Eating Healthy, and not seeing results???????

nmj1988

So I have been logging my food every day for about 3 or 4 weeks now.... I have a limit of 1200 colories a day, 6/7 days i am for sure under my calorie goal... for some reason I am not seeing the results that I thought I would be seeing. I walk on a regular basis, I would say on average 4 times a week for about 60-120 minutes steadily at a pretty fast pace. I know i neeed to work out a little more, but its hard to get in that mind set. Maybe my expectations are too high for my weight loss, but I dont want to discourage myself either. Any recommendations/feedback or is anyone in the same situation of me?

Sidesteal

I am not seeing the results that I thought I would be seeing.

What results are you seeing?

Rae6503

I am not seeing the results that I thought I would be seeing.

What results are you seeing?

This was going to be my first question too. Weight loss requires patience. Also, how tall are you? 1200 might not be enough for you.

merrick7871

Yesterday was my 40th day on MFP. I have lost a little under 5 pounds. I work out most every day for at least 90 minutes and rarely go over my 1200 calories. I have started changing up my exercise routine to see if I get different results. But I am not going to get discouraged, I didnt gain this weight overnight and I cant lose it overnight. Stay positive and keep at it! Good luck!

CashierCantin

Are you taking your measurements? Weight loss is not scale only.

vs1023

Ditto to all the above people - perhaps not enough food if you're close to goal, perhaps walking isn't cutting it anymore and you need to amp it up. I used to do just walking and now I'm looking to do Crossfit. It wasn't giving me the results I wanted.

apeecaleb

Well, and it sounds like for all the walking you are doing 1200 calories isn't cutting it. I loose more weight when I eat more calories, your body needs them for fueling your workouts. I don't have a whole lot of time to exercise at the moment and I still loose weight staying within my cal goal and it's way over 1200 cals. I've heard a lot of others say on forums that as soon as they up their cal intake the weight starts coming off, especially if your exerciseing!!! Good luck;-)

nmj1988

im 5'2 135 pounds in the morning, i started at 139, but i started losing weight before i started logging my food and exercise, and it seemed to have just come right off with no exercise. Really i was 147 (in the evening september 18th 2011) SO since then I have lost 12 pounds... but the last 4 I have lost seemed to be jsut soooo much more work than the first 8. I have my own elliptical, and when i first got it, i used it liek crazy, but i find it so boring now. SO i dont mind going for the long walks, but i think i know what i need to do, push myself and get on the elliptical:ohwell:

nmj1988

does anyone know, if jsut eating at the 1200 calorie range, how much weight you should be losing on average. My guess would be 1-2 pounds a week, and thats what im expecting but not seeing.

Rae6503

Why are you blindly eating at 1200? Is that what MFP told you to eat?

People who don't have a lot to lose can't lose 2lbs a week. You should try for 0.5 to 1 pound a week and most likely eat your exercise calories. The last few pounds are the hardest to lose. If you try to lose it too quickly, it might not come off and it might come off in the form of muscle loss instead of fat loss. Smaller calorie deficits are the way to go to preserve muscles.

cramernh

Well, with your diary closed, its hard to see the types of foods you are consuming at all.... the other posts are definitely spot-on, however, perhaps you are consuming what you think is healthy, when in fact, its not?

CashierCantin

For me, I am on 1200 a day and typically don't see a 2 pound loss a week. I lose a pound, it sticks for a week, then I'll not lose a pound for another week, then I'll lose 2, gain one, lose it back etc.

It would be great if what we ate was accurately counted but its not. So our bodies don't work that way either. Our bodies are strange beings.

My only other suggestion would be to change eating plans for a few weeks and see if that gets things moving.

I went from low carb (which I couldn't stick to faithfully anymore after 8 years) to calorie counting and its working for me.

If you can perhaps cut down on the carbs, it may get things moving again so you can add them back in at a later point.

rileysowner

Without knowing a lot more, it would be difficult to estimate. How active are you in your daily life? What sort of job do you do? etc. Your basal metabolic rate is 1321 from the calculator here on MFP based on the information you have shared here. That is the number of calories needed in a day to simply keep you alive. Once you start moving, even just getting out of bed, you start burning more calories.

