How did you FINALLY lose weight after months of failure?

dannylives

I wanna hear from people who worked out for months or even weeks and did not drop weight. I wanna hear from people who were frustrated that the pounds never came off. I wanna hear WHAT FINALLY WORKED FOR YOU?!!! How did you finally lose that 20 pounds? or more? What had you been doing wrong?

ahappyapple

Bump! I would like to know the same thing...I am so unmotivated right now!! Ugh!

heathera1980

I'd like to know too!

lynnie30

Me too please.

FightingFATtoFightingFIT

Me too, would love to hear what keeps folks motivated

chevy88grl

I started eating more - who would have thought that I'd need to consume so many calories in order to lose weight?

I spent too many months listening to what everyone else said (cut your calories lower and lower - you'll lose). Once I stopped listening to others and started doing my own research and learning about MY body? The weight came off. Everyone's body is different. What works for one - may or may not work for another. If you are busting your butt, eating well and not losing? Don't be afraid to step out of the box and try something new. You may be amazed at what you find when you do!

Katie5961

INSANITY! Tracking my calories and doing the Beachbody Insanity program has jump started my weight loss like you wouldn't believe. I'm on my second round and I've lost 27 pounds. It's not easy, it's not a quick fix, but it is so worth all the hard work!

jslmani

Bump

roblow65

For me, I started Zumba and MFP, didn't lose anything for maybe the first 4-6 weeks I think, it was a long while. I did notice my clothes fitting better,so I stuck with it, now I've been on MFP for 50 days now and I'm down 11 lbs. I'm losing 2-3 lbs a week. Just stick with it, I almost gave up.

Athena413

I quit eating processed foods (or at least significantly reduced the intake). I watched my sodium intake. I watched my portion sizes. I upped my water consumption (I used to drink little to no water - ever). I got off my @$$ - and really started seeing some major progress when I started weight training.

The main thing for me has just been being consistent. Sure, every now and then you're going to slip up and eat something you shouldn't or miss a workout here or there, but don't get all depressed about it, pick up where you left off, and move on. I had to find out where I wanted to be and more importantly WHY I wanted to change. I also had to take the words "diet" and "can't" out of my vocabulary. I had to make it a lifestyle change and convince myself that I can do anything I set my mind to. I'm only about half way there, but I've got a pretty good start, I think.

roblow65

I started eating more - who would have thought that I'd need to consume so many calories in order to lose weight?

I spent too many months listening to what everyone else said (cut your calories lower and lower - you'll lose). Once I stopped listening to others and started doing my own research and learning about MY body? The weight came off. Everyone's body is different. What works for one - may or may not work for another. If you are busting your butt, eating well and not losing? Don't be afraid to step out of the box and try something new. You may be amazed at what you find when you do!

Yes, this as well helped me.

Cathy92

I'm finally being successful after many tries, but this time is different. I feel totally confident like never before as I've discovered something new. I now know the number of calories my body needs to survive!! As long as I don't overeat that number, I won't gain weight, and conversely if I eat less than that number , I will lose weight. I am just aware now where I wasn't before. I had no idea how many calories my body actually needed and was eating way too many for my size.

Jessies_journey

Don't quit.......Spend 6 weeks at the EXACT same weight - but I just kept tracking and exercising - and it started coming off again......never give up!

kjpersich

I started eating more - who would have thought that I'd need to consume so many calories in order to lose weight?

Same for me as well. I had always followed a low carb diet and I couldn't figure out why it had all of a sudden stopped working for me. I was very strict and exercised all the time. The next thing I know I had gained 15 pounds and couldn't figure out why. I decided to join MFP and track my calories. I was barely eating 800 calories and was walking 5 miles a day. Now that I have upped it to 1200-1500 calories a day, and exercising less, the weight is coming off effortlessly.

ycc1964

BUMP

deja_blu

Make sure you keep track of your body measurements. I have gone weeks without losing weight but will lose a bunch of inches off various parts of the body. So don't let the non-shifting of the scale upset you! As long as you are doing the right things, it will move.

bariachic

I sought a professional opinion and my doctor gave me an eating plan -- I cut corn, sugar, bread, potatoes, and anything made from them -- completely out of my diet. I reset my MFP ticker to start anew, and purged everything from my house I couldn't have! I have a delicious breakfast of 2 eggs and 2 slices of turkey bacon, and lunch and dinner are both 4oz of lean meat with a salad or a green veggie (my favorite is sauteed zucchini!) then I have a sugar free jello to curb late night cravings.

