It's not working: no inches no pounds in over a month

safari20111

I am on the verge of giving up. I worked out 6 days (turbojam and 15 min interval training on treadmill) this week with a 1500 calorie goal.  Most of feb i did 30 day shred; not a pound  My diet has been pretty descent and I'm drinking water. I only eat my exercise calories if I'm hungry, I've gained 2lbs this week and don't understand whats going on.  The scale will not move nor has the tape measure  and I'm vey discouraged. This week I'm Upping my calories to 1700; may be I need more.  Stats. 5"6.5 now 175

wriglucy

Hmmm....I'd love to hear the replies on this too.

tammyquinnlmt

I can't see your diary to see how many calories you are eating, but if you aren't eating enough, it can actually stop your weight loss. Also, track sodium. There is a lot of sodium in so many of the foods we eat. Don't give up. You may need to eat those excercise calories. I do, and at this point I'm losing 1 to 2 pounds per week. but most of all....DON"T GIVE UP!

louiepoof

Under the tools tab, check your basal metabolic rate to make sure that you are eating enough calories for your body to operate. I wasn't eating enough calories to even meet my metabolic rate, and I didn't lose any weight for two weeks because my body was not getting enough calories. I made sure to eat all of my calories (including exercise ones) and started losing again.

ifiwasurvampire

Lower the calories not up them. By upping them you will gain weight. Also maybe try an extra few minutes of diff exercises. Pilates and zumba are awesome to help shed weight. Good luck!

MelissaL582

I can't see your diary to see how many calories you are eating, but if you aren't eating enough, it can actually stop your weight loss. Also, track sodium. There is a lot of sodium in so many of the foods we eat. Don't give up. You may need to eat those exercise calories. I do, and at this point I'm losing 1 to 2 pounds per week. but most of all....DON"T GIVE UP!

Remember that just because you're under calories doesn't mean you're eating right. Sodium, in my opinion, plays a big role with losing weight and keeping off. Change up your workouts and try working out at different parts of the day to psych your body out.

sweebeesmom

You gotta eat those exercise calories! I'm not usually hungry after working outs either.. but above all.. don't give up.

WarriorJayne

If your calories and everything else that Tammy suggested are correct, and your sodium are under the line, talk to your doctor. You might have a thyroid problem (don't panic, its not that bad) Sometimes thyroids go out of whack, and it mucks with weight.

jeneil4

Remember to count your drink calories, there are tons of calories in cappuccinos hot chocolate and coffee if you add sugar, and if you are drinking caffeine you have to drink extra water because it can dehydrate you. Salt/sodium can make you retain water so make sure your drinking enough. ( Your body weight 175lbs divided by 2 = 87.5) so you should drink 87.5 ounces per day

Keep it up and try different things you can do it for sure.

safari20111

BMR = 1530

Should my NET be always be above 1200? Lowered my sodium by 500 last week. No thyroids.

dawnemjh

BUMP!
I am in the same boat!! I have been on MFP over a month and not lost any weight, actually gained a pound. I workout 6-7 days per week and track everything. I have tried eating all my exercise calories and not eating all my calories. Dont give up! I dont have any advice other than stick with it and if you find something that works, let me know!!! lol!!

wriglucy

BMR = 1530

Should my NET be always be above 1200? Lowered my sodium by 500 last week. No thyroids.

The 1200 calorie level is just a ball park figure, and is slightly different for all people. If you are under the 1200 calories a couple of days or 2, or a week or so, I wouldn't worry about it. It isn't going to affect your body negatively unless you are under for a prolonged period of time.

Good luck! I'm sure it will start working

AllyS7

I agree with the tracking SODIUM and SUGARs. They greatly effect me so I try to stay under my calories and under those two items. Somedays I do, somedays I don't.

safari20111

Thanks so much for the support; I truly appreciate. This week is a new week. Invite me to be ur friend so I can stay on track. My food diary is open to friends. Thanks. I'll try some of these suggestions.

mommy2josh

I was stuck at 164 for 3 weeks, upped my cals this week, 3lbs gone! might as well give it a try~!

debruhf

I know it's hard not to measure success in means of numbers....scale and tape measure, but we all joined this site to become healthier.

