Shouldnt I be losing more?????

BlessedMomX2

I've always heard the heavier you are, they more weight you lose when you limit your calories. I started this in March at 234 Now Im 229 thats only a 5 lb difference in 2 months???? Maybe I can get some critique on my diary? I'm rarely ever negative in my calories, and try hard to stay at my 1200. I need to know what Im doing wrong. Thanks for any suggestions or help!

makeachange22

try to go for healthier options, cut down on breads and stay away from high calorie foods. breaded food is the worst in my opinion, and when eating breakfast try whole wheat breads instead. try buying weight watchers meals they are so delicious and healthy for you, try buying weight watchers breads as well. excersise as much as possible, drink TONS of water. stay away from fried foods and ESPECIALLY processed foods, its the worst for you . try and eat as many vegetables or atleast 2 servings of fruit and or veggies a day . cut down on sodium, and sugar. and always go for the healthier option and not just the more convienent, try for lean cuisine packages or weight watchers for lunches and or dinners. and most of all BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. you can also take a look at my food diary, i lose 2lbs a week if not more, on what i do with some excersise and i eat 1200 calories

KidP

Is 1200 cals per day what MFP recommended for you?

Maripoza28

I'm not an expert, but I've heard that it's normal to loose 1/2 to a 1lb per week, I dont think it matters how big or small you are. I think it takes time for your body to get acostumed to a new change in lifesyle. Don't give up!! The most important thing is to change to a healthy lifestyle it may take time but you're doing it in a healthy way. I send u a request I'm new here

brneydgrlie

From looking at your food diary, it looks like there are several things you can tweak.

1) You should not be skipping meals.
2) You are hardly eating any fruits and vegetables. Add these to every meal.
3) Your meals are very heavy in starchy carbs and processed foods.
4) You need to drink alot more water.

Good luck. Don't give up!

Perfectlycrooked

I would say it's not just calories you need to watch! But fat, carbs, and sodium!
they all play a big role in weightloss, being under on just your calories wont help too much if you're getting too much fat!

momma3sweetgirls

I noticed a few things you could work on:

1) Don't skip meals
2) Eat some vegetables (not sure I saw a single one in the past week)
3) Try not to have so many sugary snacks (chocolate bars, marshmallows, etc.). Instead try yogurt, cheese/crackers, fruit, veggie.

1/2 pound weight loss per week is perfectly acceptable by the way. My thought is that if you lose too much, too fast it's harder to keep off.

jamie1888

Most of your diet consists of prepackaged/premade foods. It's really going to help you if you can eat more natural, whole foods. Cook and prepare meals yourself instead of buying things premade. Things that are premade or premarinated are going to full of sodium and preservatives, etc. Try to eat lean proteins, lots of veggies, whole grains, healthy fats, drink lots of water, make sure you are eating 25 - 30g of fiber per day. (if you aren't used to eating fiberous foods, build that up slowly or it will cause some stomach discomfort!) Drink LOTS of water!!

LurayneMarie

You're sugar intake is almost always in the red...try cutting down on sugary foods as they are just empty calories... hope you start seeing more losses soon! Best of luck!

BlessedMomX2

Is 1200 cals per day what MFP recommended for you?

Yes

lloydrt

I kinda noticed your sodium intake is in outer space, and thats whats doing you in............so much processed foods,you have very llittle vegetables and fruits, and when you continue to eat processed foods, not only are they laidened in salt, but lots of sugars.......

you have to eat more fruits and vegetables. I had no idea that processed foods had so much salt/sodium and sugars............Best of luck, Lloyd

ceannesjourney

Lots of fruit a day. I do best when I'm eating about 7 - 9 servings a day, which I easily do with a fruit smoothie for breakfast and at least one other meal having a huge salad (usually romaine lettuce with bell peppers, celery, tomatoes, etc). If you're going to eat lettuce, romaine or other green (or colored) leafy is the best as iceberg doesn't have as many positive nutrients as possible.

One other thing, once you start and exercising (breaking a sweat) regularly it will start coming off--more inches at first rather than weight but it will slowsly start melting.

Remember that this is a life-changing thing your doing and it took you how many years to be where you are--positive habits can take time.

Hope this helps in any small way.

Keep positive, you ARE doing very well!!

Mads1997

The 1200 seems very low for someone that has 84lb to lose. You might want to check your settings.

