HELP! I can lose any weight. What am I doing wrong?

camralens

Hello Everyone!! I need help!

I am currently down 16 lbs but I have hit a plateau. And I did the same thing last month too. I have only lost 1 lb each month (May and June). I eat clean about 90-95% of the time with 6 small meals a day. And if I do cheat, I have like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup or a Frozen Yogurt. I am at the point where most non-clean foods make me sick. I do drink about a gallon or more of water a day.

I work out 3-4 times a week burning about 400-500+ calories each time. Most of my 1:00-1:30 workouts are weight training with like 20-30 mins of cardio. I am tracking my food with 1500-1600 calories a day and I meal prep (2) days a week so I am prepared.

I have talked to a few health specialists and I FEEL I'm doing everything I'm suppose to be doing, but obviously not because I can't break this 1 lb per month. The scale hasn't changed, but in a positive aspect, my clothes are looser.

Any help is would be awesome!!!

jkal1979

Could you open your diary? It would help us be able to help you figure it out.

Laurenloveswaffles

Could you open your diary? It would help us be able to help you figure it out.

Yes this would be very helpful. Are you weighing everything that you put into your mouth as well?

SonicDeathMonkey80

No diary, no help.

First, "clean eating" has nothing to do with weight loss. Are you weighing your food? How are you calculating calorie burns? Have you taken measurements?

juggernaut1974

I eat clean about 90-95% of the time with 6 small meals a day. And if I do cheat, I have like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup or a Frozen Yogurt. I am at the point where most non-clean foods make me sick. I do drink about a gallon or more of water a day.

I work out 3-4 times a week burning about 400-500+ calories each time. Most of my 1:00-1:30 workouts are weight training with like 20-30 mins of cardio. I am tracking my food with 1500-1600 calories a day and I meal prep (2) days a week so I am prepared.

Lots of info, but very little of it relevant.

What specifically are you eating, and how much of it are you eating? And how are you determining those amounts?

3dogsrunning

No diary, no help.

First, "clean eating" has nothing to do with weight loss. Are you weighing your food? How are you calculating calorie burns? Have you taken measurements?

This.

ETA - not feeling well after eating food that you have cut out of your diet is not indicative of food being "bad" or "good", it is simply that your body has adjusted to not eating those foods. This is particularly noticable if you cut your fat intake drastically, then eat something fatty - whether that is french fries or a bowl of guacamole. people experience the same effect when upping intake of veggies or when going from a bland diet to spicy food.

dalesimpson1

No diary, no help.

First, "clean eating" has nothing to do with weight loss. Are you weighing your food? How are you calculating calorie burns? Have you taken measurements?

I have to agree with the "clean eating" having little bearing on weight loss.

I eat like total crap and have managed to keep pretty steady weight loss for the past 4-5 months.

You need to ask yourself if you are being completely honest/accurate in recording your eating and exercise.

abs0830

What are you doing for exercise? If your clothes are loser and you're not losing you may be adding muscle, water retention or something of that nature as well as what everyone above stated. How many ounces of water do you drink per day?

Kalikel

Hello Everyone!! I need help!

I am currently down 16 lbs but I have hit a plateau. And I did the same thing last month too. I have only lost 1 lb each month (May and June). I eat clean about 90-95% of the time with 6 small meals a day. And if I do cheat, I have like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup or a Frozen Yogurt. I am at the point where most non-clean foods make me sick. I do drink about a gallon or more of water a day.

I work out 3-4 times a week burning about 400-500+ calories each time. Most of my 1:00-1:30 workouts are weight training with like 20-30 mins of cardio. I am tracking my food with 1500-1600 calories a day and I meal prep (2) days a week so I am prepared.

I have talked to a few health specialists and I FEEL I'm doing everything I'm suppose to be doing, but obviously not because I can't break this 1 lb per month. The scale hasn't changed, but in a positive aspect, my clothes are looser.

Any help is would be awesome!!!

One pound a month is still losing. It isn't a lot, for sure, but it's still progress. You'll get there. . If your clothes are getting looser, you're losing fat. Do the batteries need to be changed?

Swimming is fantastic exercise - you get cardio and resistance and nothing burns fat like swimming. Maybe mix some in.

