Doing everything 'right', not losing weight?! Help!,

kaykay0902
kaykay0902 Posts: 10
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone,

I have been calorie counting for a couple of months and I exercise most days. At first I lost approximately 10lbs! Thinking, great, it's working. However since then (about a month) I still haven't lost anything further.

I weigh everything, log everything (I had a cheat day Saturday and couldn't log everything as didn't know amount but I'm not worrying about that). I've recently started trying to up protein and lower my carbs and fat as I probably wasn't eating enough protein. Also, I've started doing weights at the gym but I still do a lot of cardio as I enjoy it.

I'm just wondering why I'm not losing anymore. I'm working my *kitten* off and getting nowhere really. If anyone could look at my food diary and give me some advice that would amazing as I'm at a bit of a loss now and still have about 15lbs I want to lose.

Thankyou :)
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Replies

  • arene0717
    arene0717 Posts: 14
    I'll take a look. I will add you as a friend.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Retaining water at first is normal when you start lifting weights. If anything though, it seems to me that you're not eating enough.
  • kaykay0902
    kaykay0902 Posts: 10
    I'm not doing heavy weights as want to start light but am slowly increasing. Do you think I should be eating more?
  • spara0038
    spara0038 Posts: 226 Member
    Retaining water at first is normal when you start lifting weights. If anything though, it seems to me that you're not eating enough.

    ^^ THIS!!

    Also, gaining weight is pretty common with weight lifting. Because of my body type, I never really get "skinny"- I get muscular. Also, take progress pictures. I was getting frustrated that I wasn't losing weight quickly (according to the scales), but I looked at the comparison pics and I was shocked! Definitely making progress and my pants are fitting better too :-)
  • SymphonynSonata
    SymphonynSonata Posts: 533 Member
    I'm not POSITIVE, but I think you're confusing your body. One day you're like, "Hey self, I'm going to feed you a bit over 1,200 calories", the next day "I'm feeding you 1,700", the next day, 1,400, etc. There's some pretty big fluctuations here. If I were your body I may be kind of shocked and "wtf" because it's high, then low, then high, then low. It's probably trying to adjust. Also eat more than 900 calories today. :P
  • lynn1982
    lynn1982 Posts: 1,439 Member
    Be more specific by "a couple months." Ten pounds in 2 months (ie. a couple months...) is FANTASTIC!! Weight loss isn't linear. Your body needs to get used to the loss. I know sometimes I won't lose anything for 2 weeks and then suddenly I'll drop a couple of pounds (it used to be more, but I'm short and currently at a healthy weight).

    Another thing to consider - you said Saturday you didn't log everything because it was a "cheat" day but you're not "concerned" about it - be careful with those. I used to say the same thing and couldn't understand why I wasn't losing (or I would lose and regain the same 5 pounds...). Eventually I started logging all of those cheat days and they were indeed stalling my progress.

    If you are indeed logging everything else correctly, stop with the cheat days and continue what you're doing. Unless there's a health issue, the bottom line is, you're probably eating more calories than you're burning.
  • KCNutritionCoach
    KCNutritionCoach Posts: 10 Member
    Try to stick to more of a consistent calorie level and count exercise as bonus. Don't exercise and then eat more food. It is hard to tell what your recommended calorie level is. Did you have fitnesspal figure your calorie level, or did you enter it manually? How many pounds are you trying to lose per week. I can only see your diary.
  • lynn1982
    lynn1982 Posts: 1,439 Member
    I'm not POSITIVE, but I think you're confusing your body. One day you're like, "Hey self, I'm going to feed you a bit over 1,200 calories", the next day "I'm feeding you 1,700", the next day, 1,400, etc. There's some pretty big fluctuations here. If I were your body I may be kind of shocked and "wtf" because it's high, then low, then high, then low. It's probably trying to adjust. Also eat more than 900 calories today. :P

    No. "Confusing" the body is actually a good thing...
  • SymphonynSonata
    SymphonynSonata Posts: 533 Member
    I'm not POSITIVE, but I think you're confusing your body. One day you're like, "Hey self, I'm going to feed you a bit over 1,200 calories", the next day "I'm feeding you 1,700", the next day, 1,400, etc. There's some pretty big fluctuations here. If I were your body I may be kind of shocked and "wtf" because it's high, then low, then high, then low. It's probably trying to adjust. Also eat more than 900 calories today. :P

    No. "Confusing" the body is actually a good thing...

