What am I doing wrong?

newlife4cindy

I have been on a major plateau. I have increased my protein, decreased my carbs. Just went from net calories of 1200 to 1270 last week. Should i increase my calories more???
My stats:
Age 37
Weight 195
Height 5' 8"
Program: P90X lean

Any help is much appreciated!

freezerburn2012

I'm just a bit taller than you and doing P90X Classic. I set my calorie goal to 1605 (BMR) with 40/30/30 ratios and am considering increasing that amount.

I would be a hungry, angry person at 1270 net calories. If I were you, I would find out my BRM and TDD and increase your goal calorie number.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map

NickPineault

Also, your carbs are a bit on the high end.

If you think this is something you can do, reduce your carbs to 50g or less, a couple of days per week. Fill your calories instead with healthy fats like fish, coconut and olive oil, grass-fed meat and raw nuts.

Finally, reduce your sugar consumption (if you consume any). This alone should give you a great boost in your mood, energy, AND fat loss.

newlife4cindy

I'm just a bit taller than you and doing P90X Classic. I set my calorie goal to 1605 (BMR) with 40/30/30 ratios and am considering increasing that amount.

I would be a hungry, angry person at 1270 net calories. If I were you, I would find out my BRM and TDD and increase your goal calorie number.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map

Wow - that topic is confusing! I am going to have to read it a few more times to make sure.

I did calculate my BMR to be 1499 and my body fat at 40.9%. Goal weight = 153 lb at 25% body fat.
I am still a little confused on TDEE.
I have a desk job but i work out 6 days/week. So i don't know if it should be 1759 or 2529. I do have a HRM and do NOT burn 770 cals (2529-1759) on each workout, so the 2529 seems very high.

But i'm not hungry. sometimes, it's hard to get up to 1200 net calories even.

newlife4cindy

You could try that.

Add calories from fresh, unprocessed ingredients, and see what happens next week.

How are you tracking your weight loss?

If you just rely on the scale, it is possible that you are gaining muscle while losing fat, but that the scale stays the same.

My advice (and shameless plug, bare with me):

1) Check out this report which explains everything you need to know to assess if your metabolism is broken (AKA starvation mode):

http://www.thefatlossanswer.com/weight-loss-blog/free-report-day3g/

2) Follow these guidelines to track your progress, which will prevent you from a lot of confusion and frustrations in the future:

http://www.thefatlossanswer.com/weight-loss-blog/free-report-day10g/

Hope it helps!

Nick
Nutrition and weight loss coach

Thanks Nick! I will take my temp to see what is going on there. And at first, I thought you were telling me to eat less than 50g EVERY day.....no way I could do that. But I can probably do it 1-2 days a week with lots of planning That has been one of my struggles as well - increasing protein and decreasing carbs. I have come a long way, but there is still lots of room for improvement. I do measure myself and have lost inches (2.25" off my waist, 1.25" off chest, 2.5 inches off hip, 0.5" off thigh and 1" off my arm). But ultimately, the number on the scale should be decreasing as well. I won't be in a size 8 at 195 lb......

newlife4cindy

My total calories consumed.

freezerburn2012

Wow - that topic is confusing! I am going to have to read it a few more times to make sure.

I did calculate my BMR to be 1499 and my body fat at 40.9%. Goal weight = 153 lb at 25% body fat.
I am still a little confused on TDEE.
I have a desk job but i work out 6 days/week. So i don't know if it should be 1759 or 2529. I do have a HRM and do NOT burn 770 cals (2529-1759) on each workout, so the 2529 seems very high.

But i'm not hungry. sometimes, it's hard to get up to 1200 net calories even.

If you find it hard to reach your calories, try adding caloricly dense food such as avocados or nuts.

HappilyLifts

I'm just a bit taller than you and doing P90X Classic. I set my calorie goal to 1605 (BMR) with 40/30/30 ratios and am considering increasing that amount.

I would be a hungry, angry person at 1270 net calories. If I were you, I would find out my BRM and TDD and increase your goal calorie number.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map

Wow - that topic is confusing! I am going to have to read it a few more times to make sure.

