Why can't I lose weight like everyone else?

lmelangley

After I lost some weight, MFP told me to drop to 1200 calories to maintain losing 1 lb a week. Within a couple weeks, I stopped losing altogether. After a month, I did a recalc and upped my calories to 1390. I've now started losing again.

The moral: with all the exercise you get, you're probably in starvation mode right now. Go onto MFP and plug in your numbers for losing 1 lb a week. For a solid month, enter your calories and your exercise and eat your exercise - 300 cals or so. After a month, let us know how you're doing.

Blackthorne99

I can completely relate. In 1993, I did Medifast, consuming 500 calories a day and working out hard core 2 hours every other day at the gym. I went from 220 lbs to 178 lbs over 7 months - not eating ANYTHING. I was kicked off the program by my insurance company because my weight loss was too slow, and they thought I was cheating. (I wasn't). In 2005, eating about 1800 calories a day and still exercising, I topped out at 277 lbs. In theory, that's not possible, but the truth is - my metabolism was broken. My triglycerides were 650, and I was put on cholesterol medication.

In September of 2005, I had the Duodenal Switch, a malabsorptive form of weight loss surgery that alters the body's metabolism. I also learned at that time that my small intestine (where food/calories are absorbed) was nearly twice as long as the average person's. The DS didn't eliminate my need to eat in a healthy manner or to exercise - what it did was make it so that - for the first time in my life - diet and exercise actually has an EFFECT on my weight. It also completely eliminated my high cholesterol and to this day, I no longer have to take cholesterol medication, and my triglycerides remain under 100 on their own.

The DS helped me lose a little over 100 lbs (from 260.7 to 160 lbs), and joining MFP back in June has helped me continue that journey. I figured out a way to tweak the exercise system here to account for the malabsorption created by the surgery I had,
and with that knowledge, I've been able to renew my weight loss journey. I'm currently 142 lbs, and have lost 18 lbs in the last 10 weeks, thanks to MFP.

I'm due to start P90X in a few days (when the DVDs arrive), but I can tell you - from rock climbing, yoga, strength training, climbing 69 flights of stairs for a charity - exercise is actually FUN once you get to a healthier weight.

So the answer to your question may be that there is more going on in your body than simply calories in / calories out.

Evaluate your eating habits, confirm the information you stated (that you're *really* gaining weight on 1400 calories a day), and use a Heart Rate Monitor to see how many calories you're REALLY burning with exercise. If those don't provide the answer, then you may need to look beyond diet & exercise. If a part of your digestive system is malfunctioning, you may need to look for surgery to repair that before you can continue your journey.

If you'd like more information on surgical options, check out www.obesityhelp.com. If you'd like more on the surgery I had, check out www.dsfacts.com. Good luck in your journey - I truly have been there.

AZackery

You're not answering my question.
Cardio is detrimental to recovery and I would prefer to get stronger and bigger. Also, cardio plays no role in both weight change and composition change.

A person does not have to lift weights to get strong or even gain muscles. A person can strength train without using weights. Body weight workouts.

How do people get muscular legs? Sure not by weights. Squats is the answer.

Cardio helps burns fat and that's what I'm aiming for. Lean muscles will come, but I need to work on my body fat. A person can lift weights all day, every day, it will not help them get rid of fat. Cardio will. Why do you think muscle confusion programs such as P90x and Supreme 90 Day have cardio in the program?

mrsjennifermaffei

OMG I hear you. In July and August I lost 10lbs each. In September I somewhat fell off the wheel/ couldn't move the scale so I just maintained my weight and slowly lost 1lb for that month. Now, I'm kicking it up a notch keeping my diet to 1200 calories or so and then doing Jillian Michaels' 30DS, I believe I've lost about 1-2 lbs and I'm only on the first week of doing the exercises. Just have to switch it up. If the gym isn't cutting it, go swimming or go hiking. Do something new.

Jesung

You're not answering my question.
Cardio is detrimental to recovery and I would prefer to get stronger and bigger. Also, cardio plays no role in both weight change and composition change.

A person does not have to lift weights to get strong or even gain muscles. A person can strength train without using weights. Body weight workouts.

How do people get muscular legs? Sure not by weights. Squats is the answer.

Cardio helps burns fat and that's what I'm aiming for. Lean muscles will come, but I need to work on my body fat. A person can lift weights all day, every day, it will not help them get rid of fat. Cardio will. Why do you think muscle confusion programs such as P90x and Supreme 90 Day have cardio in the program?

You have some serious misconceptions. Read this article:
http://www.eatmoveimprove.com/2009/08/the-relationship-between-diet-and-exercise/

sixpackbyApril2012

I experienced this as well. Since May, I have tried dieting and working out 5-6 days a week and I was really stressed during the whole month. What worked for me was when I tried doing a week-long cleansing diet. I lost some pounds in the process and slowly returned to normal eating. I did eat lightly and added 2 45-minute cardio workout every day. I have lost 15 lbs from 204 to 189lbs.

My objective is to bring my weight down to 160lbs by December of this year.