HOW DO YOU FEEL? STRONGER? MORE ENERGY?

That's what is really important.

carolynmittens

i'm in the same boat as you, but for me it's been FOUR MONTHS!!! and not a pound! i have lost some inches though and i'm seeing a difference in toning, but still i'd love for a few pounds to come off as well. my sodium is always super low, this week i'm going to try drastically limiting my sugar intake (which for me basically means less fruit). i've heard some amazing success stories from people who cut out sugar, so that might be something for you to consider. good luck!

charbrowne

Hey girlie,
Everyone has made some valuable points. The thing about it is what MFP and a lot of the books and programs tell you is very general, blanket information. You really have to take a look at what you're eating in total (drinks, types of foods, etc.) as well as the macronutrient ratios IF simply cutting or upping calories isn't working out. Switching up your workout every 30 days - yes, that's general physiological information that everyone can use. The calorie thing can be tricky though - it's not always as simple as looking at your net calories. Carbs play a huge factor in my weight loss b/c I'm carb sensitive. The purpose of tracking food isn't just to see your calories but to see what your body did that particular week based off of what you ate and you have to keep making adjustments and tracking it to see what works and what doesn't. Sodium plays a major part in the equation as does the macronutrient ratio: carbs-protein-fat. If you can follow the Clean Eating Diet that I told you about with no substitutions, no cheating, I would be interested to see if you don't lose weight on that. There's plenty of things on there that I didn't like but I forced myself to eat just so that I could do an experiment on myself and check its claims that I would lose X pounds in those 2 weeks.

In general, a diet of absolutely no processed foods, low in sodium and sugar as well as bad fats will produce results. That means NO frozen meals like Lean Cuisine, Weight Watchers, all that type of stuff. The only things that I'll buy frozen are my fruits and vegetables and an occasional veggie or salmon burger. But I'll only eat them like once in any given 1 week period.

SLEEP is also a major factor in your weight loss. The big debate nowadays is that it's the most important factor, before diet, exercise, supplementation, and water. I have been horrible going to bed in time for me to get 7-8 hours and that affects weight loss progress without a doubt. Sleep shortage decreases leptin which is a chemical in our body that deals with metabolism, so you also have to take that into consideration.

You can call me and I can talk to you about your overall behavior (the sleep, the diet, the type of exercise, the supplements) and we can go from there. My girlfriend is a nutritionist and she goes even further in depth about this so I can connect you two as well.

Hang in there babe. Don't let it drive you crazy. Our bodies are beautiful and complex machines and we have to totally respect that each one is individual and what works for me may not work for you but there IS something out there that will work for you.

"Char"

luv2ash

a calorie is not just a calorie----it really matters where the calories are coming from. How many carbs are in them? how much sugar? how much SODIUM? You really have to make healthy choices across the board.

I watch my carbs, protein, and calories and sugar. I keep my carbs at 100, my protein at 120, and my sugar at 30 and calories at 1000. I eat 6 times a day---and never feel hungry and never crave---its all about balancing my blood sugars. It truly works and I wish I had come across this years ago.

DrumlineGirl

I feel your pain. My weight loss has been VERRRRRRY slow. Like, super slow. It took 6 weeks to lose this last pound I lost. I initially lost 6 pounds rather quickly, then 1 more took several weeks, then this last one took 6 weeks! But, after all that time, I'm FINALLY seeing some inches lost. Yeah, I didn't lose any inches for 2 months. It is definitely frustrating when you are working SO hard, and eating under your calories, but don't lose weight. I think for me, I was just eating too few calories, and I'm now starting to go to a half pound a week loss total, even though I know I won't lose that much.

Also, I think some people are just slow with it! My husband has been complimenting me in places that I have not been paying attention to. He says I've lost fat right under my breasts, he says the "back fat" is going away, not seeing as much of it around my bra, and even the sides of my boobs! Only he would notice that

So i guess what I'm saying is, keep with it. I know how hard it is, you just want to eat everything because you feel like what you're doing is not working anyway. But you may just be going really slowly. Exercise is great for you, even if you're not losing. That's what I have to focus on, my fitness goals, because the weight goals are too frustrating.