I did calculate my BMR to be 1499 and my body fat at 40.9%. Goal weight = 153 lb at 25% body fat.
I am still a little confused on TDEE.
I have a desk job but i work out 6 days/week. So i don't know if it should be 1759 or 2529. I do have a HRM and do NOT burn 770 cals (2529-1759) on each workout, so the 2529 seems very high.

But i'm not hungry. sometimes, it's hard to get up to 1200 net calories even.

Hi Cindy,
I've been trying to understand how to use my BMR and TDEE this week. Here's what I figured out and wrote in my journal. My BMR is around 1600. I calculated my TDEE on a website and it is based on 3-5 days exercise. That gives me a TDEE of 2500. So, to lose one pound a week I need to deduct 500 cals. If I follow this formula I don't need to worry about eating back calories, I just know that should aim for 2000 cals per day. I like it. I'm never hungry. In fact, sometimes I end up adding some chocolate to my intake to get the calories up away from my BMR.
It's too early to say how well it's working, but even before I worked this out I was eating between 1600 and 2300 for the last month and have lost three pounds this last month and since I started working out consistently I have lost 6cm from my bust and from my tummy, 3 cm from my hips and 1-2cm from my thighs. I'm a similar height to you, about 5ft 7, but 205 pounds.

As I understand it, you could use a TDEE that reflects being inactive, deduct 500 cals from that for a pound a week loss, but then make sure that you eat back any exercise calories to ensure that you are netting above your BMR?

I have no idea if this is useful, or even good advice but I am going with what I have read on MFP about getting my metabolism up with interval or circuit training and strength training and not going too low with my calories since I have at least 40 pounds to lose.

Good luck! x

katcod1522

carbs are not the devil. Weight is lost on a calorie deficit. Bottom line. Yes..eating clean is healthier...but I eat and apple and a banana EVERY day. GOOD carbs Eat 500 cals less a day than your TDEE...brilliant.

newlife4cindy

Wow - that topic is confusing! I am going to have to read it a few more times to make sure.

I did calculate my BMR to be 1499 and my body fat at 40.9%. Goal weight = 153 lb at 25% body fat.
I am still a little confused on TDEE.
I have a desk job but i work out 6 days/week. So i don't know if it should be 1759 or 2529. I do have a HRM and do NOT burn 770 cals (2529-1759) on each workout, so the 2529 seems very high.

But i'm not hungry. sometimes, it's hard to get up to 1200 net calories even.

Hi Cindy,
I've been trying to understand how to use my BMR and TDEE this week. Here's what I figured out and wrote in my journal. My BMR is around 1600. I calculated my TDEE on a website and it is based on 3-5 days exercise. That gives me a TDEE of 2500. So, to lose one pound a week I need to deduct 500 cals. If I follow this formula I don't need to worry about eating back calories, I just know that should aim for 2000 cals per day. I like it. I'm never hungry. In fact, sometimes I end up adding some chocolate to my intake to get the calories up away from my BMR.
It's too early to say how well it's working, but even before I worked this out I was eating between 1600 and 2300 for the last month and have lost three pounds this last month and since I started working out consistently I have lost 6cm from my bust and from my tummy, 3 cm from my hips and 1-2cm from my thighs. I'm a similar height to you, about 5ft 7, but 205 pounds.

As I understand it, you could use a TDEE that reflects being inactive, deduct 500 cals from that for a pound a week loss, but then make sure that you eat back any exercise calories to ensure that you are netting above your BMR?

I have no idea if this is useful, or even good advice but I am going with what I have read on MFP about getting my metabolism up with interval or circuit training and strength training and not going too low with my calories since I have at least 40 pounds to lose.

Good luck! x

Thanks! That is very helpful!

Le_Joy

I personally wouldn't consider 3 lbs in 1 month a plateau. Maybe slower than you are used to, but you are still losing... Sometimes things do slow down. I only lost 1.5 lbs last month and don't consider it a plateau yet. I have done this before and when you lose NOTHING it's a plateau. Just as a distinction as some people just read the highlights and the advice they give might be more applicable to NO weight loss vs slowed.

