I AM DISCOURAGED!!

MovieGenius20

I have been using MFP for three weeks now. I am getting very discouraged because I have seen no change. I have watched what I eat and exercised at least 4 times per week and instead of at least seeing one pound lost, I have gained weight, even though it is only a couple pounds. I try to read the success stories for motivation and sometimes it helps but it also makes me sad that I haven't even gotten to post any weight lost yet.

What should I do?

erica2h

keep trying, it will work, sometimes it just takes a while for your body to switch gears, but it will let go of stored fat.Hang in there!!

jankaf

Hi
I reviewed your food diary and a couple of thoughts that may be contributing....you appear to be eating 2 fairly good meals but not having breakfast - maybe you are a shift worker? Not sure but the glycemic index may be playing a part here - if you are having daily surge in your blood sugar and then going really low - you may be fooling your system into thinking you're into some kind of starvation idea..... try eating regularly throughout the day - every 3 hours - even if its just a fruit like an apple - to keep your BS relatively even.

hang in there - it does get better - I'm on week 3 finally starting to see some progress.

wickedcricket

my suggestion: set your tracker to track sugar/sodium these can stall your weight loss even if you're not over calories. Don't skip meals- skip the diet soda every day. Eat more fresh fruit and vegetables (at least 2 meals a day)
take measurements to track if you're losing inches

valrien08

Take a look at how much sodium and carb intake you are taking in.. sometimes that can be an issue. Don't worry to much you will figure it all out. I am not sure if you drink at all, but that is one thing I really had to change is what I drink (alcohol) and how much.

ShrinkingNinja

Weight loss is a slow and steady thing. You just have to be willing to hang in there.

One thing I noticed in your diary is that your carbs are significantly higher than your protein. I have always had better success with balancing them or having slightly higher protein.

Also, you will have better luck if you cut out as much processed foods as possible. Say bye to the chips, pop tarts and stuff like that. Feel free to check out my diary if you want. Lately, I have eaten like crap... but I am getting back to it this weekend. You can also check out my blog at www.shrinkingninja.wordpress.com if you want. I was really religious with posting everyday for over a year. I am trying to get back to it again, but at least you can track the majority of my weight loss journey with it.

ShrinkingNinja

Another thing.... I didn't start losing weight until I cut out diet drinks altogether.

Lizmhoughton

drink a lot of water. it could be water weight that you've gained, but if you start drinking more it should soon go away. I tend to hold water like crazy, so sometimes i'll be 3 lbs heavier and my clothes won't fit. it goes down if i stay consistent with my water intake. Also, maybe try reducing your carbs, especially at night since they retain water too. I have to watch my carbs the most for dinner, so instead of completely depriving myself i allow myself a cup of whatever the carb of the night is. lastnight i had 1 cup of mashed sweet potatoes without butter or brown sugar. for pasta, i do whatever they claim a serving to be. we had lasagna the other night and i had 1 cup and then 2 cups of green beans.

hopefully you find this at least a little bit helpful

traci0620

I don't know if anyone already suggested it, but take your measurements. I do waist, abdomen, hips, and chest, but you can also do arms and legs. I have barely lost any weight in the last 3 weeks, but have lost a total of 4 inches. 2 off my waist and two off of my abdomen so I am making progress, but just not on the scale. It certainly helps keep me going even when the scale isn't moving.

Lizmhoughton

Just looked at your food diary. I didn't before my previous response. You drink a good deal of water, but you also eat a lot of carbs in general. Try to get your sugar/carbs from fruit instead of chips and poptarts. You also eat a lot of random things. Not sure if you plan them this way, but maybe you should try to planning your meals. Also eat breakfast, it'll lower your snacking amount. Try eating fewer calorie snacks too. On a day that you ate a good deal of food you drank hardly enough water. I also tend to under estimate my calories earned from exercise. If somewhere says an hour of a specific activity should burn 500-700 calories I will go with the 500, or less if I didn't feel like the activity was high impact. Some people think you should eat back all of your calories earned, but I try not to go over 1500-2000 calories no matter how many this site says I have earned. I'm only 5'4, so I don't need a ton of calories. Sometimes I am way under, but not on purpose. Sometimes I am just full or there's no time to consume enough. There's a saying, eat breakfast like a wealthy man, lunch like an average man, and dinner like a poor man. You should take in more calories early in the day than at night or end of your day. Try to distribute your calories more evenly instead of 600-700 or more at a time. Just because mfp says you can eat 1000 calories of something doesn't mean you should. I have to tell myself this sort of thing all the time. I will be full and will have to stop myself from finishing my plate. I'll know that I can force it down and there's only a little bit left, but just because I CAN finish it doesn't mean I Should or HAVE to.

robpett2001

(Okay, I don't have anything to add to this fantastic topic that hasn't already been said...BUT...I just wanted to say THIS is why MFP is so great -- such awesome, supportive, useful, and positive responses!!!)

Twasney

Hey Movie Genius!

Its hard sometimes to say what is going to work for anyone because we are all so differnt but let me tell you how it went for me when I first started.

I do take my measurements because when your scall is stuck it will definetly keep you motivated as you notice the inches coming off and the clothes feeling better. In reality what we all want is to be healthy and drop a few sizes right?

LOG EVERYTHING....if you wonder if i mean everything take a look at my log yesterday...ITS AWFUL! I also went into my settings and changed to track my sodium, sugar, carbs and protein, I had no idea how poorly i was doing on the sugar front! Did you know for example that Non-fat milk has sugar? some of this stuff is pretty sneaky.

When I first started my logs were filled with processed food and going over my limits! Over the weeks i started to replace them with healthier options and wouldn't you know if after a few months I was actually eating better and feeling better. The weight didn't really start coming off until I logged every single thing that went in my mouth and did it EVERY single day!

Try picking one meal a day to start and plan it ahead of time, like doing large meals, stews, casseroles and freezing some for later or finding yummy lo cal receipes you can make each day and make a shopping list. Eventually you will be doing this all the time!

The last thing is exercise....you seem to be doing great, but make sure its things you can enjoy and sustain for a lifetime not a few months.

It took me 17 years to pack on 115 pounds, I think its going to take longer than 4 weeks to start developing good habits and more than 4 months to drop it all off! I am always around if you want to talk, just pop me a PM!

Tara

Twasney

(Okay, I don't have anything to add to this fantastic topic that hasn't already been said...BUT...I just wanted to say THIS is why MFP is so great -- such awesome, supportive, useful, and positive responses!!!)

exactly!! I totally credit this site and my MFP family with giving me what I need to continue on bad days!!