Help please - Only Lost 1lb since starting this 40 days ago!

Klein1475

A couple of things came to mind as I was reading through your post...

Your scale.... What kind do you have?? I have a scale that tells me my body fat weight, body fat %, water %.... If the main number is not moving your body fat number might be... you are doing a variety of classes including stregnth training so you are probably building muscle at the same time... I would highly recommend getting a scale that tells you more than just your main number.... Then you will be able to tell what is happening in your body...

Total Fat: I really focus on the total amount of fat something has per serving... I do NOT eat anything with more than 3 grams of fat per serving.... That really helps... Watching calories does NOT work for me....

Sodium: It amazes me how much sodium is in food... Be careful... Read labels...

The biggest meal of the day: For me it is lunch.... I do NOT eat heavy at Dinner time... I eat really light and I do NOT eat past 5:00... If you can find a good protein meal bar that is wonderful.... The protein will keep you full...

Water: I drink about a gallon a day if not more but that is easy for me as my body craves it... Ice Cold Water... Stay away from Soft drinks (Soda or Pop) depending on which part of the country you live in....

That is just a couple of suggestions that I know helped me the first time I lost 60 pounds kept it off for 3 years then lost a baby went into a deep, deep depression and gained 80 so I am working on getting that back off as well... I have lost almost 27 pounds since Oct. 2011....

Good luck on your journey... you will figure out what works for you.... Have a fantastic day...

Klein1475

When I first started this the advice I got was that I wasn't eating enough and needed to eat my exercise calories so I have been doing this. I have read a lot of advice on the forum and tried different tactics like drinking more water etc etc. I work out about 4 or 5 times per week at the gym (mix of cardio, strength, classes and swimming) burning approx 400-500 cals a time. I don't have an HRM (and can't afford one at the moment) so take my cals burned from MFP or from the gym machines.

Gym machines especially are notorious for giving a large overestimate of calories burned. The MFP exercise burns are generally a bit high too. I usually estimate the real burn to be about 2/3 of what MFP tells me -- and that's on something easier to calculate, like running at a steady pace. Other activities are much more nebulous, especially things tracked as general aerobics, weightlifting, etc. because there are too many variables.

It sounds like everything else you're doing is great, so maybe try only eating back like 1/2 of your exercise calories and see what happens! Good luck. x

Darling, I mean this with the upmost respect but when you work out your body keeps burning calories long after you get done working out.... So the machine is designed to tell you what you will burn when your body is done burning calories not when you physically get done with the work out... So the machines are pretty accurate...

psuLemon

Total Fat: I really focus on the total amount of fat something has per serving... I do NOT eat anything with more than 3 grams of fat per serving.... That really helps... Watching calories does NOT work for me....

First, I want to congradulate you on your success so far. I would like to point out that fat doesnt' make you fat and in fact, is very beneficial to life? Fats provide protection to your internal organs and are an essential nutrient. I posted some threads/articles below incase you or others want to do research. I will note, based on your summary, you probably can contribute the weight loss to your calories and cleanliness of your diet. I will say, many of us with low body fat have high amounts of fat into our diets. And the last benefit to not eating low fat; low fat substitutes tend to be high in sugar and refined.


http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/422002-the-no-bs-fat-loss-thread

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/398664-fats-101

http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200304/the-risks-low-fat-diets

servilia

When I first started this the advice I got was that I wasn't eating enough and needed to eat my exercise calories so I have been doing this. I have read a lot of advice on the forum and tried different tactics like drinking more water etc etc. I work out about 4 or 5 times per week at the gym (mix of cardio, strength, classes and swimming) burning approx 400-500 cals a time. I don't have an HRM (and can't afford one at the moment) so take my cals burned from MFP or from the gym machines.

Gym machines especially are notorious for giving a large overestimate of calories burned. The MFP exercise burns are generally a bit high too. I usually estimate the real burn to be about 2/3 of what MFP tells me -- and that's on something easier to calculate, like running at a steady pace. Other activities are much more nebulous, especially things tracked as general aerobics, weightlifting, etc. because there are too many variables.

