<1000 calories and still not losing weight?

NadiaGH

I'm new to this but it sounds like your body is in survival mode...big time. The importance of eating enough calories is covered in this link and includes why the "last 10" are the hardest to lose. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo

Hope you can get this sorted. Welcome aboard.

Thank you, that helps!
I was confused about manually entering caloric goal, but this clears it up...!

On our website (MyFitnessPal), when you enter your goals, there is a prebuilt deficit designed to keep you in the "normal" metabolic functionality while still burning more calories then you take in. This goal DOES NOT INCLUDE exercise until you enter it. If you enter exercise into your daily plan, the site automatically adjusts your total caloric needs to stay within that normal range (in other words, just put your exercise in, don't worry about doing any additional calculations). Not eating exercise calories can bring you outside that range and (if done over an extended period of days or weeks) will gradually send your body into survival mode, making it harder (but not impossible) to continue to lose weight. The important thing to understand is (and this is REALLY important) the closer you are to your overall healthy weight (again, your metabolism views this a a range, not a specific number) the more prominant the survival mode becomes (remember, we talked about efficiency). This is because as fat becomes scarce, muscle is easier to break down and transport. And thus, the reason why it's harder to lose that "Last 10 pounds".

NadiaGH

If you are truly eating 1000 total calories a day, and you are doing cardio exercise every day and you aren't losing any weight at all, then you have a metabolic issue or some sort of disease. The more likely scenario is that you're either underestimating calorie intake, overestimating calorie burn, or both...

This, this, this^^^^

As someone already stated, you are in a good weight range already. If you really are looking to lose 10 more pound or so then your training and especially your logging of intake has to be 100% on point. You can't just say you haven't logged food but know what your eating because you've been eating the same things. It doesn't work like that. A this point 2 lb losses a week is not reasonable. You should be looking for .5-1 lb max per week.

And no you are not in starvation mode. People saying that to you when they know nothing about your actual intake, lifestyle or training should give you a clue that they are just repeating stuff they heard or read somewhere. And even if they did know, you're still not in starvation mode. You simply aren't in a deficit.

Was just going back through this thread, and thoroughly read this post... and after all the generous information and education I received last night, this definitely makes sense to me now. Thank you!

michigansurveyor

Well here is my two cents...you just aren't eating enough! Believe it or not you have to eat to able your body to lose weight. My husband just experienced what you are talking about this year himself. He cut way back on food and was lifting weights and doing cardio. After a month he quit losing weight and stalled. He decided to take a local nutrition class and it completely changed how he ate. I'm following the same eating has him and have finally started losing and having success when nothing else would work for me. Every couple of days he checks his weight and is down another pound or two. He is not that much overweight either. 6ft and 200lbs now. He is also quite muscular. In a nutshell you have to eat breakfast snack lunch snack dinner and another snack. Women should never go under 1200 calories per day and if you exercise you must eat more. You should break your calorie balance to 30%protein 30% fats and 40% carbs at every meal. Protein is the huge component. You must make sure you are getting your protein. If you use the my fitness pal app you can see the breakdowns in a pie chart so it makes it quit easy. Breakfast should consist of a protein, fruit and carb; 1st snack protein and vege, lunch protein, carb, fruit and vege; 2nd snack protein and vege; dinner protein, vege and fruit; and 3rd snack protein and vege. To figure out how much calories you need at each meal take the days calories and divide it by 4. Then take and divide that number by 3. IE...1200 calories / 4 = 300 calories per meal. 300 calories/3 = 100 calories per snack. The quality of food also huge like when we grocery shop now we only go around the outside aisles of the store. We buy fresh and frozen fruits and veges, nuts, lean meats and beans and yogurts. We've also eliminated anything artificial.
Well, these are just my thoughts and what has worked for us. Hope it may help you too!

NadiaGH

You need to eat way more!! You should be eating at leasy 1800 cals a day, especially if you're also working out. When the body isn't getting enough food, it'll slow down your metabolism, since it doesn't know excactly how much energy it can afford to lose. Eat more and you'll see results! Lots of really fit women are eating 2000+ calories a day. Remember, also, that your goal weight might not be reasonable, since you'll be putting on muscle mass from working out.

So far, the IIFYM has me at about 1500 calories a day for weight loss of .5 lb a week. I'll definitely try to follow that, but I'm starting to foresee that 118 will be an impossible goal especially if I start incorporating strong lifts/heavy lifting into my workout regimen.

NadiaGH

You've gotten some good advice. Definitely read the threads that were recommended, and get your food scale out of the box and use it. Let us know how it goes!

Thank you, will keep you posted... And maybe even start another thread if I have more questions...! :-)

NadiaGH

Good luck! I'm glad you're committing to logging accurately! It really makes a huge difference!