BlessedMomX2

Thanks everyone for your input. I've looked at my diary and see what most of you are talking about. Im definately going to make it a point to have fruit and veggies with everymeal and not just watch calories but sugar, sodium and fat. Thanks again for all the help!

fitterpam

No matter what your size, MFP will only give you a maximum to lose 2lbs a week. Are you weighing and measuring your portions or eyeballing them? Are you capturing every little thing? This won't have to go on forever, but you're adjusting the way you think about it. The little things add up to a lot and for the the first 3 months I weighed and measured everything - ketchup, etc.

You will see more progress for sure if you change to whole foods - and cut out a lot of the bad stuff, but I've seen people do it on junk (you won't be healthy though...the healthy foods give us vitamins and minerals that the junk is lacking). You'll be more tired, more moody and won't be able to tone effectively without the right balance of foods.

Water is the magic cure that helps us rid our bodies of toxins and things that are in overabundance in our bodies. It is really important to the way you look and feel to make sure you're drinking at least half your body weight (lbs) in ounces. I'm at around 230 and so I try and get in 14 glasses every day (at least, that's my goal. I'm happy if I get at least 9 and as much as 18).

BlessedMomX2

The 1200 seems very low for someone that has 84lb to lose. You might want to check your settings.

I have checked it, and it gives me the same numbers

Boz1625

Just from quickly glancing at the past several days of your diary, I can offer the following advice:

Try to get in more fruit and vegetables. It is recommended to get at least 5 (1/2 cup) servings each day. If you are not a veggie or fruit lover, that is hard. Even if you are eating just a few different fruits and veggies that you like, that is better than none at all.

Water, water, water. Drinking water is one of the best things you can do for yourself. You will feel better, and staying hydrated will give you a more accurate weight on the scale from day to day (or week to week) because your body will not be holding on to as much water weight.

If you are not already doing so, Weigh and Measure everything that you can. Portion sizes tend to creep up on us and before we know it, what used to be a cup serving is now two!

Try to choose high fiber, lower calorie foods. You will find that you actually get to eat more food this way. I always try to determine what is the best bang for my buck calorie wise. Would I like to eat a plate of french fries and then starve myself the rest of the day, or opt for the baked potato or steamed vegetables and still be able to have a nice dinner? All in all, like others have said, the less processed the food, the better.

Also, since our stats are kind of similar, I would up your daily calorie intake to 1300 or 1400 for a week and see what happens. I know it sound counterproductive, but you might just need to eat a little more.

Finally, you didn't put these pounds on overnight so it will only be a let down if you believe that they will come off that fast. 1/2 to 1 pound is a great goal for each week. I've also found that just setting pound goals rather than an actual time limit has been much better for me. That way I am not feeling overly disappointed - I know I'll get there eventually.

Good luck. You can do this!

ceannesjourney

Just one more thing to add--if you're limiting yourself too much (1200 calories is not very much if you're also exercising regularly) then your body actually tries to hold on to the weight as it thinks you're going to starve it.

It's best to start at aiming for your calories per day to be losing 1 lb per week but if you're eating as others have mentioned here (lots of good, healthy, real food) and LOTS of water to help flush your system of toxins (such as sugar, packaged foods, white flour, etc) your body will actually feel so much better (more energy) and you will probably lose more than 1lb a week at first. There's a science to it--mostly it's calories in vs calories out but the "kind" of calories is so much a part of the equation.

Take care!!

AmandaHammill

Lots of great feedback here so the only thing i'm going to add is that you might want to change your settings so that you see how many carbs you are consuming daily. It's good see to see the carbs, proteins and fats. I know you can only pick so many things and you have your sugar, fibre and your sodium too, so you'd probably have to drop one of those out. The only one I can think of that would be fibre as you do need to watch your sugars and sodium with your current diet. I switch mine up every week or so, always keeping my carbs/proteins/fats and then adding a couple of others to see how i'm doing. and you can also just switch it, then run back through your diary to review and switch back. Just a thought. Keep at it, you'll get there!

MoooveOverFluffy

agree with what most said here... sodium makes you hold water weight!! I struggle with my sodium daily and i can tell because the scale will creeep up the day after i've had too much.

Also, if you eat carbs (and we have to for our health!!), then make sure the carbs come from whole grain foods (brown rice, wheat bread), beans, or veggies. I also try not to eat carbs later in the evening. Fruits are high in natural sugar.

You may want to check into low-glycemic foods (just google glycemic index). Some fruits and veggies are really off the charts with their sugar contecnt (like bananas).

My final suggestion is green tea. Studies "claim" drinking unsweetened green tea all day helps your body burn an extra 50 calories!!

proudheart

Lots of great information on here as I am new to this as well. I especially found it helpful all the comments about water intake! I didn't know you should be drinking 1/2 your body weight in ounces each day!

Thank you.