Not losing

Mimi1302

I'm not really new to MFP, but I have never done much with it other than tracking my meals. I have been tracking my meals reguarly for a month now. Most of the time, I am under my calorie goal by 100 or so. I have lost 5 lbs total. But the last two weeks I have not lost anything. I have been eating really well, and it is a little discouraging to be eating so healthy but not losing. Any suggestions? Kim

SailingMike

Some things I have learned...
1. In the first weeks of starting exercise program most folks gain weight because muscle weighs more than fat. SO don't just weigh yourself... MEASURE to see what your body is really doing.
2. NEVER eat less than about 125O calories... OR try to loose too much too fast. Your body goes into starvation mode and retains fat.
3. It took YEARS to put on the weight... eat HEALTHY (food pyramid) exercise regularly... and slowly it will come off.
4. Also, SLOW weight loss is most likely to stay off long term.
5. DON"T "diet"... just learn to eat properly and exercise regularly. Make your goal "good health."
6. Eat back at least SOME of your exercise calories. This motivates me to exercise more!
7. Don't deprive yourself. Learn to have just ONE bite of that cake. Total deprivation may lead to fast weight gain later.
8. As you gained weight you probably had plateaus going up. Your body remembers these plateaus and will automatically plateau there again on the way down. Some refer to these as "set points." It may take some time and sometimes some adjustments to get past them.
9. Mix it up. Vary your exercise from day to day and vary your menu. If you get bored you are less likely to be successful.
10. Fill out your MyFitnessPal.com profile, particpate on the boards and add some friends who will encourage you (and maybe inspire you too) .... and HAVE FUN with it!!

"It matters not if we try and fail, and try and fail again. But it matters much if we try and fail and fail to try again."

MissJenova

Are you exercising at all?
We will all reach our "plateaus" and that's when you have to switch it up a bit.
Once you lose water weight and other extra fat, your body is going to slow down the burn a bit.
Add in some cardio and/or weight training to boost yourself again!

Asil76

Have you taken measurements? I know that I tend to lose inches quicker then pounds...just a thought

arykh24

Make sure you are getting the proper nutrition with what you eat and not just look at calories. You can easily eat 1200 calories per day and have bad nutrition. Make sure you are fueling your body with good stuff!!!

msecretsquirrel

hang in there and try to mix up your eating habits abit to confuse your body and mix up your exercises to confuse your muscles good luck!

MaryStregger

For me, I find that in order to break through plateaus I have to change my exercise focus every 4-6 weeks. For one chunk of time I really focus more on cardio and then for the next chunk I focus more on strength training. However; I always do at least some of both. I have also noticed that about every 6 weeks my body goes through a transition where I get smaller but don't lose any weight for a week or so. Try not to fixate on the scale - I know it can be hard. When I don't see results on the scale I focus on the fact that no matter what the scale says or what I look like on the outside, I am improving my health and adding years to my life. My husband's grandmother lives with us and has many health issues that often keep her stuck in bed or in a chair doing nothing for weeks at a time - I want to avoid that lifestyle for as long as possible, because it looks torturous. This is why I never give up on exercise and a healthy diet.

slicksps

You have some great answers; lots of things affect weight, not just food. Generally weight alone is a poor indicator to someone's health because it does fluctuate.

One of my ex's was losing 4lbs per week (she was quite large), but she found that 1 week every month (linked to ....) she would hardly lose anything.

Water is also heavy, drinking more water can affect your overall weight (but not health). Most bladder's hold half a pint which is around 1 lb in weight.

Muscle is another reason. A good body builder is medically overweight but health-wise is much better off.

Finally the scales themselves... some rely on springs which can be affected by temperature, others (mine included) pick a random number somewhere near my actual weight depending on where my feet are and which bathroom tile it's on.

SailingMike has some great tips, I love point 6. Half hour on the treadmill earns me a small beer or slice of cheese... and food earned this way tastes so much nicer!

Keep up with it, 5lbs is a fantastic start, I've been doing this for a week and have no obvious change (see scales comment above). Every day no matter how lighter you are, you're lighter! Over time all these tiny changes add up to be one massive reduction!

Mimi1302

Thanks Everyone!! I have been doing GREAT with eating and portion control and chosing which foods to eat, but I have yet to really get into an exersice routine. It's been kinda hit and miss. So My goal now is to get a routine!