Thank you! I know it's going to take some time for absolute perfection of accuracy, but with the current tools at hand, I'm hoping it will get the wheels turning.

NadiaGH

Well here is my two cents...you just aren't eating enough! Believe it or not you have to eat to able your body to lose weight. My husband just experienced what you are talking about this year himself. He cut way back on food and was lifting weights and doing cardio. After a month he quit losing weight and stalled. He decided to take a local nutrition class and it completely changed how he ate. I'm following the same eating has him and have finally started losing and having success when nothing else would work for me. Every couple of days he checks his weight and is down another pound or two. He is not that much overweight either. 6ft and 200lbs now. He is also quite muscular. In a nutshell you have to eat breakfast snack lunch snack dinner and another snack. Women should never go under 1200 calories per day and if you exercise you must eat more. You should break your calorie balance to 30%protein 30% fats and 40% carbs at every meal. Protein is the huge component. You must make sure you are getting your protein. If you use the my fitness pal app you can see the breakdowns in a pie chart so it makes it quit easy. Breakfast should consist of a protein, fruit and carb; 1st snack protein and vege, lunch protein, carb, fruit and vege; 2nd snack protein and vege; dinner protein, vege and fruit; and 3rd snack protein and vege. To figure out how much calories you need at each meal take the days calories and divide it by 4. Then take and divide that number by 3. IE...1200 calories / 4 = 300 calories per meal. 300 calories/3 = 100 calories per snack. The quality of food also huge like when we grocery shop now we only go around the outside aisles of the store. We buy fresh and frozen fruits and veges, nuts, lean meats and beans and yogurts. We've also eliminated anything artificial.
Well, these are just my thoughts and what has worked for us. Hope it may help you too!

Thank you for your input, much appreciated! and good for you and your husband! I'm hoping that I see success using MFP in a month, so that way the proof can get my husband to start as well :-D

_KitKat_

Okay understood. But you do seem to be agreeing with the notion that you need to eat a couple hundred more calories per day. And agreeing with the ones giving you bad advice, not the ones giving you much better advice.

Well, as a newbie to calorie counting, until a few hours ago, I was under the assumption that I was eating way less calories than I may actually be eating. Based on that alone, I have been agreeing that I should be eating more than 1000 calories a day, and should be at least reaching my BMR. Thanks to this handy dandy app, I'll be able to keep an accurate log of calories consumed and calories expended.

How to word this.....in your mind it would be more but in truth it would be less, 2 sodas could wipe out your deficient for the day. Peanut butter in grams can be a 30% difference from measuring with a table spoon, that could be about 60 calories right there, ranch dressing 2 tablespoons is very little most use 4-6 so instead of 220 it is now 440-660 you could have a burger instead, little things like this is what make all the difference when you have so little to lose. You need to be accurate to the gram and fluid ounce about everything that passes your lips, then you will be eating less but when logging will see the calories total to more than your current. Also you must be as active as you said on the calculator for TDEE or the numbers will be off....this is also just an estimate and with little to lose finding the majic number can be hard. That is why most recommended body recomposition.

How to word this...

If I understand you correctly (and the above is so convoluted, it's quite possible to missunderstand you despite trying really hard and applying the charity principle (look it up, you may need it some day)) you seem to be saying that she should aim to be eating below 1000kcal/day, even if most of the world agrees that is way too little, and keep guesstimating her intake.

What others have suggested - and which OP has taken to heart - is to be more accurate with the logging, to start using the food scales she already owns but hasn't used up until now and aim a little higher than the 1000. And you have a problem with this because..?

OP has been given good advice and she has committed to following it. I see no problem with her here, only with you.

Are you sure you understand what OP is writing? (Or anyone else?)

OP: What is wrong?
Not so Nice People: YOU!!!eleventy! YOU ARE WHAT'S WRONG I, I ALONE HAVE THE TRUTH!!!11 AND I WILL NOT EXPLAIN HOW OR WHY, SIMPLY BANG MY CHEST AND BERATE YOU!!!!1!!! (this would be you)
Nice People: 1000 is way too little for most people in the world and estimating intake and expenditure is hard. Aim a little higher and find a better way to log both. (i.e start using food scales and get a heart rate monitor, et.c)
OP: Scales, Monitor and more realistic intake goal - check!
Not so Nice People: Y U ONLY THERE ADVICE*???11!!! U SUK!

* Because she can read for comprehension. Oh, and Not so Nice People aren't really giving advice, only shouting abuse.

