Frustrated, frustrated, frustrated

amoskies

Hello....not a great way to introduce myself, but I feel like that should be my first name now a days! I started using this website back in November 2010 and lost 16 pounds before I got pregnant in January. I ended up having a miscarriage, but in those 2 months I gained back about 8 pounds. I started back counting calories and exercising around February 25 and also started some new birth control pills. I have really been dedicated about going to the gym 4-5 days a week and staying at or right under 1200 calories. I have not lost ONE pound or ONE inch in over a month. It is really not like me to hold on to every pound, especially while exercising. I don't want to blame the pills, since they are the lowest dosage of estrogen out there, but what else can it be? I have been so down today I went and got a butterfinger candy bar and a huge bag of white cheddar cheese popcorn and ate all of it! I don't want to give up, but it's so hard to face the fact that all my hard work is not paying off!! HELP!

melissamauney

You need to up your calories.Sounds like your body is in starvation mode.

amoskies

Even if 1200 is what MFP pal says to eat?

sarahs440

I dont have much advice for you, as I am still learning. Forst off though, I am so sorry about your loss. Second, becareful with those low dose pills, i got pregnant while taking them religiously. lol. Third, I would just say hang in there. Try and fight the cravings. Are you eating back your excercise calories? Maybe you need to eat more? Healthy choices of course

Sorry for typos....

southa77

I started out at 238 pounds and my doctor told me that for my weight and height which is 5`3 I should have 1700 calories a day for safe weight loss. Maybe you should contact your doctor to double check what you should be having. Hope this helps!

evanness

Do you spread your eating out, eating every two hours rather than just the three big meals? That has made a huge difference for me! Also, drinking lots and lots of water.

robertabushard

Try to change your work out at the gym. That works for me sometimes when I stop losing. The other thing that works is going to 600 calories for a day or two and It takes will power and a lot of water but it does work.

BakingGranny

Not only up your calories but don't get so discouraged. Stress weighs heavy. Did you know stress can put lbs on? Try to just relax and see what happens. If you would show your diary maybe some of us could help.

Akaratel

yes i did not eat enough for ten years, martial arts 4-5 days a week and I never understood why i stayed the same... i didn't realize i was supposed to be eating the calories i burn Now I have lost 5 pounds in the one week I have been here.

crysmiss86

Drink lots of water, if you aren't already. Helps the liver and kidney's flush out toxins faster. Not drinking enough water can make your body hold on to extra weight in water around your hips and stomach. Interesting fact I learned last week.

sarahs440

Even if 1200 is what MFP pal says to eat?

When you enter your excercise, it will give you those calories to eat back. Your NET should be 1200. It seems very important for some people to eat them back. I have read a lot of threads where people were not losing, then they starting eating more and the weight came off fast!

bjberry

Another plan is go 1200 calories for a few days, then go over 1200 one day, then back to 1200 for a couple of days, then very slightly less for a day. Keep your body guessing. Also park farther from the store or your job and get that extra # of steps into the mix--then eat about half of your exercise calories, so you do not go under 1200 calories too much. Think it might work? It did for me.
:drinker: (drink lots of water)

Jessica_Lo

How tall are you?

Don't be frustrated. What kind of working out do you do? Strength? Cardio?

I started in Dec working out 7 days a week pretty hard core...lots of strength and it took me almost 2 months to lose anything. When you first start working out your muscles retain water which can offset the weight loss. I forget what the process is but it's your bodies way of saying...whoa...what is going on here and is this going to be long term or short term. Once you keep going and your body gets used to it then it releases the additional water and you start losing.

Keep it up...you will see results. Good luck!!

ITSSODAMNHOT

Well you can be depriving yourself of food. 1200 calories is pretty low. Was that suggested to you or is that what you want to eat a day? Also drink lots and lots of water. At minimum 80 oz a day. Keep it up! You'll see results soon

dababers

Your body needs time to adjust to not being pregnant...give it time and stick with it. So sorry for your loss.

Kera885

It could be that your calorie intake is too low, maybe you're not sleeping enough? Anyways, I know that you said you didn't want to blame the pills, but I just stopped taking mine (aviane, side effects just weren't worth it) and in the last couple of days I've dropped almost 2 pounds after 2 months of nada (the only 2 months that I was on the pill I might add) even though I've been going over my 1600 daily calories. Although it is worth mentioning that I've been getting a bit more sleep in the last couple days as well and sometimes that helps a lot if you haven't been losing lately. Hope this helps!

hpsnickers1

Yes. When exercising you need the extra fuel. And keep your NET calories above 1200. Look through some of the links in my signature.

vwbug86

Also you might want to get some blood work done. You might have some hormonal issues going on from losing your baby (my sympathies) and starting a new birth control.

mommynmotion

Okay...yes, it sound crazy I know. EAT YOUR EXERCISE CALORIES! I was completely stuck for almost a month actually gained 4 pounds in about a week when I started on here. I ate all of my calories in the begining...so I backed off and quit eating all of them, of course. Then stuck for 3 weeks...stuck and I burn 600-1000 calories per day exercising...so frustrated. I read all of the posts on here about eating your exercise calories but didn't listen. I wasted 3 weeks doing research on every website you can thin of...they all said teh same thing.

MFP already has a deficit built in for you, so when it says eat 1200 calories NET...they mean it! Put in your food and your exercise and eat what it says to eat! I started doing this on Saturday and I have lost 2.5 pounds since then...my body is fianally letting go! If you eat 1200 calories and burn 400 exercising...your body thinks you only ate 800 calories! It really does make sense! Don't give up...try this and see what happens...what have you got to lose? I started writing my blog the other day...about eating those exercise calories. Search for the posts on here about it...it's a HUGE topic, probably the biggest on eon here. I wasted 3 weeks not eating!!!!!!

TRY IT!!!!!

reese66

The 1200 calories gives you is not considering exercise. In my opinion you should eat your exercise or at least some of them. There are many posts on the boards that talk about the subject, you might want to read through some of them.

Best wishes in your journey to a healthier you!!!

amoskies

Wow, thanks everyone for the suggestions and ideas! I do cardio (elliptical, bike, raquetball) every day I go to the gym and then alternate upper and lower body on weights. I am 5'4" and weigh 180 trying to get down to 150. Someone said to open the my diary- I will see if I can figure out how to do that! I have been just doing the basic logging in foods and exercise til I decided to post here. I have made the decision to go off the pill and use other methods of birth control for now so I guess only time will tell if they were the culprit!
And whoever said that about stress is probably right...I have stressed myself out so much by weighing and not seeing results, that I am probably counteracting everything I am doing!
Thanks again for all your motivation! I am beginning to like this site more and more!