What am I doing wrong?

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Replies

  • Rose6300
    Rose6300 Posts: 232 Member
    If you are not losing weight you are not in a calories deficit. Eating more is not the answer when you're to losing.

    Based on your OP, have you had your thyroid checked?


    I am dead serious when I say I weigh everything at home. Everything. Unless you're in my kitchen watching me, you really don't know that. Unless you see the arguments my husband and I get into because I'm a freak about weighing everything, you really don't know. Whatever my HRM/Fitbit/Body Media tell me I burn during exercise or during the day, I subtract 10% from it to account for any errors. Between that and logging my food as accurately as I possibly can--it shows I'm in a deficit nearly every day. I'm sorry if I'm coming across as rude--I don't mean to. I just don't understand why people seem to think I'm lying about this. What good would it do me to lie? I'd only be harming myself.

    And yes, I've had my thyroid checked. I currently take Synthroid for that and have my TSH levels tested every 3 months. They've been good for awhile now. I'm under the care of a doctor for my healthcare problems...so no worries there. :)
    Why are you defensive? You ask a questions then get upset at my answer because it's not what you want to hear. Please reread my response and try to absorb what I am saying.

    Not eating at a calorie deficit does not mean that you are not weighing your food, it means you are eating more calories than you are burning. Please notice after I say you are not eating at a deficit, I ask if you've had your thyroid checked. A malfunctioning thyroid can affect how you do or do not lose weight.

    If you are sure you are weighting your food and logging everything you eat, and if you are sure about your exercise calories, then it's time to go to the doctor for a thyroid check.

    Perhaps if you can no longer be kind when dealing with these kind of questions, you should refrain from answering. FU.
    Um.....there is nothing unkind in my response.

    While I certainly don't condone the two-letter ending to the message the person directed at you, it is pretty unkind to say "try to absorb what I'm saying." You're implying the person is not very bright.
  • gaelicstorm26
    gaelicstorm26 Posts: 589 Member
    Just popping in because I also have a bum thyroid. Do you have "regular" hypothyroidism or do you have an autoimmune version (Hashimoto's)? Mine is autoimmune, which means that my thyroid levels can fluctuate fairly rapidly. If you can get a doctor to agree, it might be good to get your TSH, free T4, T3 and antibodies checked.

    Best wishes.
  • aguzman50
    aguzman50 Posts: 3 Member
    From the prior posts I can tell that you have thyroid issues and are on medication, but have you also had your resting metabolic rate (RMR) checked as well? I had mine checked in 2008 and it was about 1800. So when I first started using MFP, that was the starting point I used to figure out that I should be eating about 1440 calories a day to lose between 1-2 lbs a week. After weeks of eating 1440 calories a day, the weight was not going down, so I had my metabolism checked again. Turns out that my resting metabolic rate had decreased over the past six years. As a result, instead of having a RMR of 1800 a day, it had gone down to 1410. Was I annoyed? Yes, but at least I knew why I was not losing weight. I reduced my caloric intake from 1440 to 1200 calories a day, and since March 9, I have a lost a total of 13 lbs! If everything else is good, you may want to have your RMR checked too.
  • jcolier
    jcolier Posts: 64
    Have you tried taking your measurements instead of steeping on the scale? Or comparing before / after pictures? Sometimes thats a better indication of fat loss!
  • agent99oz
    agent99oz Posts: 185 Member
    Firstly I feel your pain! It is frustrating when you are doing everything you should be doing and nothing is happening for you.
    I agree with most of the other posters - you maybe need to request the following tests (if you haven't done so already)

    Apartfrom the standard TSH and FT4 (Free T4), you should also ask for FT3 (Free T3; this is
    the active hormone that powers you up) as well as reverse T3. Also ask for TGB
    (thyroglobulin) antibodies and TPO (thyroid peroxidase) antibodies.
    If you suspect having hyperthyroidism or Graves’ Disease, also test for TSI (thyroid
    stimulating immunoglobulins) antibodies.
    For mineral deficiencies, test for vitamin B12, vitamin D, ferritin and folic acid
    (vitamin B9).
    For hormonal health, I recommend testing for estrogen, progesterone and cortisol
    (the infamous stress hormone so many people struggle with!).

    In the day to day check: sleep, water, watch sodium, mix up the workouts, lift heavy one day and then a HIIT then days....

    I have been training since before Xmas and no weight change at all - however I have lost 7cms off my waist. It is hard to keep positive when you feel you are doing everything right - and I 100% believe you (like me) are doing everything you can
    I also have a funny Thyriod - since the birth of my 2nd baby :) - Feel free to add me if you want a positive training buddy :smile:
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    If you are not losing weight you are not in a calories deficit. Eating more is not the answer when you're to losing.

    Based on your OP, have you had your thyroid checked?


    I am dead serious when I say I weigh everything at home. Everything. Unless you're in my kitchen watching me, you really don't know that. Unless you see the arguments my husband and I get into because I'm a freak about weighing everything, you really don't know. Whatever my HRM/Fitbit/Body Media tell me I burn during exercise or during the day, I subtract 10% from it to account for any errors. Between that and logging my food as accurately as I possibly can--it shows I'm in a deficit nearly every day. I'm sorry if I'm coming across as rude--I don't mean to. I just don't understand why people seem to think I'm lying about this. What good would it do me to lie? I'd only be harming myself.