From http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/ using the same information this comes up.

Custom BMR Calculation
Thanks for checking your BMR here on Fat 2 Fit Radio. If you're not already subscribed to Fat 2 Fit Radio, consider doing so today. Please visit the Subscribe page to get the podcast delivered automatically to your iTunes, Juice, e-mail inbox or the podcatcher of your choice for FREE.

Entered information: 23 year old female, 62 inches tall, weighing 135 pounds.

From the information that you entered, you'd like to weigh 115 lbs.

Harris-Benedict Formula
There are a few different methods to calculating yourbasal metabolic rate (BMR). One of the most popular, developed in the early 1900's is called the Harris-Benedict formula. Based on this formula, your current BMR is 1426 calories.

How Many Calories Should I Eat?
Based on your goal weight, the following chart was generated. The chart shows the number of calories that you should eat on a daily basis to reach your goal weight. At Fat 2 Fit Radio we advocate eating like the thin, healthy person that you want to become. The calorie levels you see in the chart are not extreme, but they do create that all important caloric deficit that is required to get you to your goal weight in a safe manner. Once you reach your goal weight, you will continue eating the same number of calories for the rest of your life to maintain that weight. You'll never be on a diet again.

Based on how much activity you do on an average day, the calories in the right column will be the number of calories that you will be able to eat at your goal weight. If you start eating those calories right now (eating like the thinner you), you will eventually become that thinner person. As you get closer to your goal weight, your weight loss will start to slow down. It is OK to eat a few hundred calories less per day (200-300) to speed up your weight loss at this point.

Activity Level Daily Calories
Sedentary (little or no exercise, desk job) 1607
Lightly Active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk) 1841
Moderately Active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk) 2075
Very Active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk) 2310
Extremely Active (hard daily exercise/sports & physical job or 2X day training, i.e marathon, contest etc.) 2544
NOTE: Please remember that this calculation is just a guideline. Your metabolism may be higher or lower based on the amount of lean muscle you have. Use these numbers a a starting point and tweak them up or down based on your weight loss or gain. It may take a couple weeks to get your exact calorie level.

If you have any questions on what you've read here, please contact us.

This give a slightly higher BMR. Notice the numbers given for the various activity levels. Based on that if you are sedentary you would lose .8 pounds/week at 1200 calories. If you are very active you would lose 2.2 pounds/week. The rest fall somewhere between those two.

Having said that, since you are at the top of your healthy BMI range with a BMI of 24.7 (25.0 is considered over weight) that will effect the speed you can lose weight as well. Your body will not tolerate a large calorie deficit, and I would suggest you don't eat below your BMR (that is, 1200 calories is too little instead eat between the 1321 and 1426 calories and eat the calories you exercise off) With a larger deficit than that your body will horde its fat making weight loss very slow.

Here is a good post on deficits and BMI http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits

I hope this helps. Basically you are at a point where your weight loss will be slow, and you really need to focus on body composition. Break out the measuring tape and take measurements of your chest, waist and hips every 2 weeks. They may change even if your weight doesn't.

purpleipod

You've lost 12 pounds. How does 12 pounds = no results? It sounds like you are very close to your goal weight and don't have much to lose. Of course it's not going to just fall off. It takes time.

woou

I'm 5'3 and 138. My loss is pretty consistently slow at .4lb a week. I do Power 90.

melaniecheeks

Your weight and height would indicate that you're near a healthy bmi. So weight loss is going to be very slow indeed.

Have a look at your expectations and make sure they're realistic.

And congrats on your loss so far!

Megan2Project

Do you do any strength training? The less you have to lose the harder you'll need to work and the more you should up your intensity. Also the less you have to lose, the slower the weight will come off.

TavistockToad

Yesterday was my 40th day on MFP. I have lost a little under 5 pounds. I work out most every day for at least 90 minutes and rarely go over my 1200 calories. I have started changing up my exercise routine to see if I get different results. But I am not going to get discouraged, I didnt gain this weight overnight and I cant lose it overnight. Stay positive and keep at it! Good luck!

i hope you eat your exercise cals? if not, that might help you lose more quickly?

nmj1988

Thanks for all the feedback, some interesting stuff ive learned