So depressed...

Pakitalian

I am so lost, I don't know what to do... I have been on Myfitnesspal since about April last year, starting at about 175lbs... went up and down for a while, the smallest I got was 168lbs, which wasn't long ago. For the past few months,I have been at a standstill. In the past 2 months, I have actually started GAINING weight. I am back up to 175 lbs! I try to work out every day. I have been doing the 30 Day Shred. I am on level 2. Before I started that, I was running and doing weight training at the gym. I have actually started GAINING weight. No inches lost, no pounds lost, clothes are NOT fitting any looser, I spent my whole drive to work crying about it. I don't know what to do. I stay withing calories, and I workout every day. Am I not working out enough? Someone please help!

dls06

Are you eating enough and clean. Maybe open your diary.

H_Factor

you talked about your exercise, but nothing about your eating/drinking and your food diary is not public. what you eat/drink is 80% of the fat loss equation. exercise has its benefits, but you can't out-train bad eating. anyway, I suspect the answer is somewhere in what you are eating. I recommend opening up your food diary so we can take a look.

sweetiepie31612

Your diary isn't open so there is not much I can tell you. My guess is either you're not accurately counting the calories you've lost working out (do you have an HRM) or you're not logging all of your food accruately. Everything you put in your mouth counts. Do you have a food scale? Try not eating all of your exercise calories back (maybe try eating only half). Watch your sodium intake and try upping your water. I know its discouraging, but don't give up!

sarah44254

You seem to be eating FAR too little. Your body possibly feels like you have no food available, so it worries about that and makes sure to keep all the fat and weight on you that it can.

I'd like to ask how much you weigh now, and what your goal is? It is likely that you have your weight loss per week setting too high.

3ball

Sorry to hear. Agree with the others, I think without knowing your food intake situation, that's where we would need to start.

Pakitalian

Sorry about that... its public now. I know I am excessive in my carbs, but I have still been able to lose weight in the past. I was up to 297 lbs about 5 years ago. I was able to lose 162 lbs the first go around! And while I was watching calories, my diet was still pretty carb heavy. Maybe because I am older it just isn't the same this time around??

JillianP00

Everyone has their frustration and I will tell you it will be okay! There are other factors that could hinder weight loss, like amount of sleep and stress. Are you getting plenty of sleep at night? Are you changing up your workouts at all? If you are doing the same workouts and are not truly pushing yourself? Since I can't see your diary it is hard to judge your food intake. Try eating small meals 4 times a day and don't forget to eat breakfast. It gives your metabolism that boost it needs in the morning! I'm here if you have any questions or need extra support!

Jillian

sarah44254

I am the same age as you, you are able to lose weight (barring any other physical troubles)

Try to set your food goal to lose 1 lb per week, it should give you a higher daily calorie goal. 1200 is very small for a goal, and many days you do not even eat 1000. That is the main reason you are seeing trouble.

polkataniec

you talked about your exercise, but nothing about your eating/drinking and your food diary is not public. what you eat/drink is 80% of the fat loss equation. exercise has its benefits, but you can't out-train bad eating. anyway, I suspect the answer is somewhere in what you are eating. I recommend opening up your food diary so we can take a look.

I agree,def food/drink problem.You need a lot of water(plain)during the day and clean food habits.And you need to be honest in you log ons daily.

boilermakerblaw

I just did a brief flipping through your diary and noticed that you don't necessarily log everyday or, if you did log its not *always* complete. I don't know if your going over calories on those days but that could be factoring in to your stagnant weight loss.

If I were you, I'd make a small goal for yourself to log your food, every day, for at least 30 days in a row and see what happens. Diet plays a huge role in weight loss and I think its really important to get that in check first. Also, be sure you're being honest with yourself. Do you eat a handful or spoonful of food and not log it? Are you just estimating how much you eat or are you measuring with measuring cups and weighing on a food scale?

Just try one month of being completely, and wholly honest with yourself and see if you see a change! Also, when you do weigh yourself make sure you do it at the same time everyday. I prefer to weigh myself right when I wake up so the food I ate/water I drank doesn't play into my weight.

dls06

More fresh foods. Lean meats and fish, fresh fruits and veggies, low fat dairy, Low carb high fiber grains and nuts. Try to cut the processed foods and candy.

Pakitalian

Right, I have been logging EVERYTHING... and the water isn't accurate. I drink about 10 cups a day, I just forget to log them... I should still up that some more though I guess

H_Factor

after looking at your diary, I recommend making the following changes for at least two weeks to see what happens:

1. cut out the grains and starches....pasta, bread, potatoes, pizza

2. replace grains/starches with more lean protein....fresh fish, skinless chicken breasts, ground turkey and chicken, grass fed beef, bison, even protein powder

3. replace bad carbs with better carbs....berries, melons, veggies (the type of carb does matter)

4. drink 10-12 glasses of water per day.

3ball

Are you logging your exercise consistently? What is your current weight loss per week goal?

