Don't understand why I'm not losing weight

barefoot76

I'm gluten-free as well, and I started gaining weight like crazy as soon as I stopped eating gluten even though I didn't change the volume of food or number of calories.

From what I've been told, my body had not been absorbing the nutrients when I was eating gluten, so when I stopped stressing out my digestive system, it started absorbing more nutrients, hence the weight gain.

I've found that I need to limit ALL processed carbs, even if they are (actually, especially if they are) "gluten-free." If I make gluten-free pancakes from a mix that has rice flour, etc, my body seems to convert it directly to fat. After all, we're talking about starchy carbs. Previously, our bodies weren't absorbing these carbs, now they are, and they are turning them straight into sugar in our bodies. It is as though my body thought it was starved in some way and then, when it had access to the nutrients, started storing it immediately.

I can eat brown rice and quinoa without problems, but no GF breads, pastas, etc. That stuff guarantees the scale will go up for the week. Of course, YMMV.

Also, FWIW, I tried the whole "eat more to weigh less" thing, and it didn't work for me. I know it works for a lot of people on here, but I think that due in part or whole to my food allergies and intolerances, my body didn't do well on more calories. There are plenty of success stories here from both sides of that argument. Sometimes you just have to play with your calorie intake and exercise regime and find out what works for *you* and that's that. If you keep fiddling with it, you will find the right ratio. (And it may change with time. What worked for me in the past -- lots of cardio -- isn't working now, so I'm heavy lifting instead. But that can always change!).

Good luck!

JoshuaL86

I looked at your diary, your carbs are fine. Fruit is not evil, despite what others say. I'm eating a ton of carbs, and I lose consistently. It's not the carbs that are bad, it's the type of carbs. However, from the week I viewed your diary, you are not eating all your exercise calories back, your not eating half. That could be your problem.

Lift_hard_eat_big

Maybe changing your exercise might help? Possibly more intense workouts maybe? Like 30DS or Zumba? Im not an expert on exercise by no means so I couldn't really give any real advice, I just wanted to offer some help for you!

Hope someone can offer more help! Good Luck
xxx

Sounds like the blind leading the blind. The typical Zumba participant still looks the same after months of doing it.

Di3012

You all should eat 6 times a day to speed up your metabolism, and take rasperry ketones,they're recommended by Dr.Oz.

Very funny Pu :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

em9371

Maybe this will help you...I don't use net calories, I use intake calories to make sure I'm eating at a deficit and here's how I think of it:

I want to lose 12 lbs, which at 3500 calories/lb I have 42,000 calories in storage that I want my body to use up and get rid of.

I use 1600 calories a day just pumping blood, breathing, organ function (BMR) and another 1000 calories a day in exercise and moving around (walking to my car, cooking dinner, etc), so I burn a total of 2600 calories (TDEE) a day.

If I want my body to use some of the calories from my storage of 42,000, I have to feed it less calories than I burn in a day. So when I eat about 2200 calories a day, then my body uses 400 calories a day from my storage to cover all of my activity of 2600 calories. That means my 'storage' or extra 12 lbs is being whittled away at 400 calories a day.

Hope that helps.

think this is possibly the best explanation i have ever seen!!!!!!

em9371

Seriously all this "eat more" when the OP is already on 2000 calories per day is now bordering on the ridiculous.

I dont see when OP is eating 2000 cals per day, most days she is a good few hundred under goal!!

wackyfunster

Hi, had bloods done quite recently and all came back clear so there is no underlying cause for me not loosing weight. I specifically had the bloods done because I wasn't losing weight & kept bloating up so much that I looke pregnant. I was tested for celiacs but came back negative which is why my doctor said it was an intolerence - cutting out gluten & wheat has made a massive difference - no bloating, no gas (which was majorly bad) no migraines since giving up gluten/wheat so I think that has helped.

Most of my food is home prepared, but I do need to cut back on the snacks but I have a really sweet tooth :-/ Sometimes though I just need something quick and easy but I definitely don't eat processed foods as much as I used to.

That definitely sounds like water retention. Add weight training (heavy weights, no pink dumbbell stuff). Make sure you get at least 1g protein/lb. Otherwise keep doing what you're doing. You can actually drop cardio entirely while losing weight once you get a good weight training regimen going (I still recommend low-intensity stuff like walking).

You need carbs once you start doing weights, so you can ignore the anti-carb choir. Your protein and calorie requirements will ensure you don't eat too many carbs. Save sweets/refined carbs for after you lift on weight training days, but you can totally have soda/pastries/whatever after training as long as it fits your macros. There is nothing wrong with carbs (I think people are deluded about them because they cause water weight gain temporarily: 3-4g of water per g of carbs. It doesn't affect weight loss. I am currently cutting from 7% body fat to 5% eating 350-400g carbs on training days (will take maybe 6-8 weeks). Carbs are irrelevant if you are not eating over your TDEE).

There is a test called the MRT that will test for inflammatory responses to a variety of foods, including wheat. You may wish to look into that if you think you have food intolerances.

DarkNebula84

Try maintenance for a short time, give things a kick and then slowly reduce your cals again. I've seen plenty of people on here say they've done that after a plateau and it's started off their loss again. Good luck, I know how frustrating it is!

