5'4 and 146lbs

Skinny4BG

So obviously I am doing something wrong... My weight just fluctuates. Its not on a constant down no matter what I do. Just found out that I am definitely going about this all wrong. I don't even know how to figure out what my TDEE is so that way I don't go into Starvation mode... which is what I have done. I would like to lose at least 2 lbs/week but cant figure out what I need to do to achieve that. Exercise wise, I go for an hour walk with my daughter pushing her in her stroller, 30 mins of Taebo.. and 45mins - 60 mins of quick walking/jogging a night. Where do I go from here... how do I figure out my TDEE and what I need to do to get on track to lose the weight I want to lose.

HELP!

mallory3411

You are pretty small already so you will not be able to lose "at least 2lbs per week" ... at least not in a healthy way. That amount of weight loss is best for the much larger person who needs to lose over 75lbs. What is your goal weight? Healthy weight loss for you would probably be around 0.5lbs per week.

Weight fluctuates a lot. When losing weight you won't lose each and every week. Some weeks you will stay the same and some you will go up. Unfortunately it is just how it goes.

What are you eating in a day? Processed foods or foods high in sodium can cause water weight gain and changes on the scale. If you aren't drinking enough water that can change things too.

I'm betting you aren't in starvation mode unless you've constantly been eating just a few hundred calories a day for a while. That term is thrown around here a lot.

How many calories do you eat in a day? Are you measuring your food? Counting everything? The exercise counters here tend to overestimate calories burned so it's best to use a HRM if you have one.

healthycurves2012

At my smallest, I was 140 lbs. and a size 8 in clothing. People constantly told me how skinny I looked, and I noticed it as well. No matter what I did after hitting 140, the scale did NOT budge. This was because my body did not want to go under 140. That was my healthy weight. You are only 6 lbs. above that weight, and the same height as me. It is likely that your body is comfortable at the weight you are, and that it will be very hard, if not impossible, for you to lose much more, if any. If I were you, I would focus on health rather than the number on the scale at this point and let the chips fall where they may.

dieseljay74

I found when I started mine was too low. Once i adjusted higher it started coming off. I would honestly try a few other calculators and average it. MFP seems consistently too low

lizard053

You and I are the same height and have the same weight goal! Cool!

1st, weight fluctuates. Up and down and all over the place throughout the day, across days, even across weeks. I am never down and stay down in weight. I'm up and down and up and down all the time! Water weight, food consumption, time of day, clothing, whether you have relieved yourself recently or not all affect the number on the scale! It's not the best judge of your progress, but it's the one most of us are most familiar with! Don't get frustrated, as long as the general trend is downward, you ARE doing it right!

2nd, with only 11 pounds to lose, you'll probably not lose 2 pounds a week, even if that's what you're set for. Your body just doesn't like to let those last few pounds go! LOL!

Don't freak out about starvation mode. It's either going to happen or it's not! No point worrying about it. To keep it at bay as long as possible, make sure you net your BMR in calories. Which means if you exercise, you eat more! You can get your BMR from the tools tab on this website!

Jamiewoodle

We're somewhat close!

Ht 5' 4"
SW 172
CW 152
GW 130
Age 29
Female (obviously, lol!)

Desk Job
Workouts Mon-2mi run + 30 min Strength/Tue long run 4-6mi/Wed Jillian Michaels 30 day shred/Thr 2mi run+strength
Friday-rest/ Sat rest / Sun Jillian Michaels 45 min workout

I lose 1-1.5 lbs a week. Feel free to look through my diary and/or add me as friend

Bikini_Bound150

I agree that your body is telling you that this is where you should be. Instead of trying to get skinnier, why don't you try to tone your body? Weight training will give you that lean, toned, sexy look without looking too skinny and unhealthy. You are at a great weight for your height and body type and you're absolutely gorgeous. Also, getting toned will help you fit into clothes differently than just being skinny. Your weight might go up a tiny bit (because muscle weighs more than fat) but that's a great thing! You will see results in INCHES, rather than on the scale.

bdk123

it looks like you're doing a lot of cardio, which is good but that alone doesn't always get the job done. if you want to see results such as losing INCHES, i would suggest lifting light weights. doing this may increase your weight on the scale, but that's only because you will be gaining muscle which weighs more than fat. it's good to have a goal weight but if you're goal is really to like the way you LOOK then i think you should add some weight lifting to your exercise program. also, protein plays a huge role in muscle repair and conditioning. you can google tons of info on protein and find out how much you should intake a day and the best times during the day to take it or of course talk to someone at a supplement store or some other health program. by doing this, i found out i wasn't taking in near enough and began using a powder supplement. i started seeing a difference within a few weeks and felt a lot better!!

