200 pounds overweight and CAN'T have any substantial loss.
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I also started by needing to lose nearly 200 pounds. The first two or three weeks did not show any loss and I became for discouraged. However it did finally start going down I was eating between 1300 to 1500 calories a day and at first did not exercise because I had no energy. Once i changed my eating habits cuting out a lot of sugars but adding frest fruit and veggies I started getting energy to start walking. Just keep at it, if you are as heavy as you say just cutting your calories is going to start helping you lose. This is not the biggest losers contest it will not fall off at 10, 15 or 20 pounds at a time, it will start coming off at one to two pounds at a time. Eat less move more, you will get it. LOTS OF FRUIT AND VEGGIES.0
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First off give your body time. It took my body a month or so to start really shedding weight. in fact i even gained 10 pounds after working out for a month and eating very well. Our bodies take time to change. If you know in your heart your eating better and working out and making sure your not over your calories then your on the right track.
Try to not stress too much about this. Call your Doctor as well to make sure there isnt anything else to be concerned about with your weight loss plan. and Health
Good luck and hang in there and you will see results. it takes time. I dont even weigh myself weekly i do it once a month. its less stressful for me.
Weighing in isnt the only way to see that your losing weight... readings from a tape measure should be taken into account as well. Some people lose inches before weight Its just different for all of us. Just hang in there hun give your body time. and keep up the good work0 -
I experienced a similar issue. I was running 3-5 miles 4-5 times a week and I thought I was watching my calorie intake and portion control, but I was losing nothing. I was getting frustrated with the fact that I wasn't seeing any results. The minute I committed to logging everything I stick in my mouth was when the weight started falling off. Be as diligent as possible to log in and stick your foods in your food diary. Even if you take one bite of something, stick it in your log.
Also, change the way you view your weightloss. Saying "can't" means it is absolutely impossible to lose weight. Your results thus far just mean you haven't lost any weight, but you are physically and mentally capable of losing weight. Just log your food and stick to a healthy calorie range and make healthier food choices and it'll melt off.0 -
Your calories seem very high to me!! It is difficult to tell without lokking at your diary but I would say lower them a bit and add in another workout. It would also be good to look very hard at what you are eating! Home cooked is best remmeber becasue you know what is going into it!!0
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It could be if your food is high in sugars, fat or other not so good things. Being just under calories isn't always what works. It has to be good food too
I do wish you lots of luck on your weight loss journey. You can do it !!!!!!!
This isn't necessarily true. Where you have a substantial amount to lose, just staying under should be enough for a while. I'd venture to say that you're eating more than you think. For instance, a standard apple you buy at the grocery store is usually about 2 of any serving size on MFP based on weight. You can also consume a TON of calories in the form of creamer in your coffee, a few m&m's, a bite of a co-worker's salad, etc. Be mindful of these things as well.
That's why I said it COULD BE. I didn't have 200 pounds to lose but between 80 and 90 and sometimes just eating under wasn't enough so I switched my nutrition to actually eating better things and the weight started coming off. Which what I said is similar to what others are saying.0 -
I think several have said it, and I cannot agree more! Log everything you put into your mouth that contains any caloric value at all. Anything. A single chip, cracker, grape, an after-dinner mint. Everything. Don't underestimate what you're eating and if you're not that good with measuring portions, use a scale. You may be surprised at what you're really taking in.
After that, adjust accordingly, drink lots of water (if you drink 64oz or more a day, it helps a lot).
Most of all, stick with it. You have a lot of weigh to lose and it will require persistence over time.0 -
We all have plateau weeks. Now, In addition to the advice above about accurately logging...
If you are really eating more than you are counting: well, this answer is obvious, you're eating more than you are counting and therefore not getting an accurate read.
If you really are eating between 1600-1800: I also wonder if 1800 is too little for your body and you are holding on to weight. At 386, your metabolic rate (with the activity you mentioned) is somewhere around 4400 calories a day to maintain itself. Would you consider upping your cals for a week or two to see how your body responds?0 -
Hello I started at 390 and my calorie intake was in the 2000 range at first..It seems the more you weight the more you need to eat and the more you weigh the more calories you burn.... I had attempted to decrease my calorie count to 1550 and was working out 5-6 days a week and was not losing!! I increased my calories and began losing and was slowly able to decrease my calories even now I am 314 and MFP suggest 1890 calories in order to lose 2 lbs per week. Hope this helps a bit :-)0
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Hey all! Thank you SO much for the great words of advise and encouragement. While it is true that I haven't been eating everything that I am supposed to some days I believe I don't log out of habit or the idea that I am going to eat less than what is allocated so I don't log. I know it is mind over matter. I should be able to lose weight with the amount of calories I am eating, however, like I said before I have to get better with actually logging my calories correctly. MFP first suggests eating 2200 calories for a slow weight loss and to date I haven't consciously logged 2000 calories a day ( well maybe not in a long time ). This week I know I haven't done well with my food and the amount of salt I should be consuming. I haven't been the best at getting down water but I know I need to do better. IN fact while I am typing this I am knowing the things that I am doing wrong and I know that I can do it ! I just have a lot to lose and haven't seen the results that I am looking for. However, I have gone down 2 sizes without the weight loss ( So I don't know how to explain that ) but I LOVE to have friends who are doing what I am doing and are willing to support me! I will try up my calories for a week TRUTHFULLY and I will log back in a week's time and report to you all. Thank you SO much.