    And yes, I've had my thyroid checked. I currently take Synthroid for that and have my TSH levels tested every 3 months. They've been good for awhile now. I'm under the care of a doctor for my healthcare problems...so no worries there. :)
    Why are you defensive? You ask a questions then get upset at my answer because it's not what you want to hear. Please reread my response and try to absorb what I am saying.

    Not eating at a calorie deficit does not mean that you are not weighing your food, it means you are eating more calories than you are burning. Please notice after I say you are not eating at a deficit, I ask if you've had your thyroid checked. A malfunctioning thyroid can affect how you do or do not lose weight.

    If you are sure you are weighting your food and logging everything you eat, and if you are sure about your exercise calories, then it's time to go to the doctor for a thyroid check.

    Perhaps if you can no longer be kind when dealing with these kind of questions, you should refrain from answering. FU.
    Um.....there is nothing unkind in my response.

    While I certainly don't condone the two-letter ending to the message the person directed at you, it is pretty unkind to say "try to absorb what I'm saying." You're implying the person is not very bright.
    Thank you for being specific, but my response does not imply that she's not bright, it implies that she did not thoroughly read my reply. She was rude in her reply and, in so many words, even admitted it.

    It's really frustrating when people post a question and then get upset at the answers.

    In any event, thank you for sharing your view.
  • Shalini_15
    Shalini_15 Posts: 160 Member
    Bumping for replies.. In the same boat :(
  • defauIt
    defauIt Posts: 118 Member
    soooo tired of this droning mantra! why don't you just say "liar, liar" and be done with it.

    YOU aren't in our kitchens, homes, work places, etc. It's become obvious to me the people that post this kind of answer have really no idea of each persons struggle. so if you can't be truly helpful then just stay out of it.

    Fact is fact. A deficit is literally defined as less calories consumed than burned which literally must mean you're using energy from your body to make up the difference which means you're losing weight.

    If you aren't losing weight you are not, by definition, in a deficit.

    That doesn't mean you're a liar. Maybe it's water retention, maybe you have an abnormally low metabolism, maybe your exercise calculator is giving you too high an estimate, maybe someone is sabotaging your weight loss, I don't know. But it's literally impossible to be in a deficit and not lose weight.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    From the prior posts I can tell that you have thyroid issues and are on medication, but have you also had your resting metabolic rate (RMR) checked as well? I had mine checked in 2008 and it was about 1800. So when I first started using MFP, that was the starting point I used to figure out that I should be eating about 1440 calories a day to lose between 1-2 lbs a week. After weeks of eating 1440 calories a day, the weight was not going down, so I had my metabolism checked again. Turns out that my resting metabolic rate had decreased over the past six years. As a result, instead of having a RMR of 1800 a day, it had gone down to 1410. Was I annoyed? Yes, but at least I knew why I was not losing weight. I reduced my caloric intake from 1440 to 1200 calories a day, and since March 9, I have a lost a total of 13 lbs! If everything else is good, you may want to have your RMR checked too.

    Yikes - no wonder your RMR went down so badly.

    RMR is resting metabolism - awake but not moving - what your body would burn all day.

    You shouldn't have taken a deficit off a figure that doesn't apply, it should have been taken off the estimated TDEE - made a better estimate because you had a measured RMR.

    But good grief, force your RMR slower by undereating to your TDEE so badly - and if you still have a lot to lose - where in the world is the final eating goal?
    Where is the maintenance level going to be?
    It's usually about 100 less calories per 10 lbs lost. Unless you increase the exercise to make up the difference.
    50 lbs to go - 500 calories less eating - or more burning - required to keep losing.
    Yikes.

    Doesn't have to be that low. A more reasonable deficit that doesn't force the body to slow down can usually cause the same amount of weight loss for longer period of time actually, and better response from exercise, and higher eating levels means bigger margin for error.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/heybales/view/reduced-metabolism-tdee-beyond-expected-from-weight-loss-616251

    That's all you did, was force your RMR about 400 calories slower, and then took another deficit off that to keep losing.
    You even caused what is normally seen as the max amount of suppression - 20%.

    To OP - this is perfect example that always going lower and lower when deficit may have already been too great is not a great idea. You just force your TDEE lower.
    Unless you just enjoy eating less and less and will adhere to those diet and maintenance levels.
  • crissi725
    crissi725 Posts: 82
    This is just in response to the "eat more" issue. Yes, eating more than you burn leads to weight gain. BUT, you also need to make sure that you are eating AT LEAST your BMR. A good estimate of your BMR can be found almost any where. Yes, you do need to have a calorie deficit to lose weight but your NET CALORIES MUST BE NO LOWER THAN 1200. Your net calorie number is calories consumed minus calories burned. Otherwise, you aren't doing your metabolism any favors. The little graph on your MFP home page should show you that. Macros are important but calories in vs calories out is as well. Also, when you enter your food into MFP, click "complete entry" at the bottom. If you are below 1200 net calories, MFP shows the following underneath that button:

    *Based on your total calories consumed for today, you are eating too few calories. Not only is it difficult to receive adequate nutrition at these calorie levels, but you could also be putting your body into starvation mode. Starvation mode lowers your metabolism and makes weight loss more difficult. We suggest increasing your calorie consumption to 1200 calories per day minimum. ^this means NET CALORIES

    But again, speak with your doctor about your hypothyroidism and possible solutions.

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