Losing the last 8 lbs - need some guidance please! (Long Pos

becka63

Morning all!

If anyone could take some time (and it's quite long, sorry) to read this and perhaps give me some pointers....

I'm trying to reassess my goals on here. Basically, for the last 6-8 months I've been trying to lose the same 8-10 lbs...so something ain't working!

I would be eternally grateful for any suggestions either on my exercise regime or my diet. I would like to give you a little background.

I have been exercising regularly (5-6 days a week for at least 45 min a time) for 12 months.
The exercise ranges from
walking - I try to do at least 2-3 miles a week;
running - am currently on week 6 of Bridge to 10k, although the weather is wimping me out so I'm only doing it once a week at the moment;
Gardening - We have two allotments and I'm trying to get down to do an hour twice a week, this includes weeding and heavy digging
Chalean Extreme - I'm following the strength DVDs only, have done the Burn month and now on the Push month. I'm using resistance bands from 10lbs to 50lbs resistance, I'm not sure how that relates to free weights, but just to give you information.
I do count housework such as ironing, because I only do it once a week, I can't seem to get into the 'do less each day' routine!

Prior to my current regime, I have done 12 weeks of Turbo Fire, I've done the 30DS twice and I've done C25k and a combo of Banish Fat, Boost Metabolism, No More Trouble Zones and 6 Week 6 Pack. I've also attended zumba classes, done Wii Zumba and cycled.

I try to mix my exercise up every 6-8 weeks, as I feel my body gets used to it.

Diet
I love cooking, and I make pretty much everything from scratch. The benefits are that I know what goes into my food. The drawback I have, is that because I can say 'it's homemade', it lulls me into a false sense of security!
As mentioned in the exercise bit, we have two allotments so a lot of the veggies are homegrown and picked fresh, that said, in January, I am relying upon supplementing from the supermarket and my freezer more.
I have Crohn's Disease, so whilst I can take my fibre whilst in remission, my body does seek comfort from 'bad' carbs just to rest the strain on my intestines all that veggie fibre puts there. I have recently swapped to whole wheat pasta and wholemeal bread, but it is a fact for me and my diet, that every now and again, I need a good carby meal just to ease my insides.
I know I drink too much alcohol and I'm trying to cut it back to just the weekends.
I can't eat nuts because of the CD, but I can have 'smooth' nuts such as smooth PB and almond paste, just no crunchy ones.

I've been looking at upping my calories in line with my TDEE, I got the info off another post on here and used the site: www.health-calc.com/diet/energy-expenditure-advanced and it gave me a massive caloric number of 2,900 (approx). For me, that seems too much to eat, even with giving myself a deficit from that. So if anyone has any experience (success!) of eating using this calculation, that would be great if you would be willing to share it with me.

That's a long post, and if you read to here, thank you!

chosengiver

Perhaps this link will help your situation! Best of luck to you

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/449521-russ-branjord-s-spike-day

becka63

Thanks for this link.

melhayes1115

Do you think it could be that your body is just use to what you're doing? Maybe take a week off from exercising then start back up again.

The alcohol could definitely be a huge factor too. Those calories add up real fast. Cut out the alcohol for a few weeks and that will probably help too.

ElohMaps

I agree w/Mel. I basically just stopped alcohol to maybe 1-2 a month. It adds fast. I'd also go see a Doctor. Sounds like you are doign the right things. Good luck.

becka63

I agree w/Mel. I basically just stopped alcohol to maybe 1-2 a month. It adds fast. I'd also go see a Doctor. Sounds like you are doign the right things. Good luck.

Out of interest, why see a doctor?

becka63

But, thank you for your responses so far!

cardbucfan

Do you use a heart rate monitor with a strap to accurately get your calorie burn from your exercise? It is very easy to overestimate how much you burn and since you have so little to lose, that can have a big impact on your results. Do you measure and weigh your food and accurately account for EVERY SINGLE THING that goes in your mouth? Those last few lbs. are the absolute hardest to get rid of and will take a while. If you are confident in your intake vs. your expenditure and that you are in a deficit then a visit to your doctor might be in order just to rule out other things (thyroid comes immediately to mind). I am one of those who eats things in moderation so the fact that you have carbs isn't the end of the world. I eat them daily (including the dreaded white carbs because I don't like whole grain pasta). It can affect what your body looks like (I'm O.K. with not having a six pack) but for most people it's not going to affect your weight loss. There are folks though that sugars and carbs do hamper their losing. One other thing, track your sodium and drink tons of water. Good luck!

becka63

Thanks for that- I do use my HRM, for my DVDs and running. I spot use it for walking to check I'm still burning something similar and I need to do another spot check with it when I'm gardening (I don't wear it habitually for those activities). My portion control is probably fairly successful, although I do use my recipe function for meals like casseroles, where I'm probably using slightly different ingredients over time, so it would be worth having another look at things like that.

ElohMaps

(Doctor). 1. There may be a medical reason for your inability to get past this point. 2. Since you are trying hard, you may be hurting your self and they Dr. may have some good suggestions as to an alternate method. I also had good luck doing zig zag.

becka63

Thanks for the advice, it was especially interesting to read about thyroid problems. I'm due a visit to the doc in a week or two, so I will mention all of this I think.

kdiamond

First off, that calc is definitely high - I know my maintenance calories and this calc shows it 200 more than I eat to maintain...I've been maintaining for 6 years now so I'm pretty sure I'm right.

Two suggestions:

1) Do not log housework.
2) Try not to eat the same amount each day, weight loss is not linear nor should be calorie intake. Try one day 200 less, one day 200 more, etc.

KristyGirl8

it sounds like you've answered your own questions... you need to check those carb comfort meals (limit yourself to less than a cup of pasta per meal maybe) and cut out the alcohol. I have the same issues! :-) If you only have 8 lbs to go, I think you need to ask yourself about your goal.... this has to be a way of life- can you live without your occasional pasta comfort meal and your alcohol? Either that or burn more calories every day.... which is another major lifestyle commitment.