I am only 30 and suddenly can't lose weight?

PRMinx

Are you serious about only eating between 500-1500 calories......and this method is something you have regularly employed???

If the OP is not losing weight, then the intake is not lower than maintenance.

Beyond that, "500-1500 calories" is a meaningless statement without (a) knowing the distribution of the 500 and 1500 and (b) seeing the diary.

Bottom line - OP is eating too much for activity level, if the goal is to lose weight.

It's not necessarily a meaningless statement. It's indicative of disordered eating if she is aiming for 500 calories, whether or not she is actually hitting that mark. She's not, because she's gaining, but I want to know what the thought process is behind eating 500 calories a day.

WalkingAlong

It's not harder to lose weight over 30. The older people are, the less they move. Move more, eat less.

Generalizations. There is something to the idea that it's harder for older people. Not impossible, just more difficult. That's why so many people who were skinny in high school are fat at reunions. I used to snack on entire cheesecakes as a 21 year old and never weighed more than 165. By age 30, I started getting acquainted with being overweight.

There is no switch at age 30 but people do stop regenerating cells at the same rate as they age, so that would account for a small change in RMR.

But mostly they stop moving as much. It's largely within our control. The same rules apply: If you're not losing, you need to eat less and/or move more. That generalization applies to everyone.

mulecanter

I'm 55 and I lost ~60 pounds. You are in the last 10 pounds zone--it's really hard to lose those because your brain wants to keep them in order to survive and so it tells you it's ok to cheat. You just need to eat less and exercise more.

sassyjae21

It doesn't really get that much harder, you just can't eat as much. That's really it. And when you get older, people tend to become more sedentary. OP I suggest along with others here, make sure you are weighing your food. That's more than likely the issue.

I was never successful at losing weight until I became educated. And that was right AT 30. So I'm not buying your idea that you can't lose weight because of that :P. Tighten down the reigns and determine how much you're really eating and how much you're really moving. It's the whole key to weight loss. Energy expenditure. Calories in VS calories out. Put more out than you put in.

Also, take into consideration your current weight. I don't know your height, but i'm guessing, at 138 you're not overweight. It takes much longer to come off when you have little to lose. I started off at your current weight, and am at 120 and it took me about 7 months of small losses, and small gains due to water, but my weight did move in the downward direction. Just took longer. As you lose, you'll also need to adjust your calories down, and you'll need to move more to burn the same amount of calories you did before at a heavier weight. You have to adjust down food as you lose, and crank up your movement, the smaller you get.

It's not that great of a trade-off lol.

ETA: Please do not eat 500 cals.

psuLemon

It's not harder to lose weight over 30. The older people are, the less they move. Move more, eat less.

Generalizations. There is something to the idea that it's harder for older people. Not impossible, just more difficult. That's why so many people who were skinny in high school are fat at reunions. I used to snack on entire cheesecakes as a 21 year old and never weighed more than 165. By age 30, I started getting acquainted with being overweight.

The main difference between high school and when your 40's, activity level. I can bet your activity level dropped (full to job, probably sedentary). Outside of acquiring a medical issue, the energy balance equation is the same and weight loss is achieved through the same way.

Camo_xxx

If by more difficult you mean you have become more lazy over the years then yes, I think many folks experience that.

If by more difficult you mean you are more set in your ways and don't want to change, yup that happens as we age.

Calorie in vrs calorie out still holds true for all ages however.

A_Rene86

I'm 33, will be 34 next month. I started 3 months ago at 146. MFP's first goal for me was 1250 calories per day. I workout 4-5 times per week, but only about 150-300 calories burned, so not super intensive. I log everything judiciously, including water. My initial goal was 135. I did that in the 2 months and then changed my final goal to 130 and now MFP has me at 1200 calories/day, but everything else is the same. My current weight is 131.2. I recently re-started birth control and went up by a pound or more in a week. Reading up on water retention, I've made sure to up my water and it looks like the scale is slowly heading back in the right direction. Sit down and re-evaluate your food diary. Are you truly recording the most accurate info? Are you doing too much strength/muscle training over toning/conditioning? That could add to a slower or stopped loss or even gain. Are you close to your period? Period-related weight gain for me starts at least a week before my period through 2 days into my period. Lastly, if everything else is in check, perhaps getting a good old physical at the doc can help.

Strength training will not "slow down or stop" weight loss, nor will it cause unintentional weight gain. A person really, really trying to gain muscle who has fully committed themselves to it will put on approximately 1-2 lbs of muscle a month (depending on whether they're male or female). This doesn't happen by accident. I'd also think anyone on MFP would be careful using the word "tone"...