JillianP00

I would also try cutting down on your sugar. That can be a huge hinder for weight loss, too. I would agree with some other people and actually up your calorie intake to like 1300 or 1400 to start. Eating too little can actually be counter productive. Good luck!!

sweetiepie31612

After looking at your diary, I'd definitely suggest tracking your sodium. A lot of foods you're eating are very high in sodium. Try for a more clean diet. Also, IDK if you're getting enough water since you don't track it. The high sodium and lack of water is major factor though. I'm often under my 1200 cals/day but I zig zag my cals and usually splurge on the weekends. I'd give yourself a few "cheat" days and up your cals just to jump start your metabolism. So many days under 1200 cals is going to stunt your progress

YogiGirlLucy

Your body changes and what works in the past does not always work now. I used to be able to put away a half a 2 pound bag of Santitas tortilla chips a day, it was half of my daily calories. I watched what I ate outside of that and I was really tiny. After years of that, weight started creeping on. I was on here for months and months with no change, even though I was always under calories and working out every day. Finally, a little over two weeks ago I quit eating tortilla chips. I added a small amount of nuts, and some fruit in as substitutes and I have lost nearly four pounds (my goal was 10). I am still eating the same number of calories as before, I am just eating different food. For me, gluten and corn, are just not friendly to my body. I miss my chips like crazy, but I like being closer to my goal better!

Lucy

H_Factor

Are you logging your exercise consistently? What is your current weight loss per week goal?

very good question. I meant to add to my list that you probably aren't eating enough because you're netting less than 1,200 calories most days. however, I think making better choices with what you eat is going to make a big difference for you. say buh bye to processed foods and hello to natural food.

dbanks80

I flipped through a few days of your diary and if you are supposed to be eating 1200 cals those few days you were under that. You could be putting yourself in starvation mode and your body is hanging on to every bit of nurourishment it can get.

Onesnap

1. Set your goals to lose 1lb/week.
2.Log every bite and every workout.
3. Here's what worked for me:

My goals were to lose 1lb/week and I reached my goals last month. My calorie limit for the day was 1,260 and on average I burned 300-500 calories/day working out. I pre-logged my workouts and spread the extra cals around during the day with healthy whole foods (yogurt, nuts, fruit, veggies). I was never hungry on this program. I REACHED my calorie goals, and did not fall below them each day.

So 1,260
-500 for a workout
= 760 calories for my body to run off of
(that's not enough obviously)
Total calories consumed = 1,760

If you are not MEETING your calorie goals MFP gives you in order to lose the 1lb/week you ARE NOT going to lose weight. If you do lose, you will not keep it off for good. The reason is because MFP provides a built-in deficit. If you don't meet your goals you are operating at a deficit to a deficit (see above--760 yikes!) and this is not good for your body.

dbanks80

Also I agree with everyone else with eating clean. More lean meats veggies and fruits. Less Processed foods

Pakitalian

Loving everyone's advice. I will do some clean grocery shopping this week, try to cut back on some of the "junk." Thank you everyone for your support

Onesnap

4. drink 10-12 glasses of water per day.

Actually, the drinking 8+ glasses of water per day is a myth as explained by Scientific American (reliable source).

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=eight-glasses-water-per-day

Onesnap

Loving everyone's advice. I will do some clean grocery shopping this week, try to cut back on some of the "junk." Thank you everyone for your support

You are most welcome. It's not just the quality of food, it's the quantity. If you are falling below your MFP goals on a regular basis you are not fueling your body properly and you are not going to lose the weight.

fordster99

Upon viewing your diary, I think it might be what you are eating that might be the problem. It looks as though you are eating a lot of carbs but very few veggies and fruit. I would suggest maybe starting off working in some fruit and veggies. If you are going to have spaghetti for dinner, skip the garlic bread and add a salad on the side or some steamed veggies. I would also suggest not eating high calorie snacks. Eat a piece of fruit or if you are just craving chocolate find a low cal alternative. I eat Fiber One 90 calorie brownies or chocolate fudge sticks from Walmart that have 65 calories. I would also suggest you for sure eat at least 1200 calories a day. If you exercise, make sure to eat back your exercise calories. I hope these suggestions help.

Espressocycle

Girl, not only are you starving yourself, but you already look really good. Seriously, a woman who looks like you just needs to maintain.

aliria

Hey- looks like you've got a lot of support in hopping over this hurdle I too have recently hit a plateau and it's crazy frustrating. You feel like you're doing everything you're supposed to but the results just aren't there.
One thing I've learned- be nice to yourself. Stress is actually a huge contributor to weight gain. Trust yourself that you'll make good food choices and enjoy your workouts. Don't get caught up in the numbers, those will come. It doesn't mean "let go" or that you should take a break from everything. Just don't let little setbacks bring you down- accept that sometimes you make mistakes and that you can still make good choices the rest of the day.

Good luck- you can get through this

sarad777

How about eating more than the current calories but with removing the candy and adding high fiber foods?

fionarama

definitely not eating enough!!!! I used to rail against eating exercise calories, and I was on 1200 a day too so it was really hard and I went nowhere. I now religiously eat everything I'm allowed, and try to be really exact with them. Although its still hard it really does work if you stick to it.
and keept o clean and simple . I think partly this is better becasue its easier to count the calories without miscalculating. Generally a bowl of healthy cereal, a protein shake after workout, sandwich with lean meat and vegies for lunch and vegies/lean meat for dinner will always have you in the right calorie range.

nrvo

Have you thought about changing your macros? I upped my protein from the default 15% to 25%. Maybe try adjusting yours and seeing if that helps. Do you track your fiber? FDA recommends that women eat at least 25g a day, which is sometimes higher than the amount set by MFP. If you don't already, start taking a daily vitamin.

I know this has been said to death, but EAT MORE! I know it's counterintuitive, but it works. Fruits and veggies are your friends