This is just what worked for me, I've lost 13 pounds since then, and I have a ton more energy!

realme56

I haven't had 'months" of no movement but weeks and yes.....eating more bumped me out of the groove. Definitely utilize measurements as well cause they change when the scale does not.
As others said, watch the processed foods cause the fats and salts will kill your weight loss.

Change up!

Pam3

I started eating more - who would have thought that I'd need to consume so many calories in order to lose weight?

I spent too many months listening to what everyone else said (cut your calories lower and lower - you'll lose). Once I stopped listening to others and started doing my own research and learning about MY body? The weight came off. Everyone's body is different. What works for one - may or may not work for another. If you are busting your butt, eating well and not losing? Don't be afraid to step out of the box and try something new. You may be amazed at what you find when you do!

question: when you say eat more, what do you mean,...would you eat a daily treat or would your calories be only of the healthy sort....thanks in advance

Athena413

I started eating more - who would have thought that I'd need to consume so many calories in order to lose weight?

I spent too many months listening to what everyone else said (cut your calories lower and lower - you'll lose). Once I stopped listening to others and started doing my own research and learning about MY body? The weight came off. Everyone's body is different. What works for one - may or may not work for another. If you are busting your butt, eating well and not losing? Don't be afraid to step out of the box and try something new. You may be amazed at what you find when you do!

question: when you say eat more, what do you mean,...would you eat a daily treat or would your calories be only of the healthy sort....thanks in advance

The healthy sort...eating crap just to get your calories is going to get you a lot of extra sugar and sodium and fat that you definitely don't need!

AmyS79

For 3 years now I have lived with the extra 40lbs from having my daugther and before I got pg I need to lose 40lbs. SO 80lbs all together. In these last three years I felt ready, for about 2 weeks would stay on plan then I would let my mind control my mouth instead of me.I felt like I controlled everything in my life and this was one thing that controll over me. I joined a bible study with dear friends who got together and done stuff and familys do stuff and in every pic we took the only thing that was wrong was ME i wanted to photoshop myself in everyone of them. The problem for me was I never felt fat! I only realized it when I seen pic of myself and thought wow do I really look that way. I realized I was never gonna be happy in my life until I changed myself! Sure I would lose 4 or 5 lbs but never got past that then I was back to old eating habbits.Aug I told myself I was gonna change my life for the better. I have lost 21lbs so far and boy thats way past the 5lbs I woule normaly do. when I get settled in myself I go back and look at the pics I take progress pics and it helps me to see how far i have come and where I cant wait to be. When you realize your weight is the only thing holden you back from life, family and friends pics then its somthing you can change you have to want one more then the other..

CrystalFlury

Make sure you keep track of your body measurements. I have gone weeks without losing weight but will lose a bunch of inches off various parts of the body. So don't let the non-shifting of the scale upset you! As long as you are doing the right things, it will move.

Agreed!! I've made it a habit to measure every two weeks and it really does help me see my progress. I've had times where I didn't lose as much as I've wanted to but then measured and found out I was progressing after all. Clothing is the best scale of all, it really says a lot when you get into a pair of shorts that once fit too tight and are now getting loose!