    Yeah, I guess it could be okay, actually. One time I ate a huge salad (seriously it had everything on it, it was like the cardiac arrest salad) and lost a pound THAT day, but I went right back to normal after, lol. Even still, she'll be doing calories over time vs calories per day (which is just fine, too), but in my own personal experiences, I've found that calories over time means weight loss over time rather than weight loss per day. Of course, OP, you'll find some very mixed reviews on weighing yourself daily anyway, but I do and for some reason my weight loss doesn't fluctuate daily, but I eat the same amount of calories daily +/- ~100 (midnight oranges are awesome).

    ...either way I'm still not positive. Speaking from personal experience only!
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
    A couple of suggestions. If you are not losing weight, you may be eating more than you think, or over estimating calories burned through exercise.

    1. Buy a food scale and weigh everything. Use measuring cups for liquids only.
    2. If you are entering your exercise into MFP, try eating back 50 to 76% of the calories it says you burn, as its estimates are high. I would do the same if you are going off a heart rate monitor or exercise machines.

    Getting more protein is definitely a good idea - I aim for 1g/lb of lean body mass. I don't always get there, but I aim for it. :smile:
  • RaspberryKeytoneBoondoggle
    RaspberryKeytoneBoondoggle Posts: 1,349 Member
    A couple of suggestions. If you are not losing weight, you may be eating more than you think, or over estimating calories burned through exercise.

    1. Buy a food scale and weigh everything. Use measuring cups for liquids only.
    2. If you are entering your exercise into MFP, try eating back 50 to 76% of the calories it says you burn, as its estimates are high. I would do the same if you are going off a heart rate monitor or exercise machines.

    Getting more protein is definitely a good idea - I aim for 1g/lb of lean body mass. I don't always get there, but I aim for it. :smile:

    ^this is such good advice! Also, you don't have much to lose so it will come off slowly. (Maybe you are perfectly on track already) I lost my last ten pounds at a rate of about 1 pound a week. I think this has made maintaining so much easier.
  • kaykay0902
    kaykay0902 Posts: 10
    Be more specific by "a couple months." Ten pounds in 2 months (ie. a couple months...) is FANTASTIC!! Weight loss isn't linear. Your body needs to get used to the loss. I know sometimes I won't lose anything for 2 weeks and then suddenly I'll drop a couple of pounds (it used to be more, but I'm short and currently at a healthy weight).

    Another thing to consider - you said Saturday you didn't log everything because it was a "cheat" day but you're not "concerned" about it - be careful with those. I used to say the same thing and couldn't understand why I wasn't losing (or I would lose and regain the same 5 pounds...). Eventually I started logging all of those cheat days and they were indeed stalling my progress.

    If you are indeed logging everything else correctly, stop with the cheat days and continue what you're doing. Unless there's a health issue, the bottom line is, you're probably eating more calories than you're burning.

    My cheat day was one if two in about 60 days! I very rarely have them tbh as I'm so focused and actually don't crave the crap I used to eat before :) (that's why I'm not thinking it has anything to with that).

    I'm just finding it hard to get my head around the fact that I'm logging everything and 95% of the time under calorie goal daily & still not losing. I'm thinking increasing protein and increasing veggies may help.

    Thanks :)
  • kaykay0902
    kaykay0902 Posts: 10
    A couple of suggestions. If you are not losing weight, you may be eating more than you think, or over estimating calories burned through exercise.