Did you just skip the preceding posts between the op and myself. She was just asking if I was on "team eat more" I was trying to explain to her that number wise...since in a prior post I suggested 1450-1600 calories a day.....it would seem that is what I was saying but in reality since she has not lost any weight, there was no possible way she was actually eating 1000 calories a day, and errors in logging were most likely to blame. I was also showing small examples that without weighing, could sabotage her small deficient since she has so few pounds to lose. While you seem to like to be insulting, I have no idea why a pleasant exchange between the op and myself would trigger such an inability to scroll up on a single page and attack someone that never insulted her in anyway and was only trying to help. Also all your little "check!" 's were things I also suggested to the op, but you would know this if you had taken the time to read the thread or even just the same page that your post was on.

Op, I am glad you are trying the iifym recommendation, and have your tools ready to log accurately.

donyellemoniquex3

eat more.

SomeNights246

If you are at a deficit, you will lose weight. PERIOD. Some people apparently believe they are immune to physics. The metabolism never slows down to a point where you stop losing weight if you are truly eating at a deficit. The more logical answers have been given to you.

Ok, so does that mean if I'm eating 1200 calories, I need to burn off 1500? I mean how would I do that? I couldn't possibly be at the gym for hours, and I wouldn't have the energy. I'm not trying to come off as argumentative, but I don't understand?

o.O No?

It means if you want to lose on 1200, eat 1500 calories and burn 300. If you eat 1200, and burn 1500, you will be netting nothing. Which is going to lead to failure and fast.

arewethereyet

You need to eat way more!! You should be eating at leasy 1800 cals a day, especially if you're also working out. When the body isn't getting enough food, it'll slow down your metabolism, since it doesn't know excactly how much energy it can afford to lose. Eat more and you'll see results! Lots of really fit women are eating 2000+ calories a day. Remember, also, that your goal weight might not be reasonable, since you'll be putting on muscle mass from working out.

So far, the IIFYM has me at about 1500 calories a day for weight loss of .5 lb a week. I'll definitely try to follow that, but I'm starting to foresee that 118 will be an impossible goal especially if I start incorporating strong lifts/heavy lifting into my workout regimen.

From my experience, if you lift and work out while eating enough protein and fats, you will LOOK better than just being 118 pounds. I am 5'2" and petite. When I was your age I did what you are doing and got down to 115. I000 calories and worked out each morning. I lost the weight, was thinner and didn't look as good. I also gained back 20 once I started to eat normally.
ETA: I forgot to mention the ER visit from over taxing my body and not giving it enough fuel

Cut to 2 or 3 years ago I was 134 and hired a trainer. I gave her my pw here so she could see my food. I ate 1300 plus any exercise on my heart rate monitor. Lifting weights, balance exercising, stretching exercises and some light cardio and I went from size tight 8 to a loose 6 WITHOUT LOSING A POUND! :noway: NO one could have told me that and had me believe it!.

Also, after 2 months of working out she UPPED my food. Yikes! I was then eating 1500 plus exercise calories. Honest to goodness I looked better than ever in my life. Felt fantastic, and kept off the weight for a long time.

Right now due to illness I am at 125, of jiggly skinniness. I don't want to gain weight, but if lifting weights does that to me then I will take it if I look fit and am rocking those 5's.

Good luck! You are doing the right thing to educate yourself. I am better you can get to your goal weight with the info provided . TAKE YOUR TIME! It is worth it!:flowerforyou:

arewethereyet

Good luck! I'm glad you're committing to logging accurately! It really makes a huge difference!

Thank you! I know it's going to take some time for absolute perfection of accuracy, but with the current tools at hand, I'm hoping it will get the wheels turning.

Logging, and eating my exercise calories was key in losing my weight.

spamantha57

The biggest I was in my life, I was only eating 900 calories a day. Killed my metabolism too.
Over the past year & 4 months, I've slowly steadily increased my calories per day, while being able to exercise more. I now eat almost twice as much (about 1600 on a regular day), and am losing about 3/4ths of a lb a week currently.
I pay more attention to what I put in my body & how it affects me more than anything. I would rather eat 2,000 calories of good nutritious food than 1200 calories of junk. On days I eat damn near perfect, I'm fully satiated with 1400 cals. I have been in a veggie food coma before lol

NadiaGH

That's great to know ladies, thank you! I've actually been adhering to MFP guidelines pretty closely as of the last 17 days... I've already lost 4lbs, more than I can say in the last 2 years! I have about 6-8 more to go, cannot wait until the scale hits <125, haven't seen those numbers in a very long time!

blueturquoise

Yes at 1000 calories your body is on starvation mode so will not let that weight go. Probably 1200-1500 is better depending on your exercise. If you are doing more you should probably go for the higher amount. Weight training will also help as muscle burns more. Your body naturally burns a few thousand calories daily from everyday activity that you do. So you don't need to worry about trying to burn the whole intake of calories you have as it does a large portion of that that normally. In your goal section of MFP it will tell you how much approximately your body is already burning even before exercise.