ultimately, everyone's body is different and therefore requires an exercise plan that fits YOU. If what you are doing isn't giving you the results you need, mix it up! there are also TONS of excercises on DVDs that are really good and you don't have to leave the comfort of your own home or pay a monthly fee for a gym (which are both hard to do when you have a little one...i know!).

good luck!

wvtracyann

you can feel free to add me I am in the same boat I am 5'4 and 145.5 as of today I am trying to get down to 125 my prebaby weight the whole two months I have been doing this I have lost 8 or 9 pounds I have never been able to reach that 2 pounds a week thing

Skinny4BG

So this is gonna sound really bad... but Ive only been eatting between 600 and 700 calories a day... and always trying to make sure I have at least a 200 or higher in the negative after ive exercised by the time I go to bed. Water wise.. I drink at least 10-12 8 oz glasses a day. Dont drink anything else but water anymore. So I would eat like 600 calories... and burn 800 calories just working out so i would have that negative. My goal weight is 135. I was there before I found out I was pregnant with my daughter, and want to be there again. But Im a pear shape body so I hold all my weight in my hips, butt and thighs.

amuhlou

There was a post the other day about how a nursing baby consumes close to 600 calories a day. So definitely 600-700 is not sufficient for an adult. It's very possible that your body is holding onto everything you feed it because it's HUNGRY.

The general wisdom says that for proper nutrition you need 1200 calories as an adult. So even if you ate 600 and didn't exercise, you are way undernourished.

On top of that, you are close to your goal, and weight loss slows down because your BMR gets lower. 2lbs a week is no longer possible for me because a goal of 1200 per day only gets me a 500 calorie deficit each week, which equals 1 pound.

Kait1215

So this is gonna sound really bad... but Ive only been eatting between 600 and 700 calories a day... and always trying to make sure I have at least a 200 or higher in the negative after ive exercised by the time I go to bed. Water wise.. I drink at least 10-12 8 oz glasses a day. Dont drink anything else but water anymore. So I would eat like 600 calories... and burn 800 calories just working out so i would have that negative. My goal weight is 135. I was there before I found out I was pregnant with my daughter, and want to be there again. But Im a pear shape body so I hold all my weight in my hips, butt and thighs.

Yup defintly not eating enough, working out is great but you have to net 1200 calories a day or your not gonna get anywhere and eventually get frustrated and quit

jennifer52484

I'm not sure what you are eating but if you can add additional protein to your diet and maybe two intense cardio sessions a week. Try to add some strength training in too. keep mixing your exercises up so your body keeps guessing.

angie_sample

u need more food. I tried the extremely low calorie thing too. Lost a lot the first two weeks and then bam stopped losing. Thing of food as fuel. I think u might need to add some weight stuff to ur exercise routine. Cardio is AWESOME, but if u build muscle u burn more calories just when ur sitting around compared to someone who doesnt have a lot of muscle.

The amount u need to eat depends on ur body. I've tried many different things. But i recently have started eating 5-6 times a day at 200-250 calories a meal. I LOVE THIS!! bc i never feel hungry but i never feel stuffed either. This may not work for u though bc every body is different just try some different things with ur exercise and eating and try not to focus so much on the scale. Make sure to take ur measurements ur body could easily be changing just not on the scale. Good luck and u look wonderful!!

cainie19

The highest healthy weight according to BMI for your height is 145.7lbs, you're freakin 0.3lbs overweight. Don't sweat.

Skinny4BG

Okay.. so lemme see if I understand this... The thing on the main page... Goal... Food... Exercise... Net... So if my goal is 1200 calories... And I eat 1200 calories... but then say i exercise off 600 Calories.. but then eat back the 600 calories.. and my net says 1200 calories... no negative... then Ill start back losing weight?

mallory3411

You don't need to burn off everything you eat. The calorie goal you have per day already has a deficit built in. You don't need to burn off 1200 calories if you eat 1200 calories.

Your body NEEDS food to function properly. You are not eating enough. I'm guessing you aren't getting in the proper nutrients your body needs on such a low calorie day.

Sounds odd but you need to eat to lose. The number at the top should be as close to zero as possible at the end of the day. Not a negative number

bella51708

That is how it works for me. I'm 5'4" like you, but I weight 250. I want to lose another 100 pounds and am losing about 2lbs a week. My calorie goal is 1410 and I exercise off 450 calories bringing my calorie goal to 1860. I usually try to keep under that a bit though (in case I overestimated my exercise calories or food calories). Normally, I eat between 1400 and 1600 cals on the days I exercise and 1200-1300 on days I don't. MFP will never put your goal under 1200 since that is the minimum you need to eat to be healthy.