    1. Buy a food scale and weigh everything. Use measuring cups for liquids only.
    2. If you are entering your exercise into MFP, try eating back 50 to 76% of the calories it says you burn, as its estimates are high. I would do the same if you are going off a heart rate monitor or exercise machines.

    Getting more protein is definitely a good idea - I aim for 1g/lb of lean body mass. I don't always get there, but I aim for it. :smile:

    I weigh everything I eat. Including liquids. I use a HR monitor and get the calories from that, so maybe I need to do that. I'm normally still well under though tbh.

    I'm trying to eat more fresh foods - chicken, veggies etc, as was making meals from scratch but wasn't having much veg.

    The only time I've ever gotten down to where I wanted to be was when I really wasn't eating enough. To the point where it was unhealthy. Not going there again.
  • kaykay0902
    kaykay0902 Posts: 10
    I would think so too. Plus I don't always feel the same hunger every day, so it fluctuates.
  • kaykay0902
    kaykay0902 Posts: 10
    Try to stick to more of a consistent calorie level and count exercise as bonus. Don't exercise and then eat more food. It is hard to tell what your recommended calorie level is. Did you have fitnesspal figure your calorie level, or did you enter it manually? How many pounds are you trying to lose per week. I can only see your diary.

    I had it set to 2lbs a week at first and I had 1400 cals. Did that for 2 weeks and lost 10lbs! ????

    Then I adjusted it to 1.5lbs a week and it was 1540. I have not lost anything since doing this though, it's been 4 weeks. I've just changed it to 2lbs a week and it's at 1200 a day. Don't know if this is too low for me though, think I'd be hungry!
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
    I'm just finding it hard to get my head around the fact that I'm logging everything and 95% of the time under calorie goal daily & still not losing.
    If you're not losing, then you're not eating at a deficit. You're underestimating your food &/or overestimating your burns. Log everything you eat & drink accurately & honestly 100% of the time. Weigh all your food. Eat "good" (whatever that means to you) 80% of the time. Fit yummy, portion-controlled treats into your calorie goal. No unlogged "cheats."

    If you get your logging under control but still aren't losing, eat back half your exercise calories. Read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

    With only 15 lb. to go, anything but .5 lb. per week is unhealthy & unrealistic. Set your goal to .5 lb. per week, and be patient.
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,088 Member
    Be more specific by "a couple months." Ten pounds in 2 months (ie. a couple months...) is FANTASTIC!! Weight loss isn't linear. Your body needs to get used to the loss. I know sometimes I won't lose anything for 2 weeks and then suddenly I'll drop a couple of pounds (it used to be more, but I'm short and currently at a healthy weight).

    Another thing to consider - you said Saturday you didn't log everything because it was a "cheat" day but you're not "concerned" about it - be careful with those. I used to say the same thing and couldn't understand why I wasn't losing (or I would lose and regain the same 5 pounds...). Eventually I started logging all of those cheat days and they were indeed stalling my progress.

    If you are indeed logging everything else correctly, stop with the cheat days and continue what you're doing. Unless there's a health issue, the bottom line is, you're probably eating more calories than you're burning.



    This is exactly what I was thinking
  • sabrina19782014
    sabrina19782014 Posts: 50 Member
    check your basal metabolic rate too - make sure you cover that every day (it may mean increasing your food intake)
  • kaykay0902
    kaykay0902 Posts: 10
    I'm just finding it hard to get my head around the fact that I'm logging everything and 95% of the time under calorie goal daily & still not losing.
    If you're not losing, then you're not eating at a deficit. You're underestimating your food &/or overestimating your burns. Log everything you eat & drink accurately & honestly 100% of the time. Weigh all your food. Eat "good" (whatever that means to you) 80% of the time. For yummy, portion-controlled treats into your calorie goal. No unlogged "cheats."

    If you get your logging under control but still aren't losing, eat back half your exercise calories. Read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

    With only 15 lb. to go, anything but .5 lb. per week is unhealthy & unrealistic. Set your goal to .5 lb. per week, and be patient.

