Whya Haven't I Lost More Weight?!

mindypie

Help! I have been restricting carbs for 4 weeks now. The first 2 weeks I lost 10lbs just thru dieting alone. 2 wks ago I started working out 2.5 hrs/day (cardio n strength w/5# weights) n all I've lost is 2 lbs! Since I started exercising I've lost 2.75" around my waist but I just stare in disbelief at the scale when I weigh in! Where is my weight loss? I keep a very detailed n very honest diary. I'd love it if someone could look at it n tell me what I'm doing wrong. I figure maybe you all can see something I can't.

fitniknik

2.5 hrs of exercise sound like A HELLOFA LOT!! Are you drinking enough water? I would say do the amout of exercise you can maintain for a lifetime... I know If i was doing that much I would probably be wayy more likely to quit than If i was able to do my half hour to an hour 4-5 times a week....
Probably though you need to drink lots more water.

kmck045

It's possible that since you've picked up strength training then your muscle development may be paralelling your fat loss... if your dress size/measurements are trending downwards, then that's the best guage to keep your eye on and know you're doin' fine.

JayAlexander

Gaining muscles? Eating enough calories? I'm going through the same thing. I work out 4 days a week and have only lost 11lb since January. But, I have lost inches. I look forward to seeing what anyone has to say :grumble:

funnygirl0940

If this happened to me, which is does often, i'll tell you what's going on. I'm exercising too hard. If i'll back off on the exercise & stick with 1200 calories, i'll lose faster. Otherwise i just gain muscle. Depends on what you want to do

Anna19911

Well for starters you need to eat more.

pyro13g

Never cardio and strength on the same day. If you must a little bit of brief cardio AFTER strength training. You want max energy devoted to your strength training. Adding muscle is great but will make the scale a bad measuring tool which is why measurements and measuring body fat percentage is better.

mallorybriann

Agreed. I wasn't losing for weeks because I was consuming too few calories. I have also heard that cardio for more than an hour isn't the best.

Well for starters you need to eat more.

JennsLosing

i just looked at a few days of your diary, and you have 1000 calories left most days. you should be netting atleast 1200 calories a day, if not you can hinder your weight loss, your body needs fuel to add to the fire.

kje2011

You are working hard,
but don't always judge by a scale weight - it is toning up and inches off that you (and others) may see!
Don't be too hard on yourself, as long as you are eating healthy too and exercising, that is half the battle!
Stay strong, stay positive

mindypie

I did a lil research online n the best answer I came up with was either splitting up my workout so I burn more after I quit more often per day OR eat more. Seems like that's what you guys think too. I need to eat a bit more. I think I'll try that this week and see what happens.

ChristineM1953

Why are you only eating breakfast and dinner? You need to fuel your body throughout the day. If you ate your calories of 1200 plus most of what you burn with exercise, and drank more water (8 glasses minimum), you would do better. Plus you need to cut back on your exercise some. You are trying to lose too fast, and as a result, you are getting nowhere. And don't restrict anything. Eat a well balanced diet - plenty of fruits and vegetables, protein and yes carbs! all are important. I bet if you restarted with this plan, you would have better results. Best of luck to you!

mindypie

Thanks for all your helpful suggestions!

mistyb47711

Try staying away from Mcdonalds, Wendys and Applebees and drink alot more water...at least 8 8oz glasses a day...

grumpy2032

I AM IN THE SAME BOAT . So today I got out a pair of jeans that I could not get into in Jan .I put them on and they fit without pulling or having to lay down to button them .It felt so good .Try on something that was tight and see how that goes.Then take your measurements . I have lost an inch in almost every spot.

adurk

I have been having exactly the same problem! Granted I don't work out for that long but I workout on average 5-6 days a week for an hour to and hour and a half a session and I haven't lost much more weight. Everyone keeps telling me to eat more but I feel like if I eat all my normal daily calories plus my exercise that its so much! I'm going to try eating more though too and see what happens.

You seem to be working very hard so I'm sure its going to pay off

foxfirekenzie

I am no professional, but by looking at your food diary, you aren't eating enough.

It looks like you skip lunch often and that you rarely eat your exercise calories, or even 1200 total calories. I know it seems like by eating so much less you are going to lose weight, but you gotta keep your food burning motor going, eat several small meals throughout the day. It was explained to me like this-and it made sense: Your metabolism is like a wood burning stove. If you give it small bits of wood (food) frequently, it will stay burning steadily but if you put one giant log (meal) on the fire all at once, it has a hard time getting that wood started burning.