But, if you exercise heavily, you need to eat back your exercise calories so that you net 1200 for normal bodily functions.

llkilgore

Okay.. so lemme see if I understand this... The thing on the main page... Goal... Food... Exercise... Net... So if my goal is 1200 calories... And I eat 1200 calories... but then say i exercise off 600 Calories.. but then eat back the 600 calories.. and my net says 1200 calories... no negative... then Ill start back losing weight?

Probably not immediately. Your body has been struggling to adapt to a starvation diet and will need some time to recover. You may even gain a little in the beginning, if only because of the weight of the food and former food in your alimentary canal. But don't let that stop you from doing it. In the long run you'll be much MUCH better off if you eat more, so my advice would be to put the scale away for while until you're past the period of readjustment.

lambertj

Definitely eat more. I started at 147 lbs (5' 4") and 1200 calories, as my activity increased so did my calories. I'm now at 128 lbs and 1500 calories a day, I do some form of heavy cardio 5 to 6 times a week and burn about 500 calories per session (with my HRM) and weight train three times a week and am still losing. Every 3 weeks or so I increase my calories by 100 per day and although I gain a bit in the first week of the increase I lose by week two. Got to fat2fit and determine your true TDEE and that will give you a good starting point.

sweet110

So this is gonna sound really bad... but Ive only been eatting between 600 and 700 calories a day...

Bingo. That's your problem. Your body is trying to keep you alive, it has no interest in losing 15 lbs. Eat. And do something strength bearing.

SaketoKim

So this is gonna sound really bad... but Ive only been eatting between 600 and 700 calories a day... and always trying to make sure I have at least a 200 or higher in the negative after ive exercised by the time I go to bed. Water wise.. I drink at least 10-12 8 oz glasses a day. Dont drink anything else but water anymore. So I would eat like 600 calories... and burn 800 calories just working out so i would have that negative. My goal weight is 135. I was there before I found out I was pregnant with my daughter, and want to be there again. But Im a pear shape body so I hold all my weight in my hips, butt and thighs.

your not eating enought to keep your metabolism constantly running... and you should have a 750 calorie deficit not 200 daily. Up your calorie intake to 1800 and put in your burn for activity of 800 and you should be fine steadily dropping and not malnourishiing your body.

sweetteacher123

First off, two pounds a week isn't a realistic goal. One-half or one pound is much more realistic. You're body wants to hold on to that, especially if you are cutting calories like that. Weight loss is slow and steady wins the race. Take off pounds slowly by lifestyle changes that are indeed things you can do for a lifetime. Then watch your weight stay off in the long run.

wonderwomanwannaB

Under the "Tools" tab MFP will give you your BMR. THAT is the number you don't want to go below each day. That's your survival calories. Multiply it by 1.5 for an activity factor (sedentary/lightly active) Then subtract 500 kcals from that. This theoretically should give you a 1 lb wt loss per week. You may just subtract 250 kcals, then earn 250 from exercise instead of just cutting the 500.

Of course this should be tailored to an individual, but that's the basic "kcals in - kcals out" formula.

**MFP used the Mifflin St. Jeor formula for BMR, but they don't seem to use it for default calories. If you are more active you will need more kcals before subtracting the 500 kcals. I'd recommend googling those numbers.

chauncyrenayCHANGED

So this is gonna sound really bad... but Ive only been eatting between 600 and 700 calories a day... and always trying to make sure I have at least a 200 or higher in the negative after ive exercised by the time I go to bed. Water wise.. I drink at least 10-12 8 oz glasses a day. Dont drink anything else but water anymore. So I would eat like 600 calories... and burn 800 calories just working out so i would have that negative. My goal weight is 135. I was there before I found out I was pregnant with my daughter, and want to be there again. But Im a pear shape body so I hold all my weight in my hips, butt and thighs.

Hi OP.

You will lose more weight if you eat more. You should eat at least 1200 calories a day. Your net should be as close to 1200 as you can. And if you are scared to go that high, at least aim to have a net of 1000. You really really really should try to net towards 1200, though. I know it's scary, but it's going to help you lose weight.

BAMFMeredith

So this is gonna sound really bad... but Ive only been eatting between 600 and 700 calories a day... and always trying to make sure I have at least a 200 or higher in the negative after ive exercised by the time I go to bed. Water wise.. I drink at least 10-12 8 oz glasses a day. Dont drink anything else but water anymore. So I would eat like 600 calories... and burn 800 calories just working out so i would have that negative. My goal weight is 135. I was there before I found out I was pregnant with my daughter, and want to be there again. But Im a pear shape body so I hold all my weight in my hips, butt and thighs.