    Thankyou :)
  • GlitterrMagpie
    GlitterrMagpie Posts: 302 Member
    On a couple of occasions I've gone 3 weeks without losing anything then on the 4th week without changing anything dropped 2 or 3 pounds. Water retention, hormone levels etc can make weight fluctuate but it will even out eventually. If you're weighing everything and only eating back a portion of calories burned I would say stick with it for another couple of weeks. Make sure you drink enough water in case retention is the problem.
  • lynn1982
    lynn1982 Posts: 1,439 Member
    Try to stick to more of a consistent calorie level and count exercise as bonus. Don't exercise and then eat more food. It is hard to tell what your recommended calorie level is. Did you have fitnesspal figure your calorie level, or did you enter it manually? How many pounds are you trying to lose per week. I can only see your diary.

    I had it set to 2lbs a week at first and I had 1400 cals. Did that for 2 weeks and lost 10lbs! ????

    Then I adjusted it to 1.5lbs a week and it was 1540. I have not lost anything since doing this though, it's been 4 weeks. I've just changed it to 2lbs a week and it's at 1200 a day. Don't know if this is too low for me though, think I'd be hungry!

    Unless you have a lot of weight to lose, 2 pounds/week (even 1.5 pounds/week) is too much for many people. Also, 1200 calories might actually be higher than you'd need to lose 2 pounds a week - it's just the minimum amount of calories that MFP will give you (if I wanted to lose 2 pounds/week at this point, I'd need to net about 500 calories/day...).

    You made a comment about the weight that you *want* to be at - I'm saying this without knowing how much you do weigh, but just maybe, that's not where your body wants to be. Does that make sense?

    Another suggestion - last summer I was having trouble losing the last 10 pounds to get down to a "healthy" BMI. I actually sought the help of a holistic nutritionist. She was very much against counting calories. Although I continued to count while following her advice, I paid more attention to how I was feeling based on what I ate. The biggest change I made was making sure that at least half of my plate at lunch and dinner was veggies. Following her advice (rather than purely counting calories) helped SO MUCH. I still continue this way of eating even now since I feel better with it. Weight loss has been a bonus, although I still do count calories just to make sure I am not going over. But I am less focused on weight loss and more focused on feeling well and full of energy. Of course, the weight loss is because I am eating at a calorie deficit, but not focusing on just that just relieved a lot of the stress I was feeling about counting calories and lessened the frustration when I wouldn't see the scale move for a couple of weeks.

    If you are indeed eating healthy, working out, and weighing/measuring everything properly AND you still have weight to lose, then I'd pay a visit to your doctor. There could be a medical issue that is making it difficult for you to lose weight. But maybe try paying attention to how you feel rather than what the scale says. I know, that's easier said than done and it's so frustrating, but the scale will catch up if you're doing everything else right.
  • kaykay0902
    kaykay0902 Posts: 10
    On a couple of occasions I've gone 3 weeks without losing anything then on the 4th week without changing anything dropped 2 or 3 pounds. Water retention, hormone levels etc can make weight fluctuate but it will even out eventually. If you're weighing everything and only eating back a portion of calories burned I would say stick with it for another couple of weeks. Make sure you drink enough water in case retention is the problem.

    I do have a tendency to be impatient! Have weighed myself every week for 4 weeks with no change. Think I know what I need to do now. Thanks :)
  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,654 Member
    Compare your average total cals from the first month with the last couple of weeks. looks like you have increased them overall, and perhaps now are eating closer to maintenance.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    I'm not POSITIVE, but I think you're confusing your body. One day you're like, "Hey self, I'm going to feed you a bit over 1,200 calories", the next day "I'm feeding you 1,700", the next day, 1,400, etc. There's some pretty big fluctuations here. If I were your body I may be kind of shocked and "wtf" because it's high, then low, then high, then low. It's probably trying to adjust. Also eat more than 900 calories today. :P