You know you should not be eating those peanut butter cups, but if it's an occasional thing, like once a month or less, I wouldn't give it another thought.

Don't feel pressured to open your diary.

3dogsrunning

Hello Everyone!! I need help!

I am currently down 16 lbs but I have hit a plateau. And I did the same thing last month too. I have only lost 1 lb each month (May and June). I eat clean about 90-95% of the time with 6 small meals a day. And if I do cheat, I have like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup or a Frozen Yogurt. I am at the point where most non-clean foods make me sick. I do drink about a gallon or more of water a day.

I work out 3-4 times a week burning about 400-500+ calories each time. Most of my 1:00-1:30 workouts are weight training with like 20-30 mins of cardio. I am tracking my food with 1500-1600 calories a day and I meal prep (2) days a week so I am prepared.

I have talked to a few health specialists and I FEEL I'm doing everything I'm suppose to be doing, but obviously not because I can't break this 1 lb per month. The scale hasn't changed, but in a positive aspect, my clothes are looser.

Any help is would be awesome!!!

One pound a month is still losing. It isn't a lot, for sure, but it's still progress. You'll get there.

Swimming is fantastic exercise - you get cardio and resistance and nothing burns fat like swimming. Maybe mix some in.

You know you should not be eating those peanut butter cups, but if it's an occasional thing, like once a month or less, I wouldn't give it another thought.

Don't feel pressured to open your diary.

OP doesn't have to open their diary, but often times it can be extremely helpful when asking these types of questions. An objective view at logging and logging habits can point out something we often overlook ourselves.
Not saying this is the case of the OP but often times there is a disconnect between what people say they eat and what they actually log.

StaciMarie1974

What is your age/height/current weight/goal weight? If you have only a small amount to lose, 1 pound per month is to be expected. Though if that is the case, then burning 400-500 calories with 20-30 minutes of cardio and then some weight training is unlikely. (Weight training doesn't burn much and its hard for a smallish body to burn 400-500 in 20-30 minutes with extreme cardio.)

AllOutof_Bubblegum

No diary, no help.

First, "clean eating" has nothing to do with weight loss. Are you weighing your food? How are you calculating calorie burns? Have you taken measurements?

^^ All of this

ndprobst

You say your clothes are fitting better, if that's the case you are still losing fat. You are simply gaining muscle making your overall weight loss decrease. Numbers on a scale are not nearly as representative of progress as inches.

camralens

Ok, Diary is public now. Let me know

brentpaul33

Keep in mind the scale doesn't always reflect the weight you lost.
I went almost 2 months with no decrease on the scale.
However I lost almost 2 inches off my waist.

Also you could try and change up your routine. Substitute a different workout on one day or maybe extend it out a bit.
The same thing happened to me once I lost 30 pounds. I added another day of tae bo and a little more walking each day
Now I am down 55 pounds.

EvanKeel

Without looking at your diary, there are only so many possibilities. They all kind of boil down to: Given your goals, you're eating too much compared to how much you're burning.

From that there are only so many options:

You could:

-Have a medical condition that's affecting how much you're burning. I wouldn't assume that's the case, but I think everyone should get regular check ups. So it can't hurt to see a doctor just to rule anything out and maintain overall health.

-Not be logging and measuring intake accurately. This where I usually put my money. I obviously can't say for certain, but that seems to be where most people who are at a plateau have issues.

-Be overestimating your burn.

If you are confident that the first two are not an issue, then try reducing your goal gradually until you're losing again.


On the other hand, again I haven't looked at your diary, if you're claiming that you're active and eating on a VLCD, then I can't offer any advice whatsoever.

NOMORECARS

No diary, no help.

First, "clean eating" has nothing to do with weight loss. Are you weighing your food? How are you calculating calorie burns? Have you taken measurements?

If everyone paid as much attention to the quality of the food they eat as they do to the numbers on a scale there would be much less need for weight loss. Weight loss is not the holy grail of health and well being.

EvanKeel

No diary, no help.

First, "clean eating" has nothing to do with weight loss. Are you weighing your food? How are you calculating calorie burns? Have you taken measurements?

If everyone paid as much attention to the quality of the food they eat as they do to the numbers on a scale there would be much less need for weight loss. Weight loss is not the holy grail of health and well being.

