Can someone please tell me what I a doing wrong?

GBrady43068

OK so I examined your diary from 03/23 to 04/02. I'll probably be echoing a lot of the others' advice.

1) Focus on keeping within calorie ranges. Shoot for being in “the green” on total calories most of the time (I.e. no more than 2 days in the red a week). Out of the 11 days listed, 8 of them were over goal on total calories.
2) Cut the sodium back. You don’t have to be a Nazi about it (you do NEED some sodium after all) but too much sodium will help you retain water weight and your worst day was more than 5500 mg OVER your target. Being over a little here and there won’t kill you but try and get those numbers closer to the target. Try and do more of your own cooking..you will cut out a ton of sodium by eating less canned/pre-processed foods. Even if you’re not a “great cook” there are meals in the Recipes area for crockpot that are hella-simple to make. You can throw frozen chicken breasts into the crock and top ‘em with a jar of salsa, right?
3) Are you drinking any water? It wasn’t tracked so I don’t know. More water=less hunger/cravings typically. Some times when your body thinks it’s hungry, it really just wants water. Your pee should be close to clear if you’re getting enough fluid..if it isn’t, try getting more water. Track it if you have to.
4) I’m no “clean eater”. I eat potato chips, ice cream, etc etc from time and time and I would never tell anyone to give up processed foods unless it’s based on a doc’s specific medical advice for you specifically. That having been said, you have a lot of restaurant/processed –convenience food calorie-bomb meals in your tracking making it hard to hit your goals. The most egregious was a 2150 calorie dinner. Try and balance out your meals to be around 600 calories each…it will keep your blood sugar more even through the day to reduce cravings and it leaves you a buffer of around 300 calories that you can space out to use as in-between meal healthy snacks, late-night snacks etc.

PibbleLover88

First of all - you are way brave sharing your dairy. I've had my own 1000 calorie McDonald's breakfast days, and I don't judge.

I added up all of the calories you've eaten over the last 15 days, and averaged them. You are eating on average about 2350-2400 calories a day, give or take a little. So if your goal is 1800, the first two questions you need to ask is: 1. is what I am logging an accurate reflection of what I am eating, and 2. are the calories I am logging for exercise an accurate reflection of my activity. As I'm sure you are aware from reading above - most people under estimate what they eat, and MFP graciously over estimates what we burn.

I don't claim to be a TDEE expert. But, using your stats and your information about exercising 6 days a week, the first TDEE calculator that came up in google says your TDEE would be about 2800. So, that would mean your calorie deficit for the week is about 2800, less than a pound.

You don't say with how much intensity you are hitting the treadmill, but if you are only slowly walking (which is fine and a great way to get started - BTW) - your TDE could be less than the above estimation. Which would tighten your deficit even more, and explain why you aren't seeing weight loss.

Throwing TDEE out the window (which - feel free to correct me if I am misunderstanding this BTW) - lets just say you want your 1800 MFP calorie goal to be net, off set by exercise. That means your exercise needs to be burning at least 600 calories a day to put you where you want to be, based on your average calorie consumption.

natasha_nicholls

You are not losing because you are eating far to much.
I understand that you think that eating well might be expensive or time consuming. But its your health.
I promise making and egg white omelet with a slice of toast would be a considerable amount cheaper then eating McDonalds and would take maximum if 15 minutes to prepare. And it is delicious.
Work toward changing your entire families diets and make everyone in your home healthier.
If you are very concerned about the time involved check out Rachel Rays Week in a Day you can prepare everything you and your family needs for the entire week in a day.
You are not going to lose weight without changing your diet. It is okay the treat yourself sometimes but eating 1000+ calories in a meal multiple times in a week will not cut it.
Best of luck and if you want to see a change you have to make it happen.

Ang108

I'm 5'9 and 242lbs. I have my calorie goal set based on MFP at 1800 calories/day. I work out on the TM every day but Sunday approximately an hour (some days only 30-45min). I do eat back my exercise calories most days as I thought that was what I was supposed to be doing. But now I am thinking maybe I am eating too many calories by doing so? I also recently started doing a challenge that includes planks, squats, pushups, and climbers but I do not log that (I don't know how). I do not work out on Sunday unless it is for fun.