Also I made my diary public -- however, I must say that often days I start to log but don't log everything into my diary as stated before so I am not sure how much it is going to help. I do eat a lot of processed foods and I am trying to do better! I just want some weight loss and I am just frustrated on how to get there with SO much to lose. I will look into getting a personal trainer but it is SO much money and I am planning on moving to another state in 30 days so I have to save up for that.
THE MFP world is so great, and I love and respect everyone of you for continuing to help each other out.
I WILL KEEP YOU ALL POSTED!0 -
Thank you SO much girl I am your friend on here and you are SO inspirational. I believe I am going to COUNT my calories truthfully and log it on here and continue to exercise with at least 2000 calories since MFP suggested 2200 I will still be at a deficit.
Thanks again for the advice!0 -
Your calories seem very high to me!! It is difficult to tell without lokking at your diary but I would say lower them a bit and add in another workout. It would also be good to look very hard at what you are eating! Home cooked is best remmeber becasue you know what is going into it!!
Wrong. 1600 - 1800 calories is NOT high for a person of that size. I am 320 lbs and my current MFP recommended calories is 1770 (I have MFP marked as sedentary for 2 lbs loss a week so it restricts the calories the most w/o exercise factored in).
To the OP---just keep at it. Are you eating back your exercise calories? I've had some trouble getting past 20 lbs lost and am just keeping at it, working out 4-5 times a week. Friend me if you like as we have similar goals!0 -
Hey all! Thank you SO much for the great words of advise and encouragement. While it is true that I haven't been eating everything that I am supposed to some days I believe I don't log out of habit or the idea that I am going to eat less than what is allocated so I don't log. I know it is mind over matter. I should be able to lose weight with the amount of calories I am eating, however, like I said before I have to get better with actually logging my calories correctly. MFP first suggests eating 2200 calories for a slow weight loss and to date I haven't consciously logged 2000 calories a day ( well maybe not in a long time ). This week I know I haven't done well with my food and the amount of salt I should be consuming. I haven't been the best at getting down water but I know I need to do better. IN fact while I am typing this I am knowing the things that I am doing wrong and I know that I can do it ! I just have a lot to lose and haven't seen the results that I am looking for. However, I have gone down 2 sizes without the weight loss ( So I don't know how to explain that ) but I LOVE to have friends who are doing what I am doing and are willing to support me! I will try up my calories for a week TRUTHFULLY and I will log back in a week's time and report to you all. Thank you SO much.
Also I made my diary public -- however, I must say that often days I start to log but don't log everything into my diary as stated before so I am not sure how much it is going to help. I do eat a lot of processed foods and I am trying to do better! I just want some weight loss and I am just frustrated on how to get there with SO much to lose. I will look into getting a personal trainer but it is SO much money and I am planning on moving to another state in 30 days so I have to save up for that.
THE MFP world is so great, and I love and respect everyone of you for continuing to help each other out.
I WILL KEEP YOU ALL POSTED!
In the begining I had some difficulties too. Once I started forcing myself to log everything, even if its only 1 bit, measuring (found that I was WAY underestimating how much I was eating) and started upping my water It seemed to melt off. I too HATE water with a passion, boring and blah lol but I have found I can not only get enough water but usually over everyday if I drink it ice cold. So each night I fill my 5 water bottles and pop them in the freezer with the lids off that way I can pull them out and they are nice and cold. Not only that ice cold water during a work out is awesome lol at least for me. Feel free to add me if you would like. YOU CAN DO THIS! You just need to find out what is going to work best for your body at this time as far as calories and such. And as you lose this will more than likely change. Play around with your cals and see what number works for you to lose, but give it 2 weeks to allow your body to adjust. And I agree with other, move more Even just a 30 minute walk a few times a week will do your body good and help your lose faster and get stronger GL! 0 -
Don't be discouraged. If the advice given here doesn't help, go to your doctor and ask him to do a blood test to check you for hypothyroidism. (Any questions on underactive thyroid, feel free to message me. As a matter of fact, feel free to message me period!)0
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Hang in there. Log in everything you eat, I ever add gound black pepper just so I know. Sodium is bad about holding water weight. And you when you start logging everything you will see things tha you can do different. Gets lots of friends on here they can help motivate you. Make your dairy seeable to your friends so they can look at ways to help you as well.
But two things you need to do..
Number 1 DO NOT GIVE UP
Number 2 log everything
You can do this, you can!!!!!0 -
Hang in there. Log in everything you eat, I ever add gound black pepper just so I know. Sodium is bad about holding water weight. And you when you start logging everything you will see things tha you can do different. Gets lots of friends on here they can help motivate you. Make your dairy seeable to your friends so they can look at ways to help you as well.