Try to omit fast food like Sonic and McDonalds because those calories are generally not healthful calories.

Also, maybe you should base your success on your actual size, not the number on the scale. If you are doing a lot of strength training, you will be gaining muscle and losing fat and probably inches. In my opinion, the scale is a terrible way to measure success.

Eat healthy, be active and try to not get discouraged.

ngory07

I agree with the eat more. Also trying to eat lunch may help. Not good to skip meals. I also noticed that last week you at a lot of fast food. Not judging you or anything thats how I got tobe 300 lbs. But that may be a factor. Fast food has a lot of sodium so you could be retaining water. Has this been a normalweek or were you stressed?

watch48win

I agree with others that you are not eating enough. You also may want to add the sodium tab to your food log, I bet you are WAY over on you daily sodium intake, which will lead to water retention.

mustnothrowcantelopes

I have a similar problem. When I first started, I was very skeptical. I had it set to lose 2 lbs. a week and excercise 1 day a week for an hour (which I know is way to little) and I managed to stay under my calories for the most part and there was one weekend where I completely went off my eating habits because I was at a convention and didn't have much of a way to eat healthier, but I was running around like crazy. I remember each time I weighed myself, I was constantly shocked at how I was consistently losing 2 lbs every 5 days. Then I went into this depression spiral and felt hungry all the time and would just eat and eat and feel like I couldn't last on the allotted calories. I constantly felt like I was starving even though I wasn't, so I changed my weight loss goal to 1.5 a week and ended up with more calories. It's true, that I have gotten less hours at my job, which means I'm a lot less active and I'm depressed, so that doesn't help. But like, I gained 3lbs in a week and then after a week of not weighing myself and trying to get back on a healthier track, being more active, I only managed to lose 1 lbs in 7 days.

I guess my less weight loss makes more sense since I'm a lot less active than mindypie , it's just very discouraging. I'd open my diary, but I'm afraid of the feedback and how I'm going to handle it.

watch48win

I agree with the eat more. Also trying to eat lunch may help. Not good to skip meals. I also noticed that last week you at a lot of fast food. Not judging you or anything thats how I got tobe 300 lbs. But that may be a factor. Fast food has a lot of sodium so you could be retaining water. Has this been a normalweek or were you stressed?

it appears that we think alike...:flowerforyou:

chefchazz

if i had to guess, id say more food. awesome commitment to the workout!

Losing2Live69

If you are working out 2.5 hours a day and burning 800+ calories you aren't eating enough. That will make your body hold on to everything you eat because you go into starvation mode. You need to shoot for a net of 1200-1500 calories a day. When I was netting below that I stopped losing weight too.

Be careful of the dressings and sauces you eat. I was a dressing hog when I started this. Even when you stick to a serving...that is usually over 100 calories for only 2 tablespoons of something. As much as I hated it I had to find lower calorie/ carb options or find a recipe to make it homemade (like out of Greek yogurt). Creamy Italian was my favorite.

Your food choices for the most part are fine from what I see. I just don't think you are taking in enough calories for the amount of exercise you are doing. Try reducing your exercise time and eating more. Eating 6 small meals a day works for me because it stops blood sugar highs and lows. I hope this gives you some ideas.

khlopezmorris

You are not doing anything wrong. In fact, your doing just fine as you said you have lost 2.75 inches around your waist...Congratulations. Most likely you are gaining muscle which weighs more than fat (it also burns calories too) so don't be so concerned with the "scale." Your loss of inches and gain in muscle mass is a good thing. Be sure to change up your exercise routine so your not doing the same one over and over and increase your weights gradually once the 5lbs get too easy. You should be struggling a bit to finish your sets. Get outside and run several times a week if you don't have any injuries preventing running, and occasionally go hiking/backpacking (add some weight to your pack i.e. lunch, water, wallet, etc that will give you an exercise boost). if you have a dog take him/her and go out for a run, walk or hike. You'll both get in some good exercise and build the trust and bond between each other...yes, I am a dog person! lol
I hope this helps. Keep up the good work and don't beat yourself up over numbers on a scale. Remember, it's the inches/dress size lost and the muscle mass you build that is important.