I do drink water (and very rarely anything else) but I tend to not track it. Maybe I should? I don't expect to lose a lot of weight all at once. I'd be happy with 1lb a week. I am not losing weight or inches and I am getting very frustrated! I don't know if I am doing something wrong or if I need to give it more time.

Please be honest with me as I know that is what I need. I do try to weigh my food but often times I go by the measurement (ex cup, tbs, etc.) out of ease. Again, maybe this is wrong?

A couple of little side notes;
I used MFP a year ago and lost 20lbs in two months by watching my calories alone. I feel that since I am also working out now, the weight should be falling off like it was then.
I have three kids that take up a lot of my time (no excuse) and energy. I try to keep the meals quick and easy and as cheap as possible because of this. There are a lot of packaged foods on here for that reason. I am willing to change

Thanks for all the help in advance!

Looking at your diary it seems that not only do you ingest too many calories, but you also live of mostly processed simply ( meaning nutritionally worthless ) carbs. You had 1500 calories yesterday just from processed food ( I wonder why for breakfast you think you need a burrito, a sausage & egg muffin, hash browns and juice. The same is true for Tuesday....again 1500 calories alone from food that has no nutritional value. That of course does not matter all that much, if you want weight loss alone . I am not in favor of all the variations of the " Twinky " diet....but it has been proven that you can lose weight without eating healthy by just maintaining an acceptable deficit. But you are not eating at a deficit either. That mean unless you make some changes you will not start losing real weight.
Maybe you need to start slow: I would make a commitment to cook at home from fresh/frozen stuff every other day adding also fruit and veggies to the diet and not eating anything from a box or restaurant that day.Non processed food will keep you satiated longer and you won't feel hungry all the times, as I am willing to bet you do now. If that is too much do it twice a week and once a weekend If you need carbs make a plain baked potato ( it even can be fairly big if you only eat it with natural yogurt or some salsa ), 2 cups of veggies, or a big side salad with minimal dressing and 3-4 oz of protein ( chicken, fish or other lean meats ), weigh and measure everything, stay within your calorie deficit, eat a variety of foods......make a conscious effort ( for example; if you eat almost 1300 calories for breakfast you can't just continue to eat, you have to make your calories fit, especially if you eat as unordered as you do every day ) and be patient......I promise success will be yours.
Good Luck !
ETA:For example: I often bake several potatoes at the same time to last for a while...usually up to a week, or sweet potatoes and use them in a wide variety of ways. A few days ago I even made potato salad from a baked potato.
The same is true for example with chicken: I bake my own, but know that in the US you can buy Rotisserie chicken at a good price. That will save you time ( maybe not salt, but that's ok unless you have kidney disease or high BP) and will provide you with beneficial protein. Just start and make changes that will not overwhelm you....but changes you MUST make, if you want to lose and sustain your newfound weight.

leighqt

I think you are actually on a wind up

mrsfyredude

I think you are actually on a wind up

^this, but in to watch

wilsoje74

You are eating way too much, way too much fast food, you are in the red every day. You need to eat at a deficit to lose weight. What about fruits and veggies? You can have fast food "occassionally" not daily. Try to limit it to a treat not daily.

mile311z

By looking at your diary I would definnately stay away from the fast food!

BENNYDOOR

I can guarantee you will lose weight by doing this:

-Unlimited low glycemic veggies
-No more then 6oz of protein (chicken or fish)
-No alcohol
-No Sugar
-No Artificial Sweetener
-No Wheat (except 1/2 cup of brown rice per day)
-No Dairy (except for 1 5.3oz plain yogurt per day)

The first 3 days will be a killer as your body detoxes, but after you will feel amazing and the pounds will literally fall off.

Looking at your dairy, your sodium intake is extreme... Sodium=water weight, so you will look and feel very bloated all the time.. stay away from the fast food & the sweet treats, its toxic to your body

judyde

Good for you for opening up your diary.

As others have said, you are going over calories (some days a lot, some not so much). And probably overestimating your exercise burns.

I have twin boys almost 5, and I work full time, so I understand what it's like to be busy. We go out to eat a lot, and I eat plenty of fast food. It won't hinder your weight loss if you stay under your calorie goals and get plenty of protein.

Here are some swaps you can make:

Instead of a sausage and egg mcmuffin, an egg mcmuffin with ham has fewer calories. I'd skip the hash brown and OJ. If you had just skipped the hash brown, you'd have been under goal. Have you tried McDonald's Oatmeal? Very yummy and filling.