It is, however, what the OP is asking for help with. Let's leave the holy grail of health and well-being to actual health professionals.

3dogsrunning

Ok, Diary is public now. Let me know

My first thought was you were overestimating exercise calories but it doesn't seem that you eat them back most of the time anyway. Just keep that in mind if you do start eating them back.
What type of strength training are you doing?

The other thing I noticed is you use cups for measurements. I'd suggest maybe getting a scale.
Are the homemade recipes yours? Or from the database?

s_pekz

How are you calculating the calories you are burning? they seem rather high. Also, how did you calculate how much to eat. Is that your TDEE?

Catherder58

[Mispost that I can't delete. Sorry]

cyberpump

The scale is just another data point to track. How are your clothes are fitting and the mirror are more important data points. You could be gaining some muscle so the scale again is just one piece of data to consider. As many alluded to, you need to track your calories fully. My take if you haven't attained your goal...forget the cheating. Many "cheat" and go way overboard and don't even realize they basically evaporized the "good" done the previous 6 days, etc. In addition, there is no such thing as out exercising a poor diet as well.

sweet2def

6 small meals per day yet only averaging 1600 cals? . . . . from experience ONLY, you aren't eating enough.

*How intense is your cardio?
*Can you elaborate on what ''clean eating'' is to you?
*Weigh your portions - it helps you ensure you're hitting your macro's. Don't be afraid to consume calories from clean foods.

Again, as other posters have asked, open your diary and that'll help people to help you

_Zardoz_

You're eating far more than you think. Many things in your diary are down as cups. Cups is not an accurate measure of solid items as it's a measure of volume. You need to weigh solids and measure liquids. Tighten up your logging and that will have an effect. Have a look at the link below for some great advice in logging accurately good luck

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1234699-logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide

acorsaut89

Hello Everyone!! I need help!

I am currently down 16 lbs but I have hit a plateau. And I did the same thing last month too. I have only lost 1 lb each month (May and June). I eat clean about 90-95% of the time with 6 small meals a day. And if I do cheat, I have like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup or a Frozen Yogurt. I am at the point where most non-clean foods make me sick. I do drink about a gallon or more of water a day.

I work out 3-4 times a week burning about 400-500+ calories each time. Most of my 1:00-1:30 workouts are weight training with like 20-30 mins of cardio. I am tracking my food with 1500-1600 calories a day and I meal prep (2) days a week so I am prepared.

I have talked to a few health specialists and I FEEL I'm doing everything I'm suppose to be doing, but obviously not because I can't break this 1 lb per month. The scale hasn't changed, but in a positive aspect, my clothes are looser.

Any help is would be awesome!!!

Out of curiousity - when you started clean eating and working out, did you go cold turkey or did you make small adjustments?

The reason I ask is because if you shocked your body into a life style change by making all the adjustments all at once then your body will get used it and maybe it's just not as effective as it was in the beginning. I am not saying this is absolutely the case but may be something to consider - change up your work outs, constantly keep your body guessing . . . It may not work, but just a suggestion.

jkal1979

A food scale would definitely be of help, especially for calorie dense foods like your avocado. Using measurements like small, medium and large for foods can have a wide calorie range plus what you might think is medium might actually be large. Use the food scale for all solids (in grams). They can be found pretty cheap at Walmart or online.

Another thing that will help is to avoid using entries that are labeled generic or homemade (Unless you are the one who made it).

s_pekz

I agree with all who suggest getting a food scale. The amount you are putting in for food seem off.

Oscarinmiami

forget the scale, if your clothes are getting looser that is all that matters, you are probably building muscle and muscle is heavier than fat...keep doing what you are doing

3dogsrunning

Out of curiousity, how much muscle can the OP expect to put on?
If she is losing fat and adding muscle, how much are we talking to offset the weight loss?

lmann72

I would agree with the food scale - it makes a huge difference - mine lives on the counter now! Also, take measurements and look at the measurements along with your weight - that might give you validation if you are not getting it from the scale!

Laurenloveswaffles

I just have one major question....how did you only eat .95 of a Reese's Peanut butter cup on Tuesday?! What did you do with the other .05? I would have eaten that whole thing in one bite! Not acceptable!