It sounds like everything else you're doing is great, so maybe try only eating back like 1/2 of your exercise calories and see what happens! Good luck. x

Darling, I mean this with the upmost respect but when you work out your body keeps burning calories long after you get done working out.... So the machine is designed to tell you what you will burn when your body is done burning calories not when you physically get done with the work out... So the machines are pretty accurate...

If this were true, wouldn't the same logic apply to HRMs? And yet the gym machines consistently show more cals burned than my HRM. So yes, most gym machines overestimate. No wonder it was so much harder to lose before I got the HRM - because of the machines, I thought I was burning 400 when it was really more like 250.

psuLemon

When I first started this the advice I got was that I wasn't eating enough and needed to eat my exercise calories so I have been doing this. I have read a lot of advice on the forum and tried different tactics like drinking more water etc etc. I work out about 4 or 5 times per week at the gym (mix of cardio, strength, classes and swimming) burning approx 400-500 cals a time. I don't have an HRM (and can't afford one at the moment) so take my cals burned from MFP or from the gym machines.

Gym machines especially are notorious for giving a large overestimate of calories burned. The MFP exercise burns are generally a bit high too. I usually estimate the real burn to be about 2/3 of what MFP tells me -- and that's on something easier to calculate, like running at a steady pace. Other activities are much more nebulous, especially things tracked as general aerobics, weightlifting, etc. because there are too many variables.

It sounds like everything else you're doing is great, so maybe try only eating back like 1/2 of your exercise calories and see what happens! Good luck. x

Darling, I mean this with the upmost respect but when you work out your body keeps burning calories long after you get done working out.... So the machine is designed to tell you what you will burn when your body is done burning calories not when you physically get done with the work out... So the machines are pretty accurate...

Actually, the other poster is right. There are many factors that can affect the results of the amount of calories burnt, such as lean muscle mass and hydration levels. They can be just as inaccurate or more as compared to other bio impadence machines. Below is an article for reference. I could find more, but don't have the time.

http://www.fitsugar.com/Cardio-Machines-Calorie-Counts-Accurate-1556135

ahjenny

I've been having the same problem in the same amount of time. I've been refraining from weighing myself very often and I plan on taking my tape measurements in about another week. Just keep at it. See where you can make improvements, even if they are small. And observe all your NSVs, such as being able to exercise longer before tiring, or lifting heavier weights. Or maybe it's easier to say no to unhealthier foods. I'd say those are sucesses, too.

rileysowner

When I first started this the advice I got was that I wasn't eating enough and needed to eat my exercise calories so I have been doing this. I have read a lot of advice on the forum and tried different tactics like drinking more water etc etc. I work out about 4 or 5 times per week at the gym (mix of cardio, strength, classes and swimming) burning approx 400-500 cals a time. I don't have an HRM (and can't afford one at the moment) so take my cals burned from MFP or from the gym machines.

Gym machines especially are notorious for giving a large overestimate of calories burned. The MFP exercise burns are generally a bit high too. I usually estimate the real burn to be about 2/3 of what MFP tells me -- and that's on something easier to calculate, like running at a steady pace. Other activities are much more nebulous, especially things tracked as general aerobics, weightlifting, etc. because there are too many variables.

It sounds like everything else you're doing is great, so maybe try only eating back like 1/2 of your exercise calories and see what happens! Good luck. x

Darling, I mean this with the upmost respect but when you work out your body keeps burning calories long after you get done working out.... So the machine is designed to tell you what you will burn when your body is done burning calories not when you physically get done with the work out... So the machines are pretty accurate...

That is not really true. That continued increased burn only happened in the case of certain exercise types. Straight cardio exercise has almost none. Once you stop exercising with cardio, your extra burn pretty much stops. Weight training has more, as do the various forms of Interval training.

grassette

Check out these tips: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/01/magazine/tara-parker-pope-fat-trap.html?_r=1&hp=&pagewanted=all