Not eating enough?? Why am I not losing any weight?

crepesncroissants

Hi, how are you? That's good to hear. Me? Super frustrated.

So I've been working out like a fiend, eating super healthy, and haven't lost one pound.
I've been going to a spinning class 2 days a week for an hour (monday & wednesday mornings),
usually run jog on the treadmill for a half an hour- then do some weight lifting (60 dips for the triceps, 50 situps, bicep curls, lunges).
I added going to a bootccamp program once a week now (been going for 3 weeks now), which is intense- it's for an hour & we work all the muscles with resistance training, burpies, lunges, arms legs you name it, with very little rest period in between sets (about maybe a minute).

So I guess I've been working out at least 4 times a week (mondays I get a double workout with spinning for an hour in the morning, & 1 hour bootcamp at night).

With my meals it says I'm supposed to get around 1200 or so calories a day, which I've been doing- sometimes I get up to 1400. My food log says I've been getting too much protein (usually have 3 eggs in the morning, fish for dinner & a protein bar during the day). I've been trying to eat little snacks during the day every couple hours cause I've been told that speeds up your metabolism- I've only been doing that for the last week or so (I haven't logged anything before that on this website, just got on it a week a go!).

I'm wondering if I'm not getting enough calories in my diet, if I'm not eating enough? I know I'm working out hard, & I'm eating healthy, I don't know what the problem is! I usually sleep 8 hours a night as well, usually on mondays & wednesdays I take a couple hour nap after spinning, because I need it.

I've been going to the spinning class since mid January, & bumped up the exercise to adding in those treadmill days (I usually do that & the strength training at home late at night), & bootcamp just since the beginning of last month. I don't know, it doesn't seem unreasonable that I should be seeing some weight loss happening by now. One person did comment that I look skinnier, I seem to think I do a little when I look in the mirror- I know the scale is not a good way to access this, it's measurement . So I measured, I'm still at the same measurements I was when I measured myself this time last year! Frustrating, to say the least!

Before all of this I never used to exercise, my metabolism was always good & I only really ate one big meal a day & that was enough for me. I was super skinny, then I turned 30 & the gut came & hasn't made it's exit. I would like it to leave. I'm not a big eater, I don't get hungry all that often. I haven't drank soda since I was a teenager, I don't eat unhealthy in general (haven't eaten chips or fast food since, well I can't even remember!). So there's no probelem with being hungry. Ususally I'm not. But my gut would tell you otherwise. I't's always just there, hanging out, checking out the scene ;P

I don't want to give up cause I really want to be fit & toned, but I just have no clue as to what I'm doing wrong. My bootcamp instructor isn't a nutrionist so he can't really tell me what the probelm might be.

If anyone out there can give me any help, I would greatly appreciate it! I got so frustrated yesterday that I had about 5 beers to take the edge off, but since I didn't really eat too much yesterday I figured at least I'd be getting my calorie intake right!

Please, if anyone could tell me what they might think I'm not doing right, it would be very much appreciated.
I believe my profile is set to "open to everyone " so please take a look if you can.

Oh and excuse the screenname I couldn't think of anything else at the time, kinda lame
Thanks!

Jladd42

Right Now we can't see your diary which might help; you have to set your diary to public.

It does sound like you're not eating enough...do you have a heart rate monitor? They really are invaluable to tell you accuratley how many calories you're burning. Thus, how many you should be eating back. Your NET calorie intake should never go below 1200...

jrditt

Sounds like you aren't eating enough. Figure out your BMR and never eat below that. Eat back your exercise calories with a HRM to calculate. Going over in protein is fine. Buy a tape measurer. Stop getting on your scale so much.

These are some of the rules of myfitnesspal!

crepesncroissants

Sorry just went into Settings & changed my profile privacy to "everyone", before it was just "my fitness pal members", which I thought would be good enough! Should be good now, let me know

My bootcamp instructor did tell me that my target heart rate is 139.5 or something.
If I wore a heart rate monitor while I exercised, how would that tell me how many calories I burned??

I'm really not good with the math thing (terrible in fact!!). When people say net calorie, that means the daily calories you're supposed to eat, minus the calories you burned while exercising? I also don't really get the "burn more calories than you take in", does that mean burn a total amount of calories more exercising than you ate, during a whole week?

I also read you should be eating more calories on days you exercise hard.
How do you know how many more to eat?

Also if I'm not eating enough calories, why does this website's calculator recommend I eat around 1200 or so calories (I currently weigh 173, 5'7 & am 34 years old).

crepesncroissants

Yeah I rarely ever go on the scale, I just had to a couple days ago when I went to the doctor. Like I said I use the tape measure, it hasn't been changing there either.

I've heard of BMR, but haven't of HRM.

lisaisso

check out http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map
prepare for mind to be blown.

KareninCanada

Your profile is open, but your diary isn't.

Just going by what you said, though, I would say you are not eating enough calories. Eat the total goal calories that MFP give you, including the exercise calories it adds when you log your workout.

And don't worry about being "over" on protein, because MFP's protein recommendation is really low.

ahubbard134

Sorry just went into Settings & changed my profile privacy to "everyone", before it was just "my fitness pal members", which I thought would be good enough! Should be good now, let me know

You'll want to hit Setting and then Diary Settings and then hit public

crepesncroissants

I see! Thanks, Diary is now OPEN for business!

crepesncroissants

Could the fact that I never really ate that many meals in the past, have any factor as well? Wondering...

Lozze

You 'only' have 20lbs to lose. (yeah I know it's being flip. I'm sorry!) When you have less to lose its harder. If you used to only eat one big meal a day you might have a slower metabolism which is why now you're eating regularly and (probably) more calories your body us holding into what it can.

Did you take measurements? Are they going down? Do you feel better? Your clothes looser? If any of this is yes then you're succeeding. The closer you are to goal the more the NSV matter.

For what your goals appear to be you also don't appear to be best utilizing your time at the gym. The best option tochange your body (or get rid of the pooch :-) is to be focussing more on lifting heavy weights and lesson cardio (I am NOT saying to stop cardio. I still do it and you need to have a base level of fitness anyways) Look at a program like New Rules of Lifting for Women or Starting Strength. There are many other options. The changes in my body in just six weeks are wonderful.

BonnieDLG

Im having the same problem. I have seriously been doing cardio 4 times a week 45 min a piece for 3 weeks and I am eating a 1000 calories a day, unless I workout, then it recalculates. But I am starting to get bummed, because usually I would see a difference by now ( 3 weeks) is there something wrong with me or maybe I am being inpatient?

dancin2011

It definitely looks like you are not eating enough. I only looked back a few days but your net calories are often very low. Say you eat 1400 calories a day and burn 800 exercising. You are leaving your body only 600 calories to function on and stay alive. Your body probably needs over 1200 calories to just function, so by giving it only 600, your metabolism is slowing down and holding onto food for longer. Make sense? That's an example but do you see what I'm saying?

crepesncroissants

Yeah I see what you're saying. So if I burn 600 calories exercising, do I then have to EAT an additional 600 calories over my usual daily calorie intake? That's where I get a bit confused