Am I just getting lucky?

riannenrings

Something really weird is going on...

i typically do at least a 30 min work out video every day (switching up strength, cardio etc) and have been swimming approx 10 min a day for past month, and also recently started running again this week, increasing my time spent a little each day.

i typically eat between 1200-1500 cals a day. my goal is to lose weight. last few nights ive been snacking like crazy, so on nights like that i estimate thats when i get into the 1500-1600 calorie range. im drinking lots of water. every morning i think im gonna wake up to some 2 1/2 pound weight gain like i usually do after a snack attack. now ive been snack attacking on peanut butter and popcorn and snackwells bars every night this week, but the scale is staying put from where it dropped about a week ago (which was a drop of 1.5 -2.5 lbs.). i even had a margarita last night!!! but the scale stays put. it usually bounces all over the place.

is this telling me i should be consuming more calories on a regular basis? or am i burning more running then i realize? am i just getting lucky?

your thoughts?

Rompa_87

You really should be eating more calories on a daily basis. Think about it. If your body realises there is sufficient energy available it has no need to hold on to fat stores. However, if you exercise intensely and restrict your calories too much then your body thinks you are starving and will do everything it can to hold on to what ever fat you already have which actually slows your metabolism and potential weight loss.

lallaloolly

i understand, after being on the the lose-weight mindset for months, the amount i get to eat to maintain seems like a bonanza.
however, i would check your scale for accuracy...

EpiGaiaRepens

Have you heard of calorie cycling? I think this might be part of what's going on. It sounds like you been on a routine of eating a little and exercising a lot and putting yourself into a serious calorie deficit which may or may not be healthy. Then you have these days where you go way over. This is a technique some people use to have a calorie deficit but not go into the ever dreaded starvation mode. For example, I would fast one day a month (-1200 cals!) but then on let's say 3 other days that month I'd go over by approx 400 cals. In the end it evens out to the same as if I did 1200 cals every day spot on. But for some reason sometimes some bodies respond to this "cycling" of calories (over today, under tomorrow) to break through a plateau. Worked for me somewhere around 150 lbs, I think.