dannylives

For 3 years now I have lived with the extra 40lbs from having my daugther and before I got pg I need to lose 40lbs. SO 80lbs all together. In these last three years I felt ready, for about 2 weeks would stay on plan then I would let my mind control my mouth instead of me.I felt like I controlled everything in my life and this was one thing that controll over me. I joined a bible study with dear friends who got together and done stuff and familys do stuff and in every pic we took the only thing that was wrong was ME i wanted to photoshop myself in everyone of them. The problem for me was I never felt fat! I only realized it when I seen pic of myself and thought wow do I really look that way. I realized I was never gonna be happy in my life until I changed myself! Sure I would lose 4 or 5 lbs but never got past that then I was back to old eating habbits.Aug I told myself I was gonna change my life for the better. I have lost 21lbs so far and boy thats way past the 5lbs I woule normaly do. when I get settled in myself I go back and look at the pics I take progress pics and it helps me to see how far i have come and where I cant wait to be. When you realize your weight is the only thing holden you back from life, family and friends pics then its somthing you can change you have to want one more then the other..

What did you start doing differently in August? Jog? Treadmill?

rosebarnalice

Don't quit.......Spend 6 weeks at the EXACT same weight - but I just kept tracking and exercising - and it started coming off again......never give up!

7 weeks for me, but it DID finally start. coming off.

m_wilh

Believe it or not, I spent 8 months in the gym--2 hours a day, 5/6 days a week--while being very careful about what I ate and lost only 5 pounds. This was in 2009 and I gave up. Then in Dec. 2010, I had some serious medical issues that forced me to rethink my situation. Losing weight then became secondary to the medical issues as I got quite a scare. I decided that if I never lost a pound, I couldn't go back to eating the way I did or I would die. I was battling headaches daily from high blood pressure and my legs began to turn black (I thought due to poor circulation but now know that it was a sugar problem.) I started my lifestyle change again and it took me 6 months to lose 9 pounds. Extremely frustrated at this point, I finally sought out an integrative medical doctor and that's when my weightloss journey truly began. I found out I was hypoglycemic, had an underactive thyrold and a metabolic disorder. My body needed time to heal by feeding it all the right foods. I spent six months eating foods that I thought were healthy, but weren't healthy for me due to the sugar issue (such as sweet potatoes, brown rice, watermelon, cantaloupe, and dates). Basically, I had to cut out all vegetables that grow underground due to how quickly their carbs release sugar into the bloodstream, in addition to cutting out most fruits from my diet. I had to switch to foods that were low on the glycemic index list. I basically eat organic beef, chicken, turkey, fish, and eggs with lots of veggies and very little fruit. My proteins and carbs are limited to around 60 a day for each, but I get plenty to eat because most of my calories come from veggies, LOTS of veggies! I've found that calories and fats do not matter in my weight loss journey. I can eat as much as I want to as long as I count those carbs and proteins. Of the 27 pounds I've now lost, the bulk of those have been since July when I finally got the results of my bloodwork and found out what was going on with my body.

I just got the results of my second round of bloodwork, and things are improving. The results weren't the best they could be but a whole lot better than they were two months ago. My blood pressure went from 180/120 at its highest and is currently around 120/80 to 130/85. I have about 48 more pounds to lose before I reach my goal weight, but I know that this isn't a diet. I am eating the way I will have to eat the rest of my life, but I'm okay with that. I have so much energy and I can't tell you the last time I had a headache. I go nonstop from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. I feel so good that I don't want to ever go back to the place I was 10 months ago.

Don't give up! You may want to try to eliminate any medical issues that may be the source of your failing to lose weight. If not, try staying away from any prepackaged foods. Try sticking to only one ingredient foods and watching those carbs and proteins. (Too many proteins won't make you gain weight, but it can cause other health issues if you consistently take in too many.)

I hope this info helps. God bless.

porcelain_doll

I increased my calorie deficit by 200 or so more calories per day. I don't eat back all of my exercise calories, since the number of calories supposedly burned is just an estimate. I only eat foods that I can measure (things I prepare myself or pre-made meals where the calories are displayed). I realized that I was over-estimating calories burned during workouts and cheating too often throughout the week with my diet, and my weight training was also paralyzing the scale. Despite the benefits of weight training, I cut it out of my regimen entirely in early spring (I'll go back to it at some point). I was so frustrated from being sore all the time and not getting results, so I was done. But this all seems to have worked for me and the scale is moving now. Just in the last two weeks, I've lost 5 lbs. My present weight is the lowest it has been in years.