But two things you need to do..
Number 1 DO NOT GIVE UP
Number 2 log everything
You can do this, you can!!!!!0 -
Hang in there. Log in everything you eat, I ever add gound black pepper just so I know. Sodium is bad about holding water weight. And you when you start logging everything you will see things tha you can do different. Gets lots of friends on here they can help motivate you. Make your dairy seeable to your friends so they can look at ways to help you as well.
But two things you need to do..
Number 1 DO NOT GIVE UP
Number 2 log everything
You can do this, you can!!!!!0 -
Dont know why it posted 3 times sorry0
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try this for 2 weeks and see what happens. eat the same calories you're eating now (or whatever MFP has selected for you), but do the following:
1. limit or eliminate processed foods.
2. replace the processed foods with lean proteins (fish, chicken, ground turkey, protein powder, even grass fed beef), healthy fats (extra virgin olive oil, nut butters, nuts), and carbs with a low glycemic index value.
3. drink 12-16 glasses of water a day.
4. limit the amount of grains and bread-type products you eat. if you eat some, aim for whole grains.
^^^THIS^^^0 -
You got this...set some baby goals so you have small victories in your weight loss journey. Anyone can eat an elephant one bite at a time...I truly believe that! (Although, that's probably a bad analogy to use on a site where the majority of people are trying to cut calories...) Anyway, if you're looking at it like "Holy cow! I need to lose 200 lbs!" then that is a very overwhelming number. But if you break it down into increments of 10 or 15 lbs, and focus on your baby goals, you'll feel far more successful and it'll be easier to keep your motivation.
It amazes me how your first post was in desperation, but as you opened your mind to the possibilities you became more aware of things you can change in your daily habits. I think that's a huge accomplishment for anyone to be able to take step back and look at the whole picture. Lots of people seek advice but don't keep an open mind...so kudos to you. I think that's a big step in working towards changing. You've got your plan now, so off you go! :flowerforyou:0 -
You should most definitely be losing some weight. If you're really dieting and exercising the way you say you are, you should ideally be losing about 15lbs a month. I know a lot of people would disagree and say "that's too much" or "too unhealthy" of a weight loss, but that's B.S. Fact of the matter is, if you have over 100lbs to lose and you're properly dieting and exercising, a 1-2lb weight loss per week is great and should be appreciated, however, for a girl your size (and mine, I'm 330#), a weight loss of 4-5lbs/week is normal because our BMR is much higher than most, and it's increased with our activity level.
It's true that being able to see your diary would help us, but I doubt if the type of foods you're eating and the lack of food logging is the reason you're not losing. If you think about it, your weight alone tells us roughly your BMR, which I would think is between 3600 and 3900, and that's if you're rested all day. Figure in the cardio you're doing 3x/week, that bumps your expenditure by a few hundred more, which means your daily calorie allotment, on some days, could be up to 4,000 or more. If you're only eating 1600 - 1800 calories, that's almost equivalent to a smaller woman with a BMR of 2000 consuming 800 cals/day, which obviously isn't going to HELP but maybe STALL her weight loss, not because of the "starvation mode" crap, but because she simply isn't consuming enough to compensate the energy she expends.
Personally, if I were you, I'd consider doing four (4) things:
1. First off, LOG YOUR FOOD! Keep yourself accountable for anything and everything you're putting in your mouth. Don't do what I sometimes have the habit of doing and nibble on things and say "oh, that didn't count anyways" lol
2. I know this is contrary to most beliefs, but I would consider eating a little bit more. Maybe increase your calories to 2600/day for awhile and see what happens. Then, if you find that it isn't working after a couple weeks, slowly decrease the amount of calories until you're back at your 1600-1800 calories. This way you'll know it isn't because you're eating too little.
3. Don't do just cardio. Consider doing some strength/resistance training or weight lifting. This is the type of exercise that will continue to burn fat even after you're done working out, AND it will help increase your [LEAN, not bulky] muscle mass, which in turn will burn more calories.
4. Consider decreasing the amount of carbohydrates you eat. Say, maybe, no more than 100g or so. NO - I am NOT advocating a "low carb diet", though it may work for some, I doubt most will be able to do it forever... I sure can't lol Perhaps a bit more healthy fats, protein and fiber (veggies) will kinda punch through that wall you can't seem to get through. If you must eat carbs, be sure it's healthy (whole grain/oats, beans, etc). If that works, try slowly reintroducing different carbs back into your diet.
Those are the main things I'd consider. And also, LOTS of water.
If none of those work, I would most definitely consider speaking with your doctor and discussing the issue with her to see if there may be some kind of underlying medical issue that's hindering your weight loss. Even if these options do work, I would still suggest speaking with your doctor just to see if he/she could chime in on what you're trying to do.
Best of luck to you, and I hope this helps.
Much Love and Aloha,
-Ihilani Kapuniai-0
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