my math correctly.

lindsey1979

I'm so glad that I've posted this question, I really appreciate everyone's comment and advice. What I'm taking away so far is:

1) Connect my MFP and Fit Bit accounts for a more accurate picture
2) Invest in a weigh scale for measuring food
3) Work on my clean/healthier eating and continue to cut back on sugar/processed foods
4) It's ok to have a treat every once in a while but prepare myself so that I don't binge on unnecessary stuff

I'm still a bit unsure about my calorie count. So I'm trying to calculate my BMR and my TPEE. I'm using the http://www.fat2fittools.com/tools to help with these calculations.

My body fat right now is 34% based on the military tool. My BMR at my current weight is 1578 and my TPEE for my current weight is 2289 on light activity/exercise. A 20% subtraction for the amount of weight I want to lose is 457.8 for a total of 1831.2 to lose weight. Does this sound right? Not sure if I did my math correctly.

Provided you don't have any underlying issues, those numbers sound about right. I probably have similar stats as I'm 5'9" and 186 right now, and I aim for 1700 in calories per day usually and burn of 2500 on average (but I do a decent amount of exercise -- 2 weekly heavy lifting session, 2 weekly sprint sessions and walk/hike 15-25 miles per week). I aim for a 700-800 daily deficit.

editorgrrl

My body fat right now is 34% based on the military tool. My BMR at my current weight is 1578 and my TPEE for my current weight is 2289 on light activity/exercise. A 20% subtraction for the amount of weight I want to lose is 457.8 for a total of 1831.2 to lose weight. Does this sound right?

Your Fitbit burn is your TDEE.

Set your weight-loss goal http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/change_goals_guided enable negative calorie adjustments http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings and follow your MFP calorie goal.

huneycutt13

Provided you don't have any underlying issues, those numbers sound about right. I probably have similar stats as I'm 5'9" and 186 right now, and I aim for 1700 in calories per day usually and burn of 2500 on average (but I do a decent amount of exercise -- 2 weekly heavy lifting session, 2 weekly sprint sessions and walk/hike 15-25 miles per week). I aim for a 700-800 daily deficit.

I'm 5'8.5" and approx 186lbs (didnt weigh myself today, going off my last weigh in). I've burned 2475 calories today but its usually less on my 30 day shred days than my c25k days (today). I don't have a gym so I'm not sure what I can do for strength/heavy lifting other than the hand weights I'm currently using. As for underlying issues: family history of diabetes and heart problems. Currently being treated for neurally mediated syncope/taccycardia but doesn't effect my exercise unless I'm off my mediation.

huneycutt13

Your Fitbit burn is your TDEE.

Thanks the numbers I calculated the one on fitbit are pretty close.

lindsey1979

Provided you don't have any underlying issues, those numbers sound about right. I probably have similar stats as I'm 5'9" and 186 right now, and I aim for 1700 in calories per day usually and burn of 2500 on average (but I do a decent amount of exercise -- 2 weekly heavy lifting session, 2 weekly sprint sessions and walk/hike 15-25 miles per week). I aim for a 700-800 daily deficit.

I'm 5'8.5" and approx 186lbs (didnt weigh myself today, going off my last weigh in). I've burned 2475 calories today but its usually less on my 30 day shred days than my c25k days (today). I don't have a gym so I'm not sure what I can do for strength/heavy lifting other than the hand weights I'm currently using. As for underlying issues: family history of diabetes and heart problems. Currently being treated for neurally mediated syncope/taccycardia but doesn't effect my exercise unless I'm off my mediation.

Yeah, we have pretty similar numbers. Looking at my numbers, my average burn for the 21 days was 2576 (2150-2200 on my lowest and 2900 or so on my highest) and my average calories were 1717 (a couple high days and a couple low days but most in the 1650-1750 range). If that were all fat, I'd have lost 5.15 lbs. I've lost 5.4 lbs. So, to me, those numbers look pretty good and I'm hoping that I'm just losing mostly fat as I do the resistance training, the sprints and make sure I get enough protein (131 grams for me) to minimize the lean body mass loss. Had that been all muscle, it could have been over 20 lbs -- luckily no one loses ALL muscle -- it's usually a combo of both, though you can do things to minimize the muscle loss and maximize the fat loss, but the numbers on the scale will go down slower.

I don't go to the gym either, but we set up a barbel (olympic) in the garage, so that's what we do for lifting heavy - a 3x5 regime of squats, military press, deadlift and dips one day and then squats, bench, pullups/chinups and back extensions the other day. I'm not sure there is too much to substitute for that unless you have a lot of big tires you can flip or logs to move around.

But, the sprints are super easy -- you can do those anywhere, though a hill is probably ideal. Just start off with 3 sets of 8 second sprints with enough down time in between to catch your breath and bring your heart rate back to normal. Literally, that's all it is -- 8 seconds each, 3 times. Then throw in an extra round each week until you're up to 8 sets of 8 sec sprints. Then, you start to slowly increase the time -- from 8 seconds, to 10, etc. until you're doing a combo of short and longer sprints (10 secs and up to 30 secs). It really takes very little time and you'll be shocked by how much it works. Here's a great article on it (wordy, but good): http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/par46.htm

Given that you said you had a family history of diabetes and crave carbs and binge on them sometimes, have you been checked for insulin resistance?

I don't have a family history of diabetes, but I can totally relate to the carb cravings and occasional binging -- and it turned out that I was insulin resistant. Once I got that under control (through low carb diet and metformin), they've largely gone away -- almost completely. Once I get rid of the weight, my doctor is hopeful that I'll have reversed it and can go off the metformin. My insulin resistance is tied to my thyroid condition (secondary effect), but my blood sugars were so high, I was in the prediabetic category -- and man, was that a shock! Just something you might want to look into -- having your Ac1 tested (sugar level indicator) and your insulin. Because if your body is pumping out too much insulin because your cells are resistant to it and don't take up the glucose from the blood stream like they should, you carb craves because the rest of your body thinks you have low blood sugar when you really don't and then the excess glucose gets turned into fat = weight gain.

nerual13

You've got tons of great advice here, but just gotta do it... PROTEIN PROTEIN PROTEIN!!! I LOVE pasta and breads, but guess what happened when I focused on protein and lowered the carbs? I FELT AWESOME!!! Lots more energy, staying full longer. My body just likes it. Give it a shot, push that protein way up and see how you feel. If you hate it, cool. But you might be surprised too!