What am I actually doing wrong?

jenjaw

Hi,

I am really trying hard atm to lose the weight I put on over the last year because I'm going on holiday at the end of the month and Uni in september. I sold my car to save money and make myself cycle everywhere, I'm going to the gym doing big mixed workouts with weights (maybe I need to do more???), and making an effort in what I eat, but I don't seem to be losing anything . I am on the pill atm so maybe thats causing water to be retained but I can't really see what I'm doing wrong.

I have left my diary open, any help or suggestions would be amazing!!

Thanks guys xx

Saruman_w

Well one thing I notice is that you go below 1200 calories a bit often and that's just not good. Your body needs fuel and tacking on an extra 300 or so calories to properly feed it isn't going to make you fat.

baisleac

First thought, just looking at your diary... you need to eat more. The last 10 lbs (4.5 kg) are going to be tough. You have to coax them off gradually.

If your body thinks it's not getting enough food it's going to cling to those last few pounds of fat as hard as it can because it doesn't know when it's going to get more fuel (food).

EvaJanes

Are you losing inches...sounds to me like you are gaining muscle mass and losing fat. Muscle weights 4 times that of fat.

akgrl1020

Have you tried adding extra calories? With as much exercise as you are doing, it is really important to properly fuel your body. I know it sounds funny, to eat more to lose weight, but sometimes that is what it takes.

Forensic

I glanced at your diary and can't help but wonder if you're eating enough.

I notice you're often under 1000 calories, and you don't seem to eat very many exercise calories back.

You don't document your water so it's hard to know if you're drinking enough of that.

alexbowser

Are you losing inches...sounds to me like you are gaining muscle mass and losing fat. Muscle weights 4 times that of fat.

She's probably not gaining muscle if she's eating below 1200 calories every day, our bodies require fuel to build muscle.

jenjaw

Yeah, I probably do need to eat more of the right things to fuel. It's just scary in case it has the opposite effect but I will deffo try it, thanks

as for inches, I haven't actually checked but I have a feeling I would have gained some muscle from the workouts so I will check tomorrow morning, unfortunately I have no comparison but hopefully will by next week

cschu544

I'm in the same boat. But look at how long you've been trying to lose weight, and how much you've lost. You should be losing on average about 2 a week... but if you are like me, I gain a LOT of muscle mass, but I lose inches instead. I'm more interested in the overall body fat loss then I am the lbs on the scale. Maybe start measuring your body instead of focusing on those numbers on the scale! Oh and EAT!

rileysowner

Yeah, I probably do need to eat more of the right things to fuel. It's just scary in case it has the opposite effect but I will deffo try it, thanks

as for inches, I haven't actually checked but I have a feeling I would have gained some muscle from the workouts so I will check tomorrow morning, unfortunately I have no comparison but hopefully will by next week

Yes, you need to eat more including the calories you burn exercising. You say you think it is scary to do so, but what you are doing right now isn't working or you would not have asked. 1200 for a female is considered by WHO to be the cutoff under which a person is considered officially to be starving. Eat all the calories MFP says you should.

SueInAz

I'd have to agree, you aren't eating enough. You want to net 1200 calories per day but you're not coming close most days that I saw. One example day, you ate 1,465 calories and burned 896 calories working out. 1465 - 896 = 379 net calories. Another day you ate 1,179 and burned 875 calories for a net of 304 calories. Your body is holding on to every thing it can because it thinks you aren't going to feed it enough to survive.

You either want to eat more and/or exercise less.

pauterson

EAT MORE! I know it's scary but as long as it's "clean" aka natural food (not processed) you'll start to see it fall off. When I started eating more, the weight started coming off more consistently. Seriously, our bodies are very smart, if you're starving your body (and less than 1200-1400 is) your body will not let go of the weight you're trying to shed. Think of it as needing to make your body comfortable with "spending a little"... If you have $1500 in the bank, you're more willing to spend $1200 than if you only have $1200 right?

Seriously though, try adding a handfull of almonds, spoon full of peanutbutter, another once or two of chicken, some low fat string cheese or a protein shake to get in more calories. AND the days you work out harder, eat a 100 or 200 more calories than days you don't.

Good luck!

cschu544

You know what's tasty? Wasabi & soy almonds... SO tasty & helps you with your calories!