Alsison

There are many things you can try, but the truth is that plateau's happen and you have to ride them out. If you continue to make good decisions, the pounds will eventually start to drop off again.

I am no doctor, but this is what I have learned from my own experiences. Hope it helps

Cheers,
Alison

Azziesmama

Remember that Protein is a macro-nutrient along with Lipids and carbs. All excess macro-nutrients are stored by the body as fat if you do not use them. Cut sugars (if you have any), avoid chemical sweetners, your body doesn't know what to do with them. Increase your vegetable and fiber intake.

ejohndrow

I was at the same weight for the last few weeks, and then when I'd lose a lb it would go back up 2 it seemed. Sometimes you need to change your workout up to get things going again. I usually do about 40 minutes of elliptical or a mixture of treadmill and elliptical. But, over the last couple of days I changed it up. 5min treadmill, 5 min bike, 5 min, elliptical x 2. Just 1 half hour of this and healthy eating and I'm down a little under 5lbs in a couple of days.

SafireBleu

Go here http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/ figure out your BMR and look at the chart. It will tell you how much to eat for your activity level so you have a 1lb a week loss. You need to know your body fat%. If you do not know it use the calculator on this site for the military. Try this for a month and see what happens. Take your measurements as well. If you see a slight gain the first week or two do NOT freak out give it at least a month or month and a half to see if it works for you. It is possible that your BMR will be lower than the site calculates but that is very rare.

kacasey276

How much water are you drinking a day? If youa rent drinking 96 ounces, try to.. Also, how soon do u eat breakfast after waking up?

HappilyLifts

Wow - that topic is confusing! I am going to have to read it a few more times to make sure.

I did calculate my BMR to be 1499 and my body fat at 40.9%. Goal weight = 153 lb at 25% body fat.
I am still a little confused on TDEE.
I have a desk job but i work out 6 days/week. So i don't know if it should be 1759 or 2529. I do have a HRM and do NOT burn 770 cals (2529-1759) on each workout, so the 2529 seems very high.

But i'm not hungry. sometimes, it's hard to get up to 1200 net calories even.

Hi Cindy,
I've been trying to understand how to use my BMR and TDEE this week. Here's what I figured out and wrote in my journal. My BMR is around 1600. I calculated my TDEE on a website and it is based on 3-5 days exercise. That gives me a TDEE of 2500. So, to lose one pound a week I need to deduct 500 cals. If I follow this formula I don't need to worry about eating back calories, I just know that should aim for 2000 cals per day. I like it. I'm never hungry. In fact, sometimes I end up adding some chocolate to my intake to get the calories up away from my BMR.
It's too early to say how well it's working, but even before I worked this out I was eating between 1600 and 2300 for the last month and have lost three pounds this last month and since I started working out consistently I have lost 6cm from my bust and from my tummy, 3 cm from my hips and 1-2cm from my thighs. I'm a similar height to you, about 5ft 7, but 205 pounds.

As I understand it, you could use a TDEE that reflects being inactive, deduct 500 cals from that for a pound a week loss, but then make sure that you eat back any exercise calories to ensure that you are netting above your BMR?

I have no idea if this is useful, or even good advice but I am going with what I have read on MFP about getting my metabolism up with interval or circuit training and strength training and not going too low with my calories since I have at least 40 pounds to lose.

Good luck! x

Thanks! That is very helpful!

I just hope it's correct. I'm still waiting for someone to come along and tell me I've misunderstood the whole thing :laugh:

StephC74

I would definitely up your calories. I am 5' 7.5" starting weight was 186 goal weight 158. I set my weight loss goal at 1 lb a week which started me out eating just over 1600 calories a day. After losing the first 10 lbs I readjusted my goals an now am just under 1600 a day. I exercise 30 minutes a day 3 times a week and always eat back my exercise calories. I have lost 12 lbs in 10 weeks. I know everyone is different but I am proof that you don't need to eat 1200 calories to lose weight.

JennieAL

Yes, increase your calories. Get a minimum of 1g of protein per lb of lean body mass... and upward. I am 5'7", 130lbs and I eat from 1600-2000+ kcals. Eat just under your TDEE. Slight deficit.