For dinner, you'd probably have been more full with 2 chicken fillets, and 1 piece of bread.

I am a big, big fan or pre-logging my food. That way I can see how I am going to stay under. If I know I want to enjoy a brownie, I'll rearrange things to fit it in. And it enables me to look forward to treats. I buy dark chocolate bars and divide them up. I have 2 squares (about 100 cals worth) entered into my diary every night. I rarely delete it. I rearrange things to fit that it. I never thought I'd be satisfied with 2 squares of chocolate, but knowing I'm going to have chocolate every single day helps keep me on track.

Good luck to you!

psych101

I can guarantee you will lose weight by doing this:

-Unlimited low glycemic veggies
-No more then 6oz of protein (chicken or fish)
-No alcohol
-No Sugar
-No Artificial Sweetener
-No Wheat (except 1/2 cup of brown rice per day)
-No Dairy (except for 1 5.3oz plain yogurt per day)

The first 3 days will be a killer as your body detoxes, but after you will feel amazing and the pounds will literally fall off.

god that sounds boring...

missomgitsica

MFP does tend to overestimate exercise calories, so maybe try only eating back half of them? That would be my suggestion. Or if you want to get more accurate burn estimates, invest in a heart rate monitor.

Also, I've been told that sore muscles tend to retain water more so if you're working out consistently you could be holding onto some water weight.

BENNYDOOR

Boring maybe... but its better then being medicated for health problems due to eating toxic food

Ready2Rock206

I can guarantee you will lose weight by doing this:

-Unlimited low glycemic veggies
-No more then 6oz of protein (chicken or fish)
-No alcohol
-No Sugar
-No Artificial Sweetener
-No Wheat (except 1/2 cup of brown rice per day)
-No Dairy (except for 1 5.3oz plain yogurt per day)

The first 3 days will be a killer as your body detoxes, but after you will feel amazing and the pounds will literally fall off.

Looking at your dairy, your sodium intake is extreme... Sodium=water weight, so you will look and feel very bloated all the time.. stay away from the fast food & the sweet treats, its toxic to your body

I guarantee the OP will lose weight if she just eats less than she currently does. No need to go to extremes.

leighqt

If you are genuine, you need to use a online calculator to find your recommeneded calorie intake, learn about macros , do both Cardio/ and weight lifting . make better choices eg instead of Burritos at mcdonalds choose a chicken saled, cut out coke drinks like that,

You do not need to be constantly hungry ,eat as much veg as you wish, eat lean cuts of beef, brown bread/ rice, eat wholegrain, fish , no sauces or if you must low fat/ low calories, No sugar in hot drinks , start reading nutritional labels, buy weighing scales for your kitchen

keep motivated.

psych101

Boring maybe... but its better then being medicated for health problems due to eating toxic food

toxic food?

Kitship

Boring maybe... but its better then being medicated for health problems due to eating toxic food

Please...

OP should focus on eating less in general before worrying about "toxic" foods.

mollybuck

OK, I never looked at your food diary. You have to really cut back on the empty calories! You are killing yourself with crap. I can't put it any other way. Please, for the sake of your children,really look at what you are eating and try to make better choices. You cannot lose weight until you do this. You have to be a good example for your kids.

eric_sg61

Boring maybe... but its better then being medicated for health problems due to eating toxic food

Oh get out with this fear mongering crap

thesupremeforce

I can guarantee you will lose weight by doing this:

-Unlimited low glycemic veggies
-No more then 6oz of protein (chicken or fish)
-No alcohol
-No Sugar
-No Artificial Sweetener
-No Wheat (except 1/2 cup of brown rice per day)
-No Dairy (except for 1 5.3oz plain yogurt per day)

The first 3 days will be a killer as your body detoxes, but after you will feel amazing and the pounds will literally fall off.

Looking at your dairy, your sodium intake is extreme... Sodium=water weight, so you will look and feel very bloated all the time.. stay away from the fast food & the sweet treats, its toxic to your body

Well sure, hardly eating anything will lead to weight loss, but that doesn't make your "suggestions" any more palatable. No thanks. I'd rather see people make adjustments to their diets that 1) don't suck and 2) don't revolve around BS buzzwords and fear mongering.