    Our bodies spent tens of thousands of years never knowing how much, if at all, food it was going to get in a given day. Our bodies evolved to deal with fluctuating caloric intake as the norm. The past 100 years of better food availability haven't changed 40,000 years of evolution. You're not "confusing" your body one bit. It knows what to do in that situation--store calories when there's a surplus, burn those calories when there's a deficit.
  • kaykay0902
    kaykay0902 Posts: 10
    Try to stick to more of a consistent calorie level and count exercise as bonus. Don't exercise and then eat more food. It is hard to tell what your recommended calorie level is. Did you have fitnesspal figure your calorie level, or did you enter it manually? How many pounds are you trying to lose per week. I can only see your diary.

    I had it set to 2lbs a week at first and I had 1400 cals. Did that for 2 weeks and lost 10lbs! ????

    Then I adjusted it to 1.5lbs a week and it was 1540. I have not lost anything since doing this though, it's been 4 weeks. I've just changed it to 2lbs a week and it's at 1200 a day. Don't know if this is too low for me though, think I'd be hungry!

    Unless you have a lot of weight to lose, 2 pounds/week (even 1.5 pounds/week) is too much for many people. Also, 1200 calories might actually be higher than you'd need to lose 2 pounds a week - it's just the minimum amount of calories that MFP will give you (if I wanted to lose 2 pounds/week at this point, I'd need to net about 500 calories/day...).

    You made a comment about the weight that you *want* to be at - I'm saying this without knowing how much you do weigh, but just maybe, that's not where your body wants to be. Does that make sense?

    Another suggestion - last summer I was having trouble losing the last 10 pounds to get down to a "healthy" BMI. I actually sought the help of a holistic nutritionist. She was very much against counting calories. Although I continued to count while following her advice, I paid more attention to how I was feeling based on what I ate. The biggest change I made was making sure that at least half of my plate at lunch and dinner was veggies. Following her advice (rather than purely counting calories) helped SO MUCH. I still continue this way of eating even now since I feel better with it. Weight loss has been a bonus, although I still do count calories just to make sure I am not going over. But I am less focused on weight loss and more focused on feeling well and full of energy. Of course, the weight loss is because I am eating at a calorie deficit, but not focusing on just that just relieved a lot of the stress I was feeling about counting calories and lessened the frustration when I wouldn't see the scale move for a couple of weeks.

    If you are indeed eating healthy, working out, and weighing/measuring everything properly AND you still have weight to lose, then I'd pay a visit to your doctor. There could be a medical issue that is making it difficult for you to lose weight. But maybe try paying attention to how you feel rather than what the scale says. I know, that's easier said than done and it's so frustrating, but the scale will catch up if you're doing everything else right.

    I do think I still have weight to lose as in the past I maintained for years at the weight I want to be!

    However, I do think that increasing my veggies at every meal will definitely help, I've not been eating enough. I tend to eat more fruit than veg but need to balance it more. Thankyou for your advice.
  • 1princesswarrior
    1princesswarrior Posts: 1,242 Member
    I went back a few days in your diary. I see a few, I mean very few things you could weigh but it looks good. I would weigh your bananas though. A half a banana can vary a lot.

    What I do see is that you could increase your water to between 10-12 cups a day and that will help with water retention since you are lifting now. Also you could try tweaking your macros to 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30% fat. Fat is not the enemy. And every 10 lbs lost you need to go back and recalculate your BMR and net at least that every day. Another method you can try is following your TDEE - 10, 15, or 20% based on how much you need to lose. Doing this you eat the same amount every day because it already includes exercise. Here is a link to a calculator: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    I would also recommend only aiming for 1lb a week loss. It's easier on your body plus any extra you might lose is a bonus. Make a graph of your weight loss over time, you want to see a downward trend, not a straight line. Mine looks like a saw blade but it goes down. Also consider all the hormonal changes we women go through every month that effect our weight loss or make it look like we are not losing.
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
    I'm not POSITIVE, but I think you're confusing your body. One day you're like, "Hey self, I'm going to feed you a bit over 1,200 calories", the next day "I'm feeding you 1,700", the next day, 1,400, etc. There's some pretty big fluctuations here. If I were your body I may be kind of shocked and "wtf" because it's high, then low, then high, then low. It's probably trying to adjust. Also eat more than 900 calories today. :P