I Just did this and it worked. You may want to give it a try. I always thought that Plateaus happened after losing a bunch of weight but mine was at the beginning. Maybe yours is as well. Good luck!! :happy:

cazwillis99

Thanks to everyone who has given advice. I am going to start to tweak things a bit at a time because if I make too many changes in one go I won't know what is working and what isn't. This week is more cals and less crap. I seriously don't think I can eat 1600 cals a day plus any additional cals from exercise but lets see. I can't bump up my intake byneating full fat stuff because I can't stand full fat stuff. Also going to try to start 30DS too. Lets see how it goes :-)

em9371

Thanks to everyone who has given advice. I am going to start to tweak things a bit at a time because if I make too many changes in one go I won't know what is working and what isn't. This week is more cals and less crap. I seriously don't think I can eat 1600 cals a day plus any additional cals from exercise but lets see. I can't bump up my intake byneating full fat stuff because I can't stand full fat stuff. Also going to try to start 30DS too. Lets see how it goes :-)

Whatever changes you go with stick with it for a few weeks to give it a chance to work.
Nuts / peanut butter are great for increasing cals without eating loads more, or a bit of olive oil in your cooking, a handful of nuts and a teaspoon of oil will add around 400 cals!!!!

MissNations

I have no advice to add, just want to wish the OP good luck in finding the solution that works for her. You can do it!

wilson1024

Your eating WAY TOO MANY CARBS!!! You got the cals right but you need to keep to 20 - 25 carbs DAILY!!! in order to drop that weight off. My friend has gotten me on this cycle and so far in about 5 weeks I've dropped 14 lbs. She dropped 20 lbs. Lots and lots of receipes on "Linda's Low Carb Receipes" website, delicious meals!!!! But thats my advice to you Good Luck!

davidfrombc

I personally have lost 145lbs through diet and exercise. Trying to help my wife now and I found her carbs were very high. She was close to 200lbs and is 5'5, and was only eating 1500 calories a day but a good 1100-1200 (275-300 g of carbs)of that was pop and carbs.(1 carb equals about 4 caories)
She is now eating a few more calories(1800ish) but is now having protein shakes and up to about 150g of protein(600 calories) and is losing weight for the 1st time in her life. Is basically around 35%protein, 20% fat and 45% carbs as a breakdown.
You have to find what works for you because some people are much more carb sensitive than others, but as a general rule a very large percentage of people eat far to many carbs and not near enough protein.


her diet now consists of about 600 calories or 150 grams of protein(1 gram protein is about 4 calories)
about 360 calories from fat or 40 grams(1 gram of fat is about 9 calories)
about 800 calories of carbs or 200 grams of carbs(1 gram of carbs is about 4 calories)

jjsswweerrvvee00771122

I'm glad someone posted on this. I've been doing it for 3 weeks and I've only lost 1.7lb. I lost two my first week, gained 0.5lb. my second week and lost 0.2 my third week. I walk using a pedometer, and I average about 3 miles per day, but after reading the posts I see where my problem lies...I'm not getting in cardio that increases my heartrate and I'm using my calories that I'm earning from walking. I'm going to start tomorrow with trying to not use my calories. I also need to get my thyroid checked because I think that this could be my problem as well. I was diagnosed about 10 years ago with hyperthyroidism but they never put me on meds. They said that monitoring it would be fine because the numbers weren't high. I wonder if it's turned into hypothyroidism.

Sarauk2sf

Your eating WAY TOO MANY CARBS!!! You got the cals right but you need to keep to 20 - 25 carbs DAILY!!! in order to drop that weight off. My friend has gotten me on this cycle and so far in about 5 weeks I've dropped 14 lbs. She dropped 20 lbs. Lots and lots of receipes on "Linda's Low Carb Receipes" website, delicious meals!!!! But thats my advice to you Good Luck!

There is absoluely no reason that you need to be that low on carbs to lose weight.

Sarauk2sf

I'm glad someone posted on this. I've been doing it for 3 weeks and I've only lost 1.7lb. I lost two my first week, gained 0.5lb. my second week and lost 0.2 my third week. I walk using a pedometer, and I average about 3 miles per day, but after reading the posts I see where my problem lies...I'm not getting in cardio that increases my heartrate and I'm using my calories that I'm earning from walking. I'm going to start tomorrow with trying to not use my calories. I also need to get my thyroid checked because I think that this could be my problem as well. I was diagnosed about 10 years ago with hyperthyroidism but they never put me on meds. They said that monitoring it would be fine because the numbers weren't high. I wonder if it's turned into hypothyroidism.

If you are at a deficit you will lose weight. You do not need to get your heartrate up (higher intensity will burn more calories, yes, but it is not necessary). Also, 1.7lb is still a loss, and water weight variances can significantly impact weight weigh-in to weigh-in. Keep it up for a couple of weeks. If you are not losing weight, then you cannot be at a deficit - butyou need to give it more than a couple of weeks.

Not a bad idea to check your thyroid however if you hav had issues.

wackyfunster

Low intensity cardio is the best way to lose fat. High intensity creates a bigger caloric deficit, but burns less fat. Since caloric deficit can be done through diet... No point in high intensity cardio for weight loss. If you do go that route, HIIT is superior to all other forms of moderate to high intensity cardio.

Edit: resistance training is better than cardio for fat loss as well. "the best way" was referring to within the world of cardio

bethfartman

I didn't read all the responses, but it does sound like you may have a blood sugar problem. I was not loosing weight on a low calorie diet and excersicing 30-45 minutes 5+ days a week. My doctor told me I had to be working out at least an hour to be burning the excess glucose in my system and to stay away from sugar and carbs. She also put me on some medicine, metformin, to help my body to process the sugar better. Since I've cut out most of the refined sugar in my diet and upped my exercise to at least an hour 5 days a week, I've lost alot of weight in a very short time. I still eat alot of fruit, but I think that's good for me and it seems to be working for now. Good luck!