For the people who work out like crazy and are not losing

chicalatte

Think of it like a car as most of us can relate to that. You are given a car (your body) and you are given a set destination (goal weight) Now given the amount of fuel (calories) that mfp alots you it will get you there in 6 hours. Now when you drive faster (working out) you burn that fuel quicker and will start to break down unless you add more fuel (eating back cals used). The whole point of driving faster is to get to that destination quicker. The problem is that some of us exceed the safe speed (not eating back the cals) and the cops pull you over (this is your metabolism). Now you can cheat it a little in that staying above 1200 net cals a day for short bursts before the body says "oh no you don't" and stalls you out by either eating the muscle you put on for fuel or dropping metabolic rate on you. Its not a choice you make it is your bodies and is totally out of your control until you learn to work with it and not against it. I say that working out is not to burn off fat, which it is not as we will not burn the fat off by exercise alone, it is what happens inside the body that burns the fat off which is a raised metabolic rate that will burn off that fat all on its own without you even thinking about it. It can be as simple as more out vs less in to some extent before the body says f**k you and slows you down. This is why I preach time and again that hunger has nothing to do with nutrition, I can feed someone crap all day and they will never get hungry but will gain fat like crazy, or I can really feed the body what it needs and it will shed that fat like its going out of style.

I liken it to spoiled child, give it what it wants and its happy (fat loss), take away what it wants and it freaks (fat gain). Which would you rather have?

Thanks lol

ladyhawk00

Bump!

rocky03

bump

LisaKyle11

Hi -

Great post, thank you!

Just a question regarding what I didn't see listed in it... (didn't check it on Facebook, just here). What about all those theories that plateaus can happen when some aren't eating ENOUGH calories? I have read many, many posts and articles on other sites that illustrate stories of those who plateaued, even for long periods of time, and eventually tried eating MORE, and then started losing again. I am about to give this theory a little try, as I've been on a plateau forever it seems (only 8-10 pounds to lose). There have been times when I've vacationed, not exercised nearly as much, but ate notably more (pretty healthy still, but definitely more), and lost 2-4 pounds within two weeks. Strange it seems, but I think there is really something to this. Our bodies must resist losing that last 'bit' of fat and/or keeps trying to hold on to it in case of famine, etc...

Any thoughts, experiences?

Newfiedan

You bet, not eating enough stops the fat burning machine dead in its tracks. The body does not like it when you do not feed it and will consequently go into that starvation mode where it will cease all fat loss and slow down the metabolic rate on you no matter how much you work out. You can literally go to the gym 18 hours a day and work like mad and never drop a single pound if you do not feed the body. This has been one of the hardest things I have getting across to many people whom have asked me for advice, getting it across that to lose fat you need to eat more.

nam14uk

What a great post! Thanks so much for putting it so simply!

Newfiedan

thanks, I hope that the message gets across to those who need it.

Therapist_mama

Great advice! I will definitely reread this post for continued direction and encouragement! Thanks for taking the time to share your wisdom with us!

Newfiedan

bump

ImperfektAngel

I had been doing quite well with losing weight up until I went under 200lbs. I currently eat about 1600 calories a day, gym days are higher in good carbs where non gym days are higher in fats but always staying at 1600 calories. I workout (only cardio) 4 times a week and burn approximately 500 calories each time, I do not eat back the the calories I have burned off ever. I try and improve my distance every time as well, to try and burn more off. I only use MFP to keep track of my food, I already knew how much to eat therefore I do not use the calculations MFP gives. My goal is to take fat off! So why is it no longer coming off, I have not seen a change since after the holidays (about January) and also I do have a cheat day every three weeks.

here is what my food looks like

Gym Day

134g Carbs
134g Protein
59 Fats

Non Gym Days

33g Carbs
134g Protein
104g Fat

rileysowner

I am thinking at least part of it is you need to do something other than Cardio. When a person starts losing weight, especially if they are obese or very overweight and have lived a very sedentary life, pretty much any exercise will do. When you make the lifestyle change and start exercising you start to get more fit, the problem is the vast majority of the improvement in your ability in cardio exercises is not in the long run fitness improvement, but efficiency improvement. Your body becomes better at doing the exercise so that it can conserve energy, and that is exactly what it does. I would recommend looking at other exercise types like High Intensity Interval Training, Strength Training, and Metabolic Resistance Training. They will all burn more fat than long duration steady state cardio, they will keep burning calories even after you stop exercising, and they will bring improvement in both you aerobic and anaerobic health markers.

haldeman5

Thank you!!!!! I have just started increasing my calories the last week and it is helping!!!! I lost 1 pound in two days over the weekend just because I increased my calorie intake with good foods not crap:-)

SW:188
CW:170
Mini goal: 160-Easter
Mini goal CRUISE VAC: 140- 7/10/11
GW: 125

kpopluvr392

IKR this is awesome

sliceofsarah

I love the no-nonsense attitude. Thanks for the post.

lionempress

thanks fuzzmyster, i measured myself today and my scale I get back this week has a BMI reader. I have some raw peanuts, gotta grab some almonds. Yum!

kiwi_dee

Thank you for this post!

luvcookie

Awesome words !!! Well worth reading and taking advice from. Thank you for sharing this !

Newfiedan

@ ImperfektAngel 1600 in 500 out thats 1100 cals a day for your body to function it is simply not enough, end of story. Eat girl and you shall shed more fat, in order to burn fat the body needs cals above and beyond the 1200 minimum, so you need to eat more plain and simple, good stats though thats a good healthy amount of protein.

Saragre

Nicely written. Good info

Saragre

Nicely written. Good info