Yup defintly not eating enough, working out is great but you have to net 1200 calories a day or your not gonna get anywhere and eventually get frustrated and quit

Exactly. I have long struggled with the yo-yo dieting, and thought for so long if I just ate like 800 cals a day and worked out a lot I'd see results. Nope.

Now I eat about 1400-1500 cals a day (sometimes more when I get in a really hard workout) and I've lost a steady pound a week pretty much. I've got 9 lbs on you and I'm an inch shorter, so I can definitely say that your weight loss will likely NOT be 2 lbs a week. Trust the process. It feels so wrong, and you mind have initial gains, but I promise, eat more, balance your macros about 40% protein, 30% carbs, 30% fat, and incorporate a good balance of cardio and strength training and you WILL see results. Even if the scale doesn't move much, I'm willing to bet you'll see a difference in the way your clothes fit/body comp etc.

Lorrie_73

You eat 600 calories and burn 800 calories for a net of -200 calories for the day? I am surprised you can function enough to type? Our bodies need a minimum amount of calories for basic functions (walking, talking, thinking, etc) and you are in a calorie deficit of 200 calories. Wow. You need to find out what your BMR is, Basal Metabolic Rate. That is the minimum you need to consume to function. Your body is starving right now and will hold on to EVERYTHING you give it because it does not know when it will get food again. It could care less about losing weight. If you increase your calories, you may even see a weight gain momentarily. But you need to get to, at a minimum, 1200 net calories for the day. So if you are burning 800 calories a day, you should be consuming at least 2000 calories a day.

jennifeffer

You need to eat more. I was set at 1350 and i hit a plateau that lasted several weeks. I changed my goal to lose 1 pound a week and my calories are now up in the 1500's (as of last week). I'm down three pounds in less than a week just by eating more. I exercise almost every day whether it's a dvd or biking or walking. I also stopped eating processed foods as much as possible. No bread, pasta, crackers, cereal etc. Feed yourself lean proteins, veggies and fruit. Remember, you are small. Two pounds a weeks is too much for you to lose! Good luck:)

DixiedoesMFP

I am 5'4", current weight 143 (starting weight 151). It has taken me a year to lose those eight pounds. Yes, a year. Why? Because I eat very close to my TDEE daily and I work out very hard. I have a very small deficit daily. I lift heavy weights and only do cardio twice a week.
When you are already small, it's hard to lose two pounds a week. You would have to have a deficit of 1000 calories daily, but without cutting into your BMR. Your BMR is probably around 1400 or 1500 daily. To have a 1000 calorie deficit: Eat 1500 calories but exercise and move enough that your TDEE is around 2500.

psuLemon

So lets break this out because you aren't eating enough.


Your estimate BMR (metabolic rate is 1459). This is the amount of calories to properly run your body and maintain function. Eating below it will slow your metabolism and cause your body to stall.

So you have a child and are a little active, so that puts you around moderately active. So your TDEE is

1459 * 1.55 = 2261 (amount of calories you burn on average)

You want to cut fat (not just weight) so we form a deficit

Caloric needs = 2261 * .8 = 1809

So you should be eating 1800 calories, with probably 40% carbs, 40% protein and 20% fats. Also, add some strength training as your body needs muscle and ST is the only way to preserve and maintain. In fact, you want to lift heavy where you fail at 8-12 reps. None of that 15+ reps as it's only endurance and won't give you the results If you do that, here can be the result:

"I just wanted to thank you for your help. You helped me a few months back and I just wanted to give you an update on my progress. 12 weeks ago I started at 154 and 28% bf. I got my bf remeasured last Friday and it was 24%. But I only lost 1 pound. It is crazy to me but I have learned to ignore the scale. You were right that keeping consistent and not giving up my body would finally adjust.

Thanks again for your help!

Stephanie"

Enigmatica

I'm 5'4" and weigh 133, down from 215 a few years ago, and working my way back down to range of 120-125, which is where I was last spring before I had some health problems that messed with my weight.

What works for me is to focus on good nutrition as much as calorie count. I try to go over the protein goal and stay under the carb goal here as well as keep calories under most of the time, and other than that it's just a lot of patience and determination. I got frustrated a few weeks ago because I suspected I wasn't burning as many calories as MFPs estimators predicted, so I bought a BodyMedia FIT Link monitor and put an end to the guessing. Once I could see what my real calorie usage is I started losing weight again. If you continue to have trouble you might consider something like that.

My food diary is public if you want to compare what I'm doing to what you're doing. Every body is different, but maybe it'll give you some ideas.

Good luck.