    Our bodies spent tens of thousands of years never knowing how much, if at all, food it was going to get in a given day. Our bodies evolved to deal with fluctuating caloric intake as the norm. The past 100 years of better food availability haven't changed 40,000 years of evolution. You're not "confusing" your body one bit. It knows what to do in that situation--store calories when there's a surplus, burn those calories when there's a deficit.

    Great answer. I was chuckling over the 'confusing your body' thing.
  • schnarfo
    schnarfo Posts: 764 Member
    I'm not POSITIVE, but I think you're confusing your body. One day you're like, "Hey self, I'm going to feed you a bit over 1,200 calories", the next day "I'm feeding you 1,700", the next day, 1,400, etc. There's some pretty big fluctuations here. If I were your body I may be kind of shocked and "wtf" because it's high, then low, then high, then low. It's probably trying to adjust. Also eat more than 900 calories today. :P

    I often cycle my calories - as long as i am 1500 net over the week i dont think that it matters than some days im under and on others im over. Ive never had a problem losing or maintaining like thi - obviously i adjust the overall calorie net to suit. each to their own though and all that.
  • jmv7117
    jmv7117 Posts: 891 Member
    Hi everyone,

    I have been calorie counting for a couple of months and I exercise most days. At first I lost approximately 10lbs! Thinking, great, it's working. However since then (about a month) I still haven't lost anything further.

    I weigh everything, log everything (I had a cheat day Saturday and couldn't log everything as didn't know amount but I'm not worrying about that). I've recently started trying to up protein and lower my carbs and fat as I probably wasn't eating enough protein. Also, I've started doing weights at the gym but I still do a lot of cardio as I enjoy it.

    I'm just wondering why I'm not losing anymore. I'm working my *kitten* off and getting nowhere really. If anyone could look at my food diary and give me some advice that would amazing as I'm at a bit of a loss now and still have about 15lbs I want to lose.

    Thankyou :)

    You said you are weighing everything but looking at your diary you are using calories for "medium sized" and "half of" for fruits. If you aren't weighing them, you can be consuming more calories than you think because there is a variation in weight within the range of medium. You should also weigh lunch meat and eggs as well as any food you eat with the exception of eating out then go for moderation, eyeballing the amount. All of these little extra calories can add up to not create as big of a calorie deficit as you think you have.

    Some here will tell you to eat back all your exercise calories. I don't eat them all back myself but rather eat when hungry never going below 1,200 calories gross. I'm averaging 1,400 calories gross so my calorie deficit is higher BUT according to many MFP grossly overestimates the calorie burn so leaving a bit of calorie cushion can be a good idea. Another thing to keep in mind is that as you lose weight you burn fewer calories doing the same activity so be sure to take weight loss into account when calculating your calorie burn.

    Cardio is not the best exercise for weight loss so I stay within the healthy recommendation for cardio per week. Too much cardio will cause lean muscle loss when eating at a calorie deficit. Getting your heart rate into the 50% to 60% range is the fat burning zone. A lot of exercises can do this including walking. In my exercise routines I focus on walking, strength training and about a quarter of the time on cardio. My cardio is walking up and down stairs (15 min) and elliptical (10 min sessions). The rest of my routine consists of using my own body weight, dumbbells, resistance band, medicine ball, and stability ball. I have a 10,000 step daily goal that I track with a HRM/pedometer so I know the calories burned doing that and definitely MFP gives a much higher calorie burn for walking than my HRM shows.
  • Flybianca69
    Flybianca69 Posts: 1
    Hey , I am on 1200 calories a day and I am never hungry !! I guess if you eat the right food u will not be hungry ..and your body is getting used to it after a while ...good luck

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