- Measure and weigh everything. EVERYTHING. Measure every tbsp of mayo, 1/2 or 1 cup of cottage cheese, 8 or 16 oz of a drink.... be methodical in everything you put into your mouth at this point, if nothing is working. It sounds obsessive, but if you've gone a very long time with no results anywhere, then you need to closely analyze the amounts of food that you're eating.

- Remember that everything is an estimate, including the rate that you burn calories during exercise. This is why I don't eat all of my exercise calories back. Our metabolisms don't all work exactly the same. I wasn't afraid of going lower with the calories because I wasn't losing anything anyway, so I had nothing to "lose" cutting a couple hundred more out, and whaddya know.... it worked.

- I spike my calories with a cheat meal once a week or every other week. I've had the most consistent weight loss in the last couple of months and this is one of the things I've been doing.

I don't believe in cutting out certain food groups for weight loss, unless there is a specific, medically proven reason for a person's unique health situation to do so. I eat from every food group, I just keep everything in moderation and within my calorie allowance. I eat healthy and that includes a lot of carbs from fruit, vegetables, and whole grains.

This has been my experience, and it took me a long time to figure it out. What weight loss comes down to is a numbers game. When the numbers you're utilizing aren't giving you results, use new ones.

stormieweather

I ate at the MFP calculated deficit for most of 2010, I worked out 3-5 times a week at the gym, I ate my exercise calories....and I didn't lose weight. Keep in mind that I have insulin issues and am over 50, so have extra difficulties.

So I took a break. For all of Nov and Dec of last year, I stopped logging and stopped counting and stopped working out. I ate what I wanted, when I wanted. I put on about 5 pounds, mostly water (bloat) weight from carbs. The point of this was to reset my metabolism and restore my leptin levels.

On Jan 4 of this year, I went back to eating at a deficit, and logging, and working out. And this time, I had a Fitbit to tell me what I was actually burning every day. I was extremely strict with my counting, weighing and measuring everything. I lost about 15 pounds and then stalled. So I started running. Running, for me, is the most strenuous thing I can do. So I embarked on a running plan 3x a week, interspersed with lifting 3 times, and one day off. Also, every three months, I ate at maintenance for one week. This helped me be extremely strict the rest of the time, as well as restore my leptin levels and keep my metabolism burning high. I increased my protein levels to 30% of my intake and made huge efforts to meet my goals. I only ate my exercise calories when they were over 200kc, because I found I didn't burn nearly what I thought I was during workouts. I lost another 13 pounds that way.

I am now stalled again, so am eating at maintenance for a while, maybe even through the end of the year. I only have 10-15 more pounds to go, and if I don't actually lose them, I'm ok with that. I'd prefer to firm up and develop some muscle form, so that is my focus right now. But, I still log every single thing (even those two macadamia cookies I had at the mall today!!) and weigh and measure and run and lift. I just eat more.

Patience is the key. That and be exact with your numbers, don't be sloppy. If you are eating at a deficit, you WILL lose weight. We are not scientific anomalies, the physics works every time...just make sure your numbers are accurate.

Good luck!

KettyLan

Bump...need to come back to this

Estela565

Cardio! Cardio! Cardio! White tea, and discipline. Low carbs. Lots of water.

spicypepper

I started by joining WW in April '11. I lost 7 lbs my first week!!!!!!!! I gained back those 7 + 4 more in weeks 2-4 I immediately cancelled my membership, joined a gym and reactivated my account here. In 6 weeks or so I managed to lose like 10 lbs. I was frustrated at first, but I guess it was my body adjusting to this thing called exercise.

I joined a 70 day challenge on here July 10th and when it finished 9/22 I'd lost another 30 lbs. I've since lost 5 more and I'm still going.

What did it for me, going to the gym 5x a week, working out at home on the weekends, holding myself accountable for everything that I consumed, and tracking everything on